Sunday morning (San Francisco, Oakland, Berkeley: hotels, home, wedding reception)

[fisherofsouls]

So, we are going to be spending the last morning of our vacation in the Bay Area, before flying home to London overnight from SFO.

We will be staying in Walnut Creek and will have a hire car which needs to go back to Hertz at SFO about 2pm on Sunday, May 1st.

Any suggestions as to what a young-at-heart-if-almost-fiftyish couple could do that Sunday morning ? We'll have beaten over most of the SF tourist trail, so something a little different would be good.

We are active, enjoying cycling, hiking and even clambering about high rope courses (! called GoApe here in the UK). We're not really into museums and galleries and of course a gourmet lunch with fine wines doesn't really go with driving afterwards.

Something quirky maybe ?

Over to you go, good people of the Bay Area

[sliverbox]

Well.... a wild idea- and one you might not have time for- is to go wine tasting in Livermore CA, which is about 20 miles from Walnut Creek. Its one of the better winemaking regions in the area yet most people don't know about it at all. Unfortunately it's probably not going to work with your schedule because the wine tasting rooms open at 11:00. Maybe next time.

[mayorhaggar]

I dunno, Lake Merritt in Oakland? You could get breakfast at brunch at some diner nearby (there's a lot of nice cafes and restaurants in the area, ask around for recs) then walk around the lake, it's really nice there if the weather is nice.

[lmk1707]

You could hike on Mt. Diablo, the Lafayette Reservoir rim trail, Tilden, or Sibley/Oakland hills parks. The advantage of the latter two is that on the drive up you get to see stunning views of the Bay and SF.

[clongirl]

Originally Posted by fisherofsouls

So, we are going to be spending the last morning of our vacation in the Bay Area, before flying home to London overnight from SFO.

We will be staying in Walnut Creek and will have a hire car which needs to go back to Hertz at SFO about 2pm on Sunday, May 1st.

Any suggestions as to what a young-at-heart-if-almost-fiftyish couple could do that Sunday morning ? We'll have beaten over most of the SF tourist trail, so something a little different would be good.

We are active, enjoying cycling, hiking and even clambering about high rope courses (! called GoApe here in the UK). We're not really into museums and galleries and of course a gourmet lunch with fine wines doesn't really go with driving afterwards.

Something quirky maybe ?

Over to you go, good people of the Bay Area

Tilden Park in Berkeley/Orinda border would be a great place to spend a few hours. It's very close to Walnut Creek and would be on your way to SFO.

You can pretty much take your pick as to what to see there since there are a lot of different activities/areas within the park. There's a botanical garden, you can visit the Carousel, ride your bikes/hike, and there's the coolest and very quirky miniature steam train ride with fantastic views on the Bay. You can even just drive around on the windy roads and take in the views. There's also a little farm (but might be more kid focused).

What's great is that you can do any or all of these activities depending on your how your time is ticking. Tilden Regional Park | East Bay Regional Park District

[18Montclair]

Let's see, Walnut Creek to SFO by 2pm. You dont really have that much time, so Id wake up, go to See's Candies(California's best imo) and buy a few boxes as souveniers, and then Id go to the Claremont Resort in Oakland/Berkeley for brunch and then go directly to the airport as traffic on Sunday can be terrible.

Shop Locations | See's Candies

Sunday Brunch - The Claremont Hotel Club & Spa, california vacations, getting married in san francisco, wedding reception halls california, wedding halls in california, wedding halls san jose california, berkeley california lodging, wedding reception (http://www.claremontresort.com/dining_sunday_brunch.shtml - broken link)

Basically after 12pm, the Bay Bridge into the city can be really bad on Sunday. Just a tip.

Also, try to get through the Caldecott Tunnel before 12pm when they switch the Westbound to just 2 lanes. It can get horrendous really quickly too.

Oh, and have a nice trip home!

[Bulldogdad]

If I were you I would end up at one of the many fine Hotels near the Airport for my last night.

Ever been to the Mission district in SF. Real close to the airport. Lots of quirky sights there. Hit the Valencia Farmers market while your there.

If you insist on staying in Walnut Creek, get up super early and head into the city.

Dont forget a couple loaves of Boudin's sourdough bread to go along with the See Candies that Monty mentioned. Both California originals.

Hope you get to go north of San Francisco in your stay. Charles and Camilla just loved the Point Reyes/Tomales Bay area. Dont forget to sample the Fresh Oysters from Tomales Bay.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/articl...AG4MFJPBM1.DTL


San Francisco's Mission District | VIA Magazine

Valencia Farmers Market - Mission - San Francisco, CA

[fisherofsouls]

Didn't realise Charles and Camilla had been to Point Reyes/Tomales Bay - they never mentioned it

Seriously though, some great suggestions there, thanks !

If we did go to Tilden Park, is there anywhere nearby which is open early on a Sunday morning and rents out bikes ? We could definitely do with some exercise before sitting on a plane for 10 hours (in the cheap seats, unfortunately).

See's Candy sounds good for when we are in the city, to pick up goodies for nieces and nephews. Boudin sourdough bread likewise (though we gather from their website that they have an outlet at SFO ?).

Just a few weeks to go now, getting really excited about our trip. So nice to be able to leave our 20-something kids at home and fly away We will become grandparents for the first time in September, so doing everything we can to keep our youthful side alive.....