San Francisco

San Francisco offers a wide variety of experiences, so it’s great trip for friends who have differing interests while traveling. Taste wine in Napa or Sonoma, explore Muir Woods, see the ocean, visit museums, eat and party all in one city.

See all the sights in one overlook! Drive up to Twin Peaks on a clear day for a panoramic view of San Francisco and the bay. Take in the views of downtown, Alcatraz, the Golden Gate Bridge, the ocean and the mountains from this perch.

When it rains, check out the California Academy of Sciences. The museum has a planetarium, an aquarium and a rainforest sphere. The exhibits are interactive and fun to explore. They even have a living roof to explore. I visited on a weekday afternoon, so I had the museum to myself. It was nice to have a break from the traffic and crowds.

Have you ever seen an Academy Award in person? At the Walt Disney Family Museum, you can check out the Oscar Walt won for “Snow White” and the seven dwarf mini-Oscars that accompany it. You can see original sketches, animations and a concept model of DisneyLand. This model of the theme park is giant, and you will no doubt recognize some of the attractions. The model is not exact to the DisneyLand that was built, but the rides do move. It is a spectacle.

Muir Woods is a spectacular field trip across the Golden Gate Bridge into an ancient redwood forest. Walking among the giant trees is cool and calming. It is a gorgeous respite from the city. The trees are unimaginably tall and insulate the area, so it stays cool even on warm days. The trail is easy to walk and accessible to all abilities. Feel humbled and awed under these redwood giants.

My favorite part of traveling is wandering around and stumbling onto something surprising. I was crossing the street and looked up to see a Banksy! “If at first you don’t succeed - call an airstrike” was created in 2010. It is on the second story, so the art is preserved. Enjoy this piece before it changes-as street art inevitably does.

What have you been surprised by in a new place?