San Francisco in ONE Day

Visiting beautiful San Francisco in ONE day is nearly impossible, but if that’s all you have, here’s what to do, based on your specific interests! These custom guides will help you navigate the city for it’s best architecture, most famous tourist sites, legendary scenes from TV and film, and delicious food!

San Francisco in ONE day for the Architecture Nerd (lol, me!):

Palace of Fine Arts

Start the day with two starchitect museums in Golden Gate park, then head north to the Marina District for the Palace of Fine Arts- a permanent reconstruction of structures built for the 1915 Panama-Pacific International Exposition. Grab something to eat nearby on Union Street. Then, spend the rest of the day touring iconic urban structures in the Financial District and Yerba Buena neighborhoods.

Golden Gate Park:

• Herzog & De Meuron’s DeYoung Museum

• Renzo Piano’s California Academy of Science

Marina District

• Palace of Fine Arts

Financial District

• Embarcadero Center

• Frank Lloyd Wright’s 140 Maiden Lane

• Snohetta’s Expansion to the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art

• Studio Gang’s Mira Tower

• Studio Libeskind’s Contemporary Jewish Museum

• Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects’ Salesforce Tower and Park

• William Pereira’s Transamerica Pyramid

• Willis Polk’s Hallidie Building

San Francisco in ONE day for the Nature Lover:

Sutro Heights

If you love nature, San Francisco is the most wonderful city to experience beautiful natural spaces within walking distance of the city. While I recommend all of the following hikes, it may be more feasible to choose only one or two to visit if you have limited time in the city.

Free hikes:

• Land’s End (beautiful, easy hike along a cliffside forest)

• Presidio (National Park rich with natural beauty and historical significance)

• Sutro Forest (immersive forest hike with some inclines)

• Sutro Heights (different than the forest! This area has sweeping views of Ocean Beach)

• Salesforce Park (best curated gardens, see my post about it here!)

• Golden Gate Park (huge park with many pockets of experiences)

• SF Crosstown Trail (hike 17 miles across the city)

Nature, with a fee:

• SF Conservatory of Flowers

• Botanic Garden (free with proof of SF residency)

• Japanese Tea Garden

San Francisco in ONE day for the Animal Lover:

California Academy of Sciences Exhibit

Animals love San Francisco as well! The best way to see animals- both wild and domestic- are in the following places:

• Wild Parrots in Pacific Heights and Telegraph Hill

• Sea Lions at Pier 39

• Steinhart Aquarium at the California Academy of Sciences

• SF Zoo

• Corgi Con (this is an annual event, but worth scheduling around!)

San Francisco in ONE day for the TV Queen:

Painted Ladies, Alamo Square

You’ve seen it on the big and small screens, now snap your photo in front of these iconic locations in person!

Princess Diaries

• See Grove High School (2601 Lyon Street)

• Arm wrestle at Musee Mechanique

Full House

• Visit the house exterior (1709 Broderick Street)

• Drive Across the Golden Gate Bridge

• Picnic in front of the Painted Ladies

Mrs. Doubtfire

• House exterior (2640 Steiner)

The Matrix Resurrections

• Merchant’s Exchange Building and 44 Montgomery for rooftop scenes

• Joe and the Juice (235 Montgomery Street)

• Pine and Battery Streets, where a battle took place in the movie

Always Be My Maybe

• Pier 7

• Contemporary Jewish Museum

Shang-Chi

• The Fairmont Hotel

San Francisco in ONE day for the Ultimate Tourist:

Alcatraz

If you need to see ALL the postcard sites, this is the list for you. Don’t forget to buy your souvenirs before leaving Fisherman’s Wharf! Start with the Golden Gate Bridge and work your way east.

• Photos from the Golden Gate Bridge Visitor Center

• Walk around Fisherman’s Wharf

• Take a ferry trip to Alcatraz

• Get a free chocolate sample at Ghirardelli Square

• Try San Francisco’s famous sourdough at Boudin’s

• Drive down Lombard Street

San Francisco in ONE day for the Instagram Influencer:

Lincoln Park Steps

You don’t need A photo, you need THE photo! Here’s my plan for the perfect picturesque day visiting San Francisco.

Iconic Sites:

• San Francisco Cable Cars (three routes to choose from, California line is less touristy)

• Tour the most beautiful homes in SF

• View the city from Pier 7

• Enjoy the mosaics of the Lincoln Park Steps

• Get a workout with a view at the Lyon Street Steps

• Golden Gate Bridge

• Sutro Baths

• Stow Lake’s Waterfall and Chinese Pavilion

San Francisco in ONE day for the Cultural Connoisseur:

Mission Dolores Park

Visit the most iconic neighborhoods in San Francisco to get a taste of the many diverse people and cultures that make this a vibrant city!

• Chinatown: Grant Street is gorgeous

• North Beach: Tony’s and Golden Boy have the BEST pizza

• Castro: Catch a Drag show

• Mission: Eat tacos from La Taqueria and picnic in Mission Dolores Park

• The Haight: Stop by Amoeba Music and the Grateful Dead House (710 Ashbury)