San Francisco on a Budget

San Francisco is an amazing city. It has such great sights, as the Golden Gate Bridge and Park, Fisherman's Wharf, The Presidio, Chinatown, Japantown, Union Square, and Ghiradelli Square. There is so much to see and do in San Francisco that you need at least a week or two to experience even a tiny part of this great "City by the Bay".

Quick Tips:

This city can be very expensive, or you can do it on a budget. Some of the best things to do are practically free. I personally like meeting other travellers when I go places. It helps you find out where good restaurants are, things to do, and sometimes you come away with a travel friend.

Best Way To Get Around:

The best way to get around in this city is to either get a cab, or a much more fun experience, ride one of the cable cars that traverse the city's famous hills. Walking can be done in local areas of the city, but if you need to get across town, the hills discourage anyone who isn't an experienced hiker or local.

At one of the cheapest prices ($25) per night and, in my opinion, the best unobstructed views of the whole bay, the hostel located in Fort Mason is by far the best value per dollar in San Francisco. It features free sheets, laundry service, a game room, a common room, free parking, a continental breakfast, and even a concierge service! There aren't even any chores or lockout times! Try to find all that and the best views that San Francisco has to offer for even three times the price. It can't be done! There are private rooms available, or you can choose from dorms that are mixed or male or female. This hostel is quiet at most times, because it is inside Fort Mason at the top of a hill, in a park. The hostel is close to Ghiradelli Square, Fisherman's Wharf, and Pier 39.

If you are worried about your possessions, they have lockers in all the rooms and offer luggage storage if you need it.

This place is fantastic! The people working here are absolutely fabulous and they have a lot of ideas and can tell you of great restaurants and things to do in the area. I highly recommend checking this hostel out. Not to be missed!

If you have never had San Franciscan sourdough bread, there is nowhere better to experience it than at the Boudin Bakery. They serve everything from sandwiches, to clam chowder in bread bowls. The prices are reasonable, and the food is great. They have an indoor dining area, and one outside. I would recommend sitting outside during the summer and taking a seat indoors during the winter. The Boudin Bakery is world famous for its' sourdough bread. They claim to have made the first sourdough in the city. An interesting fact is that a little bit of the starter dough from every batch has some of the original starter dough in it. They make a batch and then pull a bit off and put it in the freezer, then the next batch has this bit put in its' starter, and so on. Thus, every sourdough has its roots that date back to the beginning. On the outside of the restaurant, you can watch as the master breadmakers knead out and sculpt the sourdough. Enjoy the bread!

This is about the Pier 39 and Fishermans Wharf area of San Francisco. The Fishermans Wharf area is filled with many people bustling around trying to find such goods as freshly baked sourdough bread from Boudins Bakery, fresh clam chowder from the sidewalk restaurants, or trips out to the famous island prison, Alcatraz. Stop here a while and checkout the street performers. Look for the "Bush Man" while you traverse this area. He might just get you if you don't keep your eyes peeled.

From here you can access Pier 39, which is home to such sights as Forbes Island, and also see the Sea Lions that have adopted a part of the docks for their own place to sun themselves. You can also find many stores on Pier 39 and it pays to take your time walking around. You will not only use your sense of sight, but also your sense of smell as you walk down the pier. You can smell the salty air mixed with the smells of coffee, fresh bread, pretzels, cotton candy, etc. The pier is usually really busy, so unless you are a fan of crowds I wouldn't recommend this to you. If you are looking for a trinket from San Francisco, this is the place to shop.

For dinner I recommend going to Forbes Island. It is a small man-made island that is used as a restaurant. It is cozy and pretty romantic. Afterwards, you can watch the sea lions vying for places to sleep on the floating platforms nearby. For more information, check out www.pier39.com.

The Golden Gate Bridge is arguably the most famous landmark on the West Coast of the United States. It was built in 1937 and was, at the time, the largest suspension bridge in the world. Today the bridge features "movable lanes". Consisting of six total lanes, the lanes are changed as follows; on weekday mornings, there are four southbound lanes and only two northbound lanes. On weekday evenings, there are four northbound lanes and two southbound. This system allows for better traffic flow.The color of the Golden Gate is not actually gold, but a color called "International Orange". Contrary to popular belief, the bridge is not continuously painted every day of the year. In fact, a program started in 1965 to replace the original paint with a better one, this was completed in 1995, and now only occasional touch ups are required. The Golden Gate is named for the Golden Gate Strait that is the entrance to the San Francisco Bay.Only 11 men lost their lives during the construction, due to a safety net that was erected during the build. On February 17, 1937 a scaffolding holding ten men fell through the safety net and accounted for all but one of the total deaths during its construction. If you have the chance, definitely walk across this bridge. It may be a bit of a hike, but the views from the bridge are great. If you cannot make it to the other side on foot, drive across and stop at the lookout point. Some of the best views of the bay area can be seen here.

