30 Best Vacation Spots in San Francisco

Singer Tony Bennett left his heart in San Francisco, and when you leave this best-known vacation spot, you will, too. Famous for its cable cars, painted ladies and the Golden Gate Bridge, this City by the Bay makes visitors feel right at home. San Francisco is the town that gold mining built. It is the town that earthquakes and fire couldn't destroy. Now, it is one of the largest cities in the United States. The city offers you memorable landmarks, an excellent transportation system, rolling hills and foggy mornings. Theaters, music, clubs, art, dance and film thrive in this cultural haven. The lifestyle is youthful and energetic with a live-and-let-live attitude that welcomes and embraces diversity. You'll find students, hippies, chichi designers, Latinos, Asians, activists, gays, punks, sailors, trust babies, techies, foodies and arties, who all call San Francisco home.

Here are 30 of the best vacation spots in San Francisco

1. Best Vacation Spots in San Francisco: Alcatraz
2. Best Vacation Spots in San Francisco: Pier 39
3. Best Vacation Spots in San Francisco: Ripley's Museum
4. Best Vacation Spots in San Francisco: Musee Mechanique
5. Best Vacation Spots in San Francisco: Baseball Tour
6. Best Vacation Spots in San Francisco: Grace Cathedral
7. Best Vacation Spots in San Francisco: Ride the Cable Cars
8. Best Vacation Spots in San Francisco: Chinatown
9. Best Vacation Spots in San Francisco: Golden Gate Bridge
10. Best Vacation Spots in San Francisco: Palace of Fine Arts
11. Best Vacation Spots in San Francisco: Exploratorium
12. Best Vacation Spots in San Francisco: Lombard Street
13. Best Vacation Spots in San Francisco: The Presidio
14. Best Vacation Spots in San Francisco: Museum of Modern Art
15. Best Vacation Spots in San Francisco: Other Museums
16. Best Vacation Spots in San Francisco: Mission Dolores
17. Best Vacation Spots in San Francisco: Ocean Beach
18. Best Vacation Spots: San Francisco Zoo
19. Best Vacation Spots in San Francisco: Golden Gate Park
20. Best Vacation Spots in San Francisco: Japanese Tea Garden
21. Best Vacation Spots in San Francisco: De Young Museum
22. Best Vacation Spots in San Francisco: Conservatory of Flowers
23. Best Vacation Spots in San Francisco: California Academy of Sciences
24. Interesting Facts About San Francisco California
25. Video of Best Vacation Spots in San Francisco
26. Google Map of Best Vacation Spots in San Francisco

30 Best Vacation Places in San Francisco was chosen to be included in Jon Anderson's blog carnival. Thanks, Jon.

Best Vacation Spots in San Francisco: Alcatraz

Alcatraz. Who would think an island prison could be the best-known vacation spot? First spend a vacation day in the Embarcadero and Piers area of San Francisco. Then take a short ferry ride a mile and a half across the Bay to Alcatraz, the maximum-security penitentiary. This 12-acre island was called the Rock, where America's Most Wanted spent time. Al Capone, George "Machine Gun" Kelly, and Robert Franklin Stroud, The Birdman of Alcatraz, were behind bars here. The prison tour includes the haunting recording of first-person accounts of daily life in Alcatraz lockup. The prison was closed in 1962 because of the cost of maintaining it. Alcatraz is now a national park.

The Ferry Building and the outdoor Farmers Market are located along the Embarcadero at the foot of Market Street. Browse the gourmet shops, unique cafes and restaurants with a good appetite.

Ghirardelli Square, named for its famous chocolate store, has a mall of shops and an ice cream parlor.

Best Vacation Spots in San Francisco: Pier 39

On Pier 39, a unique marine nature center, the Aquarium of the Bay is a wonderful vacation spot. It features over 20,000 aquatic animals from the San Francisco Bay and surrounding waters. Walk through 300 feet of crystal clear tunnels just inches from sharks, skates, octopus, bat rays and other amazing marine animals.

