Welcome to Fresno

Fresno is rich with a variety of arts and entertainment experiences ranging from cultural and local options to Broadway performances and big-name performers.

The Art Hop scene features local artists and photographers, including faculty and residents at UCSF Fresno. Local museums celebrate the art, culture and diversity of California’s San Joaquin Valley residents as well as showcase modern and contemporary art.

Intimate and bigger venues such as the Save Mart Center at Fresno State, the William Saroyan Theater, Fresno Convention Center and Exhibit Hall and many more feature local performances and music, traveling attractions as well as popular internationally and nationally known shows and performers.

With so much to choose from, Fresno offers the best in arts and entertainment that is sure to appeal to those with the most sophisticated tastes to the casual, laid-back types.

Fresno is known for being at the center of Valley agriculture. Being centrally located, we are able to stay true to our word in providing the freshest fruits, vegetables, dairy, and meat in restaurants. You can find plenty of locally sourced food venues throughout town.

There is also a large variety in the types of food you can find. From taco trucks to gourmet, there is a little bit of all kinds of food from around the world found right in town.

When you plant roots in Fresno, you do so knowing that some of the best education is available. Aside from the consistently top-ranked UCSF School of Medicine's regional campus in Fresno,  Fresno State, Fresno Pacific University, and the University of California, Merced offer opportunities for outstanding post-secondary education and academic partnerships.

The Fresno/Clovis area offers thriving K-12 educational systems with public and private education options. Fresno Unified School District is California’s fourth largest school district and with 76 different languages represented emulates the community’s rich diversity. Clovis Unified schools have been honored more than 100 times as California Distinguished Schools (Currently California Blue Ribbon Schools). One of only a handful of districts in California to be named an Honor Roll School District by California Businesses for Excellence in Education,  CUSD is also the only school district in the nation to have all five of its intermediate schools designated as Taking Center Stage – Schools to Watch. In the past 15 years Clovis Unified School District has received over 600 League, Valley, State and National Athletic Championships.

Fresno families have plenty to do in the area. Plenty of family-friendly events occur in North Fresno at Woodward Park where you can also enjoy a nice picnic with lake-view. The local water parks are also great for families to enjoy during the summer and for over 75 years, Fresno residents have enjoyed the splendor of Christmas Tree Lane in Old Fig Garden.

The Chaffee Zoo has also become a fantastic family spot with their year-round events and newly added Safari Adventure.

Across town, in the neighboring City of Clovis, the small town community spirit and pioneering history of the city is exemplified by events such as Big Hat Days and Clovis Rodeo, which has been held on the last weekend in April every year since 1914. Old Town Clovis is a quaint shopping district full of antique and specialty shops as well as an historical museum.

The parks system in Fresno is another great aspect we have to offer.

Woodward Park is a standout in size and quality in North Fresno with its scenic lake, large trees, bike trail, and Japanese gardens. There are also a great variety of little parks with play areas for children scattered throughout town to be enjoyed!

Explore a subterranean living space at Forestiere Underground Gardens, hand-dug by an Italian immigrant who saw that going underground was a great way to keep cool.

Fresno is rated as the No. 1 Big City for National Park Lovers because of our proximity to Yosemite, Sequoia & Kings and Pinnacles.  Most can be reached within a short drive allowing Fresno residents to make easy day trips to our National Parks.  Places that people travel from all over the world to see and explore are within a short drive for our residents to visit!

Yosemite National Park. First protected in 1864, Yosemite National Park is best known for its waterfalls, but within its nearly 1,200 square miles, you can find deep valleys, grand meadows, ancient giant sequoias, a vast wilderness area, and much more.  National Park Service | www.nps.gov

Sequoia & Kings Canyon. This dramatic landscape testifies to nature’s size, beauty, and diversity–huge mountains, rugged foothills, deep canyons, vast caverns, and the world’s largest trees. These two parks lie side by side in the southern Sierra Nevada east of the San Joaquin Valley. Weather varies a lot by season and elevation, which ranges from 1,370′ to 14,494′. Kings and Sequias National Park | www.nps.gov

Fresno shopping includes a wide range from your local deals to large brand names!

Local standouts include the centrally-located Fashion Fair Mall and the northern-located River Park Shopping Center. You can also catch many stores within the Fig Garden Village or go more east to visit the Sierra Vista Mall. These locations, along with many others, provide a large variety of stores for shopping all in proximity of local restaurants and entertainment!

Fresno’s location is in the center of all the hot spots in California! California beaches, beautiful Carmel, Monterey, Napa wine country, Sierra Nevada ski resorts, recreational lakes, National Parks are just a few of the California destinations within short reach.

With a less than 4-hour drive to either San Francisco or Los Angeles, people have made weekend trips a staple in Fresno traveling. Living in Fresno also means being close proximity to renowned National Parks as well as many beaches for weekend trips or even simple day trips! Visit California

Having our local Fresno Yosemite International Airport also makes it easy to travel further including straight paths to Las Vegas!

Fresno, Madera and other nearby cities are home to many world class wineries with ties to the area’s long history of growing grapes. The Fresno State Winery is among them. Fresno State is the first university in the nation to operate a winery as part of its educational program.

In addition, the craft brewery business is booming in Fresno. Many of the local breweries source their ingredients nearby, ensuring unique flavor profiles and truly local beers.

Fresno boasts numerous wine and beer tasting venues, events and trails all year long. Everyone from savvy connoisseurs to casual sippers will be pleased with so many options to choose from.