Things to do · San Francisco · United States
20 best things to do in San Francisco
20 sights and experiences ranked for a first visit, with honest notes on time, cost and crowds.
Updated By the AMZBooking editorial team
Photo: Chris6d, CC BY-SA 4.0
Quick answer
The essential sights in San Francisco are Golden Gate Bridge, Alcatraz Island and Cable cars and the Cable Car Museum. Of the 20 picks below, 13 are free, 5 work on a rainy day and 7 suit children. Allow about 4 days to see the highlights without rushing.
Key facts
- Top sight
- Golden Gate Bridge
- Free sights
- 13
- Good on a rainy day
- California Academy of Sciences
- Time to see the highlights
- 4 days
At a glance
| Sight | Area | Time needed | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Golden Gate Bridge | Presidio | 1–3 hours | Free |
| Alcatraz Island | San Francisco Bay | Half a day | Mid-priced |
| Cable cars and the Cable Car Museum | Nob Hill | 1–2 hours | Low cost |
| Pier 39 and the sea lions | Fisherman's Wharf | 1–2 hours | Free |
| Lombard Street | Russian Hill | 30 minutes | Free |
| Painted Ladies and Alamo Square | Alamo Square | 30 minutes | Free |
| Golden Gate Park | Golden Gate Park | Half a day | Free |
| California Academy of Sciences | Golden Gate Park | 3 hours | Expensive |
| de Young Museum | Golden Gate Park | 2 hours | Mid-priced |
| Ferry Building Marketplace | Embarcadero | 1–2 hours | Free |
| Chinatown | Chinatown | 2 hours | Free |
| Coit Tower and Telegraph Hill | Telegraph Hill | 1–1.5 hours | Low cost |
| Exploratorium | Embarcadero | 3 hours | Mid-priced |
| Palace of Fine Arts | Marina | 45 minutes | Free |
| Presidio and Crissy Field | Presidio | Half a day | Free |
| Mission Dolores Park and the Mission murals | Mission District | 2–3 hours | Free |
| Lands End and the Sutro Baths | Outer Richmond | 2 hours | Free |
| Twin Peaks | Twin Peaks | 45 minutes | Free |
| SFMOMA | SoMa | 2–3 hours | Mid-priced |
| Musée Mécanique | Fisherman's Wharf | 1 hour | Free |
The 20 best things to do
Landmark · Presidio
1.Golden Gate Bridge
Opened in 1937, the 2.7 km suspension bridge in its International Orange paint spans the Golden Gate strait. You can walk or cycle across on the sidewalks to the Marin side; the classic viewpoints are Battery Spencer in the Marin Headlands to the north and Fort Point and Crissy Field on the city side.
Bring a windproof layer even in summer, and keep a backup plan: fog can hide the towers for hours, especially from June to August.
- Time needed
- 1–3 hours
- Cost
- Free
- Iconic
- Free
- Views
- Active
- Photo spot
Historic site · San Francisco Bay
2.Alcatraz Island
The former federal penitentiary on Alcatraz Island held prisoners such as Al Capone between 1934 and 1963. The cellhouse audio tour, narrated in part by former guards and inmates, is the highlight, and the island also has gardens, seabird colonies and views back to the city. Ferries leave from Pier 33.
Take an early ferry for a quieter cellhouse, or book the night tour for a different atmosphere and city lights on the way back.
- Time needed
- Half a day
- Cost
- Mid-priced
- Book ahead
- Tickets from the official ferry concessioner sell out days or weeks ahead in summer; book as early as you can.
- Iconic
- History
- Views
- After dark
Experience · Nob Hill
3.Cable cars and the Cable Car Museum
Running since 1873, San Francisco's cable cars are the last manually operated cable-car system in the world. The Powell-Hyde line has the most dramatic hills and bay views, ending near Ghirardelli Square, while the free Cable Car Museum on Mason Street shows the giant winding wheels that pull the cables under the streets.
Skip the long queue at the Powell and Market turnaround by boarding a few stops up the line, or ride the quieter California Street line.
- Time needed
- 1–2 hours
- Cost
- Low cost
- Iconic
- Kids
- Views
- History
Waterfront · Fisherman's Wharf
4.Pier 39 and the sea lions
Pier 39 is a busy pier of shops, restaurants and street performers, but the real draw is the sea lions that haul out on the floating docks beside it, a colony that settled here after the 1989 earthquake. Aquarium of the Bay is at the pier's entrance.
See the sea lions early or late to avoid crowds, then walk west along the Wharf to the Musée Mécanique and the historic ships at Hyde Street Pier.
- Time needed
- 1–2 hours
- Cost
- Free
- Kids
- Free
- Iconic
- Views
Street · Russian Hill
5.Lombard Street
One block of Lombard Street between Hyde and Leavenworth twists through eight hairpin bends lined with flower beds, earning its 'crookedest street' nickname. Walk down the stairs on either side for the best views; the Powell-Hyde cable car stops at the top.
