We're flying thru SF arr 8:00am and depart 17:20. So I'm guessing 1 hr e/w to/from the Airport to Downtown on the BART. Was thinking of going to Embarcardo on the BART, then the 7 to Fishermans Wharf/Pier 39 and back to Union Sq area. Is this doable? Would love to cross the bridge but might take too long and the 76x Bus is not running that day. Any ideas?
9 Hrs in San Franscisco on New Years Eve
- Thread starter 149oaks
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Dunno about you're timing, but you can get BART to Powell St and take the cable car from there to Fisherman's Wharf, or indeed the street cars(travelling down Market st which are gorgeous - done in 1950's style). There is a bus which goes from Union Square to the Bridge, see http://goldengatebridge.org/visitors/directions.php. The trip isn't long, maybe 20 -30 mins and it stops right beside the bridge.
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EvilDoctorK
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Yes it's definitely do-able and far better than hanging around SFO airport for 9 hours !
I don't know if you're arriving in on a domestic flight, but if you are the you can be out of the airport very quickly .. and guess you're departing then on the Aer Lingus to Dublin so need to be at the airport then around 3.30pm (it can get quite busy in SFO late afternoon when all the European flights are leaving)
Either way you should have a good 5 and perhaps nearly 6 hours downtown - plenty of time for a wander round and a bit of lunch
Check the BART timetables, however they're not that frequent normally (every 20mins) and may even have a reduced timetable on NYE ... It's also not that cheap ( ~$9 each way I think) .. so if you're short on time then might be worth jumping in a taxi when you arrive and/or on the return journey ( around $40-50 )
Plenty to do downtown and taking the historic trams down to Fisherman's Wharf .. I wouldn't be overly worried about trying to cross the bridge .. you can get a good view of it from many places and depending on the weather crossing it might not be that exciting ( you can get lovely days in SF around then, but you can also get foggy or wet days when you're better off indoors)
I don't know if you're arriving in on a domestic flight, but if you are the you can be out of the airport very quickly .. and guess you're departing then on the Aer Lingus to Dublin so need to be at the airport then around 3.30pm (it can get quite busy in SFO late afternoon when all the European flights are leaving)
Either way you should have a good 5 and perhaps nearly 6 hours downtown - plenty of time for a wander round and a bit of lunch
Check the BART timetables, however they're not that frequent normally (every 20mins) and may even have a reduced timetable on NYE ... It's also not that cheap ( ~$9 each way I think) .. so if you're short on time then might be worth jumping in a taxi when you arrive and/or on the return journey ( around $40-50 )
Plenty to do downtown and taking the historic trams down to Fisherman's Wharf .. I wouldn't be overly worried about trying to cross the bridge .. you can get a good view of it from many places and depending on the weather crossing it might not be that exciting ( you can get lovely days in SF around then, but you can also get foggy or wet days when you're better off indoors)
Thanks for the replies. Yes arriving from Denver at about 8am and will be fully checked through to Dublin with Aer Lingus for 5:20pm flight. Just wondering why you say need to be back at Airport about 3:30 as we'll be already checked in with no luggage from Denver. Will security etc take a long time?
Also as there's 5 of us a taxi could be cheaper but I'm not sure if it would be quicker due to traffic. Any thoughts?
Also as there's 5 of us a taxi could be cheaper but I'm not sure if it would be quicker due to traffic. Any thoughts?
The airport was busy enuf at security when I was coming home, but it moved fairly quickly. I was early for the flight and it was all fairly relaxed getting thru. I only took the BART into the city so dunno how long a taxi will take, I know the train journey was long - maybe 1/2 hour from Powell St, and someone else told me too avoid taxis as motorways can be busy.
EvilDoctorK
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Taxi is definitely faster than BART apart from Rush Hour and if there's 5 of you won't be much difference price wise .. NYE shouldn't be that busy for traffic anyway .. with no traffic taxi will have you downtown in 20 minutes from the airport - it's not far
If you're fully checked in with boarding pass in hand etc. for the Aer Lingus flight then be back at the airport by 4.00 will be fine .. security can get busy at SFO, especially late afternoon so you don't want to cut it too fine.
