Is San Francisco guide in two days is prepared and optimized thinking of travelers who have a weekend or for the first 2 days in this city considered the most European from the United States.
Although we know that it is difficult to know the city well in this short space of time, we believe that if you optimize the itineraries well, you can visit most of the tourist attractions and enjoy the best experiences that San Francisco offers in addition to discovering one of the most cities Pretty from the United States.
After visiting the first day symbolic places of San Francisco such as the Golden Gate, Alcatraz Island and Fisherman's Wharf, this second day we propose to make a route through some of the essential neighborhoods such as Castro, Mission and Haight Ashbury, to end the day climbing in the best viewpoint of the city, Twin Peaks.
Having as reference the 4 days we spent in the city, during our trip through the National Parks of the Western United States, we have made this guide of what to see in San Francisco in 2 days. We start!
How to get from the airport to San Francisco
San Francisco has an international airport, four terminals connected by a free train and these means of transport to make the transfer to the hotel:
- Bus: You have the numbers 292, 398, KX and 397 (night bus) to reach several downtown stops in one hour for $ 2.25.
- Meter: BART will take you to the center in half an hour for about $ 9.
- Cab: will leave you at the hotel, depending on traffic and location, in 40 minutes for $ 55.
- Private transfer: Booking this comfortable direct transfer a driver will take you directly from the airport to the door of your hotel.
For more information on the transfer you can check this post on how to go from San Francisco airport to downtown.
Where to sleep
Our recommended hotel and where we stayed during our stay in the city is the Grant Hotel, located 5 minutes walk from Union Square and 10 minutes from Chinatown. In addition to having good communication with the airport, the hotel has a tram stop a few meters away and several bus stops in Union Square, which allows you to reach all the points of interest of this route through San Francisco in two days.
The accommodation also has parking and has an excellent quality / price ratio, taking into account the high prices of hotels in San Francisco.
Useful tips for San Francisco
These list of tips will help you have a good first contact with the city and the country:
- Remember that it is mandatory to remove the ESTA, which costs $ 14, to enter any city in the United States at least 3 days in advance. Do not forget to always do it from the official website.
- Both this route of San Francisco in two days and that of San Francisco in one day are quite intense, so it is advisable if you have more time, dedicate more days to complete each of the itineraries.
- Do not take risks and take the best travel insurance for the United States, think that a medical consultation can cost more than 500 dollars and an operation more than 20,000 dollars.
- Adapters are required for type A / B plugs.
- Check if you get profitable for San Francisco in 2 days, book the Go San Francisco Card that includes attractions such as the boat ride on the bay and the tourist bus.
Another interesting option is to take the San Francisco Explorer Pass card that offers free admission to 3, 4 or 5 of the main attractions of the city. - A good way in the United States so that you do not charge commissions and always have the current change, is to use the N26 card to pay in business and the BNEXT card to get money from the ATMs.
- If you want to have internet in San Francisco, a good option is to buy a Holafly SIM card, with which you will have internet from the moment you land, several GB of data, keeping your WhatsApp number and support service in Spanish. You can buy your Holafly prepaid SIM card here with a 5% discount for being our reader.
For more recommendations you can consult this post of tips to travel to San Francisco essential.
First day in San Francisco
The route of the first day of San Francisco in two days Start early at the Battery East viewpoint watching the impressive Golden Gate. If you have a car or bike, you can cross the bridge and get to the Battery Spencer, where you get the best views of the bridge with the city in the background.
After the visit to the bridge, you can take a bus to Pier 33, from where boats leave to Alcatraz Island. Remember that in order not to run out of seats in the visit to this famous prison, it is essential to book the entry on this official page or this city tour that includes the visit, preferably several months in advance.
Alcatraz island
After the visit to Alcatraz, which usually lasts between 2 and 3 hours, you will return to the same departure dock where we recommend you look for a place to eat since in this area there is a great offer in restoration from which you can choose the burgers of the In- N-Out, Bubba Gump prawns, Crab House crabs or soup clam chowder in one of the port posts.
In the afternoon of the first day, the San Francisco in 2 days Start with the fantastic views from 64 meters from the Coit Tower, which closes at 5 in the afternoon. When you get off this cylindrical tower you can go through Filbert Street and Napier Lane, before returning to Fishermans's Wharf.
You can start visits to this neighborhood on Pier 39, which has an outdoor shopping center and a huge colony of sea lions. The next point of interest is the dock 45 that has a ship and a submarine from World War II docked and the curious Musée Mecanique of recreational machines, inside.
Pier 39
To finish the route through this old port, take a walk along the Hyde Street Pier and arrive at the Ghirardelli chocolate shop, where they serve fabulous ice creams that will serve as a perfect snack.
From this area you can take the old city tram that will help you to climb a steep slope until you reach Lombard Street, a curious street full of curves that has become one of the great essentials of the city.
Less than a kilometer from this street is the small neighborhood of Little Italy with numerous Italian businesses and in which the most prominent places are Columbus Avenue, the church of St. Peter and St. Paul and Washington Square.
