Fairfax (California)

Fairfax is a cute little town nestled in the hills of Marin County in the San Francisco Bay Area of California. Though small, it's surprisingly lively and has kept its historic charm.

Get in

Fairfax is accessible by bus, automobile, and bicycle.

If you're coming from the west side (towns like Inverness or Lagunitas), the West Marin Stagecoach runs several times a day.

From the east side (San Anselmo and further), Golden Gate Transit runs regular bus service.

Get around

Downtown is small enough, only a few blocks, that you can easily walk end-to-end.

If you're a cycling enthusiast, Fairfax is a gateway to a lot of really great road and off-road biking. From the famed "Repack" mountain bike trail to the single-track at Camp Tamarancho, to the wide-shouldered roads of West Marin County, Fairfax makes a great starting or ending point for two wheeled exercise.

See

Fairfax is a town with a population of only a little over 7400 people, but it has a couple of venues that have live music seven nights a week, and several others that have live music slightly less often. Some of the groups you'll see perform here are up-and-comers that you'll recognize later on the radio, others are older more seasoned bands that performers you've heard of come to listen to. See the Drink section below for the venues.

  • 🌍 Marin Museum of Bicycling, 1966 Sir Francis Drake Blvd, ☏ +1-415-450-8000. Th–Su 11AM–5PM. Adults $10, seniors/military/disabled $8, youths 12–17 and students $5, children 6–11 $3, children 5 and under free. 

Do

During the daytime the mountain biking, road biking and hiking are all spectacular. If you get tired out in the woods and trails around the town, sitting and chatting at Fairfax Coffee Roasters or the Fairfix Cafe makes a reasonable interlude.

At night the live music venues or the theater are open.

Buy

Fairfax has an active business district, with several bicycle shops, a book store, a music store, and various other clothing and esoterica vendors. On Wednesday nights in season it also has a farmer's market in the park off Bolinas Avenue.

Eat

Drink

During prohibition, Fairfax was the last town on the commuter rail from San Francisco, and the closest town to Bolinas out on the coast, and the tradition of liquor and nightlife still survives. Fairfax is home to a brew pub and several bars with lots of live music.

  • 🌍 19 Broadway, 17 Broadway Blvd, ☏ +1 415-459-0293. Full bar with tiki lounge, lots of hard rock (although on some Sunday afternoons Dori & Dave have an open mic with lots of hip jazz favorites). (updated Nov 2016)
  • 🌍 Peri's, 29 Broadway. Live music, often ends up being a little more country. (updated Nov 2016)
  • Nave's. Occasional live music 

Sleep
  • Fairfax Inn, 15 Broadway, ☏ +1 415 455-8702. The only hotel in Fairfax. A little pricey, but comfortable and equipped with a jacuzzi in each room. 

Go next

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