SF Info
What you need to know!
Yvette M
Yelp
I went to San Francisco with my boyfriend and he booked the ghost and crime tour for the Saturday night. It was a really interesting blend of true crime, history and some seriously scary ghost stories. In other words perfect entertainment for the night. The tour stopped in a historical bar midway through the tour for a quick cocktail and then ended at the oldest pub in the city. It was our first night in SF and the guide was really helpful with recommendations for the rest of our stay. We’d definitely give it 5 out of 5!
John Julien
This was a great tour and Jamie was a fantastic guide! We were able to see so many parts of the city, learn its history, and feel comfortable navigating its many neighborhoods. Whether you’re visiting for a day or a week, I can’t recommend this tour enough. Thanks Jamie!
Gina Ziegler
TripAdvisor
What an awesome way to see San Francisco. Jamie our tour guide was born and raised in the city and was an amazing, interesting source of knowledge and made the tour so fun from riding the trolley car, easy walking, beautiful sites and excellent food and treats. I highly recommend this tour. And I must say, a great value. THANK YOU JAMIE, you made San Francisco so memorable!
Sightsee780139
TripAdvisor
Such an interesting deep dive into the Castro and Mission neighborhoods, for which we had an incredibly sunny warm summer day. Our guide was extremely knowledgeable, having grown up in the area, and pointed out not only historical places, but beautiful murals, homes and fun nooks and crannies (like hidden stairways to streets) that we never would have seen on our own. We definitely came away with much more of an appreciation for Castro and the Mission (love Dolores Park!) and will seek out other neighborhoods on our next trip!
Gillian_D
Viator
I had the most amazing time, as a solo traveller doing a small group tour is perfect. My tour guide was very knowledgeable and friendly. He gave us lots of fun facts along the way and the whole experience was very interesting. Bring your walking shoes we started at 10 am and finished at 6 pm, I highly recommend you do this tour. We went to places tourist didn’t go.
Jamie Sarkozi
My Boyfriend and I booked an all Day SF tour with Christofer and had an amazing time! He knew a ton of history which we loved and we were able to see a ton. We loved it as it had been our first time visiting. Would highly recommend to anyone wanting to be shown around the city.
Edgar Wallace
Did a wonderful tour with these guys while I was in San Francisco on business. I’d also done a tour with the sister company in Los Angeles several years ago. Kevin, who was the guide, was great and it was so nice to be outside. We learnt tons about SF. Definitely recommended!
15 Things to Do in California
You’ve bought your plane tickets (or filled the tank with gas), you’re feeling the anticipation of your trip building and you’re starting to think about where exactly you’re going to go and what exactly you're going to to do here (there are a lot of things to do in California, don't worry).
Undoubtedly you already have some things on your to-do list, which is the reason for the journey here in the first place, but you’re looking to add-in other activities and side trips. But what are the must-do’s in California? Because, remember, this might be a once-in-a-lifetime visit, so you don't want to miss something you may always regret not seeing.
Well, as a tour company located in the Golden State we have a fair idea of the kinds of activities you’re going to want to do and places you’re going to want to go while you’re here, so here’s a list of 12 things to do in California (not including the Bay Area).
Activities & Places of Interest in California
1. SAN DIEGO
Where to start? Balboa Park with its collection of great museums and the San Diego Zoo? The Gaslamp Quarter, with its restaurants, bars and clubs? Maybe the USS Midway Museum? Or the beach at La Jolla? What about Old Town San Diego?
The point is, just like Los Angeles, there are a multitude of things to do in San Diego – more than enough in fact to very happily occupy several days.
2. JOSHUA TREE NATIONAL PARK
East of Los Angeles, past Palm Springs, lies this desert, almost Martian-like, landscape. Like Death Valley Joshua Tree National Park does get ridiculously hot in the summer, but it’s worth putting on your itinerary so you can experience its desolate beauty. And if you like rock-climbing bring some equipment, it’s a great spot for that too.
You can also see Joshua Tree in a day trip from Los Angeles, although it is an incredible experience to bring a tent and camp out under the stars.
3. LOS ANGELES
It seems ridiculous to have Los Angeles occupying just one entry on our list, with so many things to see and do in this amazing, world-famous, city. From the beaches of Santa Monica and Venice, to historic Hollywood, to Griffith Park, to the skyscrapers and loft apartments of DTLA, to visiting a Movie Studio and, yes, to Disneyland, the list is endless.
Above all LA has a great laid-back vibe, fantastic historic and cultural attractions and bountiful warm sunshine, so what's not to like? If you come to California you HAVE to go to Los Angeles. It’s that simple.
For the best possible experience of Los Angeles do a tour with our sister company there, The Real Los Angeles Tours, and tell them "hi" from us.
4. SANTA BARBARA
Like San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara was founded by Franciscan Missionaries in the eighteenth century and is now a beautiful city on what’s sometimes known as the American Riviera. The downtown area is full of fun bars and nice restaurants. There are also several wineries nearby. You can see the city on a day trip from Los Angeles.