Visit early in the morning, when the gardens are in soft light and before the queue of cars builds.
- Time needed
- 30 minutes
- Cost
- Free
- Iconic
- Free
- Photo spot
- Views
Architecture · Alamo Square
6.Painted Ladies and Alamo Square
The row of pastel Victorian houses on Steiner Street, framed against the downtown skyline from Alamo Square park, is one of the most photographed views in the city. The park's hilltop lawns make a pleasant picnic stop between Hayes Valley and the Haight.
Continue about 20 minutes west to Haight-Ashbury for vintage shops and 1960s counterculture history.
- Time needed
- 30 minutes
- Cost
- Free
- Iconic
- Free
- Architecture
- Photo spot
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Park · Golden Gate Park
7.Golden Gate Park
Larger than New York's Central Park, Golden Gate Park runs about 5 km from the Haight to Ocean Beach. Inside are the de Young Museum, the California Academy of Sciences, the Japanese Tea Garden, the Conservatory of Flowers and a bison paddock, and a long car-free stretch of John F. Kennedy Drive is popular with cyclists and skaters.
Rent a bike near the eastern end and ride west along the car-free JFK Promenade to the Dutch Windmill and Ocean Beach.
- Time needed
- Half a day
- Cost
- Free
- Free
- Outdoors
- Kids
- Nature
- Active
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Museum · Golden Gate Park
8.California Academy of Sciences
Under a living roof planted with native wildflowers, the Academy combines an aquarium with a Philippine coral reef, a four-storey rainforest dome with free-flying butterflies, the Morrison Planetarium, African penguins and a natural history museum.
Go to the rainforest dome first, then up to the living roof for a view across the park; adults-only NightLife evenings run on Thursdays.
- Time needed
- 3 hours
- Cost
- Expensive
- Book ahead
- Buy timed tickets online in advance for weekends and holidays.
- Kids
- Rainy day
- Nature
Museum · Golden Gate Park
1.de Young Museum
Facing the Academy across the Music Concourse, the copper-clad de Young shows American art, art from Africa, Oceania and the Americas, and textiles. The Hamon Observation Tower on the ninth floor is free and looks over the park towards the Golden Gate.
Even without a museum ticket, ride up the free observation tower for a 360-degree view over the park and the Pacific.
- Time needed
- 2 hours
- Cost
- Mid-priced
- Art
- Views
- Rainy day
- Architecture
Market · Embarcadero
2.Ferry Building Marketplace
The 1898 Ferry Building at the foot of Market Street, with its tall clock tower, houses a marketplace of local food producers selling oysters, cheese, bread, coffee and chocolate. Outside, the Ferry Plaza Farmers Market runs on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday, with the biggest market on Saturday.
Come on a Saturday morning for the full farmers market, then catch a ferry to Sausalito or Oakland from the terminal behind the building.
- Time needed
- 1–2 hours
- Cost
- Free
- Food
- Shopping
- Architecture
- History
Neighbourhood · Chinatown
3.Chinatown
Dating from the Gold Rush era, San Francisco's Chinatown is the oldest in North America. Enter through the Dragon Gate on Grant Avenue, then explore the produce and seafood markets of Stockton Street, the painted balconies of Waverly Place and the Golden Gate Fortune Cookie Factory in Ross Alley.
Walk Stockton Street in the morning, when the markets are at their busiest with local shoppers.
- Time needed
- 2 hours
- Cost
- Free
- Free
- Food
- History
- Shopping
Viewpoint · Telegraph Hill
4.Coit Tower and Telegraph Hill
The 64-metre Art Deco tower on Telegraph Hill, finished in 1933, has Depression-era murals in its ground-floor lobby and an observation deck looking over the bay and both bridges. The Filbert Steps lead down through hillside gardens where the hill's flock of wild parrots is often heard.
Walk up from North Beach and down the Filbert Steps to Levi's Plaza; the lobby murals are free to see.
- Time needed
- 1–1.5 hours
- Cost
- Low cost
- Views
- History
- Art
- Off the beaten path
Museum · Embarcadero
5.Exploratorium
On Pier 15, the Exploratorium fills a waterfront shed with hundreds of hands-on exhibits on science, perception and art, from a fog bridge to the pitch-dark Tactile Dome. It is as engaging for adults as for children, especially at the adults-only Thursday evening sessions.
Book the Tactile Dome in advance; it is a separate ticket and slots are limited.
- Time needed
- 3 hours
- Cost
- Mid-priced
- Kids
- Rainy day
- After dark
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Architecture · Marina
6.Palace of Fine Arts
Built for the 1915 Panama–Pacific International Exposition, the Palace of Fine Arts is a classical rotunda and colonnade reflected in a lagoon. It is free to wander and a favourite backdrop for wedding photos.
Combine it with a walk along Crissy Field towards the Golden Gate Bridge, about 3 km away.
