San Francisco - April

[oldaudi]

Morning,

Impulse booked a trip to San Francisco this morning, not until April though. Travelling alone. Any hints and tips for 5 days in April?

Thanks

[valiant]

Usual stuff of Alcatraz, Golden Gate (we walked it, drive over it and got a boat trip underneath it!), Ocean Beach, Fisherman’s Wharf, Trams and everything else the guide books tell you - it’s all fab.

Weather can be really weird over there and it seems to have its own climate so pack for every eventuality!

Eat in Chinatown at least once (it’s the biggest ‘Chinatown’ in the US) and there’s loads of great eating all around including the clam chowder at FW.

Getting around by public transport is a piece of piss from subways to trams and pretty cheap as well.

There are areas to avoid as with any city (Tenderloin esp) but don’t let it put you off, just take the same precautions you take when visiting any big city and you’ll be fine and I found the homeless issue far worse in NewYork than SF. The city has a great chilled vibe going for it at the moment and it’s a great city just to wander around and come across stuff that’s easily missed.

[barryrs]

Coach trip to muir woods and a guided bike tour over the Golden Gate bridge into Sausalito with the ferry back is also recommended.

https://www.blazingsaddles.com/?gad_source=1&g...

[craigjm]

valiant said:

Usual stuff of Alcatraz, Golden Gate (we walked it, drive over it and got a boat trip underneath it!), Ocean Beach, Fisherman s Wharf, Trams and everything else the guide books tell you - it s all fab.

Weather can be really weird over there and it seems to have its own climate so pack for every eventuality!

Eat in Chinatown at least once (it s the biggest Chinatown in the US) and there s loads of great eating all around including the clam chowder at FW.

Getting around by public transport is a piece of piss from subways to trams and pretty cheap as well.

There are areas to avoid as with any city (Tenderloin esp) but don t let it put you off, just take the same precautions you take when visiting any big city and you ll be fine and I found the homeless issue far worse in NewYork than SF. The city has a great chilled vibe going for it at the moment and it s a great city just to wander around and come across stuff that s easily missed.

This. From a safety and crime point of view it is a very different city to what it was before the pandemic. Just be mindful of your belongings, dont wear an expensive watch, use your mobile phone blindly walking down the street, dress to stand out or anything else whihc, as Valiant says, is sensible advice in any big city. I would add the mission district to tenderloin mentioned above.

[natterjak]

The Alcatraz visit of course. That’ll take the whole day more or less. The pier with the sea lions, pier 39.

One of my abiding memories was an experience which cost no money at all. A walk down Lombard Street. How can a walk down a street be special? Try it, you’ll see!

[craigjm]

natterjak said:

The Alcatraz visit of course. That ll take the whole day more or less. The pier with the sea lions, pier 39.

One of my abiding memories was an experience which cost no money at all. A walk down Lombard Street. How can a walk down a street be special? Try it, you ll see!

Yeha great views had forgotten that. I went there probably ten years ago

[oldaudi]

Thank you everyone. Got months before I go but I ll be sure to start planning my days. Got the Singapore f1 trip to complete first!

I ll try to keep safe and be aware of my surroundings. I was in New York a few weeks ago , the Police shot dead a guy with a machete under neath our hotel (grand Hyatt) at Grand Central Station. He had attacked a few people . You never think you ll be near such an event but it certainly made me look over my shoulders for the last few days!

Edited by oldaudi on Friday 15th May 16:05

[DSMSMR]

Good chance it will be cold

[Voodoo Blue]

A good trip is to rent some electric bikes for the afternoon from the Embarcadero and ride up to and across the Golden Gate Bridge down to Sausalito and get the ferry back to Fishermans Wharf.

If you rent for the day you can ride down to the coast through Golden gate park and then up the coastal path back towards the Presidio and then cross the Golden Gate Bridge. If you like old movies, Bullitt, Dirty Harry etc. you'll recognise a few places along the way.

[natterjak]

One other thing I thought of, assuming you’re into cars, which is a safe assumption on this forum. Download the Waymo app and take the chance to ride a driverless taxi in a city which has plenty.

That has to be an experience (I don’t know, have never had the chance to do it myself!)

[captain_cynic]

As a motoring enthusiast sitting in a car that I'm not in control of sounds boring at best, as someone familiar with tech it sounds like a nightmare

If you are a motoring enthusiast I'd recommend doing the GoCars tour of SF.

https://gocartours.com/san-francisco/

You basically drive a 3 wheel motorbike around an a GPS guided tour (so you can stop and take in the sights).

There's no reverse gear or at least there wasn't 12 years ago, so you'll reverse by pushing it backwards,l so maybe not a good idea if you've mobility issues.

[Saleen836]

With regards Alcatraz, unless things have changed it will be wise to book tickets as soon as they are available (used to be 3 months in advance), don't expect to just turn up on the day and get a ticket as you might be dissapointed

[Muzzer79]

Saleen836 said:

With regards Alcatraz, unless things have changed it will be wise to book tickets as soon as they are available (used to be 3 months in advance), don't expect to just turn up on the day and get a ticket as you might be dissapointed

1000% this

I went a few years ago, in June. We had pre booked well in advance and reached near the front to get on the boat

I overheard a tourist ask if they could buy a ticket that day and go over. The guard on the gate said the next available slot was October…

[Pincher]

Echo the recommendations to take a bike over the bridge and down into Sausalito - really nice little town.

[numtumfutunch]

barryrs said:

Coach trip to muir woods and a guided bike tour over the Golden Gate bridge into Sausalito with the ferry back is also recommended.

https://www.blazingsaddles.com/?gad_source=1&g...

Instead of adding to the noise saying just do this I would like to vouch for Blazing Saddles who were excellent

And just do this obvs

A guide would be a nice luxury however the route is a doddle and mostly on bike paths or very quiet roads
By all means go electric, however you will probably be fine on their standard bikes

Enjoy!

[valiant]

numtumfutunch said:

Instead of adding to the noise saying just do this I would like to vouch for Blazing Saddles who were excellent

And just do this obvs

A guide would be a nice luxury however the route is a doddle and mostly on bike paths or very quiet roads
By all means go electric, however you will probably be fine on their standard bikes

Enjoy!

Just avoid those hills!