Libertarian, high-tech, multicultural, artistic... Frisco, the golden city, is also characterized by its ecological fiber and its gentle way of life. A unique city and yet completely plural according to the hills and neighborhoods, along with its nicknames: SF, The City, City by the Bay, San Fran, The Golden City, Fog City... A tourist guide to San Francisco will help you understand this fascinating and inspiring city. The city of seven hills is marked by a rich maritime past and successive waves of immigration, notably due to the gold rush. Its geography and personality have made it the cradle of countless movements, such as the Beat Generation, the liberation of the LGBT community and American pacifism, and continue to infuse it with an extraordinary entrepreneurial spirit. And there is a whole variety to discover: SoMa and its generation of hipsters, Haight and its musicians, Castro and its gay population, Mission and its Hispanic enclave, Chinatown and Japantown... And already new neighborhoods are emerging. The restored Northern Piers, from where one embarks to reach theAlcatraz prison. San Francisco is also the starting point for a possible road trip to theAmerican West and Northern California, with its wild coastline along Highway 1 and the Pacific Ocean, its redwood forests, but also its fertile valleys in the Gold Country and Sacramento. Cross the Golden Gate Bridge and experience the California dream!

When to go San Francisco ?

San Francisco is an active and dynamic American metropolis all year round. However, here are some tips on when to go, depending on your interests.

The peak tourist season is of course summer in San Francisco and throughout Northern California, as many international travelers take their vacations in July/August. So you will see a lot of Europeans at this time of the year. Swimming enthusiasts beware! San Francisco is by no means a destination for lounging by the sea. Whatever the season, the water is cold and the wind blows. It is therefore more a place for surfing than for swimming. In summer, you'll have to head to Half Moon Bay to find pleasant swimming areas. The best season to visit San Francisco is not necessarily summer. The Christmas vacations and Thanksgiving break are also very busy, with many Americans returning home. San Francisco is alive all year round, but if we had to choose only 2 events in San Francisco, we could mention for example: the LGBT Pride, the last Saturday of June, the festivities gather around the Civic Center and on Sunday it's the gigantic parade; and the Chinese New Year and Parade: the event has been taking place since 1860, the Chinese New Year celebration in San Francisco is grandiose Celebrations are held in other major Chinese centers in the region, notably in Oakland. Every year in February.

The low season starts in September/October and ends in March (excluding the end of year vacations). You can try to negotiate prices for your hotels, especially outside of San Francisco. If you want to avoid tourists, it is best to plan a trip in the spring or fall. January is often rainy, although you can have beautiful sunny days with temperatures around 20°C.

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How to go San Francisco

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How to go alone

Those who don't speak English will certainly be a bit handicapped, but the locals are a multi-ethnic community, you will often be able to exchange in Spanish, even in Chinese... And the locals are very kind and always ready to help you. There is no difficulty in traveling alone, renting a car, booking your motels or hotels on a day-to-day basis, and leaving as the roads lead. In San Francisco itself, follow the grid of streets and avenues and our advice to visit.

How to go on a tour

San Francisco is a common destination for French tour operators. Offers range from a one-week city tour to a statewide tour of California, including San Francisco. A tour package may be of interest to those who are not fluent in English and plan to go out of town for excursions.

How to get around

San Francisco has an extensive ferry system that allows you to reach other cities in the Bay Area without traffic jams. San Francisco also has a good bus system. These are mainly for commuters and there is limited service in the evenings and on weekends. The city also has a subway, which is the best way to get around the city. Finally, the Cable Car, a cogwheel tramway, runs throughout the city.

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Discover San Francisco

California has only really been known to the world since 1848 and the Gold Rush, but its history is thousands of years old. In this chapter, we go on a journey of discovery, from its settlement more than 20,000 years ago via Beringia to the very recent Covid-19 crisis. Of course, we devote a large part of this presentation to the Summer of Love of 1967, which served as a matrix for pacifism, the fight against racism, ecology, feminism, sexual freedom and even the free internet. This is also the chapter where we detail the festivities not to be missed throughout the year in order to better plan your stay, and where we tell you all about the architecture, literature, arts, music, cinema or gastronomy of this state of America which, if it were independent, would be before France the sixth most powerful country on the planet.

