San Francisco Bay Area:
1. The Cantor Art Museum on the Stanford campus has a wonderful permanent collection of over 5000 works of art as well as temporary exhibits. They have one of the largest Rodin collections in the world. They offer docent-led tours and lectures. Check with the museum for times. Admission is free. They offer docent-led tours and lectures.. Check with the museum for times. Admission is free.
2. Take a walk to see the icons of San Francisco, the old Victorian Mansions(better know as the "Painted Ladies") built between 1850-1915. Most have been restored and you can walk leisurely along Alamo Square and the surrounding area. The link gives you the addresses and pictures of many of these homes.
3. Another "icon" of San Francisco is its famous and popular Chinatown. **See the "Barbary Coast Trail" book listed below.
4. A visit to Alcatraz Island involves a boat ride from Fisherman's Wharf and a walk on the island (take warm clothing and good walking shoes. The tour, run by the National Park Service, is full of interesting and colorful information about the famous penitentiary. You may need reservations.
5. The Cliff House is a famous seaside resort which is no longer operational. It is a very pleasant area to walk in and is a place with a lot of SF history along the cliffs. You can walk from here along the coast to the Palace of Legion of Honor museum. Take warm clothing and good shoes.
6. The Golden Gate Bridge can be fun to walk or bike across, but wear warm clothing. It is usually foggy in summer and can be quite windy and cold. Spring and fall are the best times to visit. While there, take a little time to visit Fort Point, at the base of the SF side of the bridge, built to protect San Francisco during the Civil War of 1860. Walk along the beautiful beach on the bay side of the bridge. It will eventually lead you to the World Fair’s site which houses the Exploratorium.
7. Dry Creek Wineries in Sonoma Valley is one of our favorite areas to visit. It is not as touristed and is much quieter than famous and well known Napa Valley. It has beautiful rolling hills full of vineyards and wonderful wines. The area is best known for its Zinfandel wines (red) and many other varieties, but white wine is also made here. Check the link to see which wineries charge for tasting. Some do, some do not. Some have picnic areas, but you would probably need to buy a bottle of their wine to use their picnic facilities. The winding streets are narrow so there are many bicyclists on the road to watch for.
8. ** Walk the Barbary Coast Trail -- this link is to Amazon.com which describes and sells this book. (No, we do not have Amazon stock.) It is a wonderful guide to historic San Francisco's Barbary Coast part of which is Chinatown. The book "walks" you through many areas of the city and describes many colorful and fun stories along the way. Many areas are actually marked in the sidewalk or on the sides of buildings. The book can probably be purchased at the Stanford book store or borrowed from a library. We recommend buying the book and marking notes in it as you take any of the self-guided tours listed. You will not be able to do all the walks in 1 day!
9. Free walking tours of San Francisco -- can be a wonderful and fun way to see the city. They are led by volunteers and are free, but they do suggest a small donation to help run the organization. Again, there are many different tours and you can select which ones interest you. Go back several times. It's a nice way to see the city up close.
10. Golden Gate Park -- a well known park with wonderful hiking trails. It was designed and planted by hand on a sand dune. It contains the famous renovated De Young Museum and the recently renovated California Academy of Science. There is a Japanese tea garden and the Conservatory of Flowers. At Stow Lake you can rent a paddle boat or a variety of types of bicycle rentals which can be used with small children to tour the park or city.
11. The San Francisco museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA)
12. The Asian Art Museum is one of our favorite museums. They have excellent collections from Japan, China, Korea, India and other Asian areas. They have a tea house which was built in Osaka, Japan and assembled piece by piece in the museum. They often hold tea ceremonies with participants in traditional dress for people to see explaining the ritual.
13. Coit Tower offers commanding views of the bay area and Depression Era murals inside the tower. Parking is limited. **See the Barbary Coast Trail book for more information.
14. The San Jose Tech Museum offers science and technology exhibits for all ages with emphasis on the Silicon Valley. Some of the exhibits are interactive. It is a good place to take children.
15. Visit the recently renovated Computer History Museum in Mountain View just off Highway 101. This is a "must see" museum and isn’t very far from Stanford. It offers a history of the computer industry including exhibits of the first computers to the most modern. We highly recommend a visit if you are visiting the area, Silicon Valley, where so much of the computer industry takes place.
16. Visit Angel Island. Angel Island State Park is the largest natural island in the Bay and is visited by over 100,000 people annually from all over the world? It has four main historic sites and miles of hiking and biking trails
17. Visit Precita Eyes in the Mission District of S.F. Cultural and Historic Walking Tours of the Mission's Murals along Mission Street and the 24th Street corridor. There are docent-led walks or you can walk along the "route of murals" on your own if you prefer.
18. Visit and walk the Baylands Nature Preserve near Stanford. There are several walking trails around the marsh areas where many birds make their homes. It's quite a beautiful area.
19. Explore tide pools at Moss Beach's Fitzgerald Marine Reserve where you can see urchins, starfish and other marine life.
