San Francisco

San Francisco is the 14th largest city in the USA, located on the west coast of America in California.  What is San Fran really like?  It is like an eclectic version of Melbourne with cool summers, hippies, gorgeous architecture, steep hills, cable cars (trams) and a homelessness epidemic.

I visited San Francisco at the end of the American summer and the first thing I noticed was how freezing it was!  An emergency shopping trip occurred and a coat was purchased stat.  Lesson number one - do your research and pack appropriately!  It is tricky doing a trip around a large continent like the US where there is a large variation in climate in places that aren't that far away from each other.  The only options really are to pack and bring different clothes to wear, or pack a little lighter and buy the things you need when you get there (definitely my preferred option as a keen shopper).  Option C which I exercises on my Europe trip is bring everything you need but bring old clothes or stock up at kmart so you will not have to think twice about throwing stuff away if you have to later on in the trip.


Getting there

San Francisco has a major airport and is easy to connect to from most places in the US. United Airlines fly direct to San Francisco from Australia. Avoiding LAX is great if you need to and United airlines have really cheap flight specials although I'd suggest flying with anyone else.  More about that in later posts about trip planning.

To get from the airport to downtown SF, the BART (train) costs $8.25 USD one way.  Just pick the stop closest to your hotel then either walk/ tram or get a taxi (may be needed as the hills are STEEP with a suitcase).

We drove to San Fran from LA via the Pacific Coast Highway - I would highly recommend this part of the trip. We dropped our car at the airport however it is worth investigating drop off points for each car rental service as many companies will do airport drop off only and charge you a fee to drop the car in a city different to where you have rented it.  I will elaborate on this further in a later post on general overview of the US trip.



Geography

San Francisco is a large city and its suburbs or districts are really noticeably different depending on where you go.  You will notice the architecture, culture, affluence and inhabitants change before your eyes.  Public transport is not as easily navigated as other places in the US despite the fact that there are trams and cable cars throughout the city.  I've marked some of my recommendations on google maps below to give you an idea of which areas they are in.

Major districts we visited



• Fisherman's Wharf
• touristy neighbourhood with Pier 39, Sealions, launching point for Alcatraz, touristy seafood restaurants
• Nob Hill/ Russian Hill
• Affluent area with gorgeous views and cute houses, lots of steep hills, take your walking shoes.
• Union Square
• We stayed near here.  Is the financial centre, lots of chain retail shops.
• The Haight
• Home of the hippies, quirky shopping
• Castro
• Cultural centre for the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender ... communities. Great café culture.
• Golden Gate
• Historical landmarks, the Golden Gate Bridge obviously, great views

Getting around

Public transport around SF city is called MUNI.  There are cable cars, buses, trains and it can be tricky to work out which one to use to get around.  To make your life easier, download the hopstop app. This app will change your life! Just plug in where you want to go and what time and it will give you step by step directions.  Make sure you save these so if you are out somewhere with no wifi you can get home.

Accomodation

Lots of accommodation is around the main tourist haunt - Fisherman's Wharf.  Decide where you will stay based on what you want to do (and your general fitness level! It is very hilly away from Fisherman's Wharf).  Accomodation in San Fran is also quite expensive so you may want to move further out to save a few $$.

I decided to stay in the Union Square area after doing a bit of research.  I loved this area in terms of accessibility.  Our accommodation was smack bang between a rich district and a poorer area so the scenery changed dramatically depending on whether you went up or down the hill.

After a lot of deliberation, we chose USA Hostels San Francisco.  Noooo, not a hostel I hear you say? This is one of the best hostels I have ever stayed in.  We had a private room with a private bathroom, television, microwave etc.  The hostel had free basic breakfast, facilities for doing washing and a private movie room. It wasn't noisy and there were hosted activities every day like bike tours, trivia etc.  The age range was mostly 20s-30s and again the location was perfect.  Cost was $125USD per night- an absolute steal.

Next trip I would stay here again or look at renting somewhere via Airbnb.  Do note before you book that it is illegal to sublet and therefore use Airbnb for short term rentals in SF (see separate post on Airbnb).

Things to do in San Francisco

I'd recommend doing a walking or bike tour to get your bearings - try a free tour by San Francisco city guides.  We spent the first day just wandering around, navigating trams, trolleys and buses and checking out some of the districts of SF.

The Embarcadero

• The Embarcadero is the wharf area than runs from AT&T park in the southeast, along the water all the way to Fisherman's wharf.  It is a great spot to wander or jog along.
• The pier numbers go up as you head towards Fisherman's Wharf, the Alcatraz boat leaving from Pier 33.  The Exploratorium is on Pier 15.
• Visit the Farmers market on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.
• The Plant Organic Cafe
• We had a great dinner here
• Pier 3



 Exploratorium

• Located on Pier 15, the Exploratorium is a crazy science museum for adults and kids alike
• Entry $15

Fisherman's Wharf/ Pier 39

• Prepare yourself for the onslaught of tourists and grab a bowl of famous SF Clam Chowder.  Clam chowder may actually be from Boston and heavily marketed to tourists  in a sourbread bowl but when in Rome.... Check our this post where someone visited every Chowder stand and go from there!

