Things To Do
Golden Gate Bridge
The walk across (or bike across) the bridge gives you amazing views. It’s 1.7 miles across with both protected bike lanes and pedestrian lanes completely removed from traffic. We recommend a bike. There are many bikeshare services or straight up rentals. You have beaches and lots of park on SF side. You have Sausilito and a ton of biking/hiking trails in the hills of Marin on the other.
Ocean Beach
Ocean Beach is huge. Just huge- so even on busy days you can find great space on the sand. It's the open ocean here so could be sunny and warm, foggy and cold, windy, or all of the above. You can walk forever and ever- watching surfers, doggos, and families have fun. When conditions allow, the sunsets here are absolutely mind-blowing.
Lands End Trail
North of Ocean Beach is this gem of a park. It's elevated on a cliff/bluff, so Land's End is packed with beautiful ocean vista after vista. Once you walk 10 minutes down the trail, you could be fooled that you are deep in the Sonoma Coast or Big Sur, but you are still In San Francisco. There are paved walking paths and steep rugged trails- choose your adventure and find secret beaches.
Aquatic Park
This neighborhood juts up against our wedding Venue at Fort Mason. It's also right next to Fisherman's Wharf. If you are feeling adventurous- join the swimmers in protected inlet or book a wooden boat sail. It's such a beautiful place to just chill and decide if you want to make an effort to go see some sights. Check out the Ghirardelli factory- the gelato shop is awesome. Hit up Hyde Street Pier for an easy stroll and great city views. Adventure into Fisherman's Wharf to people watch in hordes of tourists and sea lion watch off the pier.
Crissy Field
All points along Crissy Field's beach gives the best views of the Golden Gate Bridge. Another great beach to spend the day and take photos. It's located on the north side of Presidio Park with lots to explore including redwoods, eucalyptus forest, Lucasfilm Studios, Walt Disney Family Museum, and the Golden Gate Bridge. Hike everywhere, rent bikes, or sit and enjoy the views. If you do rent bikes, you can bike the Golden Gate Bridge from here or take an easy coastal bike path from here to the Marina, to Fort Mason, to Fisherman's Wharf, to the Embarcadero. Since its along the water, there is only a couple of hills.
Golden Gate Park
It's huge. Running from the middle-ish of the city all the way to Ocean Beach. Walk it. Rent a bike. Discover all kinds of things. A few highlights are the Bison Paddock, the De Young Museum, the Natural History Museum, Japanese Tea Garden, Botanical Garden, Ocean Beach.... there is so much more. Like learning archery or roller skate dancing.
Union Square
You want to shop. This is the place for you. It runs the capitalism gamut from Macy's to Versace. A hidden awesome gem for lunch is here. From a bygone era, there is a place to lunch in Neiman Marcus- it's surprisingly really good but be sure to book online before showing up. It's a fun place charge up on food and keep shopping.
Walk around and explore
The whole city is only 7 miles by 7 miles. There are sneaky views everywhere that are breathtaking. There are so many great places to eat. Every neighborhood is different. We recommending picking one or two destinations and then just meander to them. There is so much to discover. Just be sure to dress for the warmest sunny weather and coolest foggy weather in the same day. Wear good shoes to climb up steep hills. And tell us what you discover!