The Bay Area is a region that embraces its uniqueness, and within its region each city and town strives to exemplify their own unique character. But there is one city in the south bay that stands out and it is known as Gilroy.
Gilroy is approximately 25 miles south from San Jose, California and about 80 miles south from San Francisco. Gilroy has great freeway access to the entire Bay Area, Santa Cruz region, Salinas Valley and Central Valley. Its great location has made Gilroy one of the fastest growing community in the Silicon Valley.
Gilroy is not simply a suburb. In this small city there is a unique balance between a peaceful residential environment, an agricultural environment, and an urban environment. There is definitely more crops and fields than office buildings but Gilroy knows how to keep the people coming.
Gilroy has a historic downtown with rising activity in its restaurants and small business shops. There is a farmers market with locally grown produce. In the summer there are food trucks and an annual car show with live music.
There are multiple wineries in Gilroy that serve great for wine tasting, unwinding, and special events.
Gilroy is home to outstanding golf courses and conveniently located to exclusive golf courses such as the CordeValle.
People from all over the world come to Gilroy to shop at the Gilroy Premium Outlets. The outlets offer 25-65% discounts on 145 store brands.
In Gilroy you can take your family on a trip to Gilroy Gardens Family Theme Park. This year they have a special Lumination event celebrating Chinese culture through artistry and light displays. It is a beautiful amusement park with over 20 rides, attractions, a water park, beautiful gardens and uniquely shaped trees.
Finally there's the Gilroy Garlic Festival, perhaps Gilroy's most treasured attraction. Every year in the last weekend of July over 4,000 volunteers join forces to host this three day event.
There's something for everybody and the food fair the cherry on top. Garlic is the specialty of course who cares about garlicky breath when the whole town is living it up with live entertainment, cooking competitions, beer tasting, dancing and much more.
Gilroy might not be the biggest city in the Bay Area, but it truly captures its unique features and diverse community.