Impromptu 2 days in San Francisco - please help with itinerary
 

Greetings to all ye kind Fodorites. My brother will be in SF for a convention next weekend and I was given permission to crash in his hotel room. Yay!

Arriving Friday night 9:30. First question: Will it be easiest to catch a cab from the airport to Westin on Market Street? I looked into getting a car service and gasped at the quote. Sigh. Renting a car is not an option.

Any good sushi place close to Westin that will still be open at around 11? If not sushi, any other recommendations?

Here's what's on my wish list:

Saturday 4/20
morning - head over to Ferry Building/Farmer's Market. There is a Goat Festival (?!) that day and I need to check it out, if only because I love goat cheese and have enjoyed a goat curry or two years ago. :-) http://www.ferrybuildingmarketplace...._fest_2013.php

After a couple of hours of grazing and munching, next stop is the SFMOMA.

Walk around Union Square and/or head on to Noe Valley for dinner at Incanto or Contigo.
No car, but I think my brother can join me for dinner and we will take a taxi as it is quite a distance from the hotel.

Sunday 4/21
Walk to Sears Fine Food for breakfast. I hear the french toast is quite good! :-) No reservations taken for breakfast/lunch. I understand that the line can be long, and I was wondering if it is realistic to be at the restaurant by 7 am if I want to be at St. Patrick's for the 9 am mass..... The alternative is breakfast at the hotel's Ducca. Breakfast will need to be substantial because I won't have another bite until after I've been to the next two stops - and most likely, that will be dinner. (groan).

10:30 or 11:00 am timed ticket to see the Terra Cotta Warriors at the Asian Art Museum

Maybe 2 pm or 2:30 pm - De Young's Vermeer Exhibit: Girl with a Pearl Earring. Thinking about a timed ticket for maybe 2 pm (it closes at 5:15 pm). I've never been to the De Young/Legion of Honor and don't know if I should allot more time here?

For those lucky enough to have seen the two exhibits where I need to get timed tickets - is this schedule sane? I'm not sure if I should switch one of the Sunday museums for the SFMOMA on Saturday?

Finally, may I ask for restaurant suggestions close to the Westin for Sunday night? My brother will be able to join me for dinner - we are both fond of tapas, Japanese, seafood, fusion food. Italian, if it's not the Olive Garden type..... Or we can switch dinner plans and go to Incanto or one of the Noe Valley restaurants on Sunday instead of Saturday and eat dinner close to the hotel on Saturday. I just don't feel like taking a long drive for dinner for the two nights that we will be dining together.

Regarding shopping: Not interested in big-name stores, outlet stores, or other typical mall stores. Interested in local artists (paintings, jewelry, pottery).... one-of-a-kind pieces. I realize I may probably not even have any time to do any shopping, but was wondering if you know of any stores close to any of the places that I'll be going to? Oh, and I was hoping to have time to maybe check out A.G. Ferrari or any other food places you recommend. I'll have a mostly-empty suitcase that I can fill with edible goodies.....

I'm not BART-savvy and will most likely walk or take a taxi as needed.

Anxiously waiting for your kind replies.....

Lots of questions buried in your post.

It's also a mixture of what you have planned vs. questions.

Check out the public transportation in SF, it's very very good. It's called MUNI.

Unless they've changed recently, Sears is cash only.

Oh, I'm so sorry. In my haste to post my question, I forgot about the next day.

Monday 4/22

Maybe this is when I should go to Sears for breakfast? My flight leaves at noon. Being unfamiliar with traffic patterns, what time should I leave for the airport? I assume that there will be a taxi line at the hotel and this won't be a problem.....

Anything else I can do on Monday morning before I head to the airport? If not Sears for brekkie, is there any other place close to the hotel that you can recommend?

Thanks so much!

Rasta:

Thanks for your quick response. Yes (hanging my head in shame) - lots of buried questions....Thank you for the heads up about the cash-only policy at Sears.

So many things to comment on....

1) Do you have dinner reservations for Saturday night? You might be able to get into Contigo, Incanto will be much more difficult.

2) Tapas near the Westin - Colibri was quite good last time we were there. Not exactly tapas, but definitely "shareable".

3) Sushi near the Westin - there's always a line at Ketana-Ya. I'm not a sushi maven, so can't comment on quality.

4) SFMOMA - the current photography exhibit is supposed to be very good. Also, there's a new installation called "The Clock" that I've heard is mesmerizing.

