San Francisco is a lovely city in Northern California, USA, with a vibrant atmosphere and an abundance of activities to enjoy. The city is renowned for its artistic and colorful houses, natural scenery, and wildlife, including birds and sea lions. Additionally, it is home to two extremely famous bridges: the Golden Gate Bridge and the Bay Bridge. Without further ado, let's compile a list of fun things to do in San Francisco. Here are a list of things to do during your time in San Francisco: Shopping:
Tours and excursions:
Sightseeing:
Dining: While I will include some dining places as part of what to do in San Francisco, it will be in more detail on my food and drink review website.
San Francisco is a wonderful destination, although it may involve a lengthy flight from your local area if you're traveling from other parts of the world. Additionally, despite California's stringent gun control laws, incidents of mass shootings, like in other parts of the USA, can still occur. Therefore, it's essential to remain vigilant and cautious at all times. Despite these issues, San Francisco remains a fantastic place for a holiday!
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Our entire trip went smoothly for the most part, apart from the very first day, when we flew in to Los Angeles and was cheated out of US$150 by a taxi driver claiming to be from the Philippines, in addition to the Paris clipboard scam that we experienced at the Louvre in Paris, halfway through our trip. Our story on this scam can be found here, and the news article can be found here. Also included in the linked blog is tips and ways you can stay safe while travelling, be it in Europe or elsewhere across the globe.
During our approximate four-week trip, split evenly between the US and Europe, we visited three countries and five destinations in total. Our itinerary included Los Angeles, San Francisco, London, Paris, and Normandy (home to the famous Mont-Saint-Michel Abbey in France). We allocated significant time to each destination (with the exception of Normandy, which was just a one day tour), with London being our longest stay in Europe and Los Angeles in the US.
Our purpose for the trip was not only to take a month's vacation and go sightseeing (in addition to theme parks!), but also to see family and do shopping as well. We just happened to also catch up with my school friends in London (we caught up with each other starting off at Buckingham Palace), where we went to an English pub for brunch, and then together, we visited the museum in Trafalgar Square.
On the 24th of January, we started off in Los Angeles, California (after a long 12 hour flight, of course!), where we embarked on a city tour, visited the wax museum and Ripley's Believe It or Not! Museum, indulged in luxury shopping at Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills, including making a purchase of a Schiaparelli silk scarf, as shown above - and on a seperate day, we took a bus to the Citadel outlet (which is a bit far from downtown LA by bus), and we also did some shopping there. We also visited one of my favorite jewelry stores, Dylanlex, and made a few purchases after visiting the Citadel shopping mall. Additionally, we explored both the Universal Studios theme park and Disneyland Disney Adventure park, where I went on many rides - and also bought some Disney merchandise. Finally, we took a tour of the Warner Bros. studio in Burbank, which was really interesting and fascinating.
The next leg of our journey, and also the furthest part, was London. We flew from LAX airport to Heathrow, a flight lasting about nine hours. Upon arrival, we visited my mum's side of the family (my aunt and uncle) on the first full day, which was the day after we arrived in London. Aunty Agnes and Uncle Mark prepared a lovely lunch for us and even shared some recipes. They also showed us family photos, and we spent a few hours at their house. Afterwards, they drove us to the city where we had dinner. The following day, we met up with Agnes and Mark again, but this time my cousins Mabel and Michelle joined us as well. We dined at Felix Warley, a popular upmarket restaurant near Brentwood, where I enjoyed wine and lunch with the family. Mabel and Michelle kindly gifted me a Charlotte Tilbury eyeshadow palette and a lipstick. We spent a good amount of time socializing and enjoying our meal there. For the remainder of our time in London, until we boarded the train to Paris, we explored the city by taking the hop-on-hop-off bus, visited the London Eye, shopped at Harrods and Selfridges, walked across the London Bridge, cruised the River Thames, visited Westminster Abbey, and watched two shows—Phantom of the Opera and The King and I, both plays were really enjoyable and fun to watch. Additionally, we went to Madame Tussauds, witnessed the Changing of the Guard, and had dinner in Chinatown in anticipation of the Chinese New Year, which was the Year of the Dragon. I also visited the London Dungeon alone. On the last day before heading to Paris, we packed up and eagerly prepared for our journey.
