Seven things to do in San Fran
You don’t kill time when you visit San Francisco, you make the most of every minute you have. Phillip Rollo picks out the must-do activities to get you started on any trip to the city.
The best way to see the Golden Gate Bridge is on two wheels. One of the most popular activities for locals and tourists in San Francisco is the 13-kilometre journey from Fisherman’s Wharf to the charming bayside town of Sausalito, which takes in the Presidio national park and the iconic Golden Gate Bridge along the way.
There are close to 30 different bike hire businesses in San Francisco, including Blazing Saddles, which has been getting visitors across to Sausalito and back on the ferry for more than 25 years.
The ride is graded beginnerintermediate, with one short and sharp hill climb and one steep descent, and takes about 90 minutes to complete.
It can be super windy on the bridge so bring a jacket.
Whenever I ask a local what the No 1 activity to do in San Francisco is, I always get the same answer: ‘‘Oh, you have to check out the Mission.’’ So I did, and now I’m recommending it too.
Many of the buildings in the Mission, San Fran’s oldest district, are covered, top to bottom, in street art and eye-popping murals, while there’s Mexican cafes galore in a community packed full of culture.
I went to Puerto Alegre on Valencia St, parallel to Mission St, for lunch and was handed a bowl of nachos and salsa and poured a drink within seconds of sitting down. Now, that is service!
Mission Dolores Park, a vibrant city park with picturesque views, is one of the Mission’s most popular summer hangouts, and is just a short walk across from Mission St.
When planning a trip to San Francisco, it’s worth checking the Major League Baseball or National Football League schedules to see if there’s a game on.
Going to see either the San Francisco Giants, who have won the World Series three times since 2010 and play at the waterfront AT&T Park, or the San Francisco 49ers, who play at Levi’s Stadium back out in Santa Clara, should be high up on your to-do list if you want a true taste of American culture.
Oh, and there’s the Steph Curry and the Golden State Warriors over the Bay Bridge in Oakland, just 20 minutes’ drive away, if basketball is more your thing. Even if you’re not a die-hard sports fan, the atmosphere and hotdogs are worth the trip.
Vegetarians look away (well, stick to the market table). Serving sizes in the United States can be ridiculously over the top at the best of times, and you certainly won’t go hungry at Fogo de Chao, a fine-dining Brazilian steakhouse where you eat until you can eat no more.
The process goes like this; order the ‘‘full experience’’, which costs US$59.95 ($82), and at your table will be a drinks coaster with a green side and a red side (think of it like a traffic light).
If you’ve flipped it to green you will be continuously served various cuts of mouth-watering meat.
There’s six cuts of steak, three cuts of pork, plus chicken and lamb options. It’s a fun night out and the meat is even cut right in front of your eyes. The full experience gives you access to the market table, which is full of salads and breads, but be warned, that does use up precious stomach space.
Alcatraz was once a place notorious criminals desperately wanted to escape, now it’s a place holidaymakers book days, even weeks, in advance to get to.
The tour via Alcatraz Cruises to the former federal penitentiary, which housed well-known crims like Al Capone, George ‘‘Machine Gun’’ Kelly, and Robert ‘‘The Birdman’’ Stroud, attracts 1.5 million visitors each year.
The entertaining and informative 45-minute audio tour is the best way to experience Alcatraz, the narrator leading you through the cell block, library, showers, kitchen, dining room, and other corners of prison. There’s even a night tour, but that might be too scary. The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, or SFMOMA for short, reopened in May after a three-year transformation, unleashing three times more space and artwork, and reinforcing its place as one of the world’s leading modern art museums.
First opened way back in 1935, the collection now houses more than 33,000 works of paintings, sculptures, photography, architecture, design, and media arts, highlighted by the Doris and Donald Fisher Collection of contemporary art.
There is a cafe and separate coffee shop parked in the heart of the state-of-the-art 10-storey building, giving you a couple of pitstops along the way, which is essential when you could spend hours gazing at the creative masterpieces.
Fillmore St is the beating heart in San Francisco’s entertainment scene, with a smattering of wellknown jazz and blues bars along the main stretch.
With live music throughout the week, Fillmore St is the perfect place to go for a night out no matter what day you’re in town.
Whether it’s to watch performances at a famous venue like The Fillmore Auditorium or in more intimate settings like the Boom Boom Room and the Sheba Piano Lounge, if music is your thing then I definitely recommend making Fillmore your night-time destination.
I went to the Sheba Piano Lounge and the band was seated among the crowd.
The musicians were powering through soulful saxophone and bass solos all night long, creating an even more intimate and unique atmosphere.
❚ The writer travelled to San Francisco courtesy of Fiji Airways and was hosted by San Francisco Travel.