San Francisco vacation is a must for a traveler or even for one who
takes the occasional tour. San Francisco, the fourth largest city in the
state of California, is unique; it is unusually
clean, it runs a once-defunct and now re-animated transportation system,
and still offers natural and tourist attractions as they first
existed. Above all, the climate of the Bay Area is just perfect. Very
seldom is it too hot
or too cold.
Those of you who live in San Francisco can consider yourself fortunate. If
you happen to live there you can take your visiting family and friends to
the typical and not-so typical spots.That's actually the
secret: on your San Francisco vacation, try to find or at least speak with
a local who is not in the tour business or out to trick you into spending
money, but who will give you insight into the coolest
out-of-the-mainstream places and activities to enjoy.
Some of the things they might suggest doing on a San Francisco vacation
include visiting the swim club,
hiking the many hills (and paved streets, which are also impressive in
their steepness), or staying in a district distinct for its ethnicity, its
natural surroundings, and its cuisine such as North Beach (see City Lights
where the Beats hung out and got published), the Mission (where wheels and
deals and Mexican fare is mingled with discount shops), or the quieter Noe Valley and 24th
Streets (where books and records/CDs and vintage fare abound in discrete
but no less classic glory). You take your pick. It's your San Francisco
vacation!
There's no typical place where a San Francisco vacation starts, but just
to give you some suggestions, you can begin by visiting the marina at Crissy Field. Down the road from there is the Science and Tech Museum,
which has some of the most fascinating gadgets and equipment, offering
visitors the opportunity to see what a couple's baby will look like or
capture one's shadow in stop-motion shadow photography, for example.
On your San Francisco vacation you may also want to check out the Haight
(historical and still functioning as an eclectic, avant garde, creative
mecca and still honoring the geniuses of our Haight/Ashbury era. Then you
can proceed to the Golden Gate Park and to the DeYoung Museum, which
features world-renowned exhibits periodically. It would be a good idea to
check the papers (The San Francisco
Chronicle) for themes and features before you head out that day.
Now continue your San Francisco vacation right next door to the Exploratorium, Lasarium, and a unique experience;
besides seeing a light show and checking out the many fascinating
interactive displays, check out The Tactile Dome! It is like a cave of
sensory deprivation, or of sight deprivation, where you crawl through and
feel your way along different materials and matter of varying
consistencies, textures, and temperatures. This San Francisco vacation
activity is not recommended for the
claustrophobic though, but highly recommended for all others of all ages!
However, there is an emergency attendant, so no worries, really.
No San Francisco vacation would be complete without doing the
popular and most traditional of tours and touring activities: visiting the Golden Gate
Bridge. This bridge, which is only a few miles away from the museum or the Crissy
Field area, is supposedly a monster to re-paint: the guys start at one
end, and by the time they reach the other have to go back to the first
end, for it has begun to chip away (due to salt water air and all).
Next, you can go to the Coit Tower and the Twin Peaks area, both of which are common sites that
cost nothing, and check out the so-called "Crookedest Street in the World,"
which is at the bottom of Lombard and which is always lined with cars, so
have patience!
Another thing that is a must on any San Francisco vacation is the
Fisherman's Wharf Pier 39, where you can get the surf, sandwich and seafood
experience. There you can eat all kinds of touristy foods, eat the
yummiest clam chowder or other seafood dishes (at a small shop or at a
restaurant like Bubba Gumps on the top deck of the pier), fudge, candied
apples, and cookies.
You can shop in fun
little cheap stores for locally-related souvenirs, and you can often go
behind the shops of the pier on one side and see all the seals who bark
and tumble about. However, the relevant societies will probably have figured out a way
to get the seals back to their better home lives by the time you get
there.
Continue your San Francisco vacation down the wharf to the boardwalk, with Ripley's and the Wax Museum, many
touristy shops, and some classy, high-end antique, art, and specialty
shops. Also on the boardwalk is the fresh Dungeness crab you hear so much about. So,
in case you miss it in the restaurants or don't get a chance to go to
nearby Sausalito for an ocean-front dinner, grab a crab! They're cooked
and cracked and ready to go.
From the Fisherman's Wharf you can take a ferry ride to Alcatraz Island
(translates to "Island of the Pelicans") which is located in the middle of
San Francisco Bay. This national historic landmark was once a military
stockade, later became a maximum security prison, and today it is part of
the Golden Gate National Recreation Area and is open to tours.
Last but not least, and certainly not something anyone would want to
miss on their San Francisco vacation, is riding on a cable car. You must try the cable car trip. Even if you live in a state where riding
in the back of a pick-up truck is still legal, you must get the historical
throwback and open-air experience, just once. It will surely give you a
thrill!
You can try to find a good deal on a San Francisco vacation package that
includes everything (flight, hotel, sight seeing, etc.), or if you prefer
more freedom and flexibility, you can arrange your own individual
activities and accommodations whether it's staying in an old Victorian bed
and breakfast or the Mark Hopkins. You can search the internet for great
San Francisco vacation deals.
Regardless of what you decide to do, you should make your San Francisco
vacation travel plans as early as possible in order not to miss out on the
good deals.
You can book a San Francisco hotel here today and get up to
$100 Cash Back!
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