5) You can definitely do both the Asian Art Museum and the DeYoung the same day. Take a taxi or a bus between the two (according to Googlemaps, it's a 17-minute drive or a 26-minute bus ride). Not sure how the Legion of Honor factors into this.

The line at Sears moves very quickly.

Taxi will take less than 30 minutes to the airport on Monday morning, especially since you won't be going during primetime rush-hour. Assuming you want to be there by 10:45, leave the hotel between 10 and 10:15. Yes, there will be a taxi queue at the hotel.

Two more things:

On Monday morning, just walk around Union Square.

Don't miss the light project on the Bay Bridge. It's only on the north side of hte bridge, so you have to view it looking north to south. A good spot is just south of the Ferry Building.

sf:

I was hoping you'd stop by. :-)

You're right - Incanto for Saturday dinner is almost impossible, except for a very early dinner. Had more luck with Sunday.

Will definitely check out "The Clock" at the SFMOMA. Just googled a few pictures of the light project on the Bay Bridge - that is amazing!

Thank you for all your tips! Looking forward to all my "me time" in SF!

Glad to be of service :-)

What airport are you flying into/out of? You can take BART from either, but it is a bit easier from SFO than OAK [you have to take a bus to BART station].

I would get Terracotta tix ASAP - when we were there, the line to buy was out of the door to the curb. Check out all 3 floors of Asian Mus. - very interesting.

The Girl is very worth seeing, and if the days is nice, go to the 9th floor observation tower. They are not strict with the timing, so don't worry about it. Don't spend much time at DeYoung, go to the Legion after The Girl and the tower.

Debit: It's the San Francisco airport. I'm taking a suitcase though - would it be easy to haul that thing around? :-)

Dayenu: Will get the Terra Cotta ticket as soon as I post this.
I wasn't sure how I would manage both Legion and DeYoung, but I'll take your advice and head straight to the Legion of Honor after seeing Vermeer's painting.... Will try to catch one of the free tours as well.

Thank you!

p.s. Any favorite restaurants near the Westin Market Street area? :-)

Hi gelatolover,

It's great that you can join your brother in San Francisco!

In looking at your itinerary, here's one thing that sticks out - you are planning to go to mass on Sunday and then take in three museums? That's really a bit too much. You will have sensory overload times three.

The DeYoung exhibit is timed to allow you only an hour. You can exceed your hour as there is a lot to see. Get the audio, it's well worth the $6 or $7 and then take your time going through the entire exhibit.

Having seen the Terra Cotta Warriors in situ in Xian, I haven't gone to see the current exhibit at the Asian Art Museum. Personally, I wouldn't want to do Asian art and Western art together in one day, especially when the exhibits are so specialized.

I would suggest doing DeYoung and SFMOMA together and do the Warriors on a separate day. Depending on whether your own preferences are classical art or modern art, you can portion your time between the first two.

The Legion of Honor is really way out and may not be worthwhile to make a trip out there, especially with your time limit. Maybe another day would be better.

Welcome to San Francisco! It sounds like you already have a wonderful plan worked out!

San Francisco has a very good public transportation system. You really don't need a car. BART is a train, it's really easy. You go to the station, get on the train, then get off the train and leave the other station. It's really easy peasy.

Here's how to get from the airport to Central SF.

http://www.bart.gov/guide/airport/inbound_sfo.aspx

You want to get off at the Powell Street Station, then follow the cable car tracks for a couple of blocks and you'll be on Union Square and the Westin St Francis.

Here's a map of the BART stations:

http://www.bart.gov/stations/

At the Powell Street stop, as you emerge from the station, there will be a SFMTA kiosk where you can buy a three-day passport ($22) that will allow you to take almost any kind of transportation. The kiosk also has a very good easy-to-understand map of the entire transportation system. The map is really worth while.

p.s. Any favorite restaurants near the Westin Market Street area?

What kind of food? There's a very good, upscale Indian restaurant, Amber India, around the corner, and a very good, very upscale (but not as upscale/expensive as, say, French Laundry or Meadowood ;) ) restaurant in the St. Regis next door (Ame). Those are just two of so many!

You can take a suitcase on BART, but the smaller it is, the easier it will be to manage. Since you'll only be there for a weekend, you should be able to get away with a small one! :)

easytraveler:

I am embarrassed to tell you that I thought that the two museums (De Young and the Legion of Honor) were right next to each other. Duh...... So much for planning without actually checking the map. You are right - the schedule I had initially set is a bit much and so I am definitely removing the Legion of Honor for this trip. Going back to SF in October and will make that a priority.