Definitely do it, personally I wouldn't bother with Fisherman's Wharf, it has it's good points but it always struck me as a tourist trap (though I do love Ghirardelli's chocolates and Boudin sourdough - they have a free museum at the bakery in Fisherman's Wharf.). Get a map and check out SFMTA for the details about public transport. Their equivalent of the Leap card is called the Clipper Card You can buy one at SFO, the airport information offices sell them. Embarcadero is largely business district and could be a bit souless on NYE - love the Ferry Building in front of it though! And a ride on the street cars (MUNI F) is definitely worth a go. The street cars are rescues from various different cities around the world so they are each individually charming and quaint. I'd head up Nob Hill on the California Street cable car (be warned that is $5 one way!) and hop off to explore Chinatown, and either head across Telegraph Hill and vist Coit Tower on foot (a good way to get a feel for the city but a fair walk) where you can then descend to Fisherman's Wharf or hop back on the California st cable car, change onto the Powell-Mason or the Powell Hyde lines and visit the Cable Car Museum, or take the Powell-Hyde line to the top of Lombard Street (the picture postcard winding street) or head down to Market Street and grab a bus (71) to Haight-Ashbury (can be a bit rough frankly but it is the hippy-dippy centre) and Golden Gate Park (their Phoenix Park, plenty to see in there but you'd need to check what is open!). Alternatively (and I use that word intentionally 
) grab the MUNI lines F, K, L, M, T to Castro to visit the gay centre of SF, loads of quirky shops and cool eateries all nestled into the sides of Twin Peaks. Don't bother with South of Market, it has some charms but aside from the Museum of Modern Art and the Yerba Buena Gardens you won't find them easily and it can be a bit unpleasant. Don't bother with Alcatraz or the Golden Gate Bridge, you'll see plenty of the Bridge but the crossing would eat up all your time. Don't bother with Union Square unless you are determined to go shopping.
) grab the MUNI lines F, K, L, M, T to Castro to visit the gay centre of SF, loads of quirky shops and cool eateries all nestled into the sides of Twin Peaks. Don't bother with South of Market, it has some charms but aside from the Museum of Modern Art and the Yerba Buena Gardens you won't find them easily and it can be a bit unpleasant. Don't bother with Alcatraz or the Golden Gate Bridge, you'll see plenty of the Bridge but the crossing would eat up all your time. Don't bother with Union Square unless you are determined to go shopping.Socrates thanks for all the info, grwat ideas but can't fit it all in so we'll have to pick. Was wondering about the taxi though on NYE. Leaving airport at 8am would it run in to rush hour and similiarly on way back to Airport for 5:30pm flight? Is NYE busy in the City?
149oaks, it was a bit of a brain dump I wouldn't expect you'd get to see all or even half of that. I guess I am saying, pick and plan. There would definitely be traffic in but if it was me, I wouldn't use a taxi - expense and is it likely to be much faster? - I'd get the BART into the city. I just checked for New Year's Eve morning and there is
Return service in the afternoon is the same. I assumed an arrival time back at the airport of 3.
Get a guide book, mark off a few things, plan the routes and adjust until you have a feasible trip. The nice thing about San Fran is that the Cable Cars and the Street Trolleys are in themselves a great tourist experience Something like this might work for you...
BART to Powell, Cable car to either Mason or Hyde (perhaps a stop off at the Cable car Museum en route). That will bring you down to Fisherman's Wharf (if you want to spend time there then that would be the time to do it) Street Car to Embarcadero, Cable Car up California to Chinatown, have a wander there, then walk back down to California to catch the BART back to SFO.
I wouldn't expect you'd get to see all or even half of that. I guess I am saying, pick and plan. There would definitely be traffic in but if it was me, I wouldn't use a taxi - expense and is it likely to be much faster? - I'd get the BART into the city. I just checked for New Year's Eve morning and there is Return service in the afternoon is the same. I assumed an arrival time back at the airport of 3.
Get a guide book, mark off a few things, plan the routes and adjust until you have a feasible trip. The nice thing about San Fran is that the Cable Cars and the Street Trolleys are in themselves a great tourist experience
Something like this might work for you...BART to Powell, Cable car to either Mason or Hyde (perhaps a stop off at the Cable car Museum en route). That will bring you down to Fisherman's Wharf (if you want to spend time there then that would be the time to do it) Street Car to Embarcadero, Cable Car up California to Chinatown, have a wander there, then walk back down to California to catch the BART back to SFO.