The 2-days combo voucher allows you to enjoy the sights and sounds of the “Golden Gate City” through a bus tour and boat cruise. The combined tour-the bus trip and the cruise-not only allows you to admire San Francisco’s top attractions but also updates you about their history.
You’ll marvel at the fantastic views of the Golden Gate Bridge, Lombard Street, Alcatraz Island, Fisherman’s Wharf, Union Square, Marina District, and more. The speedboat will navigate below the Golden Gate Bridge while you freeze snapshots and record footage of the key attractions and sights of San Francisco.
Your hop-on hop-off open-top bus tour will get off to a good start from 99 Jefferson Street close to Fisherman’s Wharf. Fisherman’s Wharf is one of the most happening and liveliest neighborhoods of San Francisco with an illustrious and checkered history. Before you hop onto the bus, you can walk around and see the sights at Pier 39 which is popular with both locals and tourists.
Bustling Shopping Centers
Constructed atop a dock or wharf, Pier 39 is a bustling shopping center lined with curio shops, restaurants, video arcades, and much more. Your walking tour of Pier 39 will be so immersive that you’ll simply forget how the hours have whiled away. As you hop aboard the bus, the vehicle will drive you past Pier 39, Ferry Building Marketplace, The Embarcadero, Union Square, Marina District, and so on.
Some Amazing Places to Explore
If a specific site or spot catches your fancy, you can always hop off at the nearest stop to explore the area at your own pace. Apart from the places of interest mentioned above, the hop-on hop-off bus will stop at or close to the following landmarks: -
-
Haight-Ashbury
-
Palace of Fine Arts Theater
-
Ghiradelli Square
-
San Francisco City Hall
-
Chinatown
-
de Young Museum
-
Japanese Tea Garden
-
Presidio of San Francisco
-
War Memorial Opera House
-
Golden Gate Bridge
-
Golden Gate Park
-
Ferry Building Marketplace
-
Lombard Street
-
Painted Ladies
Adventurous Lombard Street
One of the most-visited localities of San Francisco is Lombard Street reputed for its multiple hairpin bends in one block. The street runs in an east-west direction and has a very precipitous course with eight hairpin bends having extremely steep acute angles. Lombard Street extends from the Presidio in the east to The Embarcadero in the west with a major stretch of the western section being part of US 101.
The section of the street with the eight precarious turns is reputed to be the most twisted street in the world. This section stretches along the street’s eastern flank in San Francisco’s Russian Hill locality. So, if and when you visit San Francisco, make sure you stroll up (or down just to check out if you can go tumbling) Lombard Street.
Lunch In Chinatown & Visit Alcatraz Island
You can take a lunch break in Chinatown to savor the delicacies in a Chinese diner and then proceed to Union Square for some shopping therapy. Another top-notch tourist hotspot that should be a must-see in your San Francisco itinerary is Alcatraz Island. Alcatraz Island is an islet in San Francisco Bay situated offshore at a distance of 2 km from downtown San Francisco.
The most important landmark on the island is the Alcatraz Prison which in due course became the Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary. The prison closed permanently in 1963 and became a tourist hotspot after being deemed a National Historic Landmark in 1986. To access the island, take a ferry (from Pier 33) that’ll take you to the offshore attraction within 15 minutes.
Golden Gate Bridge – Not To Be Missed
However, the piece-de-resistance of the hop-on hop-off tour will be the ride across the Golden Gate Bridge-San Francisco’s best attraction. The suspension bridge spans a total distance of 1.6km, connecting the city of San Francisco with Marin County in the northwestern part of the San Francisco Bay. The American Society of Civil Engineers has designated the Golden Gate Bridge as one of the “Wonders of the Modern World”.
While crossing the bridge on a bus, you’ll be simply carried away by the panoramic views all around. Alcatraz Island also comes into view and you can disembark from the bus at North Vista Point to walk across the bridge. You’ll get mesmerizing views of the San Francisco Bay, Crissy Fields, and the cityscapes.
San Francisco Bay Cruise
You can rest assured you’ll lap up every moment you spend on the speedboat that’ll cruise towards the Pacific Ocean. The launch will start either from Pier 39 or Pier 43 and will head in the direction of the Pacific Ocean. During the trip (lasting for an hour), you’ll catch glimpses of the Presidio, Fisherman’s Wharf, Alcatraz Island, Pacific Heights, Golden Gate Bridge, and more.
As you enjoy the stunning views of the city skyline and the riverfront, the audio guide will offer you valuable info about San Francisco.