# Need Planning Help San Francisco



## suzanne (Jan 14, 2014)

We are going to drive down from Windsor with our friends for a day trip to SF. We want to see Fisherman's Warf, China Town, Gheradelli(sp) Square, Pier 39 etc. Can we do all of this in one day or should we plan on 2 days driving back and forth? Where does one find parking for the day in that area? I know its expensive but never having been there none of us know where to find parking close to these places. We plan to park and walk and take a cable car to and from China Town.

Suzanne


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## HatTrick (Jan 14, 2014)

You may find this helpful.

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Guide-g60713-i801-San_Francisco_California.html


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## Blues (Jan 14, 2014)

First, I would find somewhere to park the car for the day, hopefully for not too much money, and proceed by foot, public transit, and/or taxi (last choice).  Unfortunately, parking is expensive around the tourist areas ($8/hr at Pier 39), but parkopedia should help.  For example, parkopedia is showing that the Northpoint Garage (350 Bay St) has a $10 early bird special for all day, if you're in by 9:30 and out by 6, M-F.  I'd check into something like that.

Once you're on foot, you should be good to go.  Fisherman's Wharf, Ghirardelli, and Pier 39, as well as the piers for the Bay cruises and Alcatraz cruises, are all in the same general vicinity.  You should be able to do all the above without too much walking.  Also, from there it's walkable to North Beach, though it's a little bit of a hike.  Chinatown is a pretty fair hike from there, though someone in good condition and used to walking should have no problem.  Alternatively, the 30-Stockton bus will take you from the area (e.g., near Ghirardelli, or Northpoint and Columbus) to the general vicinity of Chinatown.  Or take the cable car from either of the termini at Fisherman's Wharf, down to Powell and Bush, then head two blocks east.  For Chinatown, I'd probably just start at the famous Chinatown gate, at the corner of Grant and Bush, and wander north on Grant from there, back towards the general vicinity of Fisherman's Wharf.  Besides, those streets are way, way too tiny and crowded to consider driving a car around there, much less trying to find a parking spot.

https://maps.google.com/maps?q=chin...=4S9oDWyKrtnWEBWchJjoqQ&cbp=12,354.78,,0,2.71

http://www.sfmta.com should help with public transportation options.

HTH,
Bob


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## SmithOp (Jan 14, 2014)

Do you have a driver that is experienced driving in heavy commuter SF traffic?

Another alternative is to park free in a Park n Ride lot in Santa Rosa (just off the freeway ramp) and ride the GGB bus to Larkspur and take the ferry.  You can buy the bus/ferry transfer when you get on the bus, and vice versa coming back.  That gets you a bay cruise thrown in and relaxing ride on public transit.

You could drive to the Larkspur Ferry but parking is very limited there.

http://goldengateferry.org/schedules/Larkspur.php

We often do the same trip from Vallejo by ferry, it's a great way to see a Giants game too.




Sent from my iPad Gen 4 using Tapatalk HD


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## deannak (Jan 15, 2014)

suzanne said:


> We are going to drive down from Windsor with our friends for a day trip to SF. We want to see Fisherman's Warf, China Town, Gheradelli(sp) Square, Pier 39 etc. Can we do all of this in one day or should we plan on 2 days driving back and forth? Where does one find parking for the day in that area? I know its expensive but never having been there none of us know where to find parking close to these places. We plan to park and walk and take a cable car to and from China Town.



It's possible to do it everything you listed in one day, but if you and your guests like to explore at your leisure, stopping in shops, grabbing lunch or drinks, etc, then a couple of days would give you a more relaxed schedule.  The ferry idea is a fun & relaxing way to go, but it's not cheap ($9.50 per person each way) and usually takes longer than driving. If you do 2 days, you might want to drive one day & ferry the other so you get different experiences and views.  Have fun!


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## vacationdoc (Jan 15, 2014)

Driving  from Windsor will have you driving over the golden gate bridge. The toll is $6.00 coming into San Francisco and no charge leaving San Francisco. You pay the toll online at http://goldengate.org/tolls/ and it is no problem with a rental car. Parking at pier 39 is $8/hour http://www.pier39.com/home/pier-info/directions-parking/.  I would also recommend the muni day-pass https://www.sfmta.com/th/getting-around/transit/fares-passes/visitor-day-passes. You may also want to consider one of the hop on-off bus tours http://www.yelp.com/search?find_desc=hop+on+hop+off&find_loc=San+Francisco,+CA to see everything in one day. They frequently offer Living Social or Groupon discounts.


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## suzanne (Jan 15, 2014)

Thank you all for your help.  I will check out all the links you have provided. I did not know there was a toll for the Golden Gate Bridge.

