Here's a list of things to do and see in our fair city:

Get oriented:

  • First, you might find it useful to check out the website for Joie de Vivre Hotels, which has some great basic information on the city's neighborhoods.
  • Consider one of the many free, themed walking tours of the city at SF City Guides.
  • Check out the Mister SF website—a lot of fun; my favorite section is "Notorious SF."
  • For hotel recommendations check out Trip Advisor.
  • For food, shopping, and other recommendations, check out Yelp.

Some of our favorites:

  • The Presidio. Gorgeous park on the northwestern tip of the city. An army base from 1776 until 1995 (occupied both by the Mexican and American armies), it is now a national park. The Presidio has preserved its army buildings, which now house Industrial Light & Magic, various nonprofit foundations, private residences, and museums (notably Fort Point, located under the southern tip of the Golden Gate Bridge). The park also has a number of secluded hiking trails.
  • Golden Gate Park. Beautiful city park in the western half of the city. Within the park, you can check out the DeYoung Museum, the California Academy of Sciences (in its cool new building), the Arboretum, and the Japanese Tea Garden! It's also worth checking out the Beach Chalet on the westernmost edge of the park with its WPA-era murals covering the ground floor interior, ordering one of the beers they brew on the premises and looking out over Ocean Beach.
  • Victorian houses. The eastern environs of Golden Gate park (Haight-Ashbury, the Panhandle, Alamo Square neighborhoods) are great spots to see some of SF's iconic Painted Ladies.
  • Cable Car Barn & Museum. No admission charged, but donations accepted. This little gem features fascinating explanations of the history of cable cars in the city and how the system works. While you're at it, you might also take a cable car—the nation's only moving National Historic Landmark. (We suggest the California St. line—it's much less crowded!)
  • The Bay Model (Sausalito). The actual model used by the Army Corps of Engineers for years to model tides and currents in the whole San Francisco Bay/Sacramento delta region. Very cool.
  • The Marin Headlands. Just across the Golden Gate Bridge from SF. Not only a great place to take pictures, but if you follow the road toward the ocean, you'll find abandoned WWII gun emplacements (which were never used) and the Nike Missile site and museum.

Museums to see:

In addition to those within Golden Gate Park, you might also consider these museums:

  • Museum of Modern Art. In the South of Market (SoMA) district.
  • Legion of Honor, Lincoln Park (bonus points if you find the official marker for the end of the Lincoln Highway). Featuring a copy of Rodin's The Thinker, this museum is geared towards European art. It was built to resemble the Legion of Honor in Paris, but at 3/4 scale, by one of the grande dames of SF society, in order "to bring culture to the city."
  • Cartoon Art Museum.
  • Asian Art Museum, Civic Center.
  • Contemporary Jewish Museum in its new building by starchitect Daniel Liebeskind.
  • The San Francisco Historical Society has a small museum and offers walking tours, some of which are free.
  • Haas-Lilienthal House. A fine example of Victorian/Queen Anne mansions. Open for tours and they offer walking tours of Pacific Heights.

Other worthwhile sights:

  • Alcatraz. Interesting, even for cynics!
  • Fisherman's Wharf / Pier 39. Tourists always enjoy this spot, although we strongly recommend you avoid eating there: restaurants are overpriced and not very good. Much better deals are to be had elsewhere!
  • Angel Island. Once California's version of Ellis Island, it's now a state park and has some nice hiking trails.
  • Camera Obscura, Cliff House, the ruins of Sutro Baths, and Sutro Heights Park: On the western edge of the city, on a bluff overlooking the Golden Gate.
  • Ferry Building: Lots of great restaurants and food shopping! However, it should be noted that one has to go around to the back of the building to buy tickets and actually board the ferries! (Helpful map here.)
  • City Hall: Modeled on Les Invalides in Paris. A gorgeous building inside and out.
  • Grace Cathedral / Nob Hill: If you can't stomach walking the hill, try taking the California Street cable car. You're rewarded with great views of the city and the bay.
  • Washington Square Park/the North Beach neighborhood: Great Italian coffee and restaurants, as well as people-watching. Also very close to Chinatown.
  • Coit Tower / Telegraph Hill. While you're climbing up to Coit Tower, see if you can spot the wild parrots.

Ideas for kids:

Here are a few ideas for those of you with little ones:

  • Exploratorium: Museum of science, geared towards kids, although most adults I know really enjoy it.
  • Musée Mécanique: The only cool thing at Fisherman's Wharf. Old mechanical amusement-park dioramas and playthings. (Featured in The Princess Diaries for the Julie Andrews fans out there.)
  • Sea lions at Pier 39.
  • Yerba Buena Ice Skating & Bowling Center. There's also a cool carousel in front of the building.
  • Golden Gate Park: there are bison, horse stables, a model sailboat lake, several playgrounds, and lots of big fields for running off steam.
  • California Academy of Sciences: Lots of kid-friendly animal exhibits. (In the meantime, check out the PenguinCams!) Additionally, the new building will house an aquarium, a planetarium, a special rainforest exhibit, and a "living roof."
  • Randall Museum: A hands-on and exploratory museum for kids.
  • Intriguing guidebook: City Walks with Kids: San Francisco, from Chronicle Books.
  • Seward St. Slides. Somewhere in the vicinity of Seward & Douglass Streets (in the Castro neighborhood).
  • Take Caltrain down to Palo Alto and check out the Stanford campus!