Plan your next trip to Los Gatos, California, where visitors can shop and dine at some of the best and most scenic locations the Bay Area has to offer!
Stroll down the friendly streets of our historic and charming Downtown, enjoy the natural beauty of our many parks or famous Los Gatos Creek Trail, or take advantage of the fun and engaging events that take place year round.
“To see Los Gatos is to love the town,” Sunset Magazine gushed in 1915, and it’s much the same in the 21st century. With the Santa Cruz Mountains as a backdrop and a downtown that revels in its historic architecture, Los Gatos is big enough to give you plenty to do, whether you go for the day with a date, or an entire weekend with your family! We hope you come see what we have to offer!
Why Should You Go? Will You Like Los Gatos?
Los Gatos is popular for shopping, fine dining, and outdoor activities. It has one of the area’s prettiest, best-preserved downtowns, making it popular with locals and visitors alike and it also happens to be an excellent base for wine tasting in the Santa Cruz Mountains.
Where Is Los Gatos?
Los Gatos is located 52 miles from San Francisco, 126 miles from Sacramento and about 225 miles from Lake Tahoe. If you live in San Francisco or on the Peninsula, consider a scenic drive home along Hwy 9 and 35 instead of speeding back up the freeway. If you’re flying in, I would recommend flying into SFO and then renting a car to enjoy the scenic drive.
Best Time to Go to Los Gatos
Los Gatos weather is generally better than in the foggier areas around it. It’s just far enough from the ocean and bay to have clearer skies but stays cooler than flatter portions of the surrounding area.
6 Great Things to Do in Los Gatos
-
Wine Tasting:
Grab a designated driver for a drive through redwood forests to visit some of the Santa Cruz Mountain wineries. Just above town on the mountainside, Testarossa Vineyards runs California’s fourth-oldest, continuously-operating winery.
-
Pamper Yourself:
Get a massage, facial or a coddling body treatment at Cure or at Spa Los Gatos, one of the nicest day spas I’ve ever been to! Not far away on Los Gatos Blvd., Yoga Source voted “best area yoga studio,” offers a relaxing, restorative yin yoga class on Sundays, along with a wide array of other practices.
-
Active Outdoors:
The Los Gatos Creek Trail passes through town, affording plenty of opportunities for walking, running and bicycling on a paved path that follows the pretty little creek from Lexington Reservoir past Vasona Lake.
-
Shopping:
The town council keeps a tight rein on business development, selecting retailers who enhance the atmosphere and holding down the number of chain stores. Shops lining Santa Cruz Avenue, Main Street and University Avenue include The Indian Store (Native American art), In the Old Manner (new versions of elegant vintage clothing) and Domus (housewares). And if you’re in for a little high-end window-shopping, you can fantasize outside the Rolls Royce, Bentley and Lamborghini dealerships, all in the middle of town. The charming Los Gatos Theatre is a great place to enjoy the latest film you’ve intended to see. It boasts a classic marquee and a newly-renovated interior decorated in classic art deco style.
-
Fun With the Kids:
Oak Meadow Park (University Ave at Blossom Hill Rd) is home to the Billy Jones Wildcat Railroad and the W.E. “Bill” Mason Carousel. At nearby Vasona Lake, you can rent paddle boats and rowboats from early spring through early fall.
-
Indulge Your Inner Foodie:
Read more about dining options in my previous blog post. Sur La Table offers weekly cooking classes and every week the Farmers Market downtown is one of the area’s best. You can also indulge your gourmet sweet tooth at one of my personal favorites, Fleur de Cocoa.
Where to Stay?
Hotel Los Gatos takes top honors among reviewers at tripadvisor.com, along with more affordable Garden Inn Hotel. Both are downtown, so I recommend comparing prices to get the best deal.
Los Gatos, California is just as family-friendly as it is beautiful. If you want to take in the scenic beauty of nature while also keeping your children entertained, Los Gatos is the place to do so. With places for children to play and activities that are fun of the whole family, Los Gatos truly has it all!
