San Francisco Attractions
Type
Access
Price
San Francisco’s attractions split between a few that need booking and a great many that need only a transit pass and warm clothing.
Book ahead: Alcatraz, which sells out weeks in advance and is the only way onto the island; and timed entry at SFMOMA and the California Academy of Sciences in peak periods.
Free and unticketed: the Golden Gate Bridge walkway, Golden Gate Park, the Presidio and its coastal trails, Lands End, the Mission murals, the sea lions at Pier 39 and the views from Twin Peaks and Bernal Hill.
The cable cars are public transport with a flat fare, and the Powell Street turnaround queue can be avoided by boarding further up the line.
Fisherman’s Wharf is the one visitors are steered to and the one locals avoid; the Ferry Building, a mile east, is the better version.
Two or three neighbourhoods a day, with the hills factored in.