Pictures and images San Francisco

Ruée vers l'or en Californie. powerofforever - iStockphoto.com
Cioppino. Ostranitsa Stanislav - Shutterstock.com
Vue de l'ancienne prison d'Alcatraz. MBPROJEKT_Maciej_Bledowski
Painted Ladies, maisons victoriennes près d'Alamo Square. Gregobagel - iStockphoto

The 12 keywords San Francisco

1. Bay

Protected from the fury of the Pacific, the bay is a small haven of peace where the surrounding cities could develop. San Francisco is known as the City of the Bay. Oakland and Berkeley are part of the East Bay and the small towns of Sausalito and Tiburon to the north have become major centers for recreational sailing

2. Beatniks

The poets of the Beat Generation, later known as the Beatniks, gathered in San Francisco. This resulted in endless drinking and, at times, beautiful literary productions. Jack Kerouac was the emblematic writer, supported by the publisher Lawrence Ferlinghetti, founder of the City Lights Bookstore

3. Cable car

Half tramway, half funicular, these small cable-drawn trains have been in existence since the 1870s and offer magnificent views. They have allowed the city's hills, notably Nob Hill and Russian Hill, to be climbed, thus allowing the development of new neighborhoods. The best known is the one that runs along Powell Street in Downtown

4. Fog

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No it's not a myth, fog is real in San Francisco and on the Pacific coast. Don't think of it as a light mist, but as an opaque cloud. It occurs especially in the summer, when the heat stored in the land collides with the frozen water of the ocean. The result is this thick fog that pours over the city at the end of the day

5. Frescoes

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In English, we speak of murals. There are many of them in San Francisco, especially in the Mission District where street painting is a real institution. They are an opportunity for the inhabitants to express their political opinions, whether it is about the oppression of the people in Central America or the gentrification in San Francisco.

6. Computer Science

The cradle of microcomputing since the early 1970s, the region between Palto Alto and San Jose is home to the high-tech industries that employ Stanford and Berkeley students in software design. It is also here, in Silicon Valley, that Apple, Facebook, Google, Instagram, Open Table... are located.

7. Marijuana

Cannabis has long been decriminalized in California, initially to provide relief for cancer and AIDS patients. But today, it is also legalized for recreational use since 2013. You will see dispensaries everywhere where it is possible to get weed of multiple varieties. Hashish on the other hand is non-existent

8. Painted Ladies

These famous Victorian houses built during the second half of the 19th century are emblematic of the cities of Northern California. San Francisco of course, but also Eureka, Salinas, Pacific Grove, Ferndale, Mendocino... However, they have only been painted in bright colors since the early 1970s, by hippies of course.

9. LGBT

If there is a city in the world where it is good to live for Lesbians, gays, bis and transgenders, it is San Francisco. This dates back to World War II, when homosexuals were drafted from the Pacific fleet and landed in the city. But beyond that, it was the activism of the 1970s that succeeded in opening up minds

10. Highway One

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This is the famous road that runs along the Pacific Ocean throughout California, passing through Eureka, San Francisco, Big Sur, Mendocino... It is known for its breathtaking landscapes on the ocean, but also for some passages through the redwoods. Be careful though, it is very winding and sometimes submerged by the famous fog.

11. Gold rush

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It was the Gold Rush that launched the development of California. Until 1848, it was a region that lived peacefully around the Franciscan mission. With the discovery of the first nuggets, an ocean of ambitious people, the forty-niners, arrived. The ghost towns of the hinterland attest to this tumultuous past.

12. Earthquake

The San Andreas Fault that runs along California causes intense seismic activity. Earthquakes are permanent, but most are imperceptible. In 1896, a huge earthquake measuring 8.3 on the Richter scale caused gas lines in San Francisco to leak, resulting in a fire that destroyed half the city.

You are from here, if...

You are on time. The traditional 15 minutes late of the French is very badly seen.

You don't smoke tobacco in people's homes (paradoxically, pure weed joints are well regarded in California...).

You are cheerful and happy to meet someone (even if you don't mean it). It's called small talk.

You put money in the parking meters, because fines are frequent and expensive.

You tip the waiters. Bosses rely on this system to pay their employees

You are careful not to offend anyone. Political correctness was invented here, so don't try to make a borderline joke.

Don't bea smartass at customs when you arrive. This is definitely not the time or place, customs officers have no sense of humor.

Donot try to kiss the French (especially after the Covid). Prefer the hug

Donot throw anything on the ground (this is also not recommended in France...)

Card San Francisco

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