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From San Francisco International Airport to Sonoma


About 60 miles, plan on a drive of one and a half hours or more depending on traffic.

San Francisco International Airport (SFO)
North McDonnell Road & South Airport Boulevard
Between South San Francisco and San Mateo, CA
(650)-821-8211 Airport Information (Recording)
(650)-876-2377 Airport Paging (Recording)
(650)-877-0422 Airport Travel Agency

www.flysfo.com

This route takes you via 19th Avenue to the Golden Gate Bridge.

Exit the Airport onto Highway 101 North to Highway 380 West to Highway 280 North. Follow scenic Highway 280 to San Francisco and take the 19th Avenue Exit lane.

Follow 19th Avenue, moving into the right lane which will flow into Park Presidio Blvd. and onto the Golden Gate Bridge.

On 101 North you'll go through the "rainbow" tunnel and down the hill into Marin County. After about 20 minutes, after you pass San Rafael, on the right you'll see the huge pink Marin Civic Center with the blue roofs, designed by Frank Lloyd Wright.

After another several miles through the rolling hills of Marin County, the highway will flatten out as you enter Novato. Look for the signs for Highway 37 East toward Napa and Vallejo. Pass by the Ignacio exit and take the Highway 37 East exit. For 6 miles Highway 37 is pretty much a straight-away with one bridge over the Petaluma River and two sets of stoplights further on.

After the bridge, the first set of traffic lights is at a four-way stop in the middle of flat, hayfield farmland. Keep going straight past these lights on Highway 37 East.

Soon you will reach the rising slope to the Highway 121 exit to Sonoma and the second set of traffic lights. Be sure to stay in the left-hand turn lane and turn left. Missing this left turn can lead to Vallejo. You'll pass the newly named Infineon Raceway (previously called Sears Point Raceway) then in another few miles, three of our southern Sonoma Valley wineries.

After you pass the Sonoma Valley Airport, on the right you'll see some eclectic metal sculptures. Here is a junction where most get confused as the signage is not very helpful.

As you approach the gas station and the deli on the left, and the stop sign ahead, the road forks. The right-hand fork bends to the right, and the left-hand one leads to a stop sign. Be sure to follow the road as it bends to the right to reach downtown Sonoma You'll still be on Highway 121.

Just for your information, if you didn't go right, and continued through the stop sign, you'd be on Highway 116 which further along bends to the left to the city of Petaluma and going straight turns into Arnold Drive going north toward Glen Ellen.

If you miss the turn to the right, don't worry. Just continue on to the stop sign and turn right.

Continue for just a half mile. You'll see a huge billboard on the right advertising a local winery. Look for the sign that tells you Highway 12 to Sonoma (downtown) is just ahead and look for the left-hand turn lane. Turn left onto Highway 12 and follow it all the way into the town of Sonoma.

This section of Highway 12 is called Broadway . About a half-mile you'll pass a plant nursery on the left, then in the next mile, a set of stoplights and a palm-tree studded hotel. Further on is Sonoma Valley High School on the right. The historic Sonoma Plaza is just four blocks ahead at the T-intersection and the end of Broadway.

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