Tracy is a city in California's San Joaquin Valley.
Understand
[edit]Tracy is situated in a triangle made by Interstate 205, Interstate 580, and Interstate 5. It is around an hour or two from pretty much every single major city in Northern California (except Fresno), and around 350 miles from Los Angeles. Geographically, Tracy is located at the western end of the Central Valley and the northeastern end of the Diablo Range.Tracy is most famous for railroads, agriculture, and wineries.
Get in
[edit]By car
[edit]Tracy gets a lot of traffic to and from the Bay Area, as the Altamont Pass, west of Tracy is a choke point between the Central Valley and the Bay Area, and I-580 there is pretty much the only freeway that goes to the Bay Area. Please plan your drives to Tracy between the hours of 4-7PM if you are coming from the Bay Area, and 6-10AM if you are coming from the San Joaquin Valley, as rush-hour traffic caused by people going to work or home occurs at these times.
On I-680 south, take exit 21B for SR-84 East, then drive 10.5 miles to I-580 east, and then drive over the Altamont Pass to Tracy. From there, you can go to I-205 to Tracy Boulevard or Eleventh Street, or I-580 to Corral Hollow Road and Tracy Hills.
On I-680 north, take exit 30A for I-580 east, then do the same as the last route.
From Sacramento or Stockton
[edit]From I-5 South, exit on either 458B (I-205) or 458A (I-205 BUS, Eleventh Street) to enter the city.
From State Route 99 South, take exit 241 for State Route 120 west, then take Exit 1A to I-5 South. Then do the same as the last route.
From Modesto, Merced, Fresno, Bakersfield, or Los Angeles
[edit]From I-5 North, either take exit 446 to I-580 (outside city, also leads to the Bay Area) or exit 458A to Eleventh Street (in city).
From State Route 99 North, take exit 226 to State Route 132 and travel 10-20 miles to either exit 3B to I-5 North or to I-580 to south Tracy or the Bay Area.
By train
[edit]The Altamont Corridor Express (ACE) Train connects the densely populated Bay Area to the San Joaquin Valley, and it has a stop in Tracy. The ACE Train connects San Jose to Stockton
- 1 Tracy Station, 4800 S. Tracy Blvd. $12-$25.
The ACE Train does four round-trips on weekdays only, excluding holidays, as it is a commuter train. Also because it is a commuter train, the train only goes westbound (Stockton to San Jose) in the morning and does the opposite (San Jose to Stockton) in the evening.
By air
[edit]The 2 Tracy Municipal Airport is for general aviation. The closest airport with commercial flights is Stockton Metropolitan Airport in Stockton, which receives flights from Las Vegas, Denver, and Phoenix. The Bay Area has airports in San Francisco, Oakland, and San Jose.
Get around
[edit]Tracy Boulevard and Corral Hollow Road goes through Tracy north-south, along with Interstate 205, which runs east-west to the north of the city, and I-205 BUS (Eleventh Street) east-west through the city.
See
[edit]
- 1 Clifton Court Forebay, 5050 Clifton Court Rd. Giant body of water north of Tracy.
- 2 Tracy Historical Museum, 1141 Adam St, ☏ +1 209-832-7278. Free Admission.
Do
[edit]- 1 Tracy Golf and Country Club, 35200 S Chrisman Rd, ☏ +1 209-835-9463. 7AM-7PM. 18-hole golf course. $45-70.
- 2 Old River Golf Course, 18007 South MacArthur Dr, ☏ +1 209 830-8585.
- 3 Legacy Fields Sports Complex, 4901 N Tracy Blvd, ☏ +1 209-831-6201. Sports complex with baseball and soccer fields.
Buy
[edit]- 1 West Valley Mall, 3200 Naglee Rd, ☏ +1 209 836-4091. A mall with 94 stores and restaurants.
Eat
[edit]- 1 Tracy Thai Restaurant, 1035 N Central Ave, ☏ +1 209-833-9703. M-F 11AM-3PM and 5-9PM, Sa Su noon-9PM. $10-20.
- 2 Town and Country Cafe, 27 West 10th Street, ☏ +1 209-835-6751. $10-20.
- 3 Upper Room, 130 W 11th St (Suite B), ☏ +1 209-699-3006. $20-30.
- 4 The Station, 600 N Central Ave, ☏ +1 209-207-9335. Tu-F 11 AM–9 PM, Su 11AM–6PM, M closed. $10-$20.
- 5 Amazing Kitchen, 2211 N Tracy Blvd, ☏ +1 209-835-3888. $10-20.
Drink
[edit]Sleep
[edit]- 1 Microtel Inn & Suites Tracy, 861 West Clover Rd, ☏ +1 209-229-1201, fax: +1 209 229-1202.
- 2 Best Western Luxury Inn, 811 Clover Rd, ☏ +1 209-832-0271, toll-free: +1 877-468-7229, fax: +1 209 832-0388.
- 3 Fairfield Inn Tracy, 2410 Naglee Rd, ☏ +1 209-833-0135, fax: +1 209 833-0135.
- 4 Holiday Inn Express Hotel & Suites, 3751 N. Tracy Blvd, ☏ +1 209-830-8500.
- 5 Super 8 (formerly a Motel 6), 3810 North Tracy Blvd, ☏ +1 209 319-1546.
- 6 Home2 Suites, 2025 W Grant Line Rd, ☏ +1 209-407-4663.
Go next
[edit]- Pleasanton and Livermore are towns in the Livermore Valley, just over the hills from Tracy on I-580. Livermore is the closest to Tracy, while Pleasanton is farther away to the west. Both of the towns have fairly large populations approaching 100,000, hiking opportunities in the Diablo Range, and mark the eastern edge of the East Bay.
- Stockton is 15 minutes along Interstate 5 north from Tracy. It's close to the Sacramento Delta, a low-lying region to the west of Stockton.
- Sacramento is 60 miles north on Interstate 5 and about an hour away, if there is no traffic. It's the capital city of California, and has a growing metropolitan area that extends northeast toward the Sierra Range.
- San Francisco is on I-580 west; it's about 1 hour away if there's no traffic (which is basically never), and up to 3 hours during peak hours, which are usually 6-10AM and 3-7PM on weekdays. Being one of the most popular tourist destinations in the world, it really doesn't need a description, but among the most important sights are the Golden Gate Bridge and Pier 39. Make sure you allow a lot of time during peak hours when getting to the city.
- To get to San Jose, take I-580 west to California Route 84 in Livermore. Then go south on Route 84 past Livermore and over the hills to I-680, and then take I-680 south. San Jose is about 1 hour to 2 hours from Tracy, depending on the traffic.
| Routes through Tracy |
| Sacramento ← Lathrop ← | N  S
|
→ Patterson → Los Angeles |
| Oakland ← Livermore ← | W  E
|
→ END |
| END ← | N  S
|
→ Westley → Coalinga |
| San Jose ← Livermore ← | SW  NE
|
→ Lathrop/Manteca → Stockton |