Frequently Asked Questions

It's important to understand that we're a small business and that therefore we're not able to respond to phone calls and emails with queries that are already answered here on our website. Most businesses, including huge multi-national corporations that possess much greater resources than us, have switched to a business model where clients and guests get information online, via the company website or app. We've been doing this 10 years, so we know the kinds of questions that potential guests like you will have – the information that you seek is right here!

I DIDN’T RECEIVE THE BOOKING CONFIRMATION EMAIL. WHAT SHOULD I DO?

A confirmation email is automatically sent whenever a booking is made (separate from a receipt). If you don't see it in your email inbox please check your junk/spam folder, as it sometimes ends up there. If you still can't find it be sure to email us with the booking details and we’ll resend it.

DO YOU OFFER TOURS IN ANY LANGUAGES OTHER THAN ENGLISH?

Unfortunately no, we only offer tours in English at this time. Keep an eye on our website though – in the future we hope to introduce tours in different languages.

CAN I BRING MY CHILDREN ON A TOUR?

Absolutely, we love kids. Just remember though that we can’t change the content of any of our group tours to suit your children. Also our SF in a Day, Nob Hill to the Haight and Notorious SF: Food + History + Art tours tours are not recommended for children under 15 years old.

CAN I BOOK A PRIVATE TOUR FOR STUDENTS FROM A SCHOOL?

We can accommodate High School students (i.e. 15+ years old) and we’re proud to have organized dozens of tours for school groups. Please check our Private Tours page for more info. For university students you can book any private tour, without needing to check with us.

IS MY TOUR CANCELED IF IT’S RAINING?

We NEVER cancel a tour in advance due to the weather. If it’s raining bring an umbrella. If it’s hot bring water and sun block. You’ve only got a few days to experience San Francisco – you’re not going to let the weather stop you, are you?

CAN YOU PICK ME UP FROM MY HOTEL / THE AIRPORT / MY AIRBNB APARTMENT ETC?

Regrettably, no. That would mean we would have to charge more for our tours and we want to keep them as affordable as we can.

WHERE’S THE BEST PLACE TO PARK FOR MY TOUR?

Check this website for up to date info and be sure to allow plenty of time to find parking AND to walk from your car to the tour meeting point. San Francisco can be a confusing city to navigate by car to say the least (what with our hills and one way streets) and traffic is usually heavy.

There is a better option though, all of our tours start and end at a transit station or bus stop, so take MUNI (San Francisco Metro) and/or BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit). It’s clean, mostly reliable and affordable (especially compared to the high cost of parking here). For more info on how to use public transport in San Francisco read our guide to using transit in San Francisco.

Or you could use a ride sharing service (like Uber or Lyft), it’s often cheaper than paying for parking anyway (and definitely cheaper than a parking ticket). If roaming isn't permitted with your cell phone plan you can always use the wifi service at the neighborhood coffee shop. If you don’t have the app consider downloading it. Uber and Lyft operate in many countries around the world and if you travel even a little you’ll find other opportunities to use their services.

WHAT HAPPENS IF I’M RUNNING LATE FOR MY TOUR?

The Bay Area is big, traffic is bad, transit stoppages do occur and other events are always happening. The best way to avoid being late for the tour is to allow PLENTY of time to get to there. Our guides are at the meeting point, checking-in guests, from fifteen minutes before each tour begins. Your time is valuable to us, that's why our tours start on schedule. Once they've left the meeting point there's no opportunity to join the group. Our office is unable to guide guests to the meeting point, by phone or email, and we can't contact the guide - they’re doing the tour.

We operate several tours a day, in various locations, with up to a hundred guests. It’s impossible, for any tour company, to make team members available throughout the day to respond to urgent direction requests. We’ve organized an amazing experience for you, the guide is at the meeting point and you have all the info you need to find them. Please don’t miss out because you didn’t allow enough time to get there or you didn’t follow our directions.

CAN I GET THE GUIDE TO CHANGE THE TOUR CONTENT / ITINERARY TO SUIT ME AND MY INTERESTS?

Unfortunately, no. Our tours are designed by us to suit a wide range of people who are interested in history, culture and architecture and guides are extensively trained on them. It’s impossible, at short notice, to change a tour based on what any guest requests at that moment. Nevertheless all our guides are very knowledgable and passionate about San Francisco, so you’re more than welcome to ask them all the questions you like, on any topic that interest you, during your tour. We love questions!

DO YOU JUST TALK ABOUT BUILDINGS FROM THE OUTSIDE / DO YOU GO INSIDE ANY BUILDINGS?

Firstly, there's nothing wrong with talking about buildings from the outside. 95% of tour companies don't go inside any places – stars houses tours don't go into the stars' houses and bus tours drive through the streets, after all. In order to fit a good itinerary into a tour there isn't the time to go into tons of places, often there's nothing of special interest to see inside and walking the streets is an integral part of our experiences (like any tour).

Secondly, and having just said, that we DO go into quite a few places, including bars and restaurants, on our tours. Why not? Thirdly, we cannot give you any more info than is already here on the website, because that's how this thing works (we have short videos, detailed descriptions and numerous photos for every tour).

SHOULD I TIP MY GUIDE / HOW MUCH SHOULD I TIP MY GUIDE?

It’s customary in America to give a gratuity to the guide if you enjoyed the tour and you thought they did a good job (15-20% is standard). If you’re a little confused about why, when and how much to tip read our helpful guide to tipping in the U.S.

HAVE A QUESTION NOT ANSWERED IN OUR FAQS?

Write to us using the email address at the bottom of every page and we’ll get back to you within 48 hours with an answer. Please note though, that if it IS answered on this website (and it almost certainly is) then we WON'T be able to respond.