About San Francisco

Neighborhoods | Museums and Parks | Getting There

Neighborhoods

The "City by the Bay" is home to at least 40 neighborhoods, each with their own hidden gems and claims to fame. Only in SF, the official visitors' site of San Francisco, has put together great activities pages for the more well known districts. Below, we've included a short intro to each with more links to explore. SFGate has also put together a great neighborhood guide.

Fisherman's Wharf
Take off from Pier 39 to tour the Bay or Alcatraz; wander over to Ghirardelli Square for some chocolate, seeing street performers on the way; go to a museum; or wander over and see the sea lions! Many people consider Fisherman's Wharf to be a must-see for their SF visit.

North Beach
Essentially San Francisco's "Little Italy", North Beach is rife with restaurants, galleries, clubs, and gelato. At night, it is one of the most lively places in the city with music and dancing pouring into the streets. Along with all this is Telegraph Hill, home to wild parrots and Coit Tower. Visit the top of Coit Tower for one of the best views in the city, or wander its ground floor to see its murals.

Chinatown
a second site
The entrance to China Town at Grant Avenue and Bush Street is called the "Dragon's Gate." Inside are 24 blocks of hustle and bustle, most of it taking place along Grant, the oldest street in San Francisco. This city within a city is best explored on foot; exotic shops, food markets, temples and small museums comprise its boundaries. Visitors can buy herbal remedies, enjoy samples at a tea bar or order a "dim sum" lunch. The former central telephone exchange of the Pacific Telephone and Telegraph Company stands at 743 Washington St. Now a bank, it is the first Chinese-style building constructed in San Francisco, and the exact site where California's first newspaper was printed.

The Embarcadero and Union Square
San Francisco's downtown area includes lots of shopping opportunities - you can find almost any store in or around Union Square. If it's not there, it might be at the Embarcadero Center. For fresh food, go to the Ferry Building at the foot of Market Street for the weekly farmer's market. Or, you can catch a ferry to Marin, Oakland and other parts of the Bay Area.

South of Market (SOMA)
The SoMa District in San Francisco is characterized by its industrial past. Having moved through a wave of gentrification and a dot.com boom in the 90s, the South of Market neighborhood is now home to a vast array of artistic and cultural spaces. Some highlights include the SF MOMA, the Center for the Arts at Yerba Gardens and the California Historical Society, AT&T Park (home to the SF Giants) and the Metreon.

Japantown
History of Japantown Founded in 1906 Japantown, Nihonmachi or J-Town as it is known to San Francisco’s 12,000 citizens of Japanese descent, is the oldest in the United States and one of only three remaining.

The Mission
The Mission District is the Latin cultural center of San Francisco, and the best place in the city to get real Mexican food. The Internet Boom brought in a lot of trendy restaurants and boutiques, to mix with the taquerias, produce markets and thrift stores. The oldest building in the city, Mission Dolores, sits at 16th and Dolores Streets, amid the many murals of the district.

Civic Center
This area includes City Hall, The War Memorial Opera House, SF Symphony, and other theaters. Near by are the neighborhoods of Little Saigon and Hayes Valley, boasting galleries, antique shops, restaurants and book nooks.

The Castro
Known world-wide as the "gay mecca" or the "gay capital of the world", the Castro district is home to an ever-changing neighborhood of shops, restaurants, street fairs, and residents. The Castro is bustling all day long, but it really comes to life at night.

Haight-Ashbury
Named for the intersection of Haight and Ashbury Streets, this district is famous for its role as a center of the 1960s hippie movement. It butts up against Golden-Gate Park in the west, Haight-Ashbury maintains its bohemian ambiance and is home to a number of independent restaurants, bars, boutiques, head shops and record stores.

Museums and Parks

San Francisco is home to many world-class museums and parks.

Asian Art Museum
200 Larkin Street (Civic Center)
Hours: 10-5p, closed Mondays, open til 9pm on Thursdays in August
->Here, you can travel through 6,000 years of history, trek across seven major regions, and sample the cultures of numerous countries.

Museum of the African Diaspora
685 Mission Street (SOMA)
Hours: Wed-Sat 11a-6p
->Drawing from the collections of museums, institutes, organizations, universities and private citizens, MoAD is a collector of stories—a repository of information to be shared with all who wish to know about the African Diaspora.

SF Museum of Modern Art
151 3rd Street (SOMA)
Hours: 10-5:45p, closed Wednesdays, open til 8:45p on Thursdays
->With a collection of more than 26,000 works, the SF MOMA offers strong holdings in photography, painting and sculpture, architecture and design, and media arts.

Yerba Buena Gardens
745 Mission Street (SOMA)
(415) 820-3550
Hours: 6a-10p daily, admission is free

Golden Gate Park
park history
This large urban park (part of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area (GGNRA)), consisting of 1017 acres (174 acres larger than New York's Central Park), is famous for its size and many beautiful settings. Listed below are some museums and sub-parks that can be found here.

• De Young Museum | Tues-Sun 9:30a - 5:15p, open til 8:45p on Fridays | Muni transfer gets you $2 off
• The California Academy of Sciences | Mon-Sat 9:30a-5p, Sun 11a-5p | Free on Wednesday 19 August
• The Conservatory of Flowers | Tues-Sun 9a-4:30p
• Japanese Tea Garden | 8:30a-6p daily
• SF Botanical Garden at Strybing Arboretum | weekdays 8a-4:30p, weekends 10a-5p | tours daily at 1:30p

Lincoln Park
Often lost in the shadow of it's large neighbor to the south, Lincoln Park encompasses 168 acres in the northwest corner of San Francisco and is home to many additional interesting and beautiful places to visit. Here's what you can find in this section of the GGNRA:

• Palace of the Legion of Honor (100 34th Ave) | Hours: 9:30 a.m.–5:15 p.m. Tues-Sun

• The Sutro Baths | The ruins may be visited during daylight hours.
• The Cliff House | For reservations and hours, click here.
• Land's End (trail and beach) | Open during daylight hours

The Exploratorium
at the Palace of Fine Arts
3601 Lyon Street (Marina)
Hours: Tues-Sun 10a-5p

San Francisco Zoo
Sloat Blvd at the Great Highway (Sunset)
Hours: 10a-5p daily | Muni transfer gets you $1 off

Cartoon Art Museum
655 Mission Street (SOMA)
Hours: Tues-Sun 11a-5p

The Randall Museum
199 Museum Way (Castro)
Hours: Tues-Sat 10a-5p | admission is free

Cable Car Museum
1201 Mason Street (Nob Hill)
Hours: 10-6p daily | admission is free

Musée Méchanique
Pier 45 (Fisherman's Wharf)
Hours: M-F 10-7; Sat/Sun 10-8, admission is free

San Francisco Maritime Museum
900 Beach Street (Marina)
Hours: 9:30a-5p daily

Alcatraz Island

Walk on the Golden Gate Bridge

Getting There

For information on how to get to your destination, enter the address into the Bay Area public transit trip planner, or Google Maps if you have rented a car.