Is Union Square unsafe?
 

My wife and one of her girlfriends will be heading into San Francisco for a 4 day shopping trip. They would like to stay in Union Square, to be close to the shopping. However, I'm picking up a thread in these postings that Union Square is no longer safe at night. Can someone please comment? They will not have a car, and will be walking extensively. The last thing I want to do is book them a hotel in an unsafe part of town...thx...kd

Yes it is safe. On weekends there are plenty of people around going to restaurants and shopping. Like any big city avoid unlit dark areas and keep your wits about you. The later you are out (after 12 am or so) the more weirdos will be out.

I wouold have to respectfully disagree with Sandy. As a longtime SF resident, Union Square has been getting rough around the edges over the past few years. During the day it is not so bad, but at night I would not recommend it as a place for two women by thenselves.

The area is perfectly safe. It is the heart of SF and many thousands of tourists stay in the numerous hotels which line the area. The Tenderloin area borders the Union Sq area and that district should be avoided on foot at night. This map shows the area<BR>http://www.sfgate.com/traveler/graphics/maps/unionsq-map.gif<BR>This describes the Union Sq area<BR>http://www.sfgate.com/traveler/guide/sf/neighborhoods/unionsq.shtml<BR>This describes the Tenderloin area<BR>http://www.sfgate.com/traveler/guide/sf/neighborhoods/tenderloin.shtml<BR><BR>

Especially with the recent renovation re-opening of the square in union square, there are more people, artists, events going on. I find that area is quite safe. At night, take cabs anyway.

Just because they fixed up Union Square, I still do not feel that it is a very safe area, especially at night. I would look for a hotel in the Fisherman's Wharf area instead.

We just returned from SF and stayed stayed at the Pan Pacific which is one block west of Union Sq (US). There are alot of fancy hotels bordering Union sq. and overall I thought it was a very safe area (my wife is a total chicken). It does get a little rough as you go 3-4 blocks south of US but this area can easily be avoided. We did alot of walking around at night 9-12pm and it was always busy with tourists. There were even alot of people on the cable cars at this time. I would recommend staying in the region just west or north of the square. <BR><BR>I totally disagree with the person who recommended Fisherman's Wharf which is far from Union Square and other shopping and has the feel of Daytona Beach.<BR><BR>Tim

I agree with the previous posters who do not recommend staying in Union Square. It really is not in the most desirable area in SF. Although there are fancy hotels there, the area is kind of dumpy. I did not feel too safe in Union Square at night.

Union Square is the city's central public space, the square itself is home to protests, homeless encampments, and street artists. The city's legendary beggars are at their thickest concentration here, where naive tourists are played for cash by hopeful bums claiming to have fought in Vietnam and demanding their due compensation (many even don fatigues to add to the effect).<BR>Drug dealing on the street corners is also prevalent in and around te Union Square area. <BR><BR>The vivacity of Union Square is accentuated by brash newsstands, downright tacky shops selling superfluously decorated lamps and statuettes, and apocalypse-preachers. These extend down the length of Powell Street to Hallidie Plaza, a sort of poor-man's Union Square, where the homeless clash with tourists and street chess games extend well into the night.<BR>

Sometimes I go alone to the Union Square are theaters, and walk back home. All stores are closed by the time the shows are over. Still lots of people in the streets. No safety issues. I don't agree with people who say Fisherman's is safer.

Keith, you'll never get accurate info on San Francisco from fodors.com, thanks to one person who distorts things quite a bit. Try other travel boards.

I don't get why people think Union Square is unsafe. Granted - I live in Manhattan and am well travelled in Latin America and SE Asia..but i think people make too much of the safety issue when travelling to big cities. Just as in NY, Seattle, Washington, Boston or any other big city as long as you use some common sense you will perfectly fine and are extremely unlikely to encounter any problems. SF is very safe, Union Square is fine. Go..have fun..stay there and enjoy.

I have to concur. Too many people associate "unpleasant" or "grimy" with "unsafe." I've found parts of SF to be unpleasant and grimy but I've never felt like I was in any danger AND it was easy enough to find alternate routes to get where I was going.

I can't believe all the SF trolls here who are saying that Union Square is a clean and perfectly safe area. This could not be further from the truth. Every day that I walk through there, I have to hold my nose. The streets being dirty is bad enough, not to mention the incessant drug dealing in this area. The trolls are posting misinformation, all the while telling unsuspecting tourists to ignore anyone who posts anything different from what they are saying.

I don't know what your problem is..I am certainly not a troll. I just think people get too easily scared by big cities..i can't tell you how many people come to NY but are afraid to walk around at night or take the subway etc. People - cities are perfectly safe. Don't let this overblown fear of crime ruin your vacation.

Not a troll here either. I was in SF two months ago and it the city definitely has some social issues to consider. Certainly dirtier and more homeless than we have in Ohio, however, most big cities can say this. Union Square and the city itself aren't nearly as bad as the naysayers seem to make it. In fact, I've yet to see them post any decent advice for travelers. So, Keith, I think Union Square is a great option for your wife and her friend.

Actually, no one has said Union Square is "clean" or "perfectly safe" as one poster above mentioned. I think they are saying that it's part of a big city. In fact, some of them have agreed to some of the negatives of the area. Mr./Mrs. "SF Troll" hasn't posted anything positive. I can't believe a city that consistently ranks as one of travelers' favorites has NO positives.

