going to san francisco in mid-may need ideas

[annie]

I am going to San Francisco in Mid-May for four nights, I would appreciate any ideas or tips about what I should go see in the area. We will (dh and myself) more than likely be staying in the fishermans wharf district.

[Mad Dawg Wiccan]

I can suggest three things:

www.calacademy.org/ CA Acadamy of Sciences

winetrain.com/ Napa Valley Wine Train

and most of all

www.safariwest.com/ Safari West

[annie]

Thanks for the suggestions Mad Dawg Wiccan, I will look at these links.

[ՏՇԾԵԵʅՏɧ_LԹՏՏʅҼ]

If you're going to be staying in the Fisherman's Wharf district, check out Ghiradelli Square/Pier 39. Also you might want to do a tour of Alcatraz - really intersting, and a little history on some of the more famous inmates (Al Capone, Machine-Gun Kelly, etc).

And you have to drive down the famous Lombard Street - we did this in a full-size Ford van years ago - no easy feat:

[mtntigger]

San Francisco is one of my favorite cities! I'm so jealous.
For four days, I would keep one day set aside for just walking and keeping things more flexible to get in the mood of the City. Plus, now you got yourself an excuse to eat along the way. ;D
In the wharf area, you can spend a day at Alcatraz, eating chowder in the sourdough bread bowl, shopping, watching the sea lions, and eating at least one Ghirardelli ice-cream sundae.
Union Square if you enjoy window shopping.
Of course, China Town and dim sum.
Lots and lots of great theaters at night.
Admire the architecture at Nob Hill.
Ride the cable car.
Walk Lombard Street.
Walk across Golden Gate Bridge.
If you like the bohemian lifestyle, definitely the Haight District...

If you want to go outside the city, you can rent a car and travel to...
* Muir Woods (redwoods) up north
* Big Sur
* Monterey aquarium
* Sonoma Valley for wine (skip Napa... too tourist, too expensive and the wine is way overrated.)

[Clifford]

Mar 12, 2011 8:27:47 GMT -5 @mtntigger said:

San Francisco is one of my favorite cities!... eating at least one Ghirardelli ice-cream sundae.... Monterey aquarium

The Chocolate Cookie sundae = wow!
Also if you are out-doorsy I highly recommend a kayak tour of Monterey Bay (if you get down that far). Our guide was a marine biology grad student, and it was like National Geographic - live.

[annie]

Wow, thanks for all the great suggestions everyone. Reading all these posts is really adding to the anticipation and excitement of going to San Francisco. I really appreciate the input, we are going to try to see as much as possible while we are there.

[Mad Dawg Wiccan]

Mar 16, 2011 21:46:03 GMT -5 @annie said:

Wow, thanks for all the great suggestions everyone. Reading all these posts is really adding to the anticipation and excitement of going to San Francisco. I really appreciate the input, we are going to try to see as much as possible while we are there.

Just one word of warning:
SF is the most liberal city in the US. The steady climate along with the most generous city government handouts to the homeless has resulted in a vast influx of bums to it. The "hands off" policy regarding aggressive pan handlers means that an altercation between a bum and a tourist will ultimately result in the tourist being thrown in jail. No matter if the bum is shitting in the middle of a busy public sidewalk at noon, DO NOT OBJECT. You will wind up being the sidewalk.

This is why, despite living only an hour away, I avoid this city like the plague.

[mtntigger]

Good point Mad Dawg - there are a lot of free-spirited homeless and they cannot be avoided. However, in the touristy section, the police are really good about moving them on their way. That's why I gave you the list that I did; I avoided the more troublesome spots (for me, one of these spots is Golden Gate Park).
When I used to work and play in San Francisco, my "safety zone" was east of Van Ness and north of Market Street; I never had a problem in that area. I don't know if those boundaries have changed since then, but the last time I was in the City (about 3 years ago), I didn't have an outlandish issue with any homeless.

[Deleted]

We lived in the Bay Area (Pacifica) for 14 years. We still have a house there. I use to work at the SP building at 1 Market.

Great location. Are you staying at the Holiday Inn by any chance?

You can walk to a whole bunch of places from Fisherman's Wharf. Public transit is great so make sure you take advantage of it. Don't rent a car until you are ready to leave town.

If you're a Foodie you must do the Farmer's market at the Ferry Building as well as the Ferry Building Market itself. Hog's Head Oysters, fabulous bread companies-don't be on a diet for this trip!

To work off those calories make sure you take the stairs up Greenwich St, view the Grace Marchant gardens up to Coit tower.

Cocktails at the Top of the Mark (Mark Hopkins Hotel).

Make sure you have one dinner in Little Italy. We love homemade ravioli. We used to go to the Mona Lisa on Colombus. I just checked and it's still in business. It's down the street from the Stinking Rose which would get a lot of publicity but I didn't like the crowds.

You can easily keep busy for 4 days. But if you want one day out of the City then rather than Napa, let me suggest Sonoma. Much calmer and the people are nice. And I was born in Napa! I love the Dry Creek area. Best views are from Sonoma Creek Winery on the way to Sonoma Lake. Nearby Healdsburg is wonderful for lunch or dinner.

If you decide to head down to the Montery Aquarium do stop by Bonny Doon Winery. They make good wine but are definitely taking the snobbery out of wine tasting.

Have fun, feel free to PM me if you have further questions. I hope to be there for a visit in June/early July.

[bmephdinco]

Mar 12, 2011 8:27:47 GMT -5 @mtntigger said:

San Francisco is one of my favorite cities! I'm so jealous.
For four days, I would keep one day set aside for just walking and keeping things more flexible to get in the mood of the City. Plus, now you got yourself an excuse to eat along the way. ;D
In the wharf area, you can spend a day at Alcatraz, eating chowder in the sourdough bread bowl, shopping, watching the sea lions, and eating at least one Ghirardelli ice-cream sundae.
Union Square if you enjoy window shopping.
Of course, China Town and dim sum.
Lots and lots of great theaters at night.
Admire the architecture at Nob Hill.
Ride the cable car.
Walk Lombard Street.
Walk across Golden Gate Bridge.
If you like the bohemian lifestyle, definitely the Haight District...

If you want to go outside the city, you can rent a car and travel to...
* Muir Woods (redwoods) up north
* Big Sur
* Monterey aquarium
* Sonoma Valley for wine (skip Napa... too tourist, too expensive and the wine is way overrated.)

(especially renting a car to go to Muir Woods - it's AMAZING! Bring an empty camera memory card just for that - and a good pair of shoes for trekking around the woods)