Our flight arrives at San Francisco International Airport. We will pick up rental car there then be driving up to Windsor. Not being familiar with the terrain will we need to pay a toll going over the Golden Gate Bridge from the airport?

Suzanne


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## Rent_Share (Jan 15, 2014)

*Tolls*

You cannot pay cash (easily), they removed the collection booths

http://www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/...utomatic-tolls-start-Wednesday-4381071.php#/0


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## Luanne (Jan 15, 2014)

suzanne said:


> Thank you all for your help.  I will check out all the links you have provided. I did not know there was a toll for the Golden Gate Bridge.
> 
> Our flight arrives at San Francisco International Airport. We will pick up rental car there then be driving up to Windsor. Not being familiar with the terrain will we need to pay a toll going over the Golden Gate Bridge from the airport?
> 
> Suzanne



No.  The only tolls are when you enter San Francisco (on the Golden Gate or the Bay Bridge, which goes from Oakland to San Francisco).


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## Blues (Jan 15, 2014)

Luanne said:


> No.  The only tolls are when you enter San Francisco (on the Golden Gate or the Bay Bridge, which goes from Oakland to San Francisco).



Or, as the late great Herb Caen put it - San Francisco, the only city with a cover charge.

-Bob


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## Luanne (Jan 15, 2014)

Blues said:


> Or, as the late great Herb Caen put it - San Francisco, the only city with a cover charge.
> 
> -Bob



But well worth it. 

And aren't there other cities that have tolls required to enter?  I know there used to be a toll collected on the bridge that went to Coronado Island from San Diego.  One of the few tolls that has actually been removed once the bridge was paid for.


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## suzanne (Jan 15, 2014)

Thanks Luanne. We will do the online one time pay listed on the website after we decide which day we will drive down from Windsor. 

Suzanne



Luanne said:


> No.  The only tolls are when you enter San Francisco (on the Golden Gate or the Bay Bridge, which goes from Oakland to San Francisco).


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## Luanne (Jan 15, 2014)

Interesting about the "no cash" thing.  We had a FastTrak when we lived in the Bay area so I never worried about tolls when we used any of the bridges.


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## deannak (Jan 16, 2014)

Luanne said:


> Interesting about the "no cash" thing.  We had a FastTrak when we lived in the Bay area so I never worried about tolls when we used any of the bridges.



We were there in September after they implemented the "no cash" approach, and we drove across the bridge into the city several times.  The website said their system takes a picture of your license plate and mails you an invoice for the toll amount. I don't know if it's because our AZ car has no front plate or they were just having a system problem, but whatever the reason we never got any invoice.  Looks like it was free!


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## Luanne (Jan 16, 2014)

deannak said:


> We were there in September after they implemented the "no cash" approach, and we drove across the bridge into the city several times.  The website said their system takes a picture of your license plate and mails you an invoice for the toll amount. I don't know if it's because our AZ car has no front plate or they were just having a system problem, but whatever the reason we never got any invoice.  Looks like it was free!



We had this happen in Florida.  They have "cashless" toll stations.  We were in a rental car and weren't sure how it would be handled.  It took awhile, but we had the toll fees charged to our credit card through the rental car company.  However, if it's been since September you probably won't be charged.


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## Rent_Share (Jan 16, 2014)

Luanne said:


> It took awhile, but we had the toll fees charged to our credit card through the rental car company. However, if it's been since September you probably won't be charged.



 Did they assess the penalty ?

I would imagine if you read the terms and conditions of the rental agreement you authorized the charge. (In Houston you had to opt into the toll program when you rented the car, and you paid the daily rate for the term of the rental)

 Last time I crossed the Bay and Golden Gate Bridges (Staying at Powell Place) I had a Fast Track from SOCAL, it worked no problem.


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## Luanne (Jan 16, 2014)

Rent_Share said:


> Did they assess the penalty ?
> 
> I would imagine if you read the terms and conditions of the rental agreement you authorized the charge. (In Houston you had to opt into the toll program when you rented the car, and you paid the daily rate for the term of the rental)
> 
> Last time I crossed the Bay and Golden Gate Bridges (Staying at Powell Place) I had a Fast Track from SOCAL, it worked no problem.



What penalty?  I think the charge was something like $7.50 so I think it was just the toll fees.

I wasn't upset by the charge.  I was just wondering how it got assessed.


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## Liz Wolf-Spada (Jan 16, 2014)

I highly recommend taking the ferry from Larkspur. I did that a couple times when I was staying in Cotati this fall and going to SF to see my son. I did not want to deal with driving and parking in SF traffic. If you are 65 or over it is only $9.50 round trip. I also had no trouble finding parking, maybe it was just luck. Check the schedule. It is different on weekends (less boats). It took about 45 minutes from Larkspur to the Ferry Bld.
Liz


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