First trip to San Francisco - any locals/travelers with recommendations ?
- Thread starter Kybluedude
- Start date
Sure, the Bay Area is expensive. But it's pricey because everyone and their dead grandmother wants to live here.
I laughed at the notion that the Bay area sucks, and that people are leaving by the millions. The Bay area has grown by 500K or so over the last 6 years. Yes, people are moving away due to home prices, but for everyone 1 person that moves, the area welcomes 2 more. And what would it matter if it were immigrants taking the place of those moving away? It's not the case, but I don't see any issue if it was.
SF, like other great American cities, has beautiful locales and areas that need help, sanitized pockets and crusty spots, affluent neighborhoods and projects. Only difference is that SF is between 55 and 75 every day, and smells like dope.
One quick correction on Chinatown, also go into some of the shops. They're weird.
Lastly, as others have stated, Fisherman's Wharf is a nightmare. If you go there I highly recommend being under the influence.
You'll have to venture away from Union Sq for the local scene. The area is the 2nd largest tourist destination in the city behind the mess that is Fisherman's Wharf. But you have some well known SF establishments in the area that are worthwhile.
Bourbon and Branch is near Union. It's a gimmicky, whiskey-centric speak-easy on the edge of the Tenderloin but kinda fun for a drink.
I'd recommend heading into the Russian Hill area on and around Polk Street, you'll get your fill of the local scene. My suggestions there are Union Larder, Mezcalito, Ho's Bootleg Tavern, Kozy Kar (late night), and Robberbaron.
The Tenderloin right next to Union Sq, on its surface, is the "crustiest" part of SF so it's only locals, but has some cheap fare and a decent bar scene. My recommendations are Mikkeller (best beer bar in town IMO), Brenda's French Soul Food, The Chairman for steam bun sandwiches, and Lers Rhos for Thai.
I second the previous suggestions for places on Embarcedero : Ferry Building, Hard Water (another whiskey bar), Water Bar, Pier 23 are all nice spots right on the Bay.
I highly recommend the bars/restaurants in the Mission for the local scene as well. The Mission is the hispanic area of SF, but is quickly becoming gentrified so offers both upscale locations and cheap tacos/burritos. My favorite spots on the cheap-ish side are Papalote, Wes Burger, Sycamore, Zeitgeist, Burma Love, and Hawker Fare.
Yep, in the Mission. Been here since 1/1/11 via Boston. With a toddler I'm starting to get the itch for the East Bay move, preferably North Oakland. Wife wants to do Richmond/Sunset for GG Park access. Love the peninsula too but want to stay within a 5-10 BART ride from downtown.
It'll be hard to leave the city if and when we ever do.
Mime- thank you- ? Transportation ... Bart from SFA to Union Square. Best to buy the on/off tour bus passes for a couple days to move around and see the areas of town? Muni pass? Of course a lot of walking. We were planning to take a tour to Muir and Napa one day. Any suggestions?
I'd just Uber. Hop on/hop off bus is probably good idea. But not sure about the pricing or how it works.
One more recommendation: gold and blue fleet has a nice one hour boat tour of the bay that goes out and the GG bridge. It's like $40 each. You do have to leave from Fishermans wharf area. But it's time well spent and great way to see the bay. It also goes around Alcatraz.
One more recommendation: gold and blue fleet has a nice one hour boat tour of the bay that goes out and the GG bridge. It's like $40 each. You do have to leave from Fishermans wharf area. But it's time well spent and great way to see the bay. It also goes around Alcatraz.
They also offer authentic Cincinnati and Indianapolis cuisine from what I can tell.
Authentic San Franciscan cuisine, IMO.
The BART from SFO to Union Sq is easy. You would take a small shuttle to the BART station from your terminal, then it's a straight shot. Would take ~ 45-60 minutes and cost ~ $12 total. An Uber/Lyft would be $50 and take about 30-45 minutes.
A clipper card would be your best bet if you're sticking with public transportation. That works on the Muni trains and buses, plus BART and BART managed ferries. I'm not sure if you can purchase one at the airport, but you can pick one up/refill at just about any Walgreens in the city.
Regarding Napa, depends on the scene you prefer. You can do private tastings at secluded, family owned spots where you'll easily drop $500+, hit up larger wineries on the fancier side in which you're sharing a tasting room with other groups, or visit a larger commercial, less formal winery, or low key, rustic locations where you may share a tasting room or have it to yourselves.
Can't really go wrong with any adventures to GG national rec area/Muir Woods/Mt Tam parks. My favorite is the all day hike from Mill Valley to Muir beach.
The only winery I went to was called Hendry. Nice, retired former engineer I think. He gave a personal tour and then we tasted probably 10 different wines. Probably 3 hour adventure.
I may be in the extreme minority here, but I didn't really care for going to the town of Napa. Not really much there IMO.
I may be in the extreme minority here, but I didn't really care for going to the town of Napa. Not really much there IMO.
If you do a hop-on, hop-off bus tour (I did the last time I was there), do it the first or second day, so you can see everything and get a feel for the city. Then you can figure out if there are other areas you saw you want to re-visit.
We also did the Muni pass to get transportation anywhere around town. It worked great.
If you want to go to Alcatrez, make your reservation online before you go. It is very popular and will sell out at peak times. The two previous times I had gone it sold out, so the last time we went I made sure to buy it ahead of time.
We also did a cruise of the bay and it gave us some great views of the Golden Gate bridge from the water.
We also did the Muni pass to get transportation anywhere around town. It worked great.
If you want to go to Alcatrez, make your reservation online before you go. It is very popular and will sell out at peak times. The two previous times I had gone it sold out, so the last time we went I made sure to buy it ahead of time.
We also did a cruise of the bay and it gave us some great views of the Golden Gate bridge from the water.
You ever eat at Penang Garden in Chinatown and get the spicy crab? Been wanting to try that ever since I saw it featured on TV.