Pier 39 is where the famous sea lions sometimes spend a lazy day sunbathing and posing for vacation photos. Pier 39 is also home to San Francisco's famous street performers, mimes and musicians. Other attractions at this vacation spot include the two-tier San Francisco Carousel, a games arcade, Bay cruise ships and more.

The San Francisco Maritime Museum includes the museum building in Aquatic Park, and a fleet of historic ships you can tour at the Hyde Street Pier.

On Pier 45 is the USS Pampanito, a WWII submarine open for tours.

Best Vacation Spots in San Francisco: Ripley's Believe It or Not Museum

Ripley's Believe It or Not Museum on Jefferson Street has weird and wacky things, always an amusing vacation spot. The Wax Museum is nearby on Jefferson Street. Embarcadero Center is four skyscrapers with shopping and a cinema multiplex. You'll recognize the Transamerica pyramid, the landmark of San Francisco's skyline. You'll find lots of shopping and restaurants in the Embarcadero Area at Anchorage Square and the Cannery.

Best Vacation Spots in San Francisco: Musee Mechanique

Drop in at the Musee Mecanique on Pier 45 Fisherman’s Wharf to see one of the world’s largest privately owned collections of mechanically operated musical instruments, antique arcade machines and modern video arcade games. Our group loved this vacation spot. Don't miss Laffing Sal, Susie the Can-Can Dancer and the fascinating Carnival.

Best Vacation Spots in San Francisco: Baseball Tour

Take a behind-the-scenes tour of sensational AT&T Park, where the San Francisco Giants play baseball.

Best Vacation Spots in San Francisco: Grace Cathedral

Grace Cathedral, on California Street in the Nob Hill area, is an Episcopal church committed to social issues. Inside is a stained glass series representing Human Endeavor. One of my favorite things is the outdoor stone labyrinth, a spiral walkway that leads you around and around until you arrive at the center, a place for meditation, inspiration and comfort. When you tire of more commercial vacation spots, stop at this one.

Best Vacation Spots in San Francisco: Ride the Cable Cars

Take an unforgettable cable car ride up and down the hills of San Francisco. Cable cars began as the wire-rope railway invented by Andrew Hallidie in the 1870s. They can't go in reverse so the Powell Street Cable Car Turnaround is where the cars turn around on a revolving wooden platform. The Cable Car Museum, a vacation spot on Mason Street, will show you how they work and it is free.

Best Vacation Spots in San Francisco: Chinatown

Chinatown, one of North America's largest and the oldest, began during the Gold Rush immigration. Now it is one of the top vacation spots. Dragon's Gate on Grant Avenue marks the colorful entry to Chinatown. Visit the Tien Hou Temple upstairs at 125 Waverly Place. Stop in at the Chinese Historical Society of America Museum. Portsmouth Square is the green park where the Goddess of Democracy watches tai-chi students greet the dawn, where people meet for games of mahjong, checkers and chess and where the Night Market opens for the summer. Ross Alley in Chinatown is the oldest alley in San Francisco, once known for brothels and gambling. Today, it is where you'll see colorful outdoor murals depicting the everyday life of the Chinese American community. Sample the Moon Cakes at a Chinese bakery, and try the restaurants and Asian import shops.

Best Vacation Spots in San Francisco: Golden Gate Bridge

The Golden Gate Bridge is a memorable vacation spot. Completed in 1937, it is the second-longest suspension bridge in the U.S. It is about 2 miles long. Spend some vacation time enjoying it. You can go across by bike, on foot, by car, or on the bus. This California landmark is spectacularly beautiful at sunset. But did you know that it is San Francisco's number one place for suicide? Only two people have been known ever to survive the jump.

Best Vacation Spots in San Francisco: Palace of Fine Arts

The Palace of Fine Arts is a Greco-Roman ruin reconstructed from the 1915 Panama-Pacific International Exposition. This vacation spot has appeared often in film and television. The exhibition hall, which originally housed Impressionist paintings during the Exposition, is now home to the Exploratorium, a children's museum that gave us hours of fun.

