Mountain View, located in the San Francisco Bay Area in Santa Clara County, is a Santa Clara community so-named because of its breath-taking view of area mountains. Mountain View, with a population of just over 74,000, is a scenic community hidden away in the area's famed Silicon Valley.
The city itself experienced a resurgence thanks to the technology boom sparked by development in Santa Clara Valley. Mountain View started with a Mexican land grant awarded to Francisco M. Estrada, who established a ranch on the property. The area was originally known as Rancho Pastoria de las Borregas, meaning "pasture of the sheep."
Martin Murphy, Jr. eventually acquired half of the ranch with the deed to the land passed on to several generations before becoming a popular stagecoach stop in the late 1800s. In 1902, the ranch and the surrounding area became a new town known as Mountain View. The impact of technology on the area is clear. During the 1960s, Mountain View's population jumped from about 6,500 to more than 30,000.
Mountain View Hotels
Most area hotels are within walking distance of the city's pedestrian-friendly downtown region mostly centered on Castro Street. Getting around Mountain View is made easy with the city's light-rail transit system. Additional, area hotels provide taxi and shuttle services. Hotels in the area range from the affordable to the luxurious. Most take full advantage of the city's spectacular view with rooms overlooking the sprawling mountains cradling the city.
Best Western and Comfort Inn are some of the family-friendly hotels found in Mountain Valley. Those looking for a more stylish offering will enjoy Hotel Avante. This hotel is a favorite stop for those visiting the area to do business with a fully stocked office supply center and enough amenities for relaxation after a hard day's work. It should come as no surprise that many of the hotels, such as Hotel Zico, cater to the business crowd with fully equipped conference rooms and meeting rooms, making Mountain View a premier destination to mix business and pleasure.