There are three sets of stairs that were built on the eastern slope of Telegraph Hill, and it's…read moreclear to me which one is which. With its leafy foliage, the Filbert Steps are Ginger, and with far less foot traffic than the Filbert Steps, the Greenwich Steps are Mary Ann. That must mean these stairs are Mrs. Howell because let's face it, they're the least sexy. Three stairways make up the Vallejo Street Steps, but the central one is the only one that allows you to wander the surrounding gardens. These steps are the closest ones to Broadway, and that counts for something. Isn't that right, Lovey? RELATED - Interested in climbing the stairways around the Bay Area? Here's a collection of steps I've walked and reviewed: https://bit.ly/3UkMHud

Yeeees, beautiful views from these steps!…read more I've come here in the very early morning to see lovely views of the Bay Bridge and then in the afternoon to see the city humming with life below me. Never too crowded, but worth the work out for the view. 2024: 66/100

We exited BART to walk to Pier 27 to board the cruise ship. The promenade has great views and…read moreseveral restaurants on the boardwalk. It was a very nice leisurely walk to our ship. It's a great place for runs and walks. The Ferry building on Pier one is close by and Pier 39 with shops and Restaurants is on the opposite end.

This walkable promenade starts somewhere after the Ferry Building and ends at Pier 7!!…read more You'll be walking on what is a boardwalk like path right along the water, passing restaurants and shops!! It's pretty quiet here, and there are lots of benches here also. This place is a good place to just stroll, so don't be in a hurry, and just enjoy the city and the bay!!

I almost hesitate to post this because of how fantastic and "classic SF" it feels but I do think…read morepeople should know about this amazing starcase walk near Coit Tower. I actually found this trying to visit Coit Tower but it wasn't open early enough whereas these stairs are basically 24 hours. We arrived around 8:30 am on Friday and there are 3 parking spots right at the bottom of the stairs. During peak times I'm not sure where you can park that is closer but there is a lot of metered street parking in a 1-2 block radius around it. My 75+ aged parents were able to climb and descend the 300 steps but it did leave them winded and we had to stop a couple of times. The payoff is definitely the top area near the houses. If you go to the right "off-trail" you'll find these amazing public areas covered in trees, greenery, sitting areas, and art installations that will feel like you found a Secret Garden. This is a perfect and quiet place to blast off and on the way back there was a guy about to shoot up sitting on the stairs.

It's quite a workout with 384 stairs across 3 different landings up to Coit Tower…read more The first leg the stairs are the steepest and looks very foreboding. During the summer this part has wild blackberries in bloom. From there the stairs turn into a path that goes alongside some small gardens and houses. In the spring expect to see roses, lavender, and bougainvillea. In the winter rainy season, it looks very green. There are always lots of bird chirping and it feels so peaceful, like a little retreat. There are a couple of other legs of stairs before arriving at Coit tower with killer views of the Golden Gate and Bay bridges. Greenwich stairs are parallel to the Filbert stairs so basically you walk up one and down the other. They are both equally awesome, but it seems like Filbert gets all the attention. From the base to Coit tower and back is about a mile but to make it longer and add more stairs I'd advise to walk through North Beach to Ina Colbrith Park or the top of Lombard street. That will tack on an extra mile each way and it's always fun to stop in North beach at an Italian café, pizzeria, or Washington Square Park.

Art, music, a storywalk adventure for kids, this is a nice trail that includes plenty to see and…read moreappreciate while taking a stroll along the JFK Promenade at Golden Gate Park. We found free parking on Crossover Drive and started with Tune In, an interactive musical exhibit containing 15 chimes made of steel tubing. We examined the meditative effects of Laberinto Verde, and checked out so many more notable pieces, like the Koi fish mural on the concrete pathway and Remember When (giant toy blocks spelling out the word "love"). And even passed by the Coffee Caravan (California Kahve) which had a bit of seating and tables attached. I really liked the Streetwhale, a humpback (half mural, half sculpture) seemingly swimming along the promenade. We Are on Native Land: Honoring the Original Stewards (honoring indigenous plants, animals, and people at GGP), also stood out to me, but was in horrible condition, at least one third of the mural severely deteriorated, so much that some of the animals were unrecognizable, or even headless. My fave was "Eat, Travel, Play, Care," Gillie & Marc's Rabbitwoman and Dogman sculptures portrayed in four awesome scenes, the newest exhibit on the Golden Mile, located near the Conservatory of Flowers, and obviously in pristine condition being less than a month old and great for photo ops. They reportedly do live music before 3pm on a couple different stages along the trail, but we didn't see any on a Sunday afternoon, except at the pianos on site open for visitors to play (allowing for a bit of random live music), the instruments in horrible condition though, filthy, out of tune, broken in multiple ways. Also, no beer and wine garden when we visited this past weekend. The art and sculpture trail is fun to explore. And live music events on the golden mile are awesome (if only they were organized and communicated to the public a little better). Maintenance of the artwork isn't the best, which is noticeable when viewing each mural and exhibit, but it's still a carefree, family-friendly atmosphere, free of charge, with fun little activities like ping pong and cornhole to keep visitors entertained and active.