• The best thing about Pier 39? The Sealions! Grab a coffee and watch the humongous beasts play and fight for the best spot on the pontoons.  One of the many free tourist attractions in SF 

Musée Mécanique

• Collection of more than 300 vintage mechanical arcade games.
• Exchange your cash for pennies and enjoy!
• Pier 45, Embarcadero, San Francisco

The Wave Organ

• An acoustic sculpture that makes sound when the waves hit it. Great views of the bay and bridge from here.  Sounds best at high tide.
• 83 Marina Green Drive, San Francisco

Telegraph Hill/ Coit Tower

• Take the challenge and climb the steps of telegraph hill to Coit Tower- an art deco tower built in 1933.
• Your quads will burn but the view is well worth the effort. $7USD to ascend the tower
• Coit Tower: 1 Telegraph Hill Boulevard, SF

Castro

• One of the first gay neighbourhoods in the US, the Castro remains a lively centre for LGBT.
• The home of SF icon, politician and gay rights activist Harvey Milk, the first openly gay person to be elected to the public office in California.
• Check our the Castro theatre, Harvey milk plaza, LGBT walk of fame, Harveys (formerly the Elephant walk- raided after the white night riots) and pink triangle park- a monument to gay prisoners persecuted in WWII.
• Don't miss brunch at Café Flor
• 2298 Market St, The Castro, San Francisco

• Hot Cookie
• Buy a delicious fallice shaped cookie
• 407 Castro Street, The Castro, San Francisco

The Haight/ Ashbury

• Catch the bus up to Haight/Ashbury and walk along Haight Street  (from Stanyan street- when you hit Divisadero street you are heading into the Castro.  This walk is great and you will lovely hilly views. along the way  

• The Haight (prounced like "hate")is split into the Upper Haight and Lower Haight, the former has hippy roots and is a tourist destination whilst the latter retains its poorer black roots and is a bit dangerous at night.
• Shopping
• There are dozens of quirky shops, thrift stores and the like to keep anyone entertained.
• Check out Amoeba music for vinyls and a large collection of indie music (1855 Haight Street)
• Giant Robot- a weird Asian manga/ toy shop (618 Shrader street).

Alcatraz

• Do not miss Alcatraz, it was my favourite part of San Francisco.  There is only one company that has tours to Alcatraz that actually docks on the island- don't be fooled!  
• The tours book out very quickly so book your tickets ASAP (they are available 90 days in advance).
• We did the night tour which is supposed to be the best as they let less people on at night and open up areas that can't be accessed during the day ($37USD pp).  They had different mini tours you could access - we went to the ghost stories tour where they lock you in solitary confinement aka 'the hole' and a tour of the hospital which is never open during the day.
• The tour leaves from Pier 33. Try not to get carried away at the souvenir shop like I did.

The Painted Ladies

• Row of Victorian houses painted in pastel colours, backdropped by sky scrapers. If you are an 80s or 90s baby, you may recognise them from the credits of Full House.
• Steiner street San Francisco (at Alamo Square Park)

Union Square

• Shopping at chain stores and Macy's (there's a cheesecake factory on the top floor!)
• Check out little paris - visit claude and belden lanes just off union square with live jazz on weekends.

Downtown

• Fino Bar and Ristorante
• Lovely Italian food, book in advance
• 624 Post Street, San Francisco

Mission Area

• Visit the legendary Dottie's true blue cafe for breakfast (prepare to line up)
• 28, 6th Street, San Francisco (just off market street)

Golden Gate Bridge

• Do not leave San Francisco without walking or riding over the Golden Gate Bridge. The trip there has the most amazing views.
• We hired pushbikes from Blazing Saddles (the main hire company in SF). You can do a guided tour or a self tour.  We picked up a map and did the self tour tide over the bridge to Sausalito. You can then catch the ferry back (the ques can be a little long so jump in the line as soon as you are ready to leave) 
• Bikes are around $8 per hour. The ride was challenging and you will need a basic level of fitness. This was the most challenging tourist bike route we did in the US.
• Pier 31 (also multiple other locations are SF- see their website)

AT&T Park

•  Watch the SF Giants play basketball at AT&T Park.
• 24 Willie Mays Plaza, San Francisco

Sausalito

• Make the trip over the golden gate bridge to check out Sausalito- a cute little town with panoramic views and a ferry back to SF.
• Lovely place to have a wander and a coffee.

Filbert Street

• Filbert street is home to the steepest hill in San Francisco.  The normal streets are so ridiculously steep it is impossible to capture in a photograph.  This street takes it to a whole new level!

Trips from San Fran

• San Fran is well positioned to allow for excellent day trips or ideally to venture out from your home base for a couple of days.
• Try wine tasting in the Napa Valley
• Visit the stunning Yosemite national park (we couldn't go because of bush fires!) 

San Francisco is great place to slow down the pace and just enjoy walking around and taking in the sights.  Take a warm jacket and enjoy all that SF has to offer.