This is the largest plaza in California, and the veritable center for politics, love and community in the Sonoma Valley. Smack in the center of the plaza, the Mission Revival–style city hall, built 1906–08, has identical facades on four sides, reportedly because plaza businesses all demanded City Hall face their direction. At the plaza’s northeast corner, the Bear Flag Monument marks Sonoma’s moment of revolutionary glory. The weekly farmers market (5:30pm to 8pm Tuesdays, April to October) showcases Sonoma’s incredible produce.
Sonoma Plaza
Top choice in Sonoma
Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
28.27 MILES
Muir Woods National Monument is located just a few miles north of San Francisco in Marin County, and is a prime peaceful destination for reflection within…
29.53 MILES
This 2079-acre park, up in the hills east of town, is Berkeley’s best. It has nearly 40 miles of hiking and multiuse trails of varying difficulty, from…
11.8 MILES
At the valley’s westernmost edge, where sloping vineyards meet wooded hillsides, Tres Sabores is a portal to old Napa – no fancy tasting room, no snobbery…
John Muir National Historic Site
27.32 MILES
Naturalist John Muir's former residence sits in a pastoral patch of farmland in bustling, modern Martinez. Though Muir wrote of sauntering the Sierra…
28.89 MILES
For its creamy and crisp chardonnays and earthy pinots, along with top-notch service and an elegant tasting room, Macrostie is the talk of Wine Country…
11.26 MILES
The fabulous hillside tasting room, constructed of stone, redwood and teak, resembles a small cathedral – fitting, given the sacred status here bestowed…
4.84 MILES
Art-lovers: don’t miss Hess Collection, whose galleries display mixed-media and large-canvas works, including pieces by Francis Bacon and Robert…
2.08 MILES
California's oldest family-run winery looks like a castle but has a down-to-earth vibe. Founded in 1858 by a Bavarian immigrant, its signatures are…
Nearby Sonoma attractions
0.05 MILES
This bronze sculpture, created in 1914, features a man standing on a rock and holding a flag to commemorate the Bear Flag Revolt. The revolt took place…
0.08 MILES
Toscano Hotel opened as a store and library in the 1850s, then became a hotel in 1886. Peek into the lobby and, except for the traffic outside, you’d…
0.09 MILES
The adobe Sonoma Barracks was built by Vallejo between 1834 and 1841 to house Mexican troops. Today, interpretive displays describe life during the…
4. Mission San Francisco Solano
0.11 MILES
At Sonoma Plaza’s northeast corner, the mission was built in 1823, partly to forestall Russians at Fort Ross from moving inland. This was the 21st and…
0.11 MILES
This park in Sonoma is comprised of multiple sites, most side by side. Founded in 1823, Mission San Francisco Solano anchors the plaza, and was the final…
6. Sonoma Valley Museum of Art
0.13 MILES
The 8000-sq-ft modern- and contemporary-art museum presents changing exhibitions by international and local artists, and focuses on building community…
0.15 MILES
When you’re in downtown Sonoma and don’t feel like fighting traffic, Hawkes' refreshingly unfussy tasting room showcases meaty Cabernet Sauvignon from…
0.17 MILES
At this collective in a converted foundry, you can tour a storefront gallery and meet the artists – sculptor, potter and painters – in their studios.