Stylized white script text saying 'The river runs through it' on a black background.

Welcome to the City of Rio Vista

Rio Vista is a city located in the eastern end of Solano County, California, in the San Francisco Bay Area—either in the East Bay or the North Bay, depending on what definition is used — on the Sacramento River, in the Sacramento River Delta region. The population was 7,360 at the 2010 census.

Painting of a large bridge over a body of water with a Humphrey the whale's blowhole visible near the water surface, and trees in the background.

Rio Vista was visited by a lost humpback whale in 1985, despite being 60 miles (100 kilometers) upriver from the Pacific Ocean.

The young whale, nicknamed “Humphrey”, attracted throngs of curiosity seekers before he was eventually guided back to sea by rescuers. Again in May 2007, humpbacks were sighted in Rio Vista. “Delta” and “Dawn,” mother and calf, stopped at least twice in the river near the town.

A colorful poster for the Rio Vista Bass Derby and Festival featuring a fish, boats, a guitar, and floral decorations. It lists events including a fishing tournament, one and three day festivals, food and drinks, craft and vendors, with live music on Friday and Saturday.

Rio Vista Bass Derby & Festival

3 day Fishing Tournament, 2 days of Live Music, Great Food & Drinks, Vendors, Car Show and Fireworks… All Along the River’s Edge!

Bass Festival Website
A sepia-toned historic street scene of Main Street in Downtown Rio Vista showing early 20th-century storefronts, pedestrians, a horse-drawn cart, and utility poles under a partly cloudy sky.

Historical City of Rio Vista

Rio Vista is approximately 60 miles (100 kilometers) northeast of San Francisco, on the Sacramento River in the Sacramento River Delta.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 7.1 square miles (18 km2), of which, 6.7 square miles (17 km2) of it is land and 0.4 square miles (1.0 km2) of it (5.68%) is water.

Industry

Natural gas was discovered in the Rio Vista area in 1936 and the Rio Vista Field, the largest natural gas field in California, became a major source of employment for the remainder of the 20th century.

Other industries include agriculture, manufacturing and tourism. There are over 750 wind turbines belonging to the three renewable energy projects (Shiloh Wind Power Plant, NextEra Energy Resources’ High Winds Energy Center and one owned by the Sacramento Municipal Utility District) on the Montezuma Hills, close to the city. There are plans to add a further 200 wind turbines.

Rio Vista is home to the largest American producer of Belgian Endive in the USA. Craig Breedlove, five-time world land speed record holder, lives and has an engineering facility in the city.

The city is served by Rio Vista Municipal Airport and is situated along the Rio Vista Highway (SR 12) between Fairfield and Lodi. The highway crosses the Sacramento River via the Helen Madere Memorial Bridge, colloquially known as the Rio Vista Bridge.