Top ►7◄ Visitor Things To Do in San Fran ? (San Francisco, Oakland: car rental, rental)

[1BigBear]

Visiting the Napa/SFO area AUG 1-5.(→this weekend.!!) Wife and 2 kids
(16 & 12) coming along for the visit. We have a condo in NAPA and we're wondering what you locals in SFO consider the
TOP 7 Things Visitors Must do..... in your city by the Bay.!!
1→
2→
3→
etc, etc .!
thxs

BB (Indy)

[1BigBear]

Hello---- ? Are there NO friendly people with advice→ in SFO ?? ??

[humboldtrat]

Will you be sightseeing mostly in Napa or in San Francisco? It's a long drive between the two places. Is this your first trip to the area?

Check out Best and Worst San Francisco Experiences including Union Square and Fisherman's Wharf and pick from the list. There is a list of Napa wineries to visit on this site. If this is your first trip to SF, visit the usual tourist places such as Chinatown, Fishermans Wharf, Pier 39. take a bay cruise, walk out on Golden Gate bridge and take a cable car ride. You'll need more than 4 days to see it all.

[LASam]

I'm going to be visiting SF in about a month and already have a few places lined up to see...

1) Golden Gate Park
2) Coit Tower
3) Chinatown
4) Market St downtown/Union Square/Jackson Square
5) Alamo Square
6) Palace of Fine Arts
7) Fisherman's Wharf/Ghirardelli Square

I also plan to check out the neighborhoods of North Beach, Pacific Heights, Haight/Ashbury, The Castro, and Seacliff. It should go without saying that you have to see the Golden Gate Bridge as well. If you have spare time, Muir Woods is really nice for hiking amongst the redwood in Marin County. As far as wineries go, I'd stick to the Silverado Trail... Reynolds Family Cellars was EXCELLENT, as well as Goosecross... make sure to call in advance to make reservations. The towns of Yountville and St Helena are really nice to walk around as well.

[Bunjee]

I'm not much for being a tour guide but, Mr. Casual here, I'd consider taking the Vallejo ferry into SF. Driving's a haul and this way you'd be on the water. Ferries are cool. It would cost about $40 one way for the family, I think.

I second Golden Gate Park, and check out the rather new botanical garden there. I haven't seen it yet but would love to myself. Head up to Twin Peaks for the view. Head down into the Haight, and if your kids love music they'll be intoxicated by Amoeba Records. Castro or no Castro? Your call there. I love the Mission and Noe Valley but I can't think to recommend any specific thing except the general vibe of living in SF. Chinatown can be madness on a weekend but duck into a restaurant for lunch and crowd-break. Walk the Golden Gate bridge.

[Bluesbabe]

I don't live in SF but I'll give advice.

With only two days I would advise against Golden Gate Park unless you have a car rental and make good "timing".

* Waterfront (the kids will really enjoy Pier 39)
* Chinatown (a real piece of SF history here)
* North Beach (Italian history of SF)
* Palace of Fine Arts (kids will LOVE the adjoining Exploratorium)
* Coit Tower (a bus does go there)
* Union Square Area
* Cable-cars!

If time allows you could consider taking the ferry to Sausalito. But I think you'll have a full plate with the above.

[Shelacious]

I think the problem is too that the Napa and Sonoma Counties are stand-alone destinations in themselves. It's about a 45 min.-1 hour drive from Napa to SF, so whether you'll be driving back and forth daily?

I'm bad with SF suggestions, because I lived there and hardly went anywhere, LOL. But I do like Pier 39; Arts district (MoMa, African Disaspora, Yerba Buena); downtown shopping (the SF shopping center is fun, as is Union Square (and Macys) and the Embarcadero Center; I think a visit to North Beach and the Marina District is good too. GGBridge; Lombard St.; Chinatown (although I think Oakland's is better!); Cable Cars (Powell Street); Castro; Haight; Twin Peaks.

Really, the main issue is that you can spend 1/2 day at most SF destinations, and you don't have a lot of time.

[Bluesbabe]

Originally Posted by Shelacious

I think the problem is too that the Napa and Sonoma Counties are stand-alone destinations in themselves. It's about a 45 min.-1 hour drive from Napa to SF, so whether you'll be driving back and forth daily?

I'm bad with SF suggestions, because I lived there and hardly went anywhere, LOL. But I do like Pier 39; Arts district (MoMa, African Disaspora, Yerba Buena); downtown shopping (the SF shopping center is fun, as is Union Square (and Macys) and the Embarcadero Center; I think a visit to North Beach and the Marina District is good too. GGBridge; Lombard St.; Chinatown (although I think Oakland's is better!); Cable Cars (Powell Street); Castro; Haight; Twin Peaks.

Really, the main issue is that you can spend 1/2 day at most SF destinations, and you don't have a lot of time.

Oakland has a Chinatown? Sorry to go off-topic, but this got me really curious. Been to SF numerous times but never ventured off to Oakland.

[iTsLiKeAnEgG]

Oakland has a very small Chinatown, maybe 4 square blocks at most.

I second Twin Peaks (the view is amazing), the Botanical Gardens and you have to check out the California Academy of Sciences. If you want a nice place to eat I highly recommend Fresca in West Portal or the Stinking Rose near Broadway. The Haight street shops are great for a variety of things and the new Westfield mall is huge. These are all in San Francsico.

Marin county has many beautiful places you can visit as well but there is simply too much to do within the course of a single stay in the Bay Area.

[Shelacious]

Originally Posted by iTsLiKeAnEgG

Oakland has a very small Chinatown, maybe 4 square blocks at most.

According to the Oakland Chinatown Chamber website, it's 16 square blocks. I think one of the keys is that it incorporates more than Chinese--lots of Vietnamese and Korean businesses in "Oakland Chinatown."

Oakland Chinatown Chamber Of Commerce - Visitor Info: About Oakland Chinatown