If you are interested in science, San Francisco's Exploratorium is for you. Mainly geared toward children and adolescents, the Exploratorium lets you explore scientific principles with real-world experiments. There are such exhibits as exploring how tornadoes work, how a seismograph works, how the human brain perceives its senses, etc. There is also a Tactile Dome that is immersed in complete darkness that you can work your way through by touch. The museum is really quite different from any other than I have ever found in my travels.
While I recommend it highly for families, I also would recommend it for one of those times when you want to take a date to do something different.

The Exploratorium is open Tuesday through Sunday from 10am to 5pm.
Admission is as follows:
Adult 18-64 $13
Students & Seniors $10
Disabled $10
Youth 13-17 $10
Children 4-12 $8
Children 3 and under are free.

To experience the Tactile Dome with admission, it is $17.

To learn more, you can go to www.exploratorium.org or call 415-561-0360.

A nice tip is that the museum has free admission for all on the first Wednesday of each month!

The most recognizable monument in San Francisco has to be the Golden Gate Bridge, but giving that a good run for the money has to be the cable cars!

From the tell tale gong of the cable car bells, to the clickety-clack from the gripmans lever, there is nothing that says San Francisco quite as well. Invented in 1873 by Andrew Hallidie, as a way to traverse the steep hills of the city-by-the-bay, when those hills were wet and slippery, the cable cars revolutionalized the way to travel. By 1889 there were eight cable car companies operating in the city with a total of 53 miles of track going all over the city. Then the 1906 earthquake devastated the city, including much of the cable car tracks. At that time, the electric streetcar had become a better choice for city wide transit because it was quicker and less expensive.

The cable cars were still better at traversing the large hills though, so a few tracks were rebuilt. In 1947 the Mayor of San Francisco said that the cable cars should be taken out all together. The city responded by passing Measure 10, which saved the cable cars by a landslide. The citizens knew what they wrought; a legacy of antique and unique, that adds so much to this jewel of the bay area.

Today, there is no better way to experience San Francisco than to hop on a cable car and take a jaunt somewhere. Anywhere.

If you happen to be travelling to S.F. in July, please visit www.cablecarmuseum.org to look for the cable car bell ringers contest that is held in Union Square.

Hours of operation for the Cable Car Museum are as follows;
10am to 6pm, April 1st to September 30th.
10am to 5pm, October 1st to March 31st.
Admission is free!
For more information or questions call 415-474-1887

Grace Cathedral is the daughter of historic Grace Church. The first little chapel was built in the gold rush year of 1849, and the imposing third church, for a time called Grace "Cathedral," was destroyed in the fire following the 1906 earthquake. The railroad baron/banker Crocker family gave their ruined Nob Hill property for a diocesan cathedral, which took its name and founding congregation from the nearby parish.

Dean J. Wilmer Gresham nurtured the young cathedral, and work began on the present structure in 1928. Designed in French Gothic style by Lewis Hobart, it was completed in 1964 as the third-largest Episcopal cathedral in the nation.

Famed for its Ghiberti doors ("The Gates of Paradise"), labyrinths, varied stained glass, and medieval and contemporary furnishings, as well as its carillon, organs, and choir, the Cathedral has become an international pilgrimage center for many people, christian or not.

The cathedral close, or block, was completed in 1995 with a new front stairway, courtyard Chapter House, and Cathedral School addition.

Inside and outside the cathedral, one of the biggest draws is the labyrinths upon the ground. They are meant to be a spiritual journey. Shoes are required to be removed before walking the indoor labyrinth.

The stained glass windows of the cathedral were designed by Charles Connick, and installed in 1930.

The front doors of the cathedral are called the Doors of Paradise and tell the story of the Old Testament.

If you get a chance, stop by on a Sunday even if you are a non-Christian to get a chance to hear the magnificent organ and choir. It is amazing!

I would recommend this to most travellers, with the exception of families with unruly children. Grace Cathedral is a quiet place, and it is rude to let children spoil the atmosphere.

Alcatraz Island, also known affectionately as "The Rock" is one of the best known federal penitentiaries of all time. Luminaries that once called this place home include, Alphonse Capone, George "Machine Gun" Kelly, Robert "the Birdman" Stroud and others. Facts show that the "Birdman" was never allowed to have birds in Alcatraz. The name stemmed from his habits at the prison that he had occupied previous to his stay at The Rock.

Alcatraz started off as a Spanish fort and to this day still retains the medieval styled dungeon beneath the prison. Look for the bullet hole in the guard tower glass. I know a former prison guard from Alcatraz that tells me that it was a result of one of the break out attempts that resulted in the riot inside the prison. One of the convicts obtained a firearm and shot at the guard in the tower. The glass was never repaired on purpose. It was meant to remind the guards that it could and did happen, so stay alert.

To get to Alcatraz Island, go to the Fishermans Wharf and look for the Blue and Gold Fleet building. Admission is $16 a person and boats leave every 30 minutes.

This is NOT TO BE MISSED!

Ghirardelli Square used to be the chocolate companies actual chocolate making plant. A number of years ago, Ghirardelli moved their operations a few towns over, and businesses decided to move in. This makes it a bit of a tourist trap, but it is still a nice place to visit and shop. You can still get the chocolates at the Ghirardelli Chocolate store and ice-cream shop!