Ideas for things to do in San Francisco and Northern California

Parent Cafe
1

I am going on vacation to San Francisco and Northern California are and would love to hear ideas! I have a wide variety of interests - I love big cities, history, etc., but I also love the outdoors and adventure (rafting, climbing, etc.). And I always curious about new things that I may not have had a chance to go to yet. So, I really would love all sorts of ideas!

Any good destinations on the Pacific Coast Highway? I would love to drive on it for a while.

I do know Northern California is known as wine country, but that’s the one idea that wouldn’t work for me, as I don’t drink, unless of course there is some winery out there that’s worth seeing just for the spectacular views or something like that.

2

Many wineries out there are worth visiting just for the sheer enjoyment of the views (e.g., Sterling) or even architecture (e.g., Castle). :slight_smile: But unless you have wine drinkers joining you for the ride, solo driving all the way to Napa/Sonoma may not be the best use of your time.

Although there is one place in Sonoma that I highly recommend - Jack London State Park. Plenty of nice hiking and history, especially if you are a fan of his works.

Another place for hiking comes up right away: Muir Woods.

3

I’m envious. :slight_smile:

It’s so beautiful you won’t need things to do, just keep your eyes open, walk and look around!

I think in San Fran it’s ok to do some touristy things. Take the cable cars. Go see the Golden Gate. Visit Ghirardelli. Walk Union Square. Experience the hilly windy twisty roads. If you’re interested in house architecture, just walk the streets of some of the residential neighborhoods. Maybe someone can recommend certain streets. Sausalito.

4

I am traveling with a friend, so driving long distances shouldn’t be an issue - we’ll have two drivers!

Love the ideas! Can’t wait - it’s my first trip to California!

5

There’s a bazillion things to do up in the Bay Area; the only problem is deciding what! For hiking you can make a trip up to Muir Woods to check out the redwoods. If you’re going during migration season you can see whales from Bodega Bay. If you like scenic drives then take a run down the PCH to Santa Cruz, Monterey Bay Aquarium, and Carmel. In Carmel besides the shops, restaurants, and beach you can check out the 17 Mile Drive and Pebble Beach if you’re into golf.

In and around the city there’s really too much to recommend. It’s probably best to search on lists like “10 best things to do in SF”. Or provide more details on what you’re interested in and we make provide more specific recommendations.

6

This is on my to-do list for Northern California (it is a long drive from SF):

http://www.fortross.org/

7

Go to SF Opera. Take the ferry to Angel Island and hike around. Lots of great trails for hiking in the Oakland Hills – regional parks trails. Mt. Tamalpais. Mt. Diablo (East Bay) Walk up the steps to Coit Tower. Take the cable car. China town. Golden Gate bridge. Santa Cruz – a couple hours drive. Big Sur – also a drive. Carmel. Do you like food? so many great restaurants . . . Yosemite. Lake Tahoe.

8

Alcatraz tour through the National Park service.
Pier 39
Lake Tahoe
White water rafting

9

Right now is the best time to go to Tahoe… it is the lull between two major tourist seasons there so you won’t have to deal with the traffic, and the weather is still reasonably warm.

I’m from the south shore originally, so if you have any questions with where to visit or things to do, feel free to message me.

10

If you enjoy hiking, you should definitely go to Yosemite. It’s amazing and a couple of hours from San Francisco. If you stay over, see if you can get into the Ahwahnee Hotel–wonderful, old hotel inside the park. Certainly have a meal there.

11

BB, why is Fort Ross on your to-do list? I’ve biked past it many times but never stopped in.

Another wonderful spot for hiking is the Marin Headlands, just on the other side of the GG Bridge.

The wine country is worth going to even if you don’t drink wine-- the food is great and the scenery unsurpassed. If you’re in Healdsburg, rent bikes and ride on West Dry Creek Road.

For a uniquely SF thing to do while you’re in San Francisco, follow the fog’s Twitter feed, KarlTheFog.

12

“BB, why is Fort Ross on your to-do list? I’ve biked past it many times but never stopped in.”

A coworker visited it during some cultural festival and raved about it, so we added it to the list of things we need to do in Northern CA… Not just the fort - the park and the surrounding area in general. If you bike in the area regularly, visiting the fort just for the sake of visiting the fort may be not so exciting. :slight_smile:

13

I’m going back to northern California on Friday. Mostly spending time with family in Petaluma but plan to break away for a few day trips to Napa Valley / Sugarloaf Ridge State Park, and Lake Tahoe. In the past, I’ve done Muir Woods, Point Reyes (definitely worthwhile if you like hiking) and a drive up the coast to Mendocino, which is a good destination for a drive.

