Suggestions for things to see in the San Francisco Bay area?

[Algeh]

I'm probably going to head down to the SF bay area for a filk convention ( http://www.consonance.org/ , specifically), and I'm trying to decide if I want to add some extra days to the end of my trip to wander around and be a tourist.

I've been to the bay area twice before, but never did most of the tourist things for various reasons. I plan to travel by Amtrak to get there and then mostly use mass transit to get around, but I could rent a car for a day or two if there is something in particular I should go see that isn't transit-friendly.

Things I generally like:
- Museums, particularly art or historical ones with somewhat quirky curation histories (my favorite museum is the Maryhill Museum in WA)
- Aquariums and zoos, as long as they take good care of their animals
- Folk music (which is why I'm traveling to the bay area in the first place)
- Observatories or other space-related things
- Used book stores
- Hiking, although I'll be alone on this trip so I don't want to do anything too ambitious backcountry-wise
- Craft beer, particularly stouts
- Historical sites, arboretums, or formal gardens where I can wander around and look at stuff without a formal tour

Things I generally don't like:
- Crowds
- Structured tours
- Carnival rides
- Loud noises
- Feeling rushed
- People who try to interact with me "in character" when I'm not in character myself (this puts me off of both some renaissance faires and some theme parks, but not actual theater or a situation where I know I'm supposed to be playing an improv game or LARP)

Anyway, I'm not worried about missing out on my chance to do some specific tourist thing, but I'm trying to decide if I want an extra few days to wander around before I head home. (I teach, and the week after the convention is my state's spring break week, so I don't need to use vacation days to stick around for a while.)

The last time I did this trip was in 2009, and I spent a couple of days mostly taking photographs of statues somewhere (downtown? the mission district? I don't know, wherever the end of the cable car was that isn't the water), and then went to the chocolate factory at the other end of the cable car and spent the rest of that day taking pictures of things at that end of the cable car (mostly flowers, I think, because I often get sucked in to taking macro pictures of individual flowers just because modern cameras are so much better at that then the camera I used as a kid and the novelty still hasn't worn off). I am kind of terrible at being a tourist in the "finding the things that everyone does and doing them" sense.

At that time, I was too broke to rent a car or go places that required paying much in the way of admission, and was sleeping on different friends' couches each night rather than renting a hotel room for those extra post-convention days, so I had all of my stuff with me in a backpack and was mostly living on sandwiches. I am now in a much better place financially, so theoretically could do a wider range of stuff if I knew what stuff to go do. Last time was pretty fun, though, so I might just wander around without a plan again but rent a hotel room so I have a place to leave my stuff this time.

Anyway, I'd love some suggestions on things I should go do.

[Ruslan]

Things I generally like:
- Museums, particularly art or historical ones with somewhat quirky curation histories (my favorite museum is the Maryhill Museum in WA)

Are you into history of tech? Try the Intel Museum in Santa Clara.


- Aquariums and zoos, as long as they take good care of their animals

Monterey Bay Aquarium and Marine Discovery Center in Santa Cruz (both about 1 hr drive)
Happy Hollow Park and Zoo in San Jose.


- Observatories or other space-related things
Lick Observatory on Mount Hamilton (about 1 hour drive, don't go if you don't like winding mountain roads)


- Used book stores
Literally thousands everywhere. Can't through a rock without hitting one. Yelp is your friend.


- Historical sites, arboretums, or formal gardens where I can wander around and look at stuff without a formal tour
Filoli Gardens (www.filoli.org)
Golden Gate Park in SF (https://goldengatepark.com/)
Villa Montalvo (www.montalvoarts.org)


- Hiking, although I'll be alone on this trip so I don't want to do anything too ambitious backcountry-wiseHiking from Milpitas (where, I see the convention is going to be) up to the summit of Mission Peak is manageable, and the view from the top is stunning.

[Maelstrom]

- Museums, particularly art or historical ones with somewhat quirky curation histories (my favorite museum is the Maryhill Museum in WA)
- Aquariums and zoos, as long as they take good care of their animals
- Folk music (which is why I'm traveling to the bay area in the first place)
- Observatories or other space-related things
- Used book stores
- Hiking, although I'll be alone on this trip so I don't want to do anything too ambitious backcountry-wise
- Craft beer, particularly stouts
- Historical sites, arboretums, or formal gardens where I can wander around and look at stuff without a formal tour


It's been some years since I've lived there, but the majority of your wants (listed above) can be met in and around Golden Gate park. California Academy of Sciences and the Steinhart aquarium to start with, then all the internal sites to see within the park, along with it's history are a great day trip. Ok, not so much 'Hiking', but some great walking. Hiking you'll have to head out of the City (north is my preference, but plenty all around). Yeah, I miss SF, though with the property values these days, I'll stick with brief visits.

[2D8HP]

If you can cross the bay, maybe visit the

Chabot Space & Science Center (http://chabotspace.org/)

in the Oakland hills.


My usual bookstore is

Dark Carnival (http://www.darkcarnival.com/)

in Berkeley


I've never been there, but in San Francisco there's

Borderlands Books (https://borderlands-books.com)

which has a good reputation (I work for and in the City and County of San Francisco, but I seldom linger after work).

And while a "tourist trap" there's always the Sea Lions at

Pier 39 (https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pier_39#History_of_Pier_39_sea_lions)

[Cyrion]

Along with the Academy of Sciences, check out the Exploratorium (mid-week; weekends are going to be quite crowded.

Head a bit north on Highway 101 to visit Muir Woods and the giant sequoias.

[Perch]

Alcatraz Island?

Also, I think Museum of asian art of San Francisco is located somewhere in that area.

[LooseCannoneer]

The East Bay has some really nice hiking trials, particularly around the Walnut Creek/Mt. Diablo area.

Museum recommendation edit: I'd recommend the De Young or the Legion of Honor.

[Razade]

San Francisco Armory.

[2D8HP]

San Francisco Armory.


Besides its old military use, it was notable for where some of "Empire Strikes Back" was filmed, and most recently was the former HQ of Kink. com, so the advice to visit the armory may be a joke, as the building is a wreck.

If you are interested in old military stuff, there's a

World War 2 submarine at Pier 41 (https://maritime.org/pamphome.htm)

And the Civil War era

Fort Point (https://www.nps.gov/fopo/)

both in San Francisco

The Cold War

Nike Missile Site (https://www.nps.gov/goga/nike-missile-site.htm)

in the Marin Headlands.


And if your interested in U.S. labor history I was able to pick up some books at the:

Longshoremen's Hall, 400 N. Point Street, San Francisco,

and you may be able to as well.

I wish I still worked for the Port instead of the Hall of Justice, so I could show you some sights.

Good luck, and please let us know how the trip was!

[Pocgels]

Lombard street. It is at least worth a look.