Top Things to Do in San Francisco (full travel guide)

In this San Francisco travel guide, we’re showing you all the must-visit attractions, iconic experiences, quirky neighborhoods, places to eat & foods to try, and some hidden gems.

► MY HOTEL

► PLANNING GUIDES

► TOURS

*this video is not sponsored - we paid for everything: flights, hotel, tours, all food, etc!

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[alysmalls]

Thanks for watching! Here's everything I mentioned in the video 👇
► MY HOTEL
► PLANNING GUIDES

► TOURS

*this video is not sponsored - we paid for everything: flights, hotel, tours, all food, etc!

[pytube]

As a native San Franciscan, the SF tourism bureau should showcase this video in their promotions. It truly captures the essence of our beautiful city! Amazingly done.

[josephc]

We live here in the San Francisco Bay Area and frequent the city all the time and we have watched many videos of SF.
This was one of the best ones we have seen! You nailed pretty much all the main places to check out. Great Job!!!

[marcydrake]

Just got the biggest grin when you said that if the fog didn’t block your view you didn’t really visit San Francisco. Yes! That’s exactly right, Karl is part of the package. So glad to see you enjoying my favorite city on the planet. ❤ 🌁

[macvince]

Great video. I'm a Bay Area native, but I've never tried many of the places. Now you've got my curiosity going.

[classik_vip]

Amazing review, makes me want to explore my own backyard some more.

[mcnater]

Great recap! I just did all of this and more with my kids maybe four years ago and we had a blast.

[sbdrummer]

Dude, I’m going to San Francisco soon and I’ve been doing tons of research on blogs and vlogs, and yours is by far the most well laid-out travel guide. I plan on following in your footsteps steps almost to a T!! lol thank you so much for putting in the time and effort to make this!!

[Pattymelt]

Thanks for a great tour of my City!! ❤

[andrewpettola]

Yes, yes, yes!!! The San Francisco video! I spent a lot of time in San Francisco in the 1990s and early-2000s. Your video brings back sooo many good memories. I've experienced everything you and Chris did on your trip! My two favorite neighborhoods are North Beach (I'm Italian) and the Haight (I was born in 1967, just a coincidence my parent tell me). Although, I can honestly say I loved every part of that city! You're right about Pier 39, though. You can walk through it once and just say you've been there! And what can I say about wine country?! I do prefer Sonoma, though St. Helena up in Napa is beautiful, too. I could go on!!!

[seanobrien]

Hi, Aly and Chris...; I haven't been to San Francisco in forty ( 40 ) years ! ! * This excellent video was refreshing... * Brought back a lot of MEMORIES ! ! * Excellent video and very informative and "Thank you" for sharing the video ! ! Excellent video... * Aly..., you are bright, intelligent, and attractive... "Semper Fi" Mike in Montana :)

[Westleymiller]

I enjoy san fran, though heres a kinda fun fact.
The palace of fine arts is actually from the 1960s, because the original was demoloshed because it wasnt built to last

[andrearuizdebustamante]

Hi! I’m so happy to see you had a lot of fun in my city! I loved the way you put all the sights and places you popped into 😊. You even went into some eateries I didn’t even know about. So I’ll be checking your list. 😅The next time you come to visit stop Panadería La Mexicana Bakery near the corner of 24th and York streets to grab some Mexican bread, there are others but I’m a little biased because my grandfather worked there when they moved to San Francisco in the late 50’s from Mexico and we always get bread from there to this day. There are a few restaurants where you can try different Latin country foods. Saludos!

[tvd]

Aly - I enjoyed this guide. As a frequent visitor to the bay area over the past two decades, i think this is a great start for newbies visiting SF.

However, I think you missed on three key things.
First - You didnt discuss public transit (I dont count the cable cars). The bay area has wonderful transit, with direct connections to SFO and OAK. Its easy to reload your clipper card on your phone (with access to MUNI, BART, AC Transit and more). . Also, the vintage street cars along the Embarcadero are a must ride! Each car is painted in vintage colors, running between fishermans wharf, downtown and the castro. Theres also a cool trolley museum across from the Ferry Building market place.
Secondly, speaking of the Castro.. You guys left off two of my must see neighborhoods in SF. The Castro is a cool and funky area that is world famous for its LGBTQ+ community. Even if you are not part of that group, its a great place to visit with cool shops, theatres, etc. A very colorful area. The other is the Mission District. Its a little more rough around the edges these days but IMHO its home to the best mexican food in the US. I think its better than anything in So Cal. Plus loads of cool bars too.
Lastly, you didnt mention any other spots outside of the San Fran proper except wine country. The bay area is big with lots of things to see (and easy to get to via BART), but I always recommend Berkley along/near the telegraph ave area. Home to the original Amoeba records, and the campus of UC Berkley is right there. And also, downtown Oakland. I know Oakland gets a bad rap, but the downtown area is a super up-and-coming area. Cool restaurants, funky bars, brewerys, etc. Theres the Oakland Ale trail, (some faves, Drakes and Two Pitchers brewing) and some great beer gardens too!

Would love to see another video going into these spots!

[whitejade]

Great review on my favorite city, the City by the Bay 🌁💕

[bibivazquez]

Wow! What a beautiful video! Hi from Puerto Rico!😊

[CramerGallimore]

Interesting film shots. Glad you added drone footage, perfect spot for it. Which one did you carry?

[thecleaningteacher]

One of my most terrifying travel experiences was riding in a taxi in San Francisco. The Waymo is blowing my mind…I can’t imagine getting around the city without a human! 😮

[dianaj]

I was forced to have a "lay-over" in San Francisco due to flight changes coming back to the NW from Central America... We ended up turning it into a 4 day stay after finding we loved the hotel near the bay and the walk about areas were wonderful with morning joggers, small shops and restaurants, Perfect weather and no obvious homeless or drug use, although we didn't go out much after dark... LOVED the Weather!!

[ruthmclean]

Ally, this is an excellent travel vlog! Your editing is phenomenal! I registered with Plannin because of one of your previous vlogs. It’s really useful. Question: where did you get your cute backpack?