How to visit San Francisco, California

San Francisco is one of the most famous cities in the world. For a comparatively small city, it has many well known and interesting places to see. I have lived in the Bay Area my entire life & still enjoy visiting there. Unlike many locals I know, I enjoy the Landmarks & tourist sites, as if I were visiting from far away and have been to them all. I've put a little about each place of interest, and ranked them in order, plus added little tips I have learned, from being here.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Money
• Time
• Interest in Travel or Photography

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   Note: All photos shown here were taken by myself through out the years.

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   Golden Gate Bridge: Painted in International Orange, to match it's surroundings and with it's Art Deco design, it is a site that is known the world over. With an average of 10 million visitors per year, it can become a crowded place. If you are driving there, there is a parking lot with meters & gift shop on the San Francisco side. Walking on the bridge is free, but once out on it, it is windy and noisy (from traffic), so be aware. It is also 220' above the water, not good if you're afraid of heights, but not so tall, that you cannot wave to people on a passing ferry boat.

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   Fisherman's Wharf: The seaside tourist Mecca, with tons of shops and places to eat. It also includes Pier 39, which has more of the same & an aquarium. While there visit the California Sea Lions, that hang out on floating rafts, they are quite a site. At the other end of the Wharf is Ghirardelli Square with even more shopping and dinning, home of the famous Ghirardelli Chocolate. The Wharf has great views of the Bay, including the Golden Gate & Bay Bridges and Alcatraz Island. Fisherman's Wharf is almost always cold & windy, so bring a jacket just incase, even in the summer months. Also the best places to park, are the most expensive, so be prepared, the one at Peir 39 is particularly high.

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   Cable Cars: The San Francisco Cable Cars are a unique experience. There are 3 Cable Car runs, the California Street line runs up & down California St. through the Financial District & Chinatown. The more popular Powel-Hyde & Powell-Mason lines run from Market street downtown, out to Fisherman's Wharf, each one ends up near the Wharf in a different area. They rumble through the streets of the city, but be warned that most seats are hard wood and the ride is bumpy. It is fun to sit on the outside seats, but they are colder and locals will jump on and stand in front of you, so be fore warned. I still like the outside seats best.

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   Chinatown: San Francisco has a large Chinese population and boasts one of the best Chinatown's in the world. It is a good sized area, with lots of interesting shops and places to eat. You should have at least one meal there. There is also interesting architecture to be seen. It is a busy, crowded place with lots of hustle and bustle, with some pretty steep hills, but well worth the visit.

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   Coit Tower: Located atop Telegraph Hill, it was given to the city by Lillie Hitchcock Coit. The tower it's self is only 210' tall, but has great views of the city and bay in all directions and because of it's location up on the hill, it looks down on most of the city. It is not far from Fisherman's Wharf, but if you drive the parking lot is very small. Sometimes while there, you will see a flock of wild parrots (they didn't start out wild), I have seen them there myself.

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   Alcatraz Island: The once Federal Prison, that housed Al Capone, is now a popular tourist site and was the setting for the movie The Rock. You must take a Ferry to get there and you can almost never buy tickets, for the day you are there. Most people by there tickets ahead of time, either at the Wharf or Online. It has a nice self guided tour, that comes with headset, but don't be surprised if the place seems small. Also there are seagulls everywhere, so you sort of have to step around them in places.

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   Other sites that are of interest, that are good for taking pictures: Alamo Square, with it's famous Painted Ladies houses. Lombard Street, the crookedest street in America (near the Wharf). The view from Twin Peaks, a great place to get pictures of the whole city. Japanese Tea Garden, located in Golden Gate Park.

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   Other sites that are of interest, that are good for shopping & dining: North Beach, this is the Italian section of the city. Union Square, this is the main shopping area downtown. A good place to eat is the Cheesecake Factory, located on the 8th floor of Macy's, it has some outdoor seating, that looks out over the area. Both of these places are near Chinatown.

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    And for something more off the beaten trail there's Japantown, one of only 3 Japantowns in all of America. It is a great place to have a Japanese lunch or dinner and do a little shopping. The 5 tier Pagoda was given to Japantown by the people of Osaka, San Francisco's sister city in Japan.

11. For more information on how to travel San Francisco, check out Resources below or the section to the left, there is lots of information located through out the internet.

Tips & Warnings

• Many times in San Francisco it is cold, the city has water on 3 sides and it is one of the windiest in America. If you come in the Summer or any time, bring long pants and a jacket. I don't know how many times in July, I've seen tourists on the news, wearing shorts & a t-shirt, complaining that it's 60 degrees out.
• There are many things to see and great places to take pictures, so if you like photography, there are shots of great landmarks to the beaches and cliffs of the Pacific Ocean.
• There are many international tourists that visit there, from all over the world, so you're likely to run across people from everywhere. It is also the #1 destination for travelers from LA, so it tends to be more crowded in the summer months.