Auger

Staying at either Renaissance Stanford Court or Parc 55 (both Marriott owned and have points) Any suggestions?? Only have 2 full days. Need to know the "must see's" for the wife and I. Then going to Monterey area. Are bus tours and boat tours worth it?

Giant Fan

Stanford Court hotel is nice.

Definately get out on the bay. The easiest way is to take a ferry to Sausalito or Tiburon. You get a great view of the city from the bay.

For a quicker Cable Car ride, pick up the California Street Line in front of the Hyatt Embarcadero. No line. Then take the trolly along the Embarcadero to Fisherman's Wharf/Ghiradelli Square.

Linda

Hop on a cable car and take it full circuit....and look at the beautiful city!

J Correa

I agree that getting out on the bay is a must, as is riding on the Cable Cars for your 1st visit to SF. I like the California cable car line the best - less crowded and great views. The Powell St routes are nice too, but they get really crowded, so take those earlier in the day so you don't have to stand in line to get on. Also, buy a transit pass, I think they are $6 for 1 day and $10 for 3 days. That way you are ride the cable cars and buses as often as you want.

frida

do take a bay tour. Ferry to Sausalito is cheap and nice trip with great views of the city from Sausalito which is also a nice place to grab a bite to eat. Hornblower Yachts does a brunch or Dinner trip, but costs a lot more for the food which is so-so.

Stroll through china town and perhaps check out SFMOMA & Golden Gate Park and the Marina area.

Dan

Auger,

As a first time visitor to San Francisco, I would beware of what you will encounter. Before my most recent trip to SF last month, I hadn't been there in about 20 yrs., and was I shocked at how ugly and dirty SF has become.

San Francisco's panhandler culture fascinates me. Beggars are everywhere, practically on every street corner.
You rarely see cops in downtown San Francisco,but you see beggars. It's the other way around in New York City.

The beggars in San Francisco are creative. My favorite is the "bush man" who hangs out near Pier 39 on the Embarcadero. He hides behind a
portable shrub and jumps out at the passing tourists, who scream and are so relieved they haven't been murdered or pronounced dead from cardiac arrest that they throw the guy some money.

On Powell Street, where the trolleys run, I met Caroline, a toothless woman of indeterminate age. She was wrapped in a blanket and sitting in front of the Disney store. By her side, conked out in a box on the sidewalk, was a very
fat adult cat. It was very uncomfortable and impossible to ignore such filth and misery in San Francisco.
We did not even feel safe walking back to the hotel at night in Union Square. It was a heart-stopping dash to the hotel entrance lest we get accosted by the legions of beggars and druggies besieging the hotel when night fell.

You may want to consider spending theextra 2 days in the Monterey Area.

J Correa

The Bush Man is great - I had almost forgotten about him! I don't think that he's so scary that people think they are going to be murdered or are in danger of having a heart attack though. It's just funny. The best thing is to stand across the street and watch him scare people. I always appreciate creative beggars. I mean if you are going to beg for money on the street, you get a much better response from people if you actually do something.

Carrie

I guess Dan is head of the anti-San Francisco league. I have worked in San Francisco for 10 years. It is beautiful and sunny today. We have more homeless than some cities because of our terrific weather. Each morning I walk past the same 6 homeless people. I guess they each have their favorite corner. They sit quietly and don't bother anyone, so of them sell a newpaper called Spirit of the Street. I sometimes donate a dollar for the paper which is a well written monthly paper.

Unless you hang out in the Tenderloin district with Dan you probably won't be bothered. The bush man is a riot, but he hangs out in the heavy tourist trap wharf area, which you probably, unlike Dan, will avoid having done your research about the beautful areas of the city and vicinity.

Dan

Carrie,

I do not work for the Anti-SF league, but I am merely stating the facts. Also, the homeless tend to congregate in the tourist areas where they can panhandle for money such as Union Square and Fisherman's Wharf.

Los Angeles and San Diego have better weather than San Francisco, but do not have nearly the same degree of homelessness that SF does.

J Correa

"Better" weather is a matter of opinion. If by "better" you mean more sun, then yes, LA and San Diego have "better" weather. Not everyone feels the same way.

Personally, I like SF fog, as do a lot of people. It keeps the city from getting hot like the rest of the Bay Area or the inland valleys, and I love to watch the fog rolling in and out of the city. It makes for some interesting views and some great lighting.

cablecar

Let's see. It's stifling hot in all of California but it's only in the 70s in SF after the early morning fog clears. Guess where I'll pick to spend a summer day?
Want all of the smog in LA, SD or SJ?
I don't.
Want the sprawl where you can spend all day in traffic to get from one side of a Big City to the other? Not me.
I'll take the small, little city with the cool summer weather any day. It's worth putting up with the "all of the homeless" than to have to put up with people like Dan and his "type".

J Correa

cablecar - we spent this past Saturday in SF - a little fog, once the fog burned off, we had sunny blue skies and temperatures in the 70s. There was still a little fog over in Marin, so we got some terrific pictures of the bay - blue skies, a little fog, sail boats on the bay... Beautiful weather. Sunday and Monday we were at home in San Jose, sweltering in 90+° weather, breathing the toxic brown air that seems to have settled in for the summer. I enjoy living in San Jose, but over the weekend I kept dreaming about the nice temperatures and blue skies in SF.

Grasshopper

I was on one of those sailboats on the bay! It was a bit colder out there.

John

I think that the weather in SF in the summer is absolutely miserable. If you are lucky you will get to see 3 or 4 hours of sun per day. Other than that it will be fogged in and humid for most of the day. A very depressing way to spend the summer. I would much prefer the dry heat and 80 degree weather and blue skies of Los Angeles, San Jose, or San Diego any day of the week. I lived in San francisco for 8 years and had enough.

Elvis

John, And thank goodness you are gone! One less babbling idiot standing on a street corner to avoid.
"Dry heat" is kind of like "It's a nice light-tasting smog" in LA, SD or SJ.

John

Elvis,

You are the babbling idiot. no one in their right mind is going to prefer humidity and thick fog with temps in the 60's to 80 degree dry heat and blue skies. I think the fog has really clouded your mind.