And THANK YOU for encouraging me to use the BART. I lived in fear of the NYC subway until kind Fodorites urged me to give it a go, and so I did and had such a positive experience. I shall endeavor to use the BART then.

sf:

Thank you for the restaurant recommendations. Made a reservation via opentable for Ame for Saturday night. Took a look at the menu - it is TOTALLY what my brother and I like to eat. :-)

French Laundry - heh heh, that's right up his alley, but I think he would rather take his wife than his sister.

After learning my lesson to look at the map, I took a look at the Incanto location and found to my dismay that it's quite a distance from the hotel. So now I am looking for another restaurant for Sunday night.

We both love seafood, Japanese, French, fusion, tapas, Mediterranean, some Italian as long as it's seafood, not pasta..... We don't have an aversion to steak (love it, in fact) but he can easily get good steak back where he lives......

Btw, sf7307, I would love to see your personal list of restaurant/shopping favorites - that would come in handy for a return trip in the fall as well.

tentthumbs:

I'll still be lugging around a bigger suitcase (not carry-on size) to hold anything that I could get my greedy hands on..... just in case.....

I will definitely give the BART a go, just maybe not to and from the airport.

Thanks, all you kind people! You make traveling a pleasure!!! :-)

I have seen folks lugging large suitcases on BART......but the smaller ones are easier to manage. You could also take a fold up tote in your carry on just in case greed really sets in and you exceed the capacity of your carry on. :)

If you go towards Market Street from the Westin St Francis (follow the cable car tracks), right across the street is the Westfield Shopping Center, one of the high end shopping "plazas", only this one goes upwards instead of spreading out.

Down in the basement is the food area. There's a Bristol Farms in the center and it has some of the best poke (marinated raw tuna) around. Bristol Farms may have food stuffs that you would want to tote home (don't know where you live that you want to carry home a suitcase full of food! :) ). It has a really good cheese department, so maybe you could bring a cooler as well. Just kidding! That would be the most convenient major food shopping close to the Westin that I can think of.

If your flight leaves at noon and you get to SFO early enough, there is a very good food court in the International Terminal (anyone can go in there) with an Ebisu branch. Serves pretty good sushi - for a last minute taste of Japan before you leave:

http://ebisusushi.com/ebisu-sushi-menu.php?location=3

"I will definitely give the BART a go, just maybe not to and from the airport."

That is exactly where you would use BART, it normally wouldn't be used for "in"the city transit. For that, you would use MUNI for either bus, the historic F street car on Market, or light rail for getting from place to place while in the city.

http://www.sfmta.com/cms/mhome/home50.htm

We had a delightful dinner at Farallon in January. They specialize in seafood, the service was excellent, and the architecture wonderful. It is on the first floor of the historic Mason Building, and part of the restaurant is in the intriguing tiled and muraled bath house. It is just around the corner from the Westin St Francis on Sutter St, I think - next door to the Kensington Park Hotel.

Regarding Sears Fine Food, we have gone twice and have not been that impressed. They do move guests through quite fast and they know how to handle lots of tourists. The food's not terrible, it's just not all that great. They are "known" for their Swedish Pancakes, but we found them to be more like regular pancakes, only smaller. If you are used to really good coffee, you'll be disappointed. Depends on what you are looking for...

tentthumbs and easy: I live in the midwest, all we have is a Fresh Market and a Schnuck's grocery store (and a Sam's Club..... sigh......). So that's why I need to lug a huge suitcase along, to carry the comestibles that I am hoping to gather. easytraveler: yes, we have loaded many a cooler in a lot of our trips (Chicago, St. Louis, etc.). Banish the thought that we will take a road trip without the cooler.....

Since this involves a plane trip though, I may end up limiting my foraging to goodies that don't need refrigeration. Say bottles of olive oil, cornichons, sardines (oh, yes), a bottle of wine or two, etc. You had to mention "cheese"....... sigh.....now I want to bring a cooler too....

Debit: hmmm..... you see, I didn't know that. :-) Hope I'll be able to resist hailing a cab from the airport. It's just too easy to do so.... you know, what with my gargantuan suitcase and all ;-)

elnap: Farallon is less than a mile away from the hotel - and opentable says I can get a table for Sunday, if we cancel Incanto. Delightful menu featuring all the seafood we desire......

