I will be there Sunday afternoon. What should I do? I figure I have from 1pm to whenever. I want to try to see as much as possible. I think napa valley will take too long. What are some can't miss things, but don't take too long? Is there anything to do san jose? I will be there a week, but I hear it kind of sucks.
San Jose does kind of suck, if you enjoy outdoors stuff I think there's some stuff to do around San Jose though. In San Fransisco it depends on what you like. There's a pretty modern art museum and a decent sized park with some smaller museums around it. More touristy stuff would be the Golden Gate bridge, Alcatraz (buy tickets in advance), and Fisherman's Wharf (like Kemah boardwalk). One of the things I liked most on my trip was Coit Tower, it's got a great view of the whole area but doesn't take that long to see. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coit_Tower That's the stuff I saw on a weekend trip there, somebody that's more familiar with the area could have better suggestions.
San Jose is pretty much a suburb of San Francisco. If you have a reasonable amount of free time in San Jose, you visit many of the San Francisco attractions with just a little bit more drive time. For instance, Santa Cruz to Half Moon Bay is a very nice afternoon drive along the beach. And Santa Cruz is pretty close to Bonny Doon which is supposed to be a nice little vineyard experience.
When in San Francisco, I always do the following (must-do's for me): 1. Go to the Top of the Mark (at the Intercontinental Mark Hopkins hotel), sip a cocktail or three and enjoy the view 2. Visit the City Lights Bookstore in North Beach for a touch of oldtime San Francisco beat-ism. 3. Eat dinner at Cafe Michelangelo, a great Italian place about a three block walk from City Lights.
I live in the bay area. Stay away from the warf. It's lame as hell unless you've never seen a seal. If you like beer, go to the Toronado on Haight. Best beer bar in the world. Napa is very stuffy. Stay away unless you have deep pockets and like emptying them. Sonoma wine tasting tends to be more fun and less uptight. Mendocino county is also great for wine tasting. Muir Woods, just north of SF is really beautiful. Go on a weekday though. It's pretty busy during the summer months. Especially on the weekends. The tourist club is also a hike away from Muir woods, but only open on the weekends. Make sure they are open before you decide to hike there. You might also want to check out a Giants game. They have a pretty nice park. Have fun. If you have time, and are interested in such things, the Monterey Bay aquarium is also pretty cool. If you mountain bike, rent a bike and go to China Camp in San Rafael. You could also rent a comfort/hybrid bike and ride it across the golden gate, but be prepared for big weather changes. Also, it's cold at night in SF, and frequently during the day, so be prepared. Oops, just realized you are only going to be here for one afternoon.
With traffic, you will be hurting to leave the city and come back. Napa or San Jose or Santa Cruz excursions would mean you spending over half your available afternoon & evening on the road. I'd say: stay in town & avoid Fisherman's Wharf at all costs. As others have said, it is lame, lame, lame. Just standard tourist thing with nothing much to do with an otherwise interesting city. Ideas (probably pick just one): * take a ferry ride (spelled f-e-r-r-y, pervs) from the Ferry building (east side Embarcadero). Could be alcatraz or angel island or even cute town of tiburon (maybe sausalito?) as your destination before return trip. * take a long walk through China town and into the north beach neighborhood, with Coit tower, city lights books, vesuvios bar, great food all around, etc. * go to Golden Gate park, catch the new de Young museum, and enjoy a great walk around. Can see the amazing new academy of sciences building, but it ain't open yet inside.
Drive up to Napa Valley and eat at The French Laundry! Amazing food and wine but killer on the wallet!!
Do they sell tickets to Alcatraz at the place? or do you have buy online. It seems online tickets are gone.
I live in Hayes Valley in SF. Stay away from Fisherman's Warf. Go to Dolores Park and hang out and people watch. Eat the best ice cream in the city at Bi-Rite. Take a tram. Rent a bike and bike around the waterfront. Go to Russian Hill and Union Street and check out some of the wine bars. Take a ferry to Sausalito. Check out Dolores church. Walk around the Mission/Valencia street. SF is pretty small but if you like the outdoors... Check out the Berkeley marina. They sometimes have free sailing outings (half hour) for people. Check out the Thai Buddhist temple (on Yelp) in Berkeley.. they serve some of the most authentic Thai food outside of Bangkok. Rent a bike and bike up to the Marin headlands. Check out Christiy beach. Ride a bike through Golden Gate Park, check out the wild bison, the windmill and the Pacific Ocean. Talk to random strangers. =) Have fun!
San Jose does suck. Go to Golden Gate, then go downtown a little bit, see the shops and atmosphere over there, head over to Colt Tower, and drive on Lombard Street when you are done. Eat something at Fisherman's Wharf
Seems like some people ignored your scenario. I'm also voting for a walk through China town and North Beach. Get some dim sum for a snack or lunch, Italian for dinner (and/or wine). A few bars in the area too. Coit, City Lights books, etc are nearby. If you're really up for some walking, you can huff it starting from downtown up to Chinatown/North Beach. I think it's fine, but some might consider that too long of a walk. As for Alcatraz, it seemed like you NEEDED to buy tickets ahead of time because it's so busy, which I did. But when we got there it looked like there plenty of people were able to buy tickets on the spot, so I'm not sure what the real deal is. I'll also reiterate that Fisherman's Wharf is nothing better than a lousy strip mall in a scenic locale.
I live in North Beach, only four blocks from Fisherman's Wharf. That place is absolute hell on weekends during the summer. Some good suggestions here though. This place is freaking paradise during the summertime. You'll understand why people here love it so much. Hiking: Muir Woods Point Reyes Natl Seashore Excursions: Ferry to Tiburon -> drink margaritas at Sam's! Beaches: Santa Cruz Baker Beach (SF) Crissy Field (SF) Ocean Beach (SF) Drives: Out to Big Sur Down 1 to Monterey Up 1 from Santa Cruz to Half Moon The City: Hike up Telegraph Hill to the top of Coit Tower Check out Lombard (Crooked Street) Go for a walk through the Haight Ashbury Take a stroll through the Tenderloin to check out the crackheads Jog along the Embarcadero Bar hop in the Marina Shop in Union Square Golden Gate Park Alamo Square Park (Full House)
San Francisco was ok. Saw the golden gate park, the bridge, coit tower, and wharf. The wharf was pretty lame and the seals were barking all night. Going to the top of coit tower wasn't that great either. Parking was also a nightmare. Food is soo expensive there especially if you are having dinner with girls. Also visiting skyline (sp?) is pretty cool. I went with one of my coworkers like at 11 at night. Se got us lost a few times, but we finally made it. Basically this is a mountain trail with no lights. She asked me to stop on one of the stretches and look at the sea. I was kind of scared since this was dark mountain pass with no one there. The view from there was awesome. Also once you can get the top you can see the entire bay area and even the bridge. The drive is pretty fun if you have a nice car.
