Going to San Francisco for a week -- any recommendations on sights beyond the usual? (1 Viewer)

[Brian Perry]

I'm leaving Wednesday morning for San Fran, and my wife and I will be there for a week. We're going to spend a day or two in Sonoma, and have already purchased tickets for Alcatraz, but the rest of the week is pretty open.
Any recommendations for hotels, sights...?
Thanks
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Home Theater Pictures

 

[Rollie]

Head to the Fisherman's Wharf. If you smoke, there's a great shop called Stogies. (Can't miss the big lips!) There's some pretty good restaurants around there too. There's a nice spot over the Golden Gate Bridge where you can take pictures. Also, if you're up for the drive, you could check out the Winchester Mystery House in San Jose. (About a 2 hour drive)
Have fun!
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[Jason L.]

2 Words: Mitchell Brothers

 

[Scott Dautel]

Brian:
There is a new restaurant called Farallon that opened a few years ago. From all accounts I've heard, from decor to food to service, it's incredible. This is on the top of my list for my next trip to San Fran. Three things to be aware of:
1) "Coastal Cuisine" means primarily seafood.
2) It's going to be rather expensive
3) It's popular, so it will be very hard to get reservations ... call ASAP (415-956-6969) or on the web --> www.opentable.com/reserve/farallon
Have a great trip ... Scott
[Edited last by Scott Dautel on October 08, 2001 at 10:07 AM]

 

[MikeM]

If you're around on October 20th, check out http://www.exoticeroticball.com
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[Iain Lambert]

I really enjoyed taking shots from the viewing point at the north end of the Golden Gate, so I'd recommend that. If you're a gallery type person the SF Museum of Modern Art has some wonderful works, but to be fair they could learn a thing or two from London's Tate Modern about presenting them. They do well with paintings, but the sculptures are often stuck against walls or at an odd height to see properly. Nevertheless, very good though. Chinatown is nice, but then that probably qualifies as 'the usual' again.
(edit) oops, forgot to say one more important thing: If you consider yourself a proper member of the HTF you have to play spot the scenery from Vertigo and Bullit. Its plain rude not to, you know...
[Edited last by Iain Lambert on October 08, 2001 at 11:43 AM]

 

[Anthony Hom]

I agree with Golden Gate Park, take in the sites and Museums there. Also, try SFMOMA (museum of modern art), Yerba Buena Gardens. Try Napa wine tour, Jack London Square in Oakland, visit Sausalito, Muir woods, Mount Tamalpais, ride the cable cars, visit Chinatown, North beach.
If you are into botanicals, try visit Filoli Gardens in Woodside, and for sea life, a little further away would be the Monterey Bay aquarium (must see) and as long as your down there, the Santa Cruz beach and boardwalk.

 

[LarryDavenport]

Amoeba Records on Haight!
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[Yoshi Sugawara]

I second (or third) SFMOMA - I hear there's a good Ansel Adams Photography exhibit on display there until January 13.
The Palace of Fine Arts and The Exploratiorium is somewhat typical, but I think it's worth a small visit. Plus, the Golden Gate Bridge is nearby.
And yes, Haight Street is also pretty interesting. Larry mentioned Amoeba, which is a huge mostly used CD/DVD/LD/LP/posters/etc retailer (I just picked up the Star Wars Trilogy Definitive Collection on LD just this past weekend).
Sonoma is a really nice area - I like it much better than Napa - lots of good, free tastings at wineries - it's less 'commercialized' than Napa.
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[Allen Hirsch]

duplicate - server hiccupped.
[Edited last by Allen Hirsch on October 08, 2001 at 02:54 PM]

 

[Allen Hirsch]

Brian-
have a drink in the Carnelian Room, atop the B of A building - that's the best view of the City - like sitting on top of the world.
Since you're a baseball fan, you should do a tour of PacBell Park. It's not Wrigley, but it DOES have great views of the Bay, the Bay Bridge, and the City skyline from the upper deck. (Check out the inside batting cages that field box seatholders can "watch" on their way to their seats.)
Take the ferry to Sausalito and just walk around downtown- there are many nice art galleries there, and the view of the SF skyline from across the Bay is spectacular.
Go to Metreon at 3rd and Mission - great Sony demo store on ground level, and a very cool games arcade (video bowling that is a real kick) on the 3rd floor.
Depending on the kind of food you like and your budget, I can give you a bunch of recommendations - email me or post here again with preferences, and I'll suggest some options.

 

[Brian Perry]

Allen,
Can I tour PacBell even though the season is over?
We were also considering a trip to Yosemite -- how is it this time of year?
Thanks.
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Home Theater Pictures
[Edited last by Brian Perry on October 08, 2001 at 03:06 PM]

 

[Allen Hirsch]

Brian-
Yeah. They give tours all the time, whenever the team doesn't have a game at home that day - they charge something like $7-10 per person for the tours. (Gotta pay the debt service on the stadium, you know.)
Yosemite would be beautiful this time of year, and relatively uncrowded, too. It could be mighty chilly at night, but spectacular. If you go to SFMOMA, you can see the Ansel Adams photography exhibit - then go to Yosemite and see the "real thing" to boot. It's a good 2.5-3-hour drive from SF, though.
[Edited last by Allen Hirsch on October 08, 2001 at 05:35 PM]

 

[Mark Lee]

How 'bout a side trip to Monterey/Carmel?
I heartily agree with your Sonoma Valley call -- as a hopeless wine fanatic, I make pilgrimages to Northern Cal's wine country every few months, and while I used to do the Napa Valley thing every trip, lately I've been ignoring Napa entirely, and just spending the whole time in Sonoma County. Yeah, you've gotta do a lot more driving between wineries, so if rapid-fire wine tasting is your bag, Napa's definitely more efficient in that regard (hic!

), but you don't get nearly as much of the high-gloss, tourist-machine feel in Sonoma, which is refreshing. Among the wineries I love are Arrowood, Chateau St. Jean, St. Francis, Rochioli, Ravenswood, and Martinelli.
If you do go over the mountains to the Napa side, though, you gotta grab lunch at Taylor's Refresher in St. Helena (across from Merryvale Winery) -- the burger, tuna burger, and shakes are killer!!

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Mark K. Lee
"Life is like a sewer -- what you get out of it, depends on what you put into it."
- Tom Lehrer

 

[Patrick_S]

Just remember that the Bay Area does not enjoy Southern California type weather. It will be very cool in the evenings so please bring a light jacket.
Yosemite as mentioned above is 3 plus hours from SF and you should look into getting a hotel reservation before you head down.
I would look at going to Monterey and Carmel and skip Santa Cruz. Quite frankly once you have been to the Monterey Carmel area SC would be a huge let down.
If you do go down to the Monterey Carmel area perhaps you could stay at one of the many nice B&Bs.
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[MikeM]

Just remember that the Bay Area does not enjoy Southern California type weather. It will be very cool in the evenings so please bring a light jacket.

Very true.
"The coldest winter I ever saw was the summer I spent in San Francisco." - Attributed to Mark Twain.
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[Jason L.]

About the Vertigo spot:
I was there back in June and went to the base of the Golden Gate Bridge, but the area was fenced off. I'm not sure exactly where the spot is, for all I know it could be on the other side of the bridge [the Sausalito side?].