You know, I had a feeling that I wouldn't be too impressed with Sears Fine Food after I perused the menu online, and you confirmed that.

Now for the next question: can anyone recommend a fine place for breakfast, preferably close to a hotel, or a quick cab ride away? I'm thinking that since Monday morning is wide open and I'll just need to make sure I am back at the hotel by 10:15 to collect my bags for my noon flight, that will be a good time for a nice breakfast/brunch.

some places are willing to ship so you don't have to schlep it home yourself........

I understand the greed factor all too well~I, too, live where selections are pretty limited!

Instead of going to museums, you might want to make this a "foraging trip". :)

I just thought of a couple of other grocery stores you might like which are just a short taxi ride from the Westin:

1) Trader Joe's on California

http://www.traderjoes.com/

2) Whole Foods on 4th

http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/stores/soma

Whole Foods has a lot more choices, especially in non-grocery "green" products, but I prefer Trader Joe's products overall. You might want to visit the grocery stores after the museums are closed, but before dinner.


If you like Japanese sweets, there's a Minamoto Kitchoan on Market. Expensive tho. A small box of Tokoyo (candied pomelo peel) is $15. That's probably one of the least expensive boxes. Everything looks great, but the prices are quite high. Store has a variety of mochi.

http://www.kitchoan.com/

If you want Japanese food, there's a very good one just a couple of blocks from you WEST of Union Square on Post and Taylor. That's just slightly north of the Tenderloin District which you don't want to be in, especially at night. It's got some of the freshest sushi in town. A convival place, drink beer or sake and eat sushi. Sitting at the bar is best.

http://www.ryokos.com/

For more Japanese restaurant choices, take a taxi and go to Japantown. Possibly the best Japanese sushi place, Ino Sushi, is in Japantown.

You should do reservations for both of these Japanese restaurants.

tenthumbs: That explains it - we're kindred spirits (with a common denominator which we shall call the G Factor)

Easytraveler: You must be a cousin? :-)
Now that sounds like a good idea - dumping the museums in favor of foraging. ;-) TJ's and Whole Foods are two favorite stops anywhere we go.

And wow - Minamoto Kitchoan! I clicked on the link you provided and couldn't believe my eyes. Such delicate confections! I've never seen anything like this before. The high prices most likely indicate the quality of the goodies - I noticed the 20 to 30 day shelf life of most of the sweets - that's freshness right there! What's even better is that it's only 1/5 mile from the hotel.

Ino Sushi sounds like a perfect spot for a sake-and-sushi museum break. Will try to fit it on Saturday's schedule because the restaurant is closed on Sundays.

Thank you for being my enablers. I did remove the Legion of Honor from my itinerary, as suggested by easytraveler, that frees up several hours that shall now be devoted to grazing and foraging.

As long as I get to see the Girl with the Pearl Earring at the De Young and the Terra Cotta Warriors at the Asian Art Museum, with a brief stop at the SFMOMA, forage away, I shall!

Here, cousin, I raise a glass to your foraging! ((d))

(Sorry, Fodors doesn't seem to have a wine glass icon, just one for cocktails and one for beer - that I know of).

Enjoy your visit to SF! Sounds a great trip in the making! :)

PS, MK is in the safe direction of Market Street. Too much further south and you'll be running in to the Tenderloin again.

Thanks to all of you for your advice!

First of all, was very relieved to see a long line of taxis waiting at the airport - what with my late night arrival and two suitcases. Westin San Francisco on Market Street was quite a nice surprise - very clean spacious room, comfortable beds, luxury linens, plush robes, spacious and very clean bathroom with a huge counter space. Quite an ideal location too - less than a five minute walk to Union Square.

Saturday morning: Skipped breakfast and went with my brother on the Ferry Market food tour. It was an explosion of taste! From the pickled carrots (how I longed to have a Bloody Mary after that), and an interesting fermented drink (kvass), cheese tastings, salamis, chocolates, pastries, bread, honeys, jams and conserves, a Vietnamese spring roll, to my favorite finale - a maccaron from Miette - it was a foodie's heaven. We were extremely full after the food tour that there was no need for lunch at that point.

