Top Things to See & Do in San Francisco! (full travel guide) 

Thanks for watching! Here's everything I mentioned in the video 👇 ► MY HOTEL The Alton Hotel (where we stayed): plannin.com/hotel/44582b58-24cc-4963-b501-ae481a88d01e?refId=alysmalls ► PLANNING GUIDES My SF travel planning cheat sheet: docs.google.com/document/d/1z1Kzv7pxBFmHI6wRAbRQ5KuAcl0DZU6mPE_hoGDT_Qs/edit?usp=sharing My blog: likewhereyouregoing.com/things-to-do-in-san-francisco-for-first-timers/ ► TOURS Painted Lady House guided tour: viator.tp.st/Q1cQm2Ke Volkswagen Bus City Tour: viator.tp.st/DDaoSEfL Chinatown Walking Food Tour: viator.tp.st/BHYgHXcB Little Italy Walking Tour: viator.tp.st/SZaw369B Wine Country Day Trip: viator.tp.st/i7ajEUmN My backpack: amzn.to/4coiQsS *this video is not sponsored - we paid for everything: flights, hotel, tours, all food, etc!

As a native San Franciscan, the SF tourism bureau should showcase this video in their promotions. It truly captures the essence of our beautiful city! Amazingly done.

Just got the biggest grin when you said that if the fog didn’t block your view you didn’t really visit San Francisco. Yes! That’s exactly right, Karl is part of the package. So glad to see you enjoying my favorite city on the planet. ❤ 🌁

We visdited San Francisco in 2023 as a lay over on route to Hawaii from England. We loved it, felt much more European culturally than other places in America, We also had fog when we cross the Golden Gate bridge on the way to see the Sequia trees.

This is by far one of the best travel vlogs of "The City!" I'm so tired of all of the negative news I hear about San Francisco, when there is so much more to love about this place. It looks like you timed your visit well, as it looks like you got good weather. Thank you.❤

I've lived here for 39 years after moving from LA where I grew up. Even to this day I find The City a magical place. Worked on Alcatraz for three months, got to spend the night in one of the Birdman's two cells, D Block on the third floor is where I slept. Went down to the dungeon below the main cell block. And yes I have experienced things I cannot explain. You've covered many of the sights to see. I love Angel Island, spent many nights there too.

Aly, don’t give into the haters. You did a great job showcasing the beauty of the city. It looks like the weather smiled on you during your stay!

Great video. I'm a Bay Area native, but I've never tried many of the places. Now you've got my curiosity going.

What a great video. As someone that lives 30 miles from the City, I learned about a lot of new places to try next time I am there. Thanks!

Great video of the most beautiful city in the U.S. and among the top 5 in the world.

Visited SFO in late Mar 24, we found the city safe . There were visible police presence and tourist ambassadors at all the tourist locations. We parked our car at the Ellis O’Farell garage and there was no issues. We drove all round the city including Sausalito, and we felt safe. The sad part is the closures of many businesses at the touristy points incl Chinatown . Other than in the Tenderloin the homeless issues are overblown .

massive cred for shouting out Musee Mechanique. What with Playland-Not-At-The-Beach closed down, it's one of the last places left preserving the old time entertainment machines in the Bay, and it's totally underrated.

We live here in the San Francisco Bay Area and frequent the city all the time and we have watched many videos of SF. This was one of the best ones we have seen! You nailed pretty much all the main places to check out. Great Job!!!

Dude, I’m going to San Francisco soon and I’ve been doing tons of research on blogs and vlogs, and yours is by far the most well laid-out travel guide. I plan on following in your footsteps steps almost to a T!! lol thank you so much for putting in the time and effort to make this!!

I come from like 15 other videos and this is the best one!!

SO happy you showed Waymo.

Love that you loved my city! Always fun seeing people's take on it and glad you two had a great time.

Yes, yes, yes!!! The San Francisco video! I spent a lot of time in San Francisco in the 1990s and early-2000s. Your video brings back sooo many good memories. I've experienced everything you and Chris did on your trip! My two favorite neighborhoods are North Beach (I'm Italian) and the Haight (I was born in 1967, just a coincidence my parent tell me). Although, I can honestly say I loved every part of that city! You're right about Pier 39, though. You can walk through it once and just say you've been there! And what can I say about wine country?! I do prefer Sonoma, though St. Helena up in Napa is beautiful, too. I could go on!!!

I enjoy san fran, though heres a kinda fun fact. The palace of fine arts is actually from the 1960s, because the original was demoloshed because it wasnt built to last

i was born and raised in San Francisco and i've never lived anywhere else. i sometimes wonder why people like to come here. thanks for reminding me!!