20. Go for a walk at Crissy Field with its panoramic bay and Golden Gate Bridge views.
21. Self-Guide to mural arts in San Francisco
22. Self-Guide to Coit Tower murals
1. The Cantor Art Museum on the Stanford campus has a wonderful permanent collection of over 5000 works of art as well as temporary exhibits. They have one of the largest Rodin collections in the world. They offer docent-led tours and lectures. Check with the museum for times. Admission is free. They offer docent-led tours and lectures.. Check with the museum for times. Admission is free.
2. Take a walk to see the icons of San Francisco, the old Victorian Mansions(better know as the "Painted Ladies") built between 1850-1915. Most have been restored and you can walk leisurely along Alamo Square and the surrounding area. The link gives you the addresses and pictures of many of these homes.
3. Another "icon" of San Francisco is its famous and popular Chinatown. **See the "Barbary Coast Trail" book listed below.
4. A visit to Alcatraz Island involves a boat ride from Fisherman's Wharf and a walk on the island (take warm clothing and good walking shoes. The tour, run by the National Park Service, is full of interesting and colorful information about the famous penitentiary. You may need reservations.
5. The Cliff House is a famous seaside resort which is no longer operational. It is a very pleasant area to walk in and is a place with a lot of SF history along the cliffs. You can walk from here along the coast to the Palace of Legion of Honor museum. Take warm clothing and good shoes.
6. The Golden Gate Bridge can be fun to walk or bike across, but wear warm clothing. It is usually foggy in summer and can be quite windy and cold. Spring and fall are the best times to visit. While there, take a little time to visit Fort Point, at the base of the SF side of the bridge, built to protect San Francisco during the Civil War of 1860. Walk along the beautiful beach on the bay side of the bridge. It will eventually lead you to the World Fair’s site which houses the Exploratorium.
7. Dry Creek Wineries in Sonoma Valley is one of our favorite areas to visit. It is not as touristed and is much quieter than famous and well known Napa Valley. It has beautiful rolling hills full of vineyards and wonderful wines. The area is best known for its Zinfandel wines (red) and many other varieties, but white wine is also made here. Check the link to see which wineries charge for tasting. Some do, some do not. Some have picnic areas, but you would probably need to buy a bottle of their wine to use their picnic facilities. The winding streets are narrow so there are many bicyclists on the road to watch for.
8. ** Walk the Barbary Coast Trail -- this link is to Amazon.com which describes and sells this book. (No, we do not have Amazon stock.) It is a wonderful guide to historic San Francisco's Barbary Coast part of which is Chinatown. The book "walks" you through many areas of the city and describes many colorful and fun stories along the way. Many areas are actually marked in the sidewalk or on the sides of buildings. The book can probably be purchased at the Stanford book store or borrowed from a library. We recommend buying the book and marking notes in it as you take any of the self-guided tours listed. You will not be able to do all the walks in 1 day!
9. Free walking tours of San Francisco -- can be a wonderful and fun way to see the city. They are led by volunteers and are free, but they do suggest a small donation to help run the organization. Again, there are many different tours and you can select which ones interest you. Go back several times. It's a nice way to see the city up close.
10. Golden Gate Park -- a well known park with wonderful hiking trails. It was designed and planted by hand on a sand dune. It contains the famous renovated De Young Museum and the recently renovated California Academy of Science. There is a Japanese tea garden and the Conservatory of Flowers. At Stow Lake you can rent a paddle boat or a variety of types of bicycle rentals which can be used with small children to tour the park or city.
11. The San Francisco museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA)
12. The Asian Art Museum is one of our favorite museums. They have excellent collections from Japan, China, Korea, India and other Asian areas. They have a tea house which was built in Osaka, Japan and assembled piece by piece in the museum. They often hold tea ceremonies with participants in traditional dress for people to see explaining the ritual.
13. Coit Tower offers commanding views of the bay area and Depression Era murals inside the tower. Parking is limited. **See the Barbary Coast Trail book for more information.
14. The San Jose Tech Museum offers science and technology exhibits for all ages with emphasis on the Silicon Valley. Some of the exhibits are interactive. It is a good place to take children.
15. Visit the recently renovated Computer History Museum in Mountain View just off Highway 101. This is a "must see" museum and isn’t very far from Stanford. It offers a history of the computer industry including exhibits of the first computers to the most modern. We highly recommend a visit if you are visiting the area, Silicon Valley, where so much of the computer industry takes place.
16. Visit Angel Island. Angel Island State Park is the largest natural island in the Bay and is visited by over 100,000 people annually from all over the world? It has four main historic sites and miles of hiking and biking trails
17. Visit Precita Eyes in the Mission District of S.F. Cultural and Historic Walking Tours of the Mission's Murals along Mission Street and the 24th Street corridor. There are docent-led walks or you can walk along the "route of murals" on your own if you prefer.
18. Visit and walk the Baylands Nature Preserve near Stanford. There are several walking trails around the marsh areas where many birds make their homes. It's quite a beautiful area.
19. Explore tide pools at Moss Beach's Fitzgerald Marine Reserve where you can see urchins, starfish and other marine life.
20. Go for a walk at Crissy Field with its panoramic bay and Golden Gate Bridge views.
21. Self-Guide to mural arts in San Francisco
22. Self-Guide to Coit Tower murals