After the tour, my brother went to his conference while I lingered for a couple more hours, going back to the places we visited on the tour and gathering more goodies. It was truly a forager's delight - lardo and more salami from Boccalone, truffle honey, cheeses from Cow Girl Creamery, Scharffen Berger chocolates, maccarons…… The time passed quickly and realized to my dismay that I was running out of time to go to the museum. Quickly found a cab and hauled all the edible goodies back to the hotel. On my way to the De Young museum, went to the Gallery of Jewels in Union Square to view Sarah Richardson's trunk show. Sarah's designs are unique, organic, one-of-a-kind and surprisingly reasonably priced. I found a couple of goodies and got into a cab to make it to the De Young Museum for my date with Vermeer's painting (pre-purchased a timed ticket).

While I've seen pictures of the painting multiple times, seeing the masterpiece from a couple of feet away was priceless. There were about twenty people in the room, but everyone was absolutely silent, as we took in this ethereal sight of the Girl with the Pearl Earring - from the texture of the dark background to her mesmerizing glance, the incredible blue of the turban, the glow of the earring, the texture of the golden fabric, the experience was quite magical. I had to tear myself away from this painting just so I could have enough time to see the Rembrandt pieces before the museum closed at 5:15 pm.

Dawdled a bit around the grounds and finally made my way to the front of the museum to wait for a cab. And waited…… and waited…… for an hour. At this point, I was getting quite anxious for the crowd in the park had considerably thinned at that point. I had called a couple of cab companies but they had no one in the area. Just when I was seriously considering walking all the way to the entrance of the park to catch a cab, a taxi suddenly appeared out of nowhere…… thank God!

Just got back to the hotel in time to freshen up for my dinner with my brother at Ame at The Regis Hotel. Thanks, sf, for the recommendation! My appetizer of Tempura Poke was exploding with umami - it didn't even have the panko breading normally associated with tempura. The tuna was wrapped in seaweed and flash fried just a bit to have the crunch, but inside was all velvety and melt-in-the-mouth goodness, with a glaze that was to die for. The waiter suggested Ame's signature sake-marinated black cod for my main course. Again, another winner. My dessert was the coconut milk panna cotta with lime froth - the perfect delicate ending for the evening.

Exhausted, after a full day of food tasting and shopping, art and more eating, I fell asleep within minutes of hitting the bed.

I had originally planned to go on Sunday to the Asian Art Museum to see the Terra Cotta warriors and have a brief stop at the SFMOMA. However, on Saturday, I received the email from Viator (where I had booked the Ferry Market food tour) that a couple of wine tours for Sunday were 50% off. I quickly signed up for the Muir Woods/Napa Valley wine tasting. The bus picked me up at the hotel at about 8 am and we made our way across town to do 4 or 5 more pickups for a total of 18 people in the bus. Our driver/Tour guide, Roman, a German, sounded like Arnold Schwarzenegger. He was a wealth of information but it was his delivery that kept us in stitches with his dry wit. We were allowed an hour and fifteen minutes to explore the woods before proceeding to our first wine tasting in Sonoma.

We were then led to the Sonoma town square to do lunch on our own. Followed Roman's recommendation and had a delightful lunch at the Sunflower Caffe with a delicious smoked duck breast sandwich.

Then back to the bus for the short trip to Napa and two more wineries. As the afternoon progressed, there was quite a change on the tour group's demeanor - getting quite perky and chattier the more tastings we've had. Roman took us to a couple of photo stops for gorgeous pictures of the bridge and the bay before bringing us back to the hotel.

I was practically worn out and tipsy from all that booze that I reluctantly had to cancel dinner at Incanto after persuading my brother to go have dinner with some friends in town. They took him to Rue Lepic, a French bistro (Nob Hill). He told me the next day that the food was quite delicious! Quickly made a mental note to try the restaurant next time I'm back in SF.

Monday morning was a rush of packing and an early morning foraging at the Ferry Market for more goodies. Then just barely had enough time for a quick stop at Minamoto Kitchoan (thanks easytraveler for the tip) for some Japanese delicacies - mochi, jellies, etc. It was quite pricey but when I got back home and made my way thru all the mochi and other delights, I realized that it was all worth it. It way superior to the usual Japanese sweets that one normally finds at Japanese groceries or oriental groceries.

I wasn't sure how early I should leave the hotel to make it to the airport for my 12:05 pm flight, so I played it safe and took a cab at around 10:05 am. I was at the airport by 10:30.

Truly enjoyed my quick trip to San Francisco, and already looking forward to the next one in the fall.