Great recap! I just did all of this and more with my kids maybe four years ago and we had a blast.

My husband and I lived in California most of our lives and visited San Francisco 100's of times. You did the city justice and even told us about one place we had never heard of (Yoda Statue). Great video.

I was forced to have a "lay-over" in San Francisco due to flight changes coming back to the NW from Central America... We ended up turning it into a 4 day stay after finding we loved the hotel near the bay and the walk about areas were wonderful with morning joggers, small shops and restaurants, Perfect weather and no obvious homeless or drug use, although we didn't go out much after dark... LOVED the Weather!!

Great video. We going there this week from UK. Very useful tips. Thanks!

Should have mentioned the Walt Disney Family Museum in the Presidio. It is, as its name suggests, family Disney, not corporate Disney. It is a very worthwhile stop for any fan of old time Disney and it’s fun to see the many Academy Awards on display. The special Academy Award for Snow Whit features a regular sized Oscar along with 7 small ones! Also on display is his Presidential Medal of Freedom. Really cool. There is lots to see in the museum and you could easily spend a couple of hours in it.

While you're there, be sure to visit the famous Fisherman's Wharf Ruins.

Great video, best I've seen of several, Chris is a lucky guy! We leave on Monday.

One of my most terrifying travel experiences was riding in a taxi in San Francisco. The Waymo is blowing my mind…I can’t imagine getting around the city without a human! 😮

Great short review you did the city justice The city is great and if you know where to go you can completely avoid all the crazies I live here and there are many places to go and some to avoid like any big city

As a native San Franciscan, this was one of the best videos I've seen about visiting San Francisco.

We always fly in early so we can hang out at the Buena Vista before our room is ready. 🙂 we also like to buy the Irish coffees to go and walk down the hill, sit in the grass and people watch. Another fun thing to do (we do this nearly everywhere we travel) is go on one of those ghost walk tours. Kind of goofy, but the story telling is always great, and you learn so much unknown history of the neighborhoods, etc. so fun!

"Hell yeah dude" You're officially a Californian now😊

Wow! What a beautiful video! Hi from Puerto Rico!😊

Beautiful video as always! 🍻

Thanks for a great tour of my City!! ❤

Super professionally constructed. Excellent job!

Thanks for a great video and info❤ l love San Francisco and like visit it

Great review on my favorite city, the City by the Bay 🌁💕

Hi, Aly and Chris...; I haven't been to San Francisco in forty ( 40 ) years ! ! * This excellent video was refreshing... * Brought back a lot of MEMORIES ! ! * Excellent video and very informative and "Thank you" for sharing the video ! ! Excellent video... * Aly..., you are bright, intelligent, and attractive... "Semper Fi" Mike in Montana :)

Amazing review, makes me want to explore my own backyard some more.

Such a beautiful video well done. Somehow you guys avoided all of the homelessness and filth of the city and no one mentions it in the comments.

Excellent info on SF thank you!

Aly - I enjoyed this guide. As a frequent visitor to the bay area over the past two decades, i think this is a great start for newbies visiting SF. However, I think you missed on three key things. First - You didnt discuss public transit (I dont count the cable cars). The bay area has wonderful transit, with direct connections to SFO and OAK. Its easy to reload your clipper card on your phone (with access to MUNI, BART, AC Transit and more). . Also, the vintage street cars along the Embarcadero are a must ride! Each car is painted in vintage colors, running between fishermans wharf, downtown and the castro. Theres also a cool trolley museum across from the Ferry Building market place. Secondly, speaking of the Castro.. You guys left off two of my must see neighborhoods in SF. The Castro is a cool and funky area that is world famous for its LGBTQ+ community. Even if you are not part of that group, its a great place to visit with cool shops, theatres, etc. A very colorful area. The other is the Mission District. Its a little more rough around the edges these days but IMHO its home to the best mexican food in the US. I think its better than anything in So Cal. Plus loads of cool bars too. Lastly, you didnt mention any other spots outside of the San Fran proper except wine country. The bay area is big with lots of things to see (and easy to get to via BART), but I always recommend Berkley along/near the telegraph ave area. Home to the original Amoeba records, and the campus of UC Berkley is right there. And also, downtown Oakland. I know Oakland gets a bad rap, but the downtown area is a super up-and-coming area. Cool restaurants, funky bars, brewerys, etc. Theres the Oakland Ale trail, (some faves, Drakes and Two Pitchers brewing) and some great beer gardens too! Would love to see another video going into these spots!

Great video. I've lived here since 1964 and would never imagine being anywhere else. I enjoyed your presentation, but it included Only the obvious tourist places. There is so much more that you ignored. Good photography. Good narration.

