San Francisco Tourism for Naman and Aditi

Tourist spots

Golden Gate Bridge

The best way to experience the bridge is to cross it on bikes. Rent from Sports Basement in the Presidio, or from one of the many places near fisherman’s wharf. Bike across the bridge, get a coffee or lunch in Sausolito, and take the Ferry back, bringing the bikes with you

• Bonus tip: check out Tunnel Tops Park in the Presidio. Nice views of the bridge, food trucks, people watching etc. Not a destination worth going all the way to, but you’ll be in the area anyway

Fisherman’s Wharf/ Pier 39

• Very touristy, but quite fun nonetheless
• The sealions are a delight
• I like Trish’s mini donuts to snack on while I walk around
• Musee Mechanique around the corner has old-timey arcade games. Cute!
• Saunter over to Ghirardelli square and have a Sundae
• Bonus Tip: The Ferry Building is less touristy, but also quite charming. It is also right at the Embarcadero Bart station, so accessible, and close to tech offices. You can take a historic streetcar — the F line — from Ferry Building to Fisherman’s wharf. These aren’t as iconic as the cable cars, but quite cute nonetheless

Cable cars

The California line, that starts near Embarcadero, is generally less crowded than the other two that start near Powell Street

Golden Gate park

Enormous park, and a real gem with a bunch of trails and nature and musuems and activities, but quite similar to Central Park in NY, can be skipped

Alcatraz

Would recommend! Get tickets in advance, since they do get sold out

Food

• Mexican food: La Taqueria burrito is my favourite. Papalote is great, esp for veg food
• Fine dining: California cuisine, that focuses on highlighting fresh local ingredients. Recently I really enjoyed Marlena which has a relatively affordable tasting menu. State Bird Provisions is another classic. I don’t have great recommendations for vegetarian food, though
• Tartine bakery: The best SF sourdough is made here (Boudin is a tourist trap). Also try their pastries. Grab a bunch, and go eat in Dolores park a block away
• Shizen vegan sushi which is quite good! Cha-ya is another japanese place in the neighbourhood
• Z&Y restarant for sichuanese, and Good Mong Kok bakery for dimsum if you end up going to Chinatown

Misc

• Don’t get a car in SF. The eastern half of the city, where most of the action is, has stressful traffic, hard-to-find parking, and fear of breakins. The eastern half also has decent public transport (no New York, but decent for the west coast) and Bikeshare or Uber will fill the gaps where needed
• Things close earlier than in New York. Start your evening earlier to make the most of nightlife — e.g. start your evening with beers or pastries in a park at 4:00pm, before heading to a restaurant and then a cocktail bar
• One of my most enjoyable things to do in the city is to just explore a neighbourhood on foot. The city is quite dense and walkable, and thanks to the hills, you frequently encounter beautiful vistas. 24th Street in Noe Valley, Castro street in the Castro, Valencia street in the Mission, Irving street in Inner Sunset etc
• I’ll still be on parental leave, and Tanya and I would love to show you around (modulo nap schedules)