14

One thing I wish someone had told me before my first NorCal hike, watch out for poison oak!! Just know what it looks like and avoid it, they definitely have it in Yosemite, Tahoe is high enough in elevation it’s not a problem there.

15

Poison oak, yes. It’s rampant in the Bay Area. Don’t go off the trail.

16

One of my favorite walks to take in SF is Lands End. http://www.nps.gov/goga/planyourvisit/landsend.htm. Free, free and available parking and the most beautiful views.

17

I was in the SF area last June. San Francisco is a great place to walk. I took several walking tours. Discover Walks offers free walking tours: http://www.discoverwalks.com/san-francisco-walking-tours/free-walking-tours/ I did the Chinatown one, and enjoyed it very much. I also did a Local Tastes of the City Tour of the North Beach area http://www.sffoodtour.com/. The tour guide was a local and quite colorful. I wouldn’t say the food was fabulous, but it was a lot of fun - I enjoyed see bread being made. Finally I did a self guided architectural walking tour of the Pacific Heights area: http://www.sfheritage.org/walking-tours/

I agree that if you don’t drink wine, wine touring is probably a waste, but we really enjoyed the art collection at the Hess Winery. You get taken around the gallery - a very interesting very contemporary collection.

Indian Springs Spa is a cool place if you can afford a splurge. Mud baths! https://www.indianspringscalistoga.com/

I very much enjoyed both hiking in the Jack London park and the little house museum there. (Yes we saw Poison Oak near the trail.)

Agree that Yosemite and the coastal drive are great, but haven’t been there for so long will let others suggest specific things.

18

I was going to make some suggestions, but then realized they all involve drinking (Irish Coffee at the Buena Vista, Anchor Brewery tour, etc…).

19

Fort Ross was really cool. My Russian/IR major loved it. It was an early Russian settlement on the coast. Salt Point State Park is just north of Ft. Ross and has a lovely (easy) cliffside trail. We went to Mt. Diablo in August. It was hot but gorgeous.

Lombard Street in SF is iconic and pretty – but lots of tourists.

Alcatraz tours require advance reservations and they are often sold out a few weeks in advance (esp during the summer).

On a clear night, Twin Peaks at sunset is gorgeous. You can get an overview of the entire city and the bay.

Walk across the Golden Gate Bridge.

20

– walk up the steps on the hill to Coit Tower; views on the way up and in the parking lot are fantastic. Go up to the top of the tower for more views and the WPA murals. On the walk up the hill you will likely see wild parrots.

– take a walking tour of Chinatown, for the interesting back alleys

– Golden Gate park, especially the de Young museum. There are always interesting exhibitions and the de Young tower had spectacular views. On Friday nights, they have concerts in the lobby and in the bookstore in the tower. Also in Golden Gate Park, the Japanese Garden is great and it is right next to the de Young.

– if it is a sunny day, do not miss the camera obscura near the Cliff House. It is a building-sized camera that makes an image of the surrounding view. Well worth it!

– i agree with those who say to take the Alcatraz tour and to walk across the Golden Gate bridge.

– if you want to browse hipster shops, Valencia St in the Mission District is the place to go. Start at 926 Valencia (Dave Egger’s pirate shop) and go from there. There’s a great Indian dosa place called Dosa a few blocks away.

– go to the Legion of Honor museum (an art museum). The collection is just okay BUT the building is in a park with some of the most breathtaking views on earth. And if you will be there after January, they will have da Vinci’s Lady with a Unicorn on exhibit (on loan from Italy).

– The Ferry Building! And the farmer’s market in front of the Ferry Building!

– i believe you are a vegetarian, right? Green’s restaurant is an iconic vegetarian restaurant – upscale and delicious.

For nature:

– Muir Woods for hiking in redwoods

– Point Reyes National Seashore for beautiful walks/ hikes overlooking the gorgeous coastline;

– the cowgirl creamery store in Point Reyes Station for picnic supplies for your hikes;

– kayaking in Tomales Bay, with oysters to follow at the little oyster shacks.

– Stinson Beach for a funky surfer town and a great beach.

There are a million other suggestions I can give you! If you want to do an overnight away from the City, Big Sur, Monterrey, Point Lobos, Carmel are highly recommended but they are too far for a day trip.