Spent quality time in (SF) last century.🤗. No plans of ever returning.

Thanks Aly, this is a great vid!

Hi! I’m so happy to see you had a lot of fun in my city! I loved the way you put all the sights and places you popped into 😊. You even went into some eateries I didn’t even know about. So I’ll be checking your list. 😅The next time you come to visit stop Panadería La Mexicana Bakery near the corner of 24th and York streets to grab some Mexican bread, there are others but I’m a little biased because my grandfather worked there when they moved to San Francisco in the late 50’s from Mexico and we always get bread from there to this day. There are a few restaurants where you can try different Latin country foods. Saludos!

Great video of SF!

FANTASTIC video! So many gems! Makes me want to go back soon! Will definitely have to try Scoma’s!

Super film, kolejka wyglada zapraszajaco. Moze kiedys uda sie odwiedzic 😊x

Great Information

Great job guys. 33 years still living in SF!

Interesting film shots. Glad you added drone footage, perfect spot for it. Which one did you carry?

Ally, this is an excellent travel vlog! Your editing is phenomenal! I registered with Plannin because of one of your previous vlogs. It’s really useful. Question: where did you get your cute backpack?

Oh yeah!!! In N out! 😋

Loved this! The best SF video I have seen! Thank you!

You need to know that fortune cookies were invented in San Francisco-nowhere else. They became so popular, they made their way to Asia. So it’s not that it’s the first place in North America where they were made, San Francisco is where they were invented and made in the world.

Everything I go see the Golden Gate Bridge it’s foggy. A short drive from the airport has the best Filipino restaurant I’ve ever been too. I told the chef his food is better than my moms

What is the difference between the walking chinatown tour and the food tour? And did you combine the two tours on the same day?

Great video! I grew up in Silicon Valley and still live here....contrary to popular belief, SF is actually not part of Silicon Valley. It's a colloquialism for Santa Clara County, which is an hour south of San Francisco either driving or on Caltrain (it's part of the Bay Area; it touches the south shore of the San Francisco Bay). San Francisco is a great city!!🙂 A couple things I don't see mentioned are the Exploratorium and the Napa Valley Wine Train! The latter takes you on a journey to several different wineries for wine tasting, and it's a train. I haven't done it, as I don't drink, but I hear it is good. 🙂 Exploratorium, along with the California Academy of Science and Alcatraz, are basically required field trips for kids growing up in the Bay Area, but I still go to the California Academy of Sciences and the Exploratorium as an adult! It's a mix of science museum and art gallery! You guys were really close...it's on Pier 15!! Both of those places, California Academy of Sciences and the Exploratorium, have adult-only night on Thursday night where alcohol is served, and there's usually a science lecture too. Should be noted, the world class public transit system is one of the things the Bay Area is known for. The cable cars are kept for historical purposes, but locals use "muni" -- the public transit internal to SF, consisting of an extensive network of buses as well as electric trains, and BART, Bay Area Rapid Transit, which is a regional subway. BART not going north to Napa was a big political fight -- BART thought that the golden gate bridge could handle the weight, but the Bridge District claimed it could not, plus they claimed it would ruin the aesthetics of the bridge lol. There's a train on the other side though, called SMART. And there's a bus across the bridge, as well as a ferry that takes you from SF to Sausalito, takes 30 minutes. I'm 46 and don't know how to drive, because of the great transit system in the Bay Area. Another important thing with food, The Bay Area is home to five restaurants that have Three Michelin Stars! In SF itself, you have Benu, Quince, and Artelier Crenn. In the North Bay (across the GG bridge), you have French Laundry in Yountville and SingleThread, in Healdsberg. The only other Three Michelin Star Restaurant in California is Addison, in San Diego! Three Michelin Stars means it's the best food in the world. There are 30 in France which have earned this distinction, and the USA ties for 4th in terms of the number of Three Star Restaurants; both Italy and the USA have 13. 🙂All these places are 300 USD/plate, but according to the French, it's the best possible food experience you could have anywhere. 🙂

Was in san Francisco for two weeks! Fox news lies alot about this city, it was great!

Headed down for the long weekend end of Sept. Love your cheat sheet. I've been searching for a "how to do it on Transit." We plan on getting 3 day metro passes, which include the cable cars! We will have to get the Waymo for something, though. Very cool.

I actually have never seen Golden Gate Bridge in person drove over it though. that time I was asleep though in the car.

i went for the bridge walk and lunch but all my fav eateries are long gone.

FOR A TREAT. LEARN TO PLAY & THROW DARTS. VISIT DARTS CENTRAL FOR A FREE LESSON. WITH ASIAN, MEXICAN, AMERICAN, AND PIZZA RESTUARANTS TO SATISFY YOUR HUNGER.

