autodidact

We will be spending 4 days or so in SF - first visit. Current thinking is to take an organised tour on day one so we can get a good overview, then use remaining days to fill in gaps and re-visit the best places.

Any views on who runs the best SF tour?

pocohontas3

I'm interested in the response, too. I've found a little info on tripadvisor dot com and hope you get some input here.

Ronda

San Francisco City Guides offer excellent walking tours and I have taken a couple:

http://www.sfcityguides.org/

Some time ago I also took a tour of Nobb Hill:

http://www.hobnobtours.com/index.html
which was quite informative - learned about the 1906 earthquake and which buildings were destroyed and which were left standing, tour of the Grace Cathedral which you can do on your own.

http://www.gracecathedral.org/visiti...cathedraltour/

I have not taken any organized bus tours. I have seen those buses that look like trolley cars loaded with people driving around the city and then I have seen old fashioned cars taking smaller groups of people around that look like something I would want to do if I were to take a tour:

http://www.mrtoadstours.com/

I know nothing about them so you might want to check tripadvisor.

Lots of fun to take a bay cruise if the weather is nice.

MorganRey

We used...

www.allsanfranciscotours.com/

We did the all day city tour which included Alcatraz.

autodidact

Thanks for the suggestions. Allow me a follow-up qustion:- is the trip to Alcatraz worth the high rating it gets from various guides to SF? With limited time in the city (maybe 3-4 jet-lagged days), I'm thinking that there are surely many other places to see that would be more memorable. Even an institution as famous as Alcatraz is, after all, only a disused prison.

sf7307

Allow me a follow-up qustion:- is the trip to Alcatraz worth the high rating it gets from various guides to SF?

I don't know how anyone can possibly answer this question for you. To me, it's an excellent [interesting] tour and I know others agree. But if the subject matter or the place doesn't interest YOU, then of course, it's not a good use of your time.

DalaiLlama

It's personal, only you will be able to decide. Here's what I suggest: Find out where and at what time the people who go on the Alcatraz tour disembark when they come back - build it into your gallivanting schedule to be there on time and ask a few for their impressions.

StuDudley

I've lived in San Francisco or just outside of the City for 34 years and we visit everything we can around here. I enjoyed the tour and also the views of The City on the boat ride to & from. If someone will only be here 2 days or less, I advise them to see other things. For longer visits, Alcatraz is an interesting trip. It's not just a decaying concrete building - there are lots of interesting stories that are relayed to the visitor. The setting is quite nice also.

Stu Dudley

maj

We weren't really that interested in Alcatraz either, but thought we should see it. We ended up really enjoying the experience -- much more informative and interesting than we had anticipated. We took the first night tour -- went over in the daylight and returned after dark. With 4 days I would try to fit it in.