I’d never seen the redwoods and it is high on my United States Bucket List. So as our first trip away from the baby, my husband took me on an epic weeklong road trip. We started with 3 days in San Francisco then cruised on to Los Angeles. Lucky for me, I had 2 nights away from the baby a few months prior, for my birthday, as a practice run. You can read about what we did in Fort Worth without the baby for the first time here.
Our Trip to Fort Worth Sans Baby
Because my husband used to be a local – I had the most epic tour guide of San Francisco. If you are looking for how to spend 3 days in San Francisco including a local feel with touristy fun, this is the guide for you!
Day One of my 3 days in San Francisco
Lombard Street
I love a good record-breaker. If I’m aware of one in the area, while I travel, I typically try to see it. Maybe it’s a vibe I caught watching the movie Michael as a kid. HOWEVER, Lombard Street boasts the record of the windiest road in the world.
The iconic Lombard Street has 8 hairpin turns in the small length of a block all while heading downhill! The manicured sidewalks were filled with locals and tourist taking photos of the epic views and windiness. We chose to drive down and the experience was just as great.
Argonaught hotel –
We stayed at the Argonaught hotel, in the Fisherman’s Wharf, during our 3 days in San Francisco. If the name didn’t give it away it definitely has old-ship vibes. Essentially on the bay, It features a “mini” sailboat in the lobby with a charming fireplace lounge.
Our room was very cool with a big functional widow and exposed brick.
Pier 39
It’s the touristy thing to do but we truly enjoyed our time stretching our legs after a day of travel and taking in the sights. We walked from our hotel to Pier 39 and back before dinner. Walking through the Fisherman’s Warf, there are plenty of snacks, shops, and activities to partake in. If you are lucky you might even be featured in a magic show, like my husband, Logan.
Continue on to the end of the dock at Pier 39. There you will catch a beautiful view of Alcatraz and the Golden Gate Bridge. Do not forget to turn the corner to see all the Sea lions cozying up and aaarfffing at each other.
Scouma’s
Skip all the big restaurants and find Scoumas tucked at the end of Al Scoma way. It is a small old school freshly caught seafood restaurant with excellent service and even better food. I had the cioppino and ohhhh I would go back just for that! It was beyond amazing. I wish you could sample photographs.
This completed day one of our 3 days in San Francisco.
Day 2 – Marin County
Bay Cafe
We set out early and crossed the San Francisco Bridge to Marine County. We made a few stops for mini hikes to take in epic views of the city and bridge.
In Sausalito, we hit a little breakfast spot called the Bay Cafe. I got a salmon omelet. Yeah, it sounds totally weird, but it was under their favorites and OMG it was so good! I also got juice and a fresh homemade muffin. I’ll dream about this meal till I return.
Muir Woods
One reason we came to California and decided on 3 days in San Francisco is so I could experience beautiful redwood trees. Muir woods was an easy way for us to get started. Located in the gorgeous Mill Valley, Muir woods is easy to access and is currently asking you to make a reservation ahead of time.
Muir woods is a great place for anyone to explore. It is wheelchair and stroller accessible with a main boardwalk trail. Throughout the park, there are breakaway trails with different levels of difficulty for more advanced explorers.
The trees are magnificent. It’s truly a sight to see. You can see the fog emitting as the sun hits the wood.
This park features a forest sanctuary where they ask you to be silent in a designated area called Cathedral Grove. They want to maintain the peace for the animals and while you are quiet during this time you are able to hear them as well. It is truly serene.
Sam’s Anchor Cafe in Tiburon
This was a precious part of Marine County. I loved the quaint little town feel. The street was lined with restaurants, shops and even a theater. I had no clue when we walked to the back of the restaurant, to sit outside, we’d actually be on a dock. It was clean beautiful and the server was wonderful. We shared garlic prawns and a burger. Since it was invented in San Francisco I had to try their Mai Tai. ‘Twas the perfect opportunity.
We went for a beautiful drive through other Marine County towns even up into the cut of the woods to see how local people live. We stopped off and hit random trails – but when I realized I was sitting next to fresh wild cat poop it was time to go!
Exhausted, we decided to have dinner at our hotel that evening. Coming from Dallas and being a mom – that has been waking up at 5 am – the time change was a big adjustment. I’m pretty sure I fell asleep in the bathtub this night.