I love SF ❤

Beautiful information ❤

Great guide Aly, Did y'all need a permit to get the drones shots ?

The palice of fine arts was where the panima pacific fair after the P Canal was completed 1915 no your facts

@16:20 no driver is wild!! 🚙

If you can encounter Adrian Monk, it's worth it. You'll thank me later. 😉

You did a great job

Top Things to Do in San Francisco: #1: Leave #2: See #1 Top Things to See In San Francisco: #1 San Francisco -- in your rear view mirror #2 See #1

Loved the video :) but the photography is also amaizing, is it analogic?

Nice video ! I just came from SF today I go often to hang out and do DoorDash !

You did a vid a while back about why you recommended a level8 carry on. I think it was the black one and you even gave a code we could use on the level8 site. I can’t seem to find it.

~ Funny you show the City .... the way we know the City. Ive Been here for Decades ... and in the last 5 years .... the haters of the political clown show have come out of the wood work to Cap on Sf Ca, the City by the Bay..

From a local. Make reservations way in advance during the tourist season for Alcatraz. The island gets booked out weeks in advance. Take a side trip to Sasalito just north of the Golden Gate Bridge. Take a commuter ferry from the Ferry building. Either dine at the nice restaurants on the piers there or get a sandwich on Bridge Way and sit next to the sea lion statue and take in the views. Leave your car at the hotel when you arrive. Take public transit or one of the tours mentioned in the video. Thieves come in from over a hundred miles away to seatl tourist's luggage. We are now using drones and license plate readers and bait cars to bust these guys, so the numbers are going down. Don't miss Golden Gate Park's great museems and outdoor spaces. The Tenderloin is the neighborhood you see all the drug use on in an endless loop on right wing news. All city's have bad neighborhoods, you won't be going there so don't worry.

Cool

Now you see why SF is so expensive 😊

Did you really not go to Golden gate park?

Do you need an app to book the no driver car and what app is it and was it worth it ?? I’d be sooo scared with no driver. How safe is it ??!!

good Job 👏

Looks like many places have reopened

20:58 - not a single person on that peer, THINK ABOUT IT.

Great ❤

You went to all the old 1980 touristy places in San Francisco. Everything is East of Fisherman’s Warf not West. Suburban types with You Tube channels always go to the same old places. The rest of the city is much better (except for the Civic Center Tenderloin area) Just look at the skyline for new development.

CAR BREAK-IN CITY.

You should visit "The Tenderloin" i hear its a great place.

you car window will be broken, and see homeless everywhere

I hate that bridge, while I love San Francisco, which is named after, Sir Francis Drake the explorer. So many people commit suicide jumping off it. They never tell you about its annual Truly tragic cases, from mothers who park the baby pram and climb up, and throws herself down to the concrete surface, for that is what they are hitting if they no diving experience. , and the elderly gent who climbed on it and in a flash throws himself off, and many others. Did you know that. Many sad and lonely young and elderly folk each year make a tally they sometimes release for watching; Its enough to make you weep. And the worse part, many don't have the time to save any of these unfortunates. They waste no time. Tourists can't believe what they are seeing.

SF is a great example of inequality and unaffordability. It is also very fake with many people that believe that they are entitled and privileged were they do as they please with no concern to others around them. I've never seen a civilization quite like it. Much of this stems from the fact that there are many people with advanced degrees, and also people that feel they have coveted jobs in tech. To be able to afford to be here is also something that is difficult to accomplish, which adds to the delusions of grandeur. I would recommend coming her and seeing this as it is quite remarkable and entertaining. Note that the privileged here walk past the poor like they don't exist, fascinating.

You guys should of took waymo on the crooked street😂

So beautiful and helpful. I sent you an email to your business email. How can we support you?

alton hotel cost $1150 per night. oh boy.

Frisco died in the 70's. (Born at Letterman Army Hospital, 1960).

Sounds authentic. Look great, but I'm confused: There are dozens of RU-vid videos showing a dystopian San Francisco of homelessness, addiction, and crime. Did you not experience ANY of that??? (I was a tourist in S.F. in the 1970s and 80s and loved it, but I've been totally scared away by stories of how bad things are in S.F. in the past 10-20 years).

Hey guys dont susbribe

Depending on who is telling the story , being from a long way away not in the us but taking an interest and watching RU-vid and other videos of San Francisco. It looks a bit different in other videos . What’s the truth

Glad you had a good time. I went to SF for work and it was awful. My co-workers told me not to leave anything in my car or it would be stolen (windows smashed). Homelessness, drugs, trash-everywhere. Absolutely disgusting.