Danville (California)
Danville is in Contra Costa County in the San Francisco Bay Area, just south of Mount Diablo.
Get in
By car
Interstate 680 is the only highway through the town of Danville. From Oakland, take Highway 24 east through the Caldecott tunnel, then follow 680 south from Walnut Creek. From the South Bay, take 680 north.
Get around
Danville is small enough that most of the downtown area can be accessed on foot. However, the town is spread out enough that moving from one area to another will require a car. There is essentially no public transit within the town.
See
- 🌍
Blackhawk Automotive Museum. A showpiece museum in the Blackhawk Plaza area.
- 🌍
Eugene O'Neill Tao House, ☎ +1 925 838-0249. By reservation only:. After you make a reservation a bus will pick you up and shuttle you to the Tao House. Nestled in the hills of Danville and overlooking a vast expanse of 680 acres, Tao House was the home of American playwright Eugene O'Neill. O'Neill, who is the only American playwright to receive the Nobel Prize, is best known for his startling use of dramatic realism, which is mostly associated with the Russian and Scandinavian stage. Most of O'Neill's work focuses on people on the fringes of society or on his own unhappy life. Interesting for visitors to Tao House, O'Neill employed feng shui (decades before it was trendy) in the design of the house, where he lived from 1937 until 1944. His intention was to write a cycle of eleven plays based on one American family while at the house. Instead, his chronic depression and alcoholism worsened and he was unable to complete the cycle. Still, three of his best-known and more personal plays, The Iceman Cometh, Long Day's Journey into Night, and A Moon for the Misbegotten, were written at Tao House.
- 🌍 Museum of the San Ramon Valley. A local area history museum is housed in the old train depot on Railroad Avenue in the Downtown area.
Do
- 🌍 Iron Horse Trail. Formerly the railroad for the Southern Pacific railroad, the Iron Horse Trail is a paved multi-use trail that runs through downtown Danville, down to Dublin in the south and Concord in the north.
- 🌍
Las Trampas Regional Wilderness. Many residential streets in west Danville provide direct access to Las Trampas Regional Wilderness, a 5,342-acre regional park that spans Contra Costa and Alameda counties.
- 🌍 Osage Station Park, Brookside Drive. The site of many youth soccer and baseball games, Osage is home to a running track, memorial rose garden, playground and fountains, and expansive views of Mt. Diablo.
- 🌍 Sycamore Valley Park, Camino Tassajara. The park has 3 lanes to play boche ball, a playground, and artificial turf fields, as well as access to hiking trails.
Buy
Danville has a quaint downtown with interesting shops and eateries. In the Blackhawk area, a large shopping mall, 🌍 Blackhawk Plaza, fancies high-end shops, excellent restaurants, and the Blackhawk Auto Museum.
Eat
While good ethnic cuisines are available around town, the best eateries lean towards Western cuisine.
In Downtown on Hartz Avenue, there are high-end dining options like 🌍 The Peasant and the Pear, 🌍 Bridges, and 🌍 Faz eateries. If you are looking for a local favorite, you might want to try 🌍 Dominico's or 🌍 Pete's Brass Rail for lunch, which are more affordable. The area near San Ramon Valley High School features many simple budget options for lunch. Mid range options include Chow, Basil Leaf Cafe and Thai House Restaurant.
High end dining options are also available outside of the downtown area. The Livery, a plaza just south of downtown, is host to 🌍 Forbes Mill, a steakhouse. Just over the I-680 freeway from the Livery is 🌍 Cafe Esin. 🌍 Blackhawk Grille is a staple in Blackhawk Plaza.
Drink
- 🌍 Elliott's Bar, 369 Hartz Avenue. A local watering-hole that was established in 1907. It has cheap domestic beer, shuffleboard, and a patio in the back.
- Pete's Brass Rail, 201 Hartz Avenue. Large selection of beers with food available as well. (See the preceding Eat section for more information about places to eat in Danville.)
- 🌍 That Bar (McGah's), 148 East Prospect Avenue. Lively piano bar.
Sleep
- 🌍 Best Western Danville Sycamore Inn, 803 Camino Ramon, ☎ +1 925 855-8888, toll-free: +1-877-449-8888, fax: +1 925 855-8889.
Go next
- Mount Diablo State Park is a 20,000-acre park borders Danville to the north and provides great hiking opportunities on a mountain that dominates the landscape for most of central and eastern Contra Costa County. It offers an incredible viewshed, with views on clear days stretching 181 miles to Mount Lassen.
- Pleasanton is a city with a historic downtown area and restaurants, somewhat like Danville.
- Livermore is the largest city in the Tri-Valley, with several internationally-known wineries like Wente and Concannon Vineyards.
| Routes through Danville |
| Concord ← Alamo ← | N  |
→ San Ramon → San Jose |