The East Bay is guilty of lousy traffic and Walnut Creek is not the worst offender but if you need to drive to Oakland, San Francisco or Berkeley for work, or really anywhere that requires using the major freeways and you’re going to be glum. It’s one of the worst areas for congestion in the country so if you can work from home, work in Walnut Creek, or take BART to work then you’re going to want to make that choice.


Traffic

The Worst Thing About Walnut Creek?

It’s hard to beat Walnut Creek’s Mediterranean climate, which except when there is a drought means mild, wet winters and warm, dry summers. It’s not as hot as the cities farther east and doesn’t get the fog of the coastal cities. That means nearly year round hiking, biking and general outdoor play. It doesn’t hurt that you get this weather amidst stunning natural landscapes. A beautiful day while nestled in the foothills of Mount Diablo just makes things that much nicer.

Climate and Setting

The Best Thing About Living in Walnut Creek

Walnut Creek has more families than another other demographic but there are some youngsters who take advantage of the small but decent selection of restaurants, pubs, cafes and shopping that make up the downtown neighborhood. That said, Walnut Creek is for sure more family-focused though and the lifestyle here is much more about little league games (soccer is big too) and burgers and shakes after. The outdoor experiences available both in-town and up on Mt Diablo and Shell Ridge make this a place where everyone has some of the best hiking, biking and camping available throughout the year. That pleasant climate means you can spend 12 months a year playing sports as a kid or a grownup.

There’s also a wonderful performing arts center, the Lesher Center for the Arts, that hosts theater events, concerts and dance performances when you want to enjoy the arts. The city also plays host to year-round Festivals, farmers’ markets, and a Summer Concert Series. Finally, the beautiful weather means that workout and fitness activities for groups are available both indoor and outdoors, where running, hiking and biking clubs enjoy fitness on the city’s trails and social play once the workout is done!

Lifestyle of Walnut Creek

Walnut Creek has amazing weather, an incredible outdoor lifestyle, is in a perfect location, has great schools, a tight-knit community and is near but not right on top of the area's big cities. All of this makes the quality of life pretty darn perfect. 


Quality of Life

Why You Should Move Here Now? 

Downtown is ground zero for social fun in Walnut Creek. It’s a mix of residential, commercial, and entertainment spots. There are upscale condos/apartments and townhouses for young professionals and empty nesters/retirees who want to live in the middle of the action. It’s a short walk from any of them to the Broadway Shopping Plaza, the city restaurants, theaters, and art galleries. You can also walk or bike to the The Lesher Center for the Arts, Civic Park, and the Farmer’s Market. For many you’re also just a mile or two from the local BART stop so commuting or visiting Oakland or SF is simple. 

Young Professionals/Families/Retirees

Downtown

Saranap is a beautiful suburban neighborhood just south of Downtown. It’s a tight-knit community with communal pools and mostly single family homes – mid-century modern, Craftsmen and cottage styles all popular. The streets are tree-lined and the area is known for its parks and recreational spots including Heather Farm Park and Larkey Park and Lindsay Wildlife Experience. These offer playgrounds, sports fields, walking trails and a community center. It’s also served by the excellent, A-rated, Walnut Creek and Acalanes Union High School Districts. It has the added benefit of being right next to Downtown so if you like a suburban vibe but easy access to the social scene  then put Saranap on your short-list. 

Families

Saranap

Located on the north side of Walnut Creek, Northgate is another wonderful family-centric neighborhood. It’s known for being part of the excellent Mount Diablo Unified School District, and the top-rated Northgate High School, Foothill Middle School and Walnut Acres Elementary School. The area is mostly single-family homes, many ranch-style, cottage and much larger contemporary styles. The homes are bigger in Northgate and the yards and tree-lined streets are as well.
 
Northgate has plenty of outdoor play options, including Heather Farm Park which has a a playground, sports fields, walking trails, a fishing pond, and a petting zoo so pretty much everything for the family. Additionally, the Boundary Oak Golf Course is nearby for the golf enthusiasts. It also has a popular community facility, the Northgate Community Park and Swim Club, where locals flock in summer months to cool off and play. 


Northgate

Walnut Creek

**How do younger people enjoy living in Walnut Creek?**

I noticed you keep asking if it's safe. It's one of the safest spots I know in the Bay Area. Moved back here this year, and I recently began walking around downtown to get some thinking time and fresh air after a lot of the shops shut down (around 10-11 pm). Never had any issues. All the homeless live under bridges instead of on the streets so you don't see them and aren't harassed by them. I grew up here and it's felt as safe as it did when I was a kid.

