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This tour, encompassing 12 San Francisco neighborhoods, is an eclectic, full-day walking/riding* tour tracing San Francisco’s transition from an 18th century mission/pueblo to the booming Queen City of the West to the modern metropolis of the 21st century. Join your guide, Monika, and learn about the impact of the Gold Rush, the Comstock Lode silver discovery and the 1906 Earthquake and Fire on San Francisco. Visit San Francisco’s oldest building, its tallest and its magnificent City Hall. The tour will also visit a Gold Rush-era museum, a 1950s Beat-era bookshop, and one of its grandest hotels. Throughout the day, tour attendees will view an array of architectural styles, including the “Painted Ladies,” and enjoy the city’s public art, urban parks and picturesque cityscapes. The tour will stop for lunch at noon or so at a neighborhood café and, again, mid-afternoon, at a saloon that dates back to 1851 for an afternoon cocktail which originated in San Francisco in the 1890s.
*Cost of tour includes public transport pass for cable cars, historic streetcars and city buses (which tour attendees can continue using after the tour ends up until midnight).
Additional
This tour is recommended for travellers who have a limited amount of time in San Francisco and want to cover a lot of ground in one day. It's also recommended for those who plan to spend more than a day in the city and want to get a broader sense of the city as well as recommendations for other activities in San Francisco. Monika, your guide, has been living in San Francisco for 30 years and has been leading tours since 1989.
To enjoy this tour, attendees must be able to walk up two flights of stairs, down one stairway and up two moderate-sized hills.
Dress in layers (San Francisco has many micro-climates). Wear sunscreen and comfortable, close-toe walking shoes. No flip-flops or loose sandals. Bring lunch money, your camera and water/snacks. Be open-minded. Prepare to have a fun day.