5. SEQUOIA NATIONAL PARK
Below Yosemite is Sequoia National Park (we really do have some fantastic parks in California, as you can see). It’s famous for its giant Sequoia trees (the Sequoiadendron giganteum to give them their scientific name), which are, as far as we know, the largest living things on the planet.
Apart from that the park is home to some quite sociable black bears and a lot of breathtaking scenery. Definitely worth a visit.
6. SAN LUIS OBISPO
Further down the Central Coast from Monterey and Hearst Castle is this beautiful town. Founded as a mission by the Spanish in the eighteenth century, it’s now home to a thriving restaurant and bar scene, which is as good as any in California. Didn’t get to visit Napa Valley? There are dozens of wineries in the surrounding countryside here too, so there’s no excuse for not trying some of our great Californian wine.
7. HEARST CASTLE
About half way between the Big Sur and San Luis Obispo is this historic castle, once-owned by the famous press baron William Randolph Hearst. Hearst's father had made his fortune from buying a share in a silver mine in Utah. The son was to use that fortune to buy a newspaper empire, that made him for a time one of the most powerful people in the U.S. Nowadays he's chiefly known for being the main inspiration for the 1941 film classic Citizen Kane, written and directed by Orson Welles. Hearst Castle was the model for Xanadu, the Florida mansion in the movie.
In 1919 Hearst opened this palace, on a beautiful part of the Central Coast, and during the 1920's it was one of the most glamorous places in the world, with Presidents, Hollywood stars like Charlie Chaplin, statesmen like Winston Churchill, and writers like George Bernard Shaw, staying as guests. Now it's a great museum and well-worth a visit.
8. BIG SUR
Keep going down the coast from Monterey on the PCH and you’ll drive through the Big Sur. What is the Big Sur? It’s a coastline of unequalled beauty – forested Santa Lucia mountains rising dramatically from the depths of the Pacific Ocean, creating steep cliffs and beautiful, secluded, little beaches. As scenic drives go it’s right up there.
9. MONTEREY / MONTEREY BAY AQUARIUM
If you take the PCH (Pacific Coast Highway or California State Route 1) south from San Francisco you’ll come to this picturesque town on California’s rugged central coast. Take a half day to visit the Monterey Bay Aquarium – it’s one of the best you’ll ever see. The town itself is very picturesque in parts too.
10. DEATH VALLEY
On the eastern side of the Sierra Nevada mountain range, which contains the highest point in the lower forty-eight States (Mount Whitney), is the lowest point, the fabulously named Death Valley. So named by a group of prospectors who stumbled on the valley while making their way to the gold fields of Northern California in the nineteenth century (luckily they didn’t actually die here). It’s an incredible place to visit, although it does get insanely hot in the summer months.
11. SKIING AT MAMMOTH MOUNTAIN
You may not know it, but depending on when you’re visiting California you could experience some of the best skiing in North America at Mammoth. Hell! It’s one of the best winter sports centers in the world. It’s becoming a little less common now (due to climate change), but usually you can even ski here on July 4th.
12. YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK
National Parks – California is full of them and, arguably, Yosemite is the most famous. Gape, amazed, at the awesome majesty of El Capitan (not the Apple operating system, but the enormous chunk of granite that gave it its name), wander through the indescribably beautiful mountain meadows and follow an easy trail to see one of the many waterfalls that drop down into the valley. Better still hire a tent and spend a few days exploring the park. This is a must do!
13. NAPA VALLEY
Love wine, food and beautiful scenery? Who doesn’t, right? Well, then Napa Valley’s the place for you. Just north of San Francisco the area gets its name from the Napa River that flows through it and it’s well worth a few days to explore the many fine restaurants and vineyards that call the area home and to admire the gorgeous scenery.
14. SACRAMENTO
How can the capital of California be an undiscovered gem? Well, that's what it is. Most visitors come to California wanting to see San Francisco and Los Angeles. If there's a third city they're interested in it's San Diego (Las Vegas is in Nevada by the way). No one ever seems to mention Sacramento, and that's literally insane.
It's a beautiful, tree-covered city, with great weather (most of the year), eminently walkable, but with a nice light rail metro. There's plenty of Gold Rush history, but because it IS the state capital the dining and bar scene is good too. What are you waiting for? Go! You won't regret it.
15, LASSEN VOLCANIC NATIONAL PARK
Lassen Park only gets half a million visitors in the average year. That might seem a lot, but Yosemite gets 4.5 million. That's at least partly because the park is only open June to October, due to snow closing the roads there for the rest of the year, but a visit to the park is well worth it, if the timing is right for you. Majestic peaks, made up of extinct and semi-extinct volcanoes, paired with flawless glacial lakes. It's jaw-droopingly beautiful – and few know it.
This map is interactive. To open in Google Maps, click the icon in the top right corner.
If you have any feedback on our list of things to do in California, or if you have some recommendations of your own, please email us and let us know. We’ll be sure to take it into account.
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