As for nightlife, I still go to Oakland or SF for that. Oakland is like 20-30 minutes away, and SF is a bit farther, but BART accessibility is great. There are a handful of bars and a couple of dives both in and away from downtown that I used to visit in my 20s, and I think they still get busy on the weekend if you just want to go out for some drinks in a fun noisy environment.

The brunch game is strong, good parks, a movie theater, cozy downtown with good shopping, and easy access to major freeways and BART. It's all the perks of upper-middle-class Southbay with a bigger downtown and more access to Oakland and SF.

Overall very comfortable and easy living, not super exciting, but unless you're in certain parts of SF or Oakland you're not going to get that anyway.

**How do younger people enjoy living in Walnut Creek?**

No SF is not the only place for singles haha. I’ve lived in the east bay my whole life and I would say Walnut Creek is a good place for someone your age to date around. Keep in mind that the cities in the east bay are very close to each other. So it wouldn’t be hard to, for example, meet and date someone in SF or Oakland etc, while you live in Walnut but creek.

You may actually like Oakland more that Walnut Creek. But it has more crime.

I’ve seen a lot of discussion here that it is a suburb but it’s not a traditional family only suburb kind of place — if that makes sense. And especially if you live near downtown.

Actual suburbs I wouldn’t recommend for dating like would be San Ramon, dublin pleasant hill.

**Moving to Walnut Creek**

Congrats on your Bay Area move! I relocated here four years ago and chose Walnut Creek as well. I also work in the city. I’ve since moved to Berkeley, but I enjoyed my time in WC. Here’s a quick pros and cons list of living in Walnut Creek and working in SF.

Pros:

WC is relatively clean, quiet and safe.

The schools are decent.

A lot of good shopping, ok food options.

Mount Diablo is insanely scenic.

Very mild winters.

Cons:

The commute. If you drive, crossing bay bridge alone can sometimes take 45+ minutes. You also have to pay 7 bucks every day. A lot of people choose BART (myself included), but that has its own set of downsides. The trains will often have delays. And you likely won’t get a seat, so you’ll need to stand for about an hour. Net-net BART is the easier option, IMO.

Weather: I don’t mind warm weather, but WC gets hot. Like really hot. The last summer I lived in WC, there was a heat wave where temps went north of 110 degrees.

Oh, and Avalon apartments are decent.

Hope this helps!

**Should I move to Walnut Creek?**

26m living in Danville. Lived here my whole life minus some years up in Oregon (my grandparents are in Rossmoor too). I go to grad school for urban planning in SF and have most of my friends in the city. I do have a few remaining in Walnut Creek who live in the apts in WC. I think my perspective can be of some assistance as a fellow young person who has a solid understanding the area.

Of the suburb cities in greater Diablo Valley Walnut Creek is by far the most urban. There's a walkable downtown with a good bar mix. The shops are definitely bougie the closer you get downtown. I personally feel the sensation that I'm walking through a city form of a mall. But, you can still get wasted at relatively affordable bars and shop at target on Ygnacio. There's some good cougars too who just got divorced, which is nice. There's also good people out here, which is better.

You're close to Bart and can zip into Oakland/Berkeley/SF fairly easily. There's also a free bus shuttle into downtown WC from Bart you can take advantage of.

Housing is relatively diverse for the area, with a mix of affordable - luxury units. Depending on price range you can find a spot easily. Some extremely affordable units opened up near the WC library that is close to downtown. They are also adding mixed use upzoned towers constantly (complexes with like a burger joint or a hair salon at the bottom), particularly close to Bart, which is an extremely dope thing to see as a a planner. Like others have posted, you can get a spot on the Pleasant Hill/WC border affordably if needed, tho not necessary.

If you're active, WC runs directly adjacent to Mount Diablo. You can access trails (if you know where you are going) directly from downtown. You're also close to Briones, which is a cool spot.

For your purposes, of the potential town/suburb cities, it's the closest to Rossmoor, while also being relatively young people friendly.

I'm presuming you might also be looking Lafayette. It is closer to Rossmoor, but much less young people friendly, tho it is starting a change gradually. Not as much housing options, while also being extremely family oriented. Prices are inflated, tho it does have BART access, which is nice.

I wouldn't look at Alamo or Danville. It's bougie af out here and also not that cool for a young person. San Ramon is basically shitty WC. They're building a weird af downtown from nothing, which is extremely whack.

WC is your best bet if staying in greater Diablo is a priority for you. Oakland/Berkeley/SF are much cooler to be for a young person, but also cost restrictive. Being near BART, tho an imperfect transit system, makes it much easier to get into the downtowns where you'll be able to have more fun. WC baby!

Walnut Creek, California

Arroyo de las Nueces

Looklyloo Score: 89

Downtown

Young Professionals/Families/Retirees

Saranap

Families

Northgate

Families