Thanks, everyone!

We live in SF near the Ferry Building and Embarcadero Bart station. The last time I took a cab to SFO from here it was around $50.00 one way. BART is $8.10 and places you in the airport. There is always someone with a bag heading to SFO on BART. The cab drivers fought the Bart extension to SFO for 20 years until the city finally got it done. It is great. If you find the Westfield Mall on Market mentioned in another post you have also found the Powell Street Bart station below ground. Hop on there and take the train to SFO. Only way to go.

hi gelato lover, my DH & I were just in SF and we took the BART directly from the airport in South SF into the city. It is MUCH cheaper than a cab and very easy to do.

Once in the city you can take cabs, but it's just as easy to walk and take public buses. You can take a bus 9-10 blocks for less $1.50 or a cab for around $10+. Most buses stop in front of most major hotels.

You might want to take the Ferry over to Sausalito for a day - it is such a delightful town. If you do (depending on time) you might want to take the house boats on the water tour.

Opps, gelatolover, you've already been there done that! Didn't see your post. But have read it, and glad you had such a good time.

Hi, gelatolover,

What a great trip report! So glad you had such a good time in SF! Looks like you really made the best of your time and had an action-packed short visit!

You're right about The Girl With a Pearl Earring. She seems so real, so fresh - her gaze is calm but almost mesmerizing. It really makes a difference to see it in reality instead of in photos.

Welcome back in the fall! Looking forward to your trip report then!

traveldawg and nanabee: am planning on using the BART/bus when hubby and I return to SFO this October. It would be a longer trip and I would love to take the ferry to Sausalito.

easytraveler aka my foraging cousin: was truly sad when I ate the last of my precious stash from M. Kitchoan. The store will be on my list of must-dos for my next trip and we will try the sushi places that you recommended.

Thanks again for all the advice, everyone. Looking forward to more advice from you for our next trip in the fall.

What a great trip report. I can spend hours at the Ferry Building too. Just love that place.

nanabee, so glad you enjoyed the tour. I'm not going to miss it the next time! :-)

starrs
You'll love it, and thanks for recommending it!

gelatolover: something about "munching my way through the mochi from M.K." :)

Methinks you need to bring a bigger suitcase, a cooler, and a list of all the recommended restaurants next time.

Hope your next visit is really in the fall, as part of July and most of August the American's Cup yacht races will be held in SF, which will add to the usual high summer tourist visits.

Bart is indeed easy; would encourage it at least TO the hotel when the suitcase is light and there is no rush. On a Sunday morning when the trains aren't running so frequently, you may need to plan further ahead to use Bart.

Within the city, we did use the Bart to tour the mission in the Mission neighborhood. Worth a visit. Probably would recommend a San Francisco City Guides tour of Chinatown or Coit Tower more though.

I notice you did not go to Sears. It has a cute ambiance, true, but Dottie's serves a better breakfast.

Even on Sundays, BART runs every 20 minutes to the airport.

The one time we went to take it to SFO on a Sunday morning, our hotel concierge said it was not running that often compared to the weekdays, and if one train didn't show up for whatever reason, we could be waiting close to an hour. He suggested we might want to build some extra time in so we wouldn't miss our flight. It seemed like sound advice to me, but I'm cautious when it comes to airport arrival times.

easytraveler: Yes, it's late October. Hubby has a convention at the Moscone and I get to play tourist again. I'll definitely seek your help once more when it's closer to the date.

5alive: Will definitely use BART in October from SFO to the hotel since hubby will be with me. I just wonder how much luggage schlepping we will be doing as we haul our suitcases from the station to the Marriott Marquis. Incidentally, am hoping that this is a good (and safe) location since I didn't have much of a choice in picking the hotel. Hubby insisted on a hotel closest to the Moscone Center and the other one that seemed to be closest had sold out of rooms.

Hoping to include tours of the Mission District, Chinatown and Coit Tower as you suggested since I have 7 days where I can do anything while hubby is at the convention. Probably the houseboat tour that nanabee is suggesting.

Will check out Dottie's too.

Thanks!

Marriott is in a great location.

Take advantage of SF Public Library "City Guides". We have done over 2 dozen of them and they have all been great. There are several that are done in October only, so check those out. We did one in Sutro Forest in October that was amazing.

Falling in the category of tourists knowing more about the city you live in that you do, I have never heard of "Sutro Forest" :-)