By this point, we were nearly halfway through our trip, and I was eagerly anticipating our visit to Paris. This time, we opted not to fly; instead, we traveled by Eurostar, a popular Eurail train that connects London to various European destinations, including Brussels, Amsterdam, and Paris. The fascinating aspect of this train journey is that it traverses 100 meters under the English Channel between London and Paris (and vice versa). The views were splendid, and the ride was smooth. In total, the journey to Paris lasted only two and a half hours.
Once we arrived in Paris and stepped out of the Gare du Nord station, we took a taxi to our hotel, where we checked in and were delighted to find a room with brilliant views of the city and the River Seine. Due to exhaustion, we opted to have dinner at the hotel despite my excitement to explore the beautiful city of Paris. The following day, our first stop was the Louvre Museum to admire its fascinating artworks, but unfortunately, our day took a turn when three women at the gates forced my mum and me to sign a petition (I declined, but my mum signed). This incident led to us spending half the day at a Paris police station (blog link and news article at the start of this blog for more information on this). However, we refused to let this incident ruin our time in Paris, the rest of France, or Europe as a whole. The next day, we visited the Arc De Triomphe, saw the exterior of the Notre Dame (in which the spire had been damaged by a fire a few years prior, unfortunately), enjoyed a river Seine cruise, and shopped at Galleries Lafayette. Despite the wet and cold weather and long queues, we ascended the Eiffel Tower at night (by taking a lift up), which was a breathtaking experience. On the following day, we embarked on a 14-hour tour to the Mont-Saint Michel Abbey in Normandy. After exploring the Abbey and taking numerous photos, we had lunch at one of the nearby restaurants before doing some window shopping and returning to Paris.
We returned to the Gare du Nord station and took the train back to London, where we checked into the same hotel in Brentwood as before, in the evening. The following day, we visited Buckingham Palace to meet my long-time friends, Gunes and Kayla, from high school, and we had brunch at an English restaurant/pub. Afterwards, we headed to Trafalgar Square, where we visited a museum and admired some historical artwork. The next day, we attended a church service in Brentwood, where we met with Mark and Agnes for the last time on the trip. Following the service, Mark and Agnes drove us to a cafe in Brentwood, where we enjoyed brunch at The Barnyard Cafe. After bidding farewell, we were dropped off in Brentwood, returned to the hotel, had dinner, and packed for our flight to San Francisco, the following day.
During the final leg of our journey, we took a 10-hour flight to San Francisco. Upon arrival, we checked in and settled down for the night. During our time in San Francisco, we explored various attractions (in no particular order), including the famous Alcatraz Island, Ghirardelli Chocolate Square (we went there twice), the Golden Gate Bridge, the Palace of Fine Arts, Chinatown, Fisherman's Wharf, and Pier 39. Additionally, we went on a tour of three vineyards in Napa and Sonoma, enjoying wine tasting at each one. Unfortunately, the weather during our stay was consistently bad, with heavy rain and cold temperatures, preventing us from visiting Yosemite and Muir Woods National Parks. At Fisherman's Wharf, we indulged in fresh lobsters and crabs, observed the seals at Pier 39, and embarked on a sailboat journey that took us near the Golden Gate Bridge and the Bay Bridge. We also explored the USS Pampanito Submarine and visited the Bay Aquarium, where I had the opportunity to admire wildlife up close during their encounters and briefly touch a snake. On our last day, we packed up, got ice cream from Ghiradelli square, and prepared to return home.
The flight back home lasted just over 12 hours, making it the longest flight of the entire trip. Even though we left the US on the 21st, we arrived back on the 23rd, in the early hours of the morning, due to time difference and the fact that we crossed the international date line as well. Despite its length and my lack of sleep, it was worth it because not only did I have a great holiday, but I also got to see my family and catch up with friends overseas for the first time in my life! Once we cleared customs (Auckland airport being the worst with long lines and diabolical baggage waiting times), we returned home, unpacked, and freshened up. I thoroughly enjoyed visiting all the places and am very satisfied with my shopping. More importantly, I had a lot of fun, tried new experiences, and spent quality time with friends and family.