The San Francisco in 2 days Continue on Columbus Avenue until you reach two of the city's most iconic buildings, the Columbus Tower and the Transamerica Pyramid.
Columbus Tower
At this time you will be very close to Chinatown, a 24-hour active neighborhood, full of restaurants and Chinese shops where you can not miss walking through Stockton Street and Grant Avenue, sitting in Portsmouth Square or crossing the Dragon Gate.
To end the first day of San Francisco in two daysYou can return to Litle Italy for dinner at Sotto Mare Oysteria & Seafood or at Tony's Pizza Napoletana.If it is your first time in the city it can be interesting for a first day, book this free tour of San Francisco Free! or this more complete tour by minibus, both with a guide in Spanish.
(Extended information of the first day's route here).
Map of the first day in San Francisco
What to see in San Francisco in two days
The route of what to see in San Francisco in 2 days Start arriving early by bus or car to Baker Beach, one of the best viewpoints of the Golden Gate. After a walk on the beach you will head to Golden Gate Park, a park larger than Central Park in New York, five kilometers long by one wide that you can walk, rent a bike or even with a minibus that stops at the most beautiful places like the Japanese tea garden, Stowe Lake, a Victorian greenhouse, the Shakespeare garden, the great Dutch mill and a meadow with a small bison colony.
Golden gate park
When you leave the park on the east side you will arrive at Haight Ashbury, the hippie neighborhood of San Francisco where you will find all kinds of second-hand stores and vintage clothing, pubs and bars with live music, vinyl record stores, and about Everything, a fantastic bohemian atmosphere. Keep in mind that in the 60s this neighborhood was the birthplace of the hippie movement and great references such as Janis Joplin who lived at 112 Lyon Street and Jimi Hendrix at 142 Central Avenue, resided in this neighborhood.
In addition to enjoying the good vibes transmitted by the neighborhood and approaching the homes of these celebrities, you can see some of the best examples of Victorian houses in the city at Waller Stret, between Masonic and Ashbury and at the intersection between Haight and Masonic.
Haight ashbury
Before continuing with the San Francisco in 2 days You can regain strength with Veganburg's Vegan burgers or Mexican Street Taco food and as a desktop we recommend a walk through Haight Street until you reach Alamo Square, where the Painted Ladies, the most famous houses in San Francisco, which are not other than seven houses painted in pastel colors, which became very famous when they came out in series "Forced Fathers"and that today are one of the essentials on Instagram.
See the Painted Ladies in San Francisco in two days
The route continues through the Latin and hipster neighborhood of Mission, in which the murals and the Mission parish of San Francisco de Asís in 1776 stand out, the oldest building in the city. To see the most beautiful murals and graffiti in the neighborhood you can approach Balmy Alley, between 24 and 25, Clarion Alley, between Valencia Street and Mission Street, and finish at the mural of the Women's Building, made by female artists.
After touring Dolores and Valencia streets, we recommend you go up to Mission Dolores Park, with good views of the city, which we are sure, will not disappoint you.
A few meters from the park is Castro, another of the most iconic neighborhoods of San Francisco and a great reference for the struggle for the rights of the LGTBI community.
Castro neighborhood
In the street number 18 and its adjacent ones you will find a great color with numerous rainbow flags and murals, Victorian houses, original shops and designer cafes in addition to the Castro Theater and the old house of Harvey Milk, a great reference of this community and the First openly gay man to be elected to a public office in the country, which are two of the essentials of the neighborhood.
To finish the San Francisco route in two days In the best way we recommend you get on the bus before sunset to Twin Peaks Hill, our favorite viewpoint and one of the best things to see and do in San Francisco.
These twin hills offer 360 degree views of the entire city, which on a clear day allows you to see points such as Alcatraz Island or the Golden Gate, among others.
San Francisco from Twin Peaks
If your hotel is near Union Square, we recommend having a delicious sushi dinner at the Akiko's Sushi Bar or the good American food at Hops and Hominy.
If you have more days you can follow this San Francisco guide in 3 days.
Map of the route through San Francisco in 2 days
Do you want to organize a trip to San Francisco?
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The best offers of Flights to San Francisco here
The best hotels at the best prices in San Francisco here
San Francisco guide in one day Guide of San Francisco in 3 days 10 essential tips for traveling to the United States The best travel insurance for the United States
Get € 35 for your reservation with AirBnb here
Book your travel insurance with a 5% discount here
Rent your car in the West of USA at the best price here
Book the best tours and excursions in / from San Francisco in Spanish here
Book your San Francisco Airport transfer hereSharePinTweetSendShareSendVideo: 48 HOURS IN SAN FRANCISCO. 13 Things To Do In San Francisco California (April 2024).
The best offers of Flights to San Francisco here
The best hotels at the best prices in San Francisco here
San Francisco guide in one day
Get € 35 for your reservation with AirBnb here
Book your travel insurance with a 5% discount here
Rent your car in the West of USA at the best price here
Book the best tours and excursions in / from San Francisco in Spanish here
Book your San Francisco Airport transfer here
