This might be, perhaps, the best month to be in San Francisco weather-wise. It’s usually the warmest it ever gets here (which can be quite warm, it’s California), the elements are just a tiny bit more predictable, and when the Bay Area gets like that you just have to make the most of that opportunity. For that reason our list this month is weighted towards street festivals, outdoor film screenings and neighborhood music festivals, with the objective of helping YOU make the most of this opportunity. Here are what we consider the 10 best things to do in SF in September. Enjoy and stay safe!

Events & Activities in San Francisco This Month

1. VISIT A NATIONAL PARK (ALL MONTH)

At any time one of the best things to do in the US is to visit one of our amazing array of National Parks, they’re almost like the country’s crown jewels. California is particularly blessed with them – Lassen, Yosemite, Sequoia, Muir Woods (just outside San Francisco), Joshua Tree and Death Valley – and that’s only thinking of the best known (and Lassen isn’t nearly as well-known as it should be). Make the most of National Parks Day (September 23) and visit one, it’s gotta be one of the single best things to do in SF in September.

More information here.

2. GO ON A TRUE CRIME TOUR OF SF (EVERY SATURDAY NIGHT)

San Francisco has a very interesting history, and much of that (if we’re honest) is because of the city’s connection to crime, through it’s sometimes lawless past. From the Gold Rush era, when Vigilance Committee’s took over the “policing” of the city (which is where the term ‘vigilante’ originates). To the many red light districts scattered around downtown during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, via opium dens and gambling hell-holes in Chinatown and the infamous Barbary Coast (where unwary sailors would be shanghaied onto waiting ships). The criminal history of San Francisco is a fascinating subject that would be well-worth it’s own multi-episode Netflix show.

And we haven’t even mentioned the Fatty Arbuckle Scandal, which is the most important Hollywood sex-scandal that you’re never heard of.

Join us as we go on a cold-case true crime investigation into San Francisco’s dark past – with the opportunity to get cocktails in a couple of historic bars. Every Saturday night, at 6pm.

More information here.

3. GO TO A CONCERT (VARIOUS DATES)

Seeing an artist that you really like perform live can be a really rewarding experience. We’re lucky in that we get a lot of great musicians and performers coming though the Bay Area. This month Ed Sheeran, Counting Crows, The Avett Brothers, Thievery Corporation and Jodeci (in Concord) are all performing in the Bay Area. More information here.

Hardly Strictly Bluegrass is a great free annual concert in Golden Gate Park and always one of the best things to do in SF in September. This year it’s over the weekend of September 29 to October 1. More information here.

4. VISIT ONE OF OUR AMAZING MUSEUMS (ALL MONTH)

For several days of the month (and for some special people on every day of the month) many SF museums are free. We have great museums (partly because of all the rich people that have lived here) – you should make the most of these opportunities.

Exploratorium: free admission for EBT cardholders and San Francisco Medi-Cal or CalFresh recipients. Also free for California public school teachers.

SF Botanical Gardens: free admission second Tuesday of every month.

Japanese Tea Gardens: free Monday, Wednesday and Friday, 9-10 am.

De Young Museum: free first Tuesday of every month, also free every Saturday for Bay Area residents.

SFMOMA: free first Thursday of the month for Bay Area residents.

Legion of Honor: free Saturday’s for Bay Area residents and free Tuesday’s for all.

Cable Car Museum: free everyday and one of the most interesting museums in San Francisco.

5. PORTOLA (SEPTEMBER 30-OCTOBER 1)

Portola is back and really rocking. The line-up this year for the two-day festival includes Nelly Furtado, Carl Cox, Basement Jaxx and Jaz Paul. The event itself is located South of the Mission, on the bay at Pier 80.

More information here.

6. WATCH A MOVIE IN THE GREAT OUTDOORS (VARIOUS DATES)

As mentioned above the weather is usually good in San Francisco – so it’s the best time to go to an outdoor movie screening. The SF Parks Alliance produce a program every year, from May to October, called Sundown Cinema. This year some of the films on the schedule include Ghostbusters (1984) and Top Gun: Maverick and Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978). The last one was set and filmed in the Bay Area, so you might want to consider that – if you’re of a nervous disposition.

More information here.

7. GO TO THE THEATRE (VARIOUS DATES)

Live theatre certainly can be a special experience. If you’re a fan of the bard then Shakespeare in the Park is producing Cymbeline at the Jerry Garcia Auditorium. It’s a rarely produced play and is perfect for the park setting, with its magical themes. More information here

TINA – The Tina Turner Musical is appearing in San Jose at the beginning of the month. More information here.

Hadestown is showing at the old Orpheum Theatre in the middle of the month. More information here.

8. BECOME A RUM AFICIONADO (SEPTEMBER 16-17)

This September the annual San Francisco Rum Festival is holding its 8th such event. With tastings, talks and cocktail books on sale, this just might be the time to become an expert on something that you love.

More information here.

9. GO TO A BDSM STREET FAIR (SEPTEMBER 24)

San Francisco has a reputation for its residents being a little more relaxed when it comes to sexual matters. And nothing illustrates that better than the Folsom Street Fair. Every year many thousands of leather and BDSM lovers descend on SOMA, dressed in their best leather, latex, fishnets, harnesses, body paint and thongs. Or they just just go au natural.

It’s definitely an eye-opener and soooo San Francisco! One of the best things to do in SF in September? You let us know.

More information here.

10. SAN FRANCISCO FERRY BUILDING (ALL MONTH)

The Ferry Building is one of the city’s most iconic structures, serving as a hotspot for visitors and locals alike. It’s also a place for events, pop-ups, a farmers’ market, and some lovely shops. During the course of the month there are a ton of things going on, including Ferry Friday’s (with live music performances), outdoor yoga, a flea market and a roller-skating rink.

More information here.

If you have any feedback on the 10 Best Things to Do in SF in September please email us or reach out on social media, we’d love to hear from you.

– By Damien Blackshaw (Twitter)