Transportation In SanFrancisco
 

We are travelling from San Francisco to Sonoma . We will be in Sonoma for 3 days. We will then travel back to San Francisco for 2 days. Then head back to airport.

Should we rent a car or pay for transportation cab? We don't know what to do . Is it more convenient and cheaper to rent a car?
thanks

To & from Sonoma you should rent a car.
To the airport you should either take BART or take a taxi.

The drive by car to & from Sonoma over the Golden Gate Bridge is stunning - especially the GGNRA area just on the Marin County side of the Bridge. You could/should spend many hours exploring this region. It has the best views in the Bay Area, IMO. It is best visited in the afternoon when the sun is highlighting downtown SF, instead of in your face. Here is something about it from a long post I did a while back

GGNRA north of GG bridge. This is probably the BEST view of SF. You can look through the bridge & then above the bridge to SF and all the way south down the San Mateo County Coast on a clear day. Do this late in the day. Take the first exit past the lookout at the north end of the GG Bridge (closed on weekends) going north (marked Alexander Ave). Turn left the first chance you have, & go under 101. Follow the sign back to SF, but just before getting on 101, make a right turn up the road & follow this road. It’s easier to find than this description might indicate (get a AAA map & take a road called Conzelman). Old WWII bunkers & gun turrets along the way. Go all the way to the "top" of this road to where a rather large car park is located. Get out & admire the views and also explore the bunker with a gun turret on top. Then continue "straight" on the narrow one-way road & wind down & down to a fabulous area to explore. There is a Nike missile site, more & more WWII bunkers to explore, a lighthouse, a very interesting history museum, a Marine Mammel Center that you can visit, a beautiful beach, and breathtaking views. Just drive around this area "aimlessly" to enjoy it's beauty. You will have trouble believing that this pristine region is only about 2 miles from San Francisco (one reason our housing prices are the highest in the US).

Stu Dudley

We drove from San Francisco a long time ago, although we did not go as far as Sonoma town. We stopped in Guerneville and had lunch then drove along the Russian River until we hit Jenner and drove the coast south back into town, beautiful drive. We didn't stop at any wineries that trip, but there certainly are some if you wanted to visit.

Thank You so much for the reply. So helpful. How is the weather the first week of March? Can we actually visit the beach at all?

Beaches are open year round. Swimming????? That's entirely different. The water is cold year round. It is 72 degrees outside right now - but we may set all time record today with this temperature. In March (especially early March this year - with no/little rain) the grass is green and the countryside amazing near the Marin & Sonoma coast.

Head north on 101 from San Francisco. On the north end of Novato, exit 101 on San Marin Drive & continue west on San Marin Drive for about 3 miles. Look for a school on your right and get on Novato Blvd. Now you are out in beautiful/hopefully green rolling countryside. Continue on Novato Blvd until it dead ends at Point Reyes Rd & turn left. about a half mile later look for the Chesse Factory on your right, pull into the parking lot, grab some goodies at the store for lunch, and have lunch on one of the picnic tables next to the pond. After lunch, continue west to Pt Reyes Station (cute town - visit), and then Pt Reyes National Seashore. Look for a very small booth while at Pt Reyes Station & grab a tourist map of the National Seashore. You could spend hours exploring this area. After visiting the National Seashore, head north on Hwy 1 & go as far north as you have time for. Return to 101 and Sonoma on one of the many roads heading east. Don't go into Santa Rosa, however. Petaluma has an interesting "old time" downtown to visit. If you are an AAA member, get the San Francisco Bay Region map to follow this route.

Stu Dudley