quality of life - 7/28/2013

I love Sonoma. Moved here from Texas and I can't wait to live in this small town with country living all around. I hate all the drama and crime in Vallejo. I live in Vallejo for now until we find a place. I hate the crime and unsafe city. I love the quit and safe small town to raise my son. I'm tired of all the diversity in cities...it causes more crime, drugs, and gangs. I don't care if its expensive, that keeps out the bad and the crime. Love the wine and flat land. Great country living.

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If you like village life, you'll like the town of - 2/7/2011

I have lived in Sonoma for 3 years now. I relocated after a brief stint in Salt Lake City but lived in San Francisco for 30 years before that. If you like small town life this is the place for you. Sonoma is located in Sonoma County, one of the most beautiful places on earth. It's difficult to find employment in this county even if you're in the food and wine industry, which I am not. Having lived in cities all my life, I find Sonoma to be too quiet. Although it's a convenient 50 minute drive to S.F., I find myself going there less than I thought I would. The town of Sonoma skews older with lots of retirees. You pay dearly for every minute you live in this beautiful place. Housing is expensive (think over a half million for a little bungalow in town) as is the overall cost of living...can you say $80 haircuts and $3/lb organic veggies? The weather is almost perfect. Winters can be rainy but are almost always punctuated with sunny days. In January, I was working in my garden, pruning fruit trees and doing cleanup because Spring comes in late February or eary March. This February the weather has been unseasonable warm...in the 70's while the rest of the country has been frozen. It's a beautiful place to retire if you have a lot of money but too quiet for me. Very well situated being almost equal distance to the wine country town of Napa or the riverfront town of Petaluma. Seems like it would be hard to sustain a high standard of living here unless you have lots of dough.

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Best Climate & Best Air Quality - 11/5/2010

The best aspects of living in Sonoma County,CA: Air quality is best that one can ask for and there is no severe weather. No hazardous weather driving or walking conditions.

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living in Sonoma for 6 months now... - 7/22/2010

Coming from SF and Marin, Sonoma has a small town feel surrounded by vineyards and hills...its got great weather and its pretty much flat everywhere, great for bike riding! But that's it, there is no diversity in this town...just the average Joe with tons of dough going to town for a steak and beer. The culture is weak and everything is mostly based on wine, wine making, grapes, vineyards, tasting rooms, etc...Very seasonal too. Its fun for a weekend but that's all the town has to offer! its just too gentrified, like a Disneyland for adults. I can't wait to move back to Marin

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living in Sonoma for 6 months now... - 7/22/2010

Coming from SF and Marin, Sonoma has a small town feel surrounded by vineyards and hills...its got great weather and its pretty much flat everywhere, great for bike riding! But that's it, there is no diversity in this town...just the average Joe with tons of dough going to town for a steak and beer. The culture is weak and everything is mostly based on wine, wine making, grapes, vineyards, tasting rooms, etc...Very seasonal too. Its fun for a weekend but that's all the town has to offer! its just too gentrified, like a Disneyland for adults. I can't wait to move back to Marin

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living in Sonoma for 6 months now... - 7/22/2010

Coming from SF and Marin, Sonoma has a small town feel surrounded by vineyards and hills...its got great weather and its pretty much flat everywhere, great for bike riding! But that's it, there is no diversity in this town...just the average Joe with tons of dough going to town for a steak and beer. The culture is weak and everything is mostly based on wine, wine making, grapes, vineyards, tasting rooms, etc...Very seasonal too. Its fun for a weekend but that's all the town has to offer! its just too gentrified, like a Disneyland for adults. I can't wait to move back to Marin

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Small town,USA - 6/22/2010

Sonoma has its charm if you come on weekends for wine tasting or wondering around the vineyards but that's about it! There's no diversity here, just white people mostly grape growers,farmers,etc driving BIG pick up truck or Soccer moms with kids. The only change is nice homes owned by white folks are further with town like Aqua Calliente where more Latinos live. It is pretty boring except if you like to drink, and this area will make you drink as there's not a lot to do. So I moved here because I could rent a home for the price of my apartment in Marin but I miss the ocean and the proximity of San Francisco to go out at night without having to booze constantly!!!! And last but not least, although being only 35 minutes North of SF, there's a good amount of rednecks around which I thought you'd have to go further away from SF to find them, pretty pathetic if you ask me. So all in all, I can't wait to go back to the Bay.

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Diversity - 8/24/2009

My husband and I have lived in the small town of Sonoma for five years. Although it is a gorgeous Valley with distinct landmarks, the lack of cultural diversity is a challenge. Thankfully it is close to SF and the folks here are interested in change. I teach West African dance, which has been a huge success. Perhaps more cutting edge theatre would help.

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Great Place - one drawback - 3/6/2008

Great people, great politics, endless beauty, but lots of pollens.

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Beautiful place, lacking in diversity - 11/27/2006

Sonoma is a beautiful place to live. The people are friendly and there is a real small-town feel here. One negative is the lack of diversity.

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Great For Kids And Dogs And Some Adults Too ;) - 6/9/2006

Sonoma, Calif and the surrounding environs is an interesting and diverse place. There are good schools and parks, decent shopping, a few junk food places, lots of good dining at all points on the scale, from Irish pub to elegant Italian. Of course the wineries are world famous, stating with Sebastiani, but with numberous others as well. The commute to San Francisco can be trying at times, as is typical of the San Frnacisco metropolitan area in general. It is approximately 50 miles from Sonoma Plaza to the Golden Gate Bridge, andthat drive can be anywhere from 45 minute to 2 hours depending upon the time of day. Decent public transportation is available, if you work normal business hours in The City. To be fair, there are a few problem spots. There is a large Hispanic population, meaning that there is a share of illegals stressing the facilities and services, and some intermittant gang related problems. But the community is working hard to keep Sonoma a good place for people of all backgrounds.

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Wine country - 6/1/2005

Sonoma, Ca is located 50miles north of San Francisco. It's a beautiful valley, but not for people with allergies. The valley heats up in the summer-time about 5-8 degrees warmer that the surrounding areas. The schools are good. The housing is overpriced and the traffic is terrible.

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