NOTE: On the very first day of our US - Europe trip, we were also scammed by a so called "taxi" driver, when we landed in Los Angeles. The driver charged us US$150 from LAX airport to flower street, in downtown Los Angeles, which was an excessive amount of money. He claimed to be from the Philippines, and that his car was in his workplace's garage. We are upset about this too, especially it was the first day of our four week holiday. Please be aware of these taxi scams, they occur worldwide, and only use officially marked taxis. Do not use unmarked cars.
During our four week break, (two weeks in the USA - San Francisco and Los Angeles, and two weeks approx in Europe - England and France) everything was fine - we went to Disneyland in Los Angeles, shopped at Rodeo Drive, Beverly Hills - a place where many celebrities shop for luxury goods at and we went sightseeing, as well as visiting family and I caught up with my old friends in London, from high school. Everything was fine and the trip went smoothly - except for the taxi scam (mentioned above) and later, us falling victims to a pickpocket scam in Paris. I am going to share my experience with the petition scam AKA the clipboard scam, in the hopes that everyone else is aware about the scam, and that no one falls victim to this.
On the first full day in Paris, and I was already in love with the city since stepping of the Eurostar train at Gare du Nord, the day before. The people are so friendly and helpful, and Paris (and the rest of France) has a very romantic feel to it. What I also loved about Paris was that the French also have a very good sense of fashion too. So, that very morning we got up early, excited to go to the Louvre museum, and so we went to the Louvre via the hop on-hop off bus. We admired the French scenery while on the bus, and after a few stops, we finally reached the Louvre. Keen to get inside to admire the amazing artwork, got off the bus and went to the gates of the Louvre. However, not long upon stepping inside the gates of the Louvre (but still outside of the museum), three women accosted us, all with clipboards. They were quite pretty and well dressed in appearance. They came up to us with petition and they demanded that we signed the petition. The petition was towards the funding of the museum (and from my memory, possibly something about the deaf as well) They made us pay a Euro as well. Luckily, I did not pay any Euros or sign the petition (and luckily, we did not carry our passports on us either!) We were both coerced into signing the petition. Mum signed it, but I refused to. The women were aggressive in demeanour, although they were rather pretty and well dressed. The women then dispersed, and we went on our merry way to explore the museum.
Once we realized our Euros was missing, we realized that those three women, in which mum signed the petition that they asked us to sign, had stolen 400 Euros worth of cash from us! I was very stressed out, mum went to the police and I was very upset that we ended up spending half the day at a police station in Paris, given that we went to Paris to have a nice holiday! The police took mum's report - the matter is now in the hands of the French police. Those thieves were smart - and they outsmarted us, with the clipboard being an obvious distraction, and the request for us to give them a Euro was very likely an excuse for the pickpocketers to get money from mum's wallet - because she took out her wallet!
We have learnt a valuable lesson from this trip - we will not get into any unmarked "taxi" like in the case of Los Angeles, and never ever sign a petition from unverified sources, again. Mum has been way too kind to beggars on the streets, but now that has changed - we will not give anymore handout money to beggars. We will continue to support buskers, (like Queenstown and Europe for example) as they bring joy to the streets. We will be more cautious with anyone who approaches us, especially beggars. And more importantly, we will do our own research before travelling in relation to scams, and other types of common crimes against tourists.
After doing some research on these scams, unfortunately, this is not the only type of scam out there. There are many - the bracelet scam, (often carried out by African immigrants in Europe), the "gold ring" scam, the rose scam, counterfeit goods, the "helpful local" scam, the "baby holder" scam and so on. Since this list is not exhaustive, and there are many more types of scams out there, will not list all of them, but I will post helpful sources in this blog at the bottom of this blog. And remember, do your research before travelling in regards to scams, never buy counterfeit items, and invest in an anti theft device. And always make sure your valuables and money is with you at all times. Never carry more cash than needed at one go - this is an easy opportunity for thieves to steal your money.
By following these tips and advice while travelling, you should stay safe. Remember, there is plenty of information on the internet from police and government sources as well as travel and tourist agencies. There are also stories from tourists who have fallen victims to these scams. So there is no excuse not to do any research beforehand.
Here's ways on how you can avoid these scams:
Useful links/sources
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AuthorI am Natalie Dunn. I am a feminist who believes in gender equality and rights for everyone. I have many passions in life such as fashion, beauty, adventures and travelling. ArchivesCategories
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