Anything "unmissable" in San Francisco?
Discussion
So, off to San Francisco at the end of August with my partner. Having taken so much advice in here about New York when we went in January, is there anything that is a "must-see" un SF? We're obviously doing Alcatraz, China Town and Fishermans Wharf, but any other advice and recommendations are greatly appreciated!
I'm envious of you, going to what I'd consider one of the very best locations to travel to.
Time and inclination permitting here are a few things to do;
Ride a bike over the Golden Gate, hook a left once over, into the hills of marin then swoop down, through the tunnel into Sausolito. Lunch on the waterfront hen take your bike back on the ferry By bike i mean pedal bike that you can hire)
Go to Alcatraz, you will likely need to book in advance.
Go to pacific heights and that area, very nice.
Walk the shops in the union square area, it's a very compact city centre with great shopping and eating.
Ride a cable car.
Drive down the worlds wiggliest street.
Drive up to the Napa valley and wine country to tour a vineyard or three.
Go to some bars and clubs, very lively indeed.
Drive out of San Fran, take the pacific coast highway as far south as time allows and you can take in 17 mile drive, pebble beach, Montery, Carmel, Big Sur etc. Fabulous scenery and roads.
Go to Castro (The gay area) Haight Ashbury (the Hippy area) SOMA (South of market for hip clubs, China town.
And walk, lots of walking just taking it all in.
Which hotel are you staying in.
Great place san Francisco.
Time and inclination permitting here are a few things to do;
Ride a bike over the Golden Gate, hook a left once over, into the hills of marin then swoop down, through the tunnel into Sausolito. Lunch on the waterfront hen take your bike back on the ferry By bike i mean pedal bike that you can hire)
Go to Alcatraz, you will likely need to book in advance.
Go to pacific heights and that area, very nice.
Walk the shops in the union square area, it's a very compact city centre with great shopping and eating.
Ride a cable car.
Drive down the worlds wiggliest street.
Drive up to the Napa valley and wine country to tour a vineyard or three.
Go to some bars and clubs, very lively indeed.
Drive out of San Fran, take the pacific coast highway as far south as time allows and you can take in 17 mile drive, pebble beach, Montery, Carmel, Big Sur etc. Fabulous scenery and roads.
Go to Castro (The gay area) Haight Ashbury (the Hippy area) SOMA (South of market for hip clubs, China town.
And walk, lots of walking just taking it all in.
Which hotel are you staying in.
Great place san Francisco.
Ah, the collective knowledge of PH! Thanks again guys, some great suggestions! Especially The Stinking Rose! So, our itinerary is quite packed as we fly to SF for a few days, then go up to Vancouver Island for a bit, then back to SF, grab a car and drive up to Bodega Bay for the last weekend. We loved New York and walked the length and breadth of Manhatten when we were there, so we are quite used to just getting out and about and stumbling upon hidden gems. We are staying in a little boutique hotel called the Hotel del Sol, which looks really quirky and cool, but we plan to see as much of the city as possible, so we won't be spending a huge amount of time there.
Anyway, keep the suggestions coming!
Anyway, keep the suggestions coming!
MrB. said:
We're obviously doing Alcatraz, China Town and Fishermans Wharf, but any other advice and recommendations are greatly appreciated!
I found Alcatraz to be fascinating (+1 to the audio tour) but Fisherman's Wharf was pretty poor by comparison, save the obligatory gawp at/photo of the seals, they are quite cute. It just struck me as something modern trying to be historic, when it's not. Given that you have to go via FW to Alcatraz I would just check it out briefly en route, but not waste a lot of time there, plenty better things to see in SF, as other posters have pointed out.
Definitely worth booking the Alcatraz in advance, sells out most of the time. I've done the tour twice and the queues can get quite big if you've not printed your tickets already.
Lombard St is worth the drive just to see the Yanks get their barges stuck doing 15 point turns.
Cable cars get very busy. If you're doing it just to say you've done it then pick a route and quiet time. Also worth getting on before they get to the tourist sites as they are the busiest stops.
Don't go for breakfast in the Tenderloin district, we did. Hobo central.
We got married in City Hall, nice place, big park, lots of hobos.
Zoo was quite good, nothing exceptional but our lad enjoyed it.
I also tried looking up places from Bullet but failed to get out searching, ssome places no longer exist like the hotel at the start but the roads are all there.
Lombard St is worth the drive just to see the Yanks get their barges stuck doing 15 point turns.
Cable cars get very busy. If you're doing it just to say you've done it then pick a route and quiet time. Also worth getting on before they get to the tourist sites as they are the busiest stops.
Don't go for breakfast in the Tenderloin district, we did. Hobo central.
We got married in City Hall, nice place, big park, lots of hobos.
Zoo was quite good, nothing exceptional but our lad enjoyed it.
I also tried looking up places from Bullet but failed to get out searching, ssome places no longer exist like the hotel at the start but the roads are all there.
The Coit tower is good to pop in and see, it has an interesting history and art. And the cable car museum was really interesting, showing how all the cables are routed under the city streets.
Fishermans Wharf is nothing special.
The Bar at the top of Macey's was good for an afternoon beer. Loads of micro brewery ales and a huge selection of cheesecakes
Fishermans Wharf is nothing special.
The Bar at the top of Macey's was good for an afternoon beer. Loads of micro brewery ales and a huge selection of cheesecakes
Little gem of a restaurant that only the locals seem to know about
http://www.foreigncinema.com/
Absolutely superb. I'm lucky enough to go to SF a few times a year with work and always go here.
http://www.foreigncinema.com/
Absolutely superb. I'm lucky enough to go to SF a few times a year with work and always go here.
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