- Time needed
- 45 minutes
- Cost
- Free
- Free
- Architecture
- Couples
- Photo spot
- History
Park · Presidio
7.Presidio and Crissy Field
A former army post turned national park site, the Presidio has forest trails, historic barracks, the Walt Disney Family Museum and Presidio Tunnel Tops, a park opened in 2022 with lawns and a children's play area facing the bridge. Below, Crissy Field's restored marsh and beach path lead to Fort Point under the bridge.
Picnic on the Tunnel Tops lawns, where food trucks often gather on weekends in the warmer months.
- Time needed
- Half a day
- Cost
- Free
- Free
- Outdoors
- Kids
- Views
- Nature
Park · Mission District
8.Mission Dolores Park and the Mission murals
Dolores Park's sloping lawns give one of the best skyline views in the city and fill with picnickers on sunny weekends. Next door, Mission Dolores, whose adobe chapel dates from 1791, is the oldest intact building in San Francisco, and the murals of Balmy Alley and Clarion Alley are a short walk away.
Walk 24th Street and Balmy Alley for murals, then pick up a burrito and eat it on the park's upper slopes.
- Time needed
- 2–3 hours
- Cost
- Free
- Free
- Outdoors
- Art
- Views
- History
Nature · Outer Richmond
9.Lands End and the Sutro Baths
The Lands End Trail follows the rugged north-western tip of the city through cypress forest, with views of the Golden Gate Bridge from the ocean side. At its western end are the concrete ruins of the Sutro Baths, a vast public bathhouse opened in 1896 that burned down in 1966.
Start at the Lands End Lookout visitor centre, explore the Sutro Baths ruins, then walk the trail east for bridge views; it is about 5 km out and back.
- Time needed
- 2 hours
- Cost
- Free
- Free
- Outdoors
- Views
- Off the beaten path
- History
- Photo spot
Viewpoint · Twin Peaks
10.Twin Peaks
Two grassy summits near the geographic centre of the city rise to about 280 metres and give a 360-degree panorama down Market Street to downtown, the bay and both bridges. A road and car park lead close to the top.
Go on a clear evening for sunset and the city lights; it gets cold and windy, so bring a jacket.
- Time needed
- 45 minutes
- Cost
- Free
- Free
- Views
- After dark
- Couples
- Photo spot
Gallery · SoMa
11.SFMOMA
The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, expanded in 2016 with a rippled white extension, is one of the largest modern-art museums in the United States, with works by Warhol, Rothko, Kahlo and Richter and a strong photography collection.
The ground-floor galleries are free; Yerba Buena Gardens across Third Street is a good spot for a break.
- Time needed
- 2–3 hours
- Cost
- Mid-priced
- Art
- Rainy day
- Architecture
Experience · Fisherman's Wharf
12.Musée Mécanique
A large private collection of coin-operated machines fills a shed on Pier 45: antique arcade games, mechanical fortune tellers, player pianos and the cackling Laughing Sal. Entry is free; you pay coins to play.
Get a handful of quarters from the change machines and try the hand-cranked moving-picture viewers.
- Time needed
- 1 hour
- Cost
- Free
- Kids
- Free
- Rainy day
- Off the beaten path
Pick by interest
| Interest | Best picks |
|---|---|
| Art and museums | California Academy of Sciences, de Young Museum, Coit Tower and Telegraph Hill and Exploratorium |
| History | Alcatraz Island, Cable cars and the Cable Car Museum, Ferry Building Marketplace and Chinatown |
| Views | Golden Gate Bridge, Alcatraz Island, de Young Museum and Cable cars and the Cable Car Museum |
| Outdoors and nature | Golden Gate Park, California Academy of Sciences, Presidio and Crissy Field and Mission Dolores Park and the Mission murals |
| Food and markets | Ferry Building Marketplace and Chinatown |
| After dark | Alcatraz Island, Exploratorium and Twin Peaks |
| With children | Golden Gate Park, California Academy of Sciences, Cable cars and the Cable Car Museum and Pier 39 and the sea lions |
| On a rainy day | California Academy of Sciences, de Young Museum, Exploratorium and SFMOMA |
What to book ahead
- Alcatraz Island: Tickets from the official ferry concessioner sell out days or weeks ahead in summer; book as early as you can.
- California Academy of Sciences: Buy timed tickets online in advance for weekends and holidays.
Plan the rest of your trip
Questions travellers ask
+What is the number one thing to do in San Francisco?
Golden Gate Bridge. Opened in 1937, the 2.7 km suspension bridge in its International Orange paint spans the Golden Gate strait.
+What can you do for free in San Francisco?
Golden Gate Bridge, Pier 39 and the sea lions, Lombard Street, Painted Ladies and Alamo Square and Golden Gate Park. More free things to do.
+What is there to do in San Francisco when it rains?
Head indoors to California Academy of Sciences, de Young Museum, Exploratorium and SFMOMA.
+What is there to do in San Francisco at night?
Alcatraz Island, Exploratorium and Twin Peaks are best after dark.