Keith, the problem isn't so much one of safety as comfort. There are generally enough people around the Union Square area so that your wife wouldn't likely be in any real danger. However, it is an area of the city with some pretty agressive panhandlers, which can scare some people, especially when it happens at night. Unlike the other major cities mentioned, who have basically driven the bums, panhandlers and drug dealers out of their major tourist areas (NY's Times Square for instance), SF seems to have a policy of leaving them alone even if they do hassle the tourists. I guess its part of some kind of liberal agenda in the city. However, things are beginning to change. A lot of the tourist industry in SF is being negatively affected by what is going on and starting to make a very public issue out of the problem. Who knows, maybe someday things might change. Until then, just tell your wife to be careful and she should be alright.

I think the Market Street area is much worse than Union Square. There are so many restaurants,dept. stores and nice hotels in the area that the normal people far out weigh the loons. Just use common sense that you would in any big city.Off of Bay Street right by Fisherman's Wharf there is a area that see's a lot of gang activity. I'll take panhandler's any day over gangs. Just my opinon.

I work in San Francisco. Union Square is busy with tourists. If your wife and friends are shopping, having dinner, or taking in a play and heading back to the hotel--the streets will be busy and I would not worry about safety other than the ordinary care you would take in any large city.<BR><BR>Union Square has just been completely remodeled and revamped and is clean. With the pending World Series--- the city is serious about attracting tourists and putting its best foot forward. Union Square has been the focus of a major project and as a hightlight of the city will be a focus of some city attention.<BR><BR>The Tenderloin is several blocks to the West and should be avoided.<BR><BR>There is a Hyatt near the square that is pretty nice.

Ok, here's the deal. There is nothing UNSAFE about Union Square. However, it does get a bit dirty and nasty as you head west. The further north you are, the less grimy (as you go up the hill). South of Geary, I would stay at Powell or east. Between Geary and Sutter, you're okay east of Taylor. North of Sutter, it's pretty much all fine. Also, I would not recommend Market Street west of Powell/Fifth. <BR><BR>It's not that these areas are unsafe at all, just dirty and not really anything nice to see. I have walked all around Union Square MANY times and have never felt unsafe. <BR><BR>Yes, there are lots of panhandlers and homeless people. But they are almost all completely harmless (everyone will have a story about how a friend of a friend had a "bad" experience of course). <BR><BR>Fisherman's Wharf is quite boring in my opinion. Yes, the bay is beautiful. But how many "3 shirts for ten dollars" stores do you need to see? And clam chowder in a bread bowl? Can you really eat that three times a day? <BR><BR>It's easy to get to Fisherman's Wharf from Union Square (do NOT take the cable car, you'll line up for an hour). The F-line streetcar on Market will take you there for $1. Or there are a number of bus lines you can take (#30, #15, #10), also for the same $1. <BR><BR>Also, just to note, the cable cars at Powell Street are closed through November, M-F 7a-4p (http://www.sfmuni.com/turnaround). <BR><BR>So, once again, Union Square is totally SAFE!!! Yes, it's a bit worn at the edges, but there are always TONS of people walking around at all times of day.

Unless your wife and her friend are going to be wandering around the area at 3 a.m., then it's perfectly safe for them to spend time there at night. My friends and I will often go for dinner, to the theater, or to clubs nearby, and either cab it or park under the Square or at any of the garages in the less appealing areas adjacent to Union Square. <BR><BR>There's tons of people everywhere at night, especially on the weekends. If they feel at all unsafe, there are plenty of cabs that can take them back to the hotel. But i'll be that they won't need one. Don't worry, it's safe enough for them.

How people love to bash San Francisco!! Yes, there are panhandlers and homeless near Union Square, but many of you don't get the boundaries correct. I totally agree with James that to the west of the square is the Tenderloin and you don't want to go walking there at night as a woman. SF is not Disneyland! It's a real city with real problems. We are facing an election soon in which hopefully the residents of SF will vote to improve the city and deal with the homeless issue. In the meantime, I would feel very safe as long as I remained "city savy" in the Union Square area. I would not stay west of the SF Hilton though. Suggest any women alone take taxis in the evening---not terribly expensive and abundant.

Dear SF trolls are: Just curious but what compulsive obsessive disorder is it you have? What medication are you on? I have never in my life seen any one person as fanatical as you are about downtown SF. You can't hide because you post under alot of names but is very obvious who you are. Did you slip and fall, hit your head on some street in the city, file a lawsuit and lose? You are a joke. If I am a troll, so be it, what exactly are you?

Union Square is absolutely fine at night - probably even a tad safer than Fisherman's Wharf when it's dark out. As long as they exercise good judgment and stay out of the Tenderloin they'll be fine.<BR><BR>I moved from San Fran a year ago. Love it, but you definitely get a different view of it when you live there. Market Street and the Muni buses are disgusting, unless panhandlers and the smell of bum piss are your kind of thing.

Union Square is not at all the nice place that many on this board make it out to be. Make no mistake, it is a raunchy part of SF. Even though they "cleaned" it up, the Square is basically mostly cement with little greenery. It is an area frequented by juvenile skaboarders, addicts, and beggars taunting people for money and eating out of trash cans.