Best Vacation Spots in San Francisco: Exploratorium

The Exploratorium is a vacation spot and an interactive museum of science, art and perception, located in the Palace of Fine Arts. It is designed for children, but my inner child had a wonderful time on vacation trying out electricity, gravity house, optics, colors and the hundreds of creative learning exhibits. I recommend it for grownups, too. Some distance away, out on the Marina Boat Harbor jetty is the Wave Organ, with organ tones that are created by the waves, winds and tide. How cool is that?

Best Vacation Spots in San Francisco: Lombard Street

Lombard Street on Russian Hill is another one of those gotta-see-it vacation spots. The scenic street zigzags downhill with eight switchbacks, one of the world's really crooked streets.

Best Vacation Spots in San Francisco: The Presidio

The Presidio, a vacation spot, became a national park in 1996, but it used to be a Spanish military harbor, back around 1776. It guards the point of entry into San Francisco Bay from the Pacific Ocean. The Presidio developed into the most important American military installation on the Pacific coast It was a key base of military operations during WWII. Once there were fighter plans, gunboats and cannons here. Now bird-watchers, bikers, joggers and kiters spend time on this glorious stretch of coastline. Stop at the Visitors Center to get a map. The Presidio is where Jerry Garcia tried out military life and went AWOL nine times in eight months, before he founded the Grateful Dead. This vacation spot has a pet cemetery, a statue of Yoda, parade grounds and a vintage bowling alley. Ft. Point, where Hitchcock filmed Vertigo, is located underneath the Golden Gate bridge. Between Fort Mason and the Presidio is the Marina. Walk to the north to see San Francisco Bay and to the west for the Pacific Ocean. Baker Beach is a secluded nude beach on the ocean side, with a view of the bridge.

Best Vacation Spots in San Francisco: Museum of Modern Art

Another vacation spot is the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art It displays eclectic and unconventional installations to challenge you. The outstanding collection of photography includes Ansel Adams, Edward Weston, Robert Frank, Dorothea Lange and William Klein. You'll also see modern artists like Henri Matisse, Marcel Duchamp, Paul Klee, Mark Rothko and Diego Rivera.

Best Vacation Spots in San Francisco: Other Museums

The Cartoon Art Museum on Mission Street was founded with a grant from Charles Schultz of Peanuts fame. Cartoon art can be controversial or canny, as you'll find out at this vacation spot.

The Museum of Craft and Folk Art on Yerba Buena Lane collects carvings, musical instruments, African American quilts, and furniture.

Best Vacation Spots in San Francisco: Mission Dolores

Mission Dolores a vacation spot on Mission Street, built in 1776, is the city's oldest building. In the larger basilica next door stained-glass windows feature the 21 California missions from Santa Cruz to San Diego. In back is an old cemetery with graves from the Gold Rush and a replica Ohlone hut dedicated to the people who built the Mission. Within an eight-block radius are 75 outdoor murals, walls of paintings that make social and political statements.

Best Vacation Spots in San Francisco: Ocean Beach

An excursion to the Ocean Beach vacation spot will show you a long expanse of beach and surfers on the high waves. Midwesterners on vacation will be awed by the energy and beauty of the ocean. Down the beach is Cliff House, a restaurant with ocean views and sea lions and seagulls. Sea lions usually arrive during the summer and stay until the cold winter sets in. Next door are the remains of the Sutro Baths, Victorian swimming pools built in 1896.

Best Vacation Spots: San Francisco Zoo

San Francisco Zoo has a Great Ape Forest, barnyard petting zoo and a remarkable Dentzel carousel.

