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 Famous for its pleasant summers, remarkable landmarks, hilly terrain, cultural diversity, and a striking blend of Victorian and modern architecture, San Francisco is a favorite with tourists and locals alike. It is also a business and financial hub and is number 15 on the list of Top 20 Global Financial Centers.
If you are planning a San Francisco tour, you’d need lots of time on your hands, as the city has a magnificent plethora of tourist attractions. You have a wide range of destinations to choose from, viz. the Golden Gate Bridge, Alcatraz, North Beach, Pier 39, Coit Tower, Chinatown, and many more. San Francisco is also one of the top 10 destinations for organizing conventions and conferences. In fact, tourism has become the mainstay of the San Francisco economy. The emergence of Silicon Valley and the IT boom in the region has also boosted tourism in the Bay City to a huge extent.
While in San Francisco, you can take biking tours, harbour tours, and Grayline bus tours to get a glimpse of the glory of San Francisco. This bustling city also has hundreds of auditoriums, opera houses, museums, national parks, and many more entertainment avenues. And to top it all, San Francisco is a shopper’s paradise- if you want something, chances are that you will get it here!
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Top 10 Adventures & Activities in San Francisco
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Golden Gate Bridge - Built in 1937, this engineering marvel has retained the glory of its yesteryears. In fact, the increasing number of tourists has helped augment its popularity. This gobsmacking 4,200-feet structure is San Francisco’s premier landmark, and with good reason. The spectacular lookout points at the southeast and northeast ends of the bridge make for great vantage point to click pictures of this mega-structure. Once at Golden Gate, the historic Roundhouse is a must watch. It is a gift center boasting a fine collection of souvenirs and an exhibit about the history of the bridge.
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Ride a Cable Car -  Riding in a cable car is one of the best ways to explore the eclectic City of San Francisco. Being the only transport system listed on the National Register of Historic Places, cable cars offer breathtaking bird’s eye views of San Francisco- and all at very reasonable rates.
Cable cars traversing on Powell Street are colour coded; those moving toward Bay and Taylor streets are yellow, and those heading toward Aquatic Park are red. The Powell-Mason cable car starts its journey from Powell/ Market turntable and passes Nob Hill to reach Bay Street at Fisherman's Wharf. The journey for the Powell-Hyde cable car starts at Powell Market turntable and passes Nob and Russian hills to reach Aquatic Park near Ghiradelli Square. Before you ride a cable car, check the signs that distinguish where you will land up in Fisherman's Wharf. You can halt in between to explore various important marketplaces.
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Pier 39 & Fisherman’s Wharf - Pier 39 is the third most famous tourist attraction in San Francisco. The barking sea lions have always remained a must watch for any tourist. Other tourist attractions that you cannot do without visiting are Venetian Carousel, Crystal Geyser Center Stage, Pier 39 Marina, Treasure Island, Bay Bridge, and Berkeley, Theater 39, Aquarium of the Bay, the man-made Forbes Island, etc. Fisherman's Wharf is one of San Francisco’s most famous tourist destinations, with 12 million tourists flocking here every year. The historic waterfront has always been the hub of America’s fishing fleet, and also houses some of the best seafood restaurants museums, historical buildings and piers, souvenir stores, and picturesque vistas in the city.
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North Beach - Once known as Little Italy, North Beach now has a number of trendy shops and chic boutiques, but the charming French-Italian Bakery and Café Trieste here have not lost their glory, and remain one of the favorite destinations for tourists and locals. Columbus Avenue houses the popular City Lights bookstore, chic Italian pottery outlets, and some great eateries as well.
The nightlife here is eclectic. For food lovers, there is the Local Tastes of the City tours that are guaranteed to cater to your every gastronomic need and familiarize you with the food of Bay City. You can even take the walking tourcalled Barbary Coast Trail to explore the history of the city. Plan your tour keeping in view the various festivals here that promise plenty of excitement and fun, viz. June’s Beach Festival, North Beach Jazz Festival, October’s Italian Heritage Parade, and many more.
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Chinatown -Housing the largest Chinese community in the country, Chinatown is about eight blocks long and is made up mostly of two streets called Grant and Stockton. Take guided tours to understand the origin and history of San Francisco’s Chinatown, and be a part of any of the three annual festivals, namely- the Chinese New Year held between late January and early February, the Autumn Moon Festivals, and the Dragon Boat Festival held on Treasure Island, during which hundreds of dragon boat teams compete.
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Lombard Street - Also known as the ‘Crookedest Street’, Lombard Street is one of the most fascinating tourist sights in San Francisco. It holds the distinction of having been constructed with eight switchbacks sliding on a 40-degree slope. You will love to drive down its crooked, one-block section, but admittedly, it is more fascinating to watch others doing so.
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Coit Tower - Popular opinion holds that the Coit Tower was designed as a fire-hose nozzle. However, it was not so by design. The tower, a gift by Lilly Hitchcock Coit to the city, stands atop the Telegraph Hill in Pioneer Park and presents fantastic views of San Francisco. The Golden Gate Bridge, Pier 39, the Maritime National Historical Park or the Aquatic Park, Angel Island, Treasure Island, Alcatraz, the Bay Bridge, Lombard Street, Nob Hill, and Russian Hill all look fabulous from atop this tower. The murals on the first floor offer glimpses of the history of this spectacular tower.
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Exploratorium - Located behind the massive Palace of Fine Arts, you will find this innovative and interactive museum dedicated to art, science, and human perception. The exhibits here explain theories simply and help one and all unravel the mysteries of our world. Explore the Tactile Dome, seek scientific knowledge, and get your mind and senses working. Make sure you have enough time on hand, preferably a whole day, to visit this fascinating museum.
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Aquarium of the Bay - As its name suggests, Aquarium of the Bay is a man-made hub of marine life housing over 20,000 local marine animals. You can catch the excitement of watching the Bay's incredible marine life species such as the Seven-gilled Shark, the Giant Pacific Octopus, jellyfish, starfish, and a whole lot more. You can have hands-on animal encounters or even indulge in some conversation with the experienced and dedicated divers here.
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Alcatraz - Sometimes known as Bird Island or White Island, Alcatraz offers you plenty of attractions to explore, viz. the infamous federal penitentiary, the first lighthouse and US fort on the West Coast gardens, bay views, bird colonies, and tide pools. For bird lovers, Alcatraz offers a prime spot for viewing colonial seabirds like gulls, cormorants, snowy egrets, black-crowned night herons, and pigeon guillemots, and getting a glimpse of their nesting, mating, and parenting behavior. It is also an interesting titbit that apart from fog and rain, Alcatraz has no source of fresh water at all.
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