San Francisco Bay Area - Day Trips
Not sure how to kill a day or a weekend? No clue where to take your visitors? Check out this list.
Day Trips
Bike the Golden Gate Bridge to Sausalito
- rent the bike and gears from Sports Basement(610 Mason St, San Francisco, CA 94129. near Presidio
- bike across the bridge
- bike down to Sausalito
- have lunch, and maybe ice cream
- take the ferry back to S.F.
- bike along the water front, return the bike to Sports Basement
San Francisco: Downtown
- Market street. north: financial district; south(SoMa) tech giants
- Ferry building
- Embacadero
- Pier 39
- historical street car and cable car
- China town, Japan town
San Francisco: Golden Gate Park + Lands End
- Lands end
- Lands end Labryinth
- Sutro Baths
- USS SF Memorial
- Ocean Beach
- Golden Gate park
Stanford/Berkeley
- campus tour
Muir Woods
- a great hike in the woods
- get their early, parking is extremely hard
Point Reyes
Napa and Sonoma County
- early morning hot air balloon
- wine train for lunch
- a tour in a winery
Santa Cruz
- the pier is free in the morning
- sea lions can be seen at the end of the pier
Monterry + 17 miles
- drive down to Monterry, eat at Old Fisherman's Wharf
- drive the 17 miles(extra cost): 17-Mile Drive, Pebble Beach, through the Del Monte Forest and along the Pacific Coast
- Monarch Butterfly Sanctuary: "Preserve with pine, cypress & eucalyptus trees sheltering thousands of monarch butterflies Oct–Mar.". Best time to visit is Nov to Feb.
- Monterey Bay Aquarium
- Eolian Dunes Preserve
- Lover's Point Beach: kayak rental, public restrooms
California State Route 1
Drive alone State Route 1:
- Carmen by the sea
- Big Sur
- Pfeiffer Beach
- McWay Cove
Pinnacle National Park
- the youngest national park in California(promoted from National Monument)
White Water Rafting in American River
- launch near Sacramento
Pick Cherries in Brentwood
- usually in May
Theme Parks
- either Six Flags or Great America
Alcatraz
Angle Island
Golden Gate Bridge + Presidio
Multi-day Trips
Lake Tahoe
- 4 hrs drive from Bay Area
- 1 hr flight to Reno
Yosemite national Park
- 4 hrs drive from Bay Area
Sequoia National Park + Kings Canyon National Park
- 4 hrs drive from Bay Area
Death Valley
- 8 hrs drive from Bay Area
Herst Castle
- 3-4 hrs drive from Bay Area
Mendocino
- Bowling Ball Beach
- Glass Beach
Chanel Island National Park
- 5 hrs drive to Ventura, then take boat