Best Vacation Spots in San Francisco: Golden Gate Park

Golden Gate Park is the heart of San Francisco. It could be the highlight of your San Francisco vacation spots. Within the Park are a number of public museums, a conservatory, and gardens that are not to be missed. There are also outdoor activities like an archery range, fly-casting pools, lawn bowling, horseshoe pitch, 4 soccer fields, softball and baseball diamonds, and 21 tennis courts. The locals enjoy themselves biking, jogging, horse-riding, skateboarding, in-line skating and unicycling. Golden Gate Park also has two windmills, the Beach Chalet Restaurant, Kezar Stadium for sports, the Music Concourse or Bandshell, several lakes, creeks and a waterfall. Pedal boats, row boats and electric motor boats for rent at the boathouse on Stow Lake. But the list doesn't stop there. A herd of bison lives in the park, too, under the care of the San Francisco Zoo.

Best Vacation Spots in San Francisco: Japanese Tea Garden

The Japanese Tea Garden, with five acres in Golden Gate Park, dating from 1894, is the oldest public Japanese garden in the United States. It is the work of 3 generations of the Hagiwara family. This vacation spot is a complex of many paths and ponds featuring native Japanese and Chinese plants, a tea house, pagoda, a bonsai grove, sculptures, the Drum bridge and Zen garden. It may have been the birthplace of the fortune cookie.

Best Vacation Spots in San Francisco: De Young Museum

The De Young Memorial Museum in Golden Gate Park is known for modern and Pan-American art. The eclectic collection ranges from South American stonework to pre-Columbian artwork, modern American glass, textiles, photography, and sculpture. Stop in the excellent bookstore and museum shop at this vacation spot. In 2005 the de Young Museum re-opened in a spectacular new building. Views from the tower are delightful.

Best Vacation Spots in San Francisco: Conservatory of Flowers

Another vacation spot, the Conservatory of Flowers is a Victorian greenhouse in Golden Gate Park, where orchids, lilies, rare and exotic plants are on display. You can think of it as a living museum in an unique setting. San Francisco Botanical Garden & Strybing Arboretum is a sampler of outdoor gardens and landscaping you can explore.

Best Vacation Spots in San Francisco: California Academy of Sciences

The California Academy of Sciences is one of the largest natural history museums in the world. I put it at the top of my list of vacations spots. The Academy reopened in a $500 million new building in 2008. Here are exhibits of natural history, and also the Steinhart Aquarium and the Morrison Planetarium. You'll see areas dedicated to reptiles and amphibians, astronomy, prehistoric life, various gems and minerals, earthquakes, and aquatic life.

Interesting Facts About San Francisco California

The Ohlone people were Native Americans living in the bay area when the first Spanish exploration party landed. Seven years later, in 1776, an expedition led by Juan Bautista de Anza selected the bay as the site for a military base, the Presidio of San Francisco. That same year, the Franciscan missionary Francisco Palóu founded the Mission San Francisco de Asís, now called Mission Dolores. Eventually Spain handed the settlement over to Mexico. Later, the Treaty of Guadalupe Hildalgo ended the Mexican-American War in 1848 and gave California, along with the rest of the southwest, to the USA.

San Francisco grew fast after gold was discovered in 1848 at Sutter's Mill about 120 miles from San Francisco. When the earthquake and fires of 1906 destroyed three-fourths of the city, San Francisco survived. Rebuilding the city after the earthquake created the footprint for modern day San Francisco.

In the days of the Gold Rush, San Francisco was a rough mix of sailors, miners, prostitutes and shady dealers. During Prohibition, San Francisco was home to many speakeasies and gin joints. Asians looking for gold settled here. Gays dismissed from the military for homosexuality settled in San Francisco. The Beat movement took hold here. Soon San Francisco has become an important commercial, shipping and financial center, and now a delightful vacation spot. The current population of over 800,000 lives in an area of less than 47 square miles. An interactive Google map of San Francisco to help plan your vacation is included at the bottom of this page.

Video of Best Vacation Spots in San Francisco

Google Map of Best Vacation Spots in San Francisco

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I hope you have an exciting vacation in San Francisco.
I wish you a very happy day.