Total Touristy Day number 3 in San Francisco
Mission District –
The hubs needed to make a stop and he thought it’d be cool to show me the Mission District. He is correct – it was in fact cool. This part of town is “hip” and artsy. A little edgy, this part of San Fran is definitely still evolving. It feels much more local than some other areas we visited. A good place to check out dispensaries, grab some modern eats, legit tacos, and admire colorful murals.
Breakfast Little
In the Mission District, there is a strong Latino culture. Because of this, here you can get awesome burritos and tacos! Since we had big day plans we popped into Breakfast Little for their OG Breakfast burrito. It was definitely an amazing full-flavor breakfast burrito. If you need less boldness get their breakfast sandwich. Their Señorita latte was perfect to get me going for our epic day 3 of our 3 days in San Francisco.
Buena Vista Park
This park is right in the middle of town and beyond epic! It’s just short of 40 acres. It features a massive hill with multiple ways about the entire park. The nature, trees and views are plenty. I’m tempted to say this is the best public park I’ve ever experienced.
Haight Ashberry
The hippy haven in the 60’s. I was expecting a lot more drugs, street music or at least a little Kumbayaing. Nada! Perhaps it is a little cleaned up for tourism these days; we were only discreetly offered drugs one time. We did visit during the week so most people were probably gaining their strength for the weekend bender ahead. Regardless the vibes were right!
We popped into random stores along our stroll where I purchased a totally appropriate smiley face ring, two perfect thrift store blouses AND stones to add to my hippy-dippy collection from the most epic gem store.
Street Tacos
Clearly, at Street Taco, we enjoyed some street tacos. Apparently, the tacos in Cali are authentic so I had to get some. They were. This place was an easy (but delicious) counter-service taqueria filled with locals popping in for a quick bite. The guac was super fresh and the Campechano taco hit the spot!
Twin Peaks
Twin Peaks is a nice drive (or hike) up two peaks. There you can take a quick climb up semi-steep stairs to the very top for a grand 180-degree view of San Francisco.
Japan Center
The Japantown Japan Center is a large and very cool mall filled with Japanese stores and restaurants. We stopped in for some snacks and ended up leaving with a Sake set.
Ocean Beach
Ocean beach has plenty of no-fuss parking. So we popped out to the beach for a little stroll. Logan told me finding a sand dollar was rare so we set out for the goods. We found lots of cool shells, but believe it or not we each came home with a sand dollar (Logan may or may not have found both).
Pacific Heights
This place is the more luxurious area of San Francisco. It has all the top-tier shopping and unbelievably massive homes. We drove through the neighborhoods to daydream and catch some epic views.
Famous Homes
During our day we passed many famous and iconic homes like, Mrs. Doubtfire, That’s so Raven, Full House, The Painted Ladies, The Grateful Dead, and Jimi Hendricks.
Chinatown
We had the best time in Chinatown. I’d advise going during the day. Things were already slowing up and shutting down when we arrived. Consequently, I missed a few things that I wanted to see like the kite shop, and Chinese herbal stores. With those ideas no longer available we literally just cruised the streets till we stumbled into random places that caught our eye; which honestly is sometimes my favorite way to travel.
We had the best massages ever – when we only thought we were getting foot rubs. Once our massage therapist started rubbing our feet, my lady said “Okay 1 hour!”.
I said “Wait what!?” and looked to Logan.
He shrugged, “Sounds good to me!”.
Halfway through, they have us lean forward in our chairs. I thought the party is over and suddenly she has turned my entire chair into a massage table and had me flip over and lay down for a full back massage!
Pure bliss! I wanted to hug her after – it was so wonderful.
We continued to walk around desperately looking for dumplings or anything to eat. Everything was closing and we finally decided to give up and head back when we passed a very lively restaurant, Begoni Bistro. Here I tried chicken feet for the first time. We also ordered fried rice, General Tso’s Chicken and dumplings. It was all very yum – including the chicken feet.
Full and exhausted we headed back to our hotel to get ready and rest for the next part of our Cali Vacay; Our road trip from San Francisco to LA.
Our 3 days in San Francisco were over
Not having my baby around was difficult initially, but we had a blast. It was a trip of a lifetime. We did so many things that would have been difficult with our son. My husband showed me many places I never would have seen being a tourist. I hope you find some of these tips to be helpful on your next big adventure of 3 days in San Francisco.
Leave a Reply