San Francisco & the Bay Area
San Francisco & the Bay Area: the back story
The back story
About San Francisco & the Bay Area: the back story
San Francisco packs a lot into a small peninsula: the Golden Gate Bridge, Alcatraz, the cable cars over Nob Hill, the Ferry Building and some of the best restaurants in the country. Across the Bay are Oakland and Berkeley, and to the south, Silicon Valley.
The city
Ride a cable car over Nob Hill, take the ferry to Alcatraz from Pier 33 and walk across the Golden Gate Bridge. SFMOMA is in SoMa, and the California Academy of Sciences is in Golden Gate Park.
Food
Atelier Crenn, Benu, Californios and Quince hold three MICHELIN stars, and the Ferry Building is the place to taste the Bay Area’s producers.
San Francisco has four three-star restaurants in the 2026 MICHELIN Guide.
Around the Bay
Commis in Oakland holds two stars, Caltrain runs south to Silicon Valley, and wine country is about an hour’s drive north.
Our advice: bring layers. Summer fog can make San Francisco cool even in July.
Why it's on our list
- The city
- Food
- Around the Bay
Opening hours, prices and seasonal openings change, so please check with San Francisco & the Bay Area: the back story before you go.