We visited San Francisco for my birthday recently and were amazed at the improvement one year with…read morethe new mayor has wrought! We were also there in January of 2025, and the staff at the hotel was very excited that the mayor was meeting and engaging with the Asian community in Chinatown for Lunar New Year celebrations! This is a backbone community that not only works, but lives just two blocks away from Union Square. One year later, the downtown is now alive and humming. Hundreds of workers on every kind of transportation imaginable pour into downtown each day. We saw many riding the new electric bikes that are now ubiquitous. People on electric scooters and skateboards, and lots of pedestrians insure that the downtown businesses thrive. We at dinner at Cheesecake Factory in Macy's on Union Square and walked through the square to see the huge lighted Christmas tree and the skaters on the frozen pond. Hundreds of people were there, enjoying the sights and the Christmas market near the square. San Francisco is a town reborn and enjoying the good life!!

This review is for the Annual Tulip day. It's a total joke because you have to wait in many lines…read morejust to get tulips. I went today and was very angry. Poor crowd control and very disorganized. Complained to many different staff associated with the event that it needs improvement and they don't seem to care. This is a very shoddy event no matter if you arrive early or not. If you have elderly family members over the age of 65, it's best to avoid at all costs. Please bring snacks if you have poor health because you will suffer greatly. My mum had a hard time today because she didn't eat anything. It's also very impossible to grab food along the lines because 1. it's overpriced 2. It's very hard to return because the barricades are sealed tight. There needs to be a time in the Tulip day event where people over the age of 65 and their family get first priority. 3 hour wait for a small amount of Tulips, not acceptable. Pigs! The news and social media is lying to you.

Market Street will always hold a special place in my heart; I remember walking here when about 30…read moreyears ago. It's definitely changed a lot in the past handful of years. I hope the City can figure out how to revive the area, bring safety back, and to reduce the issues with the unhoused. In the daytime, it's pretty much a ghost town. It never used to be that way. In the evenings, it's also fairly quiet, but there are more unhoused visible. Many shops and restaurants have closed; those that are still open, I wonder how they're surviving? When Westfield was Westfield, the shopping center used to bring foot traffic to that area of the street. I really hope that San Francisco can sort out its problems. While I still love the city, it's sad to see how it's declined. 2024: 94/100

Market Street is one of the main drags in San Francisco. Since the late 1990s, my experiences with…read moreand memories of this street primarily involve the stretch from 5th Street and the Powell Street BART station to the northeast ending at the Embarcadero and the Ferry Building. This stretch includes Union Square, the Financial District, and SoMa (South of Market). Unlike parts south, this stretch of Market feels relatively safe thanks in large part to lots of tourists, local office workers, and nicer, higher-end hotels, restaurants, and retail. 5th to the Embarcadero is a walkable stretch with lots to see and do in the aforementioned neighborhoods. That said, as a longtime regular visitor to San Francisco over the past two decades plus, I've noticed Market Street and the city as a whole aren't what they used to be. During our recent visit, walking up and down Market Street to get from our hotel to various places, I couldn't help but notice several vacant storefronts. Lots of retail for lease. Some parts looked like a ghost town. Market Street just had a different vibe and energy to it. It's not as "alive" as it used to be. And it appeared there were more homeless people too (or they're just more visible now). I noticed within the past year that Westfield had dropped the San Francisco Centre shopping mall from its portfolio: https://www.yelp.com/biz/westfield-san-francisco-centre-san-francisco-3 Here's a San Francisco Chronicle article about it from October 2023: https://www.sfchronicle.com/sf/article/s-f-westfield-mall-new-management-18417748.php Sad. The stretch of Market from the Castro to the Embarcadero is straight and tree-lined. You can see the Ferry Building's 245-foot clock tower from a distance. It's a nice view and one of my favorite things about walking on this street. Most of the stretches of Market south of the Tenderloin, such as around the Civic Center / UN Plaza BART station, X (formerly Twitter) headquarters, and southwest down into the Castro and beyond, I've experienced mainly from cars. When you get into this part of Market, the elevation increases and there are some scenic city views. At its southwest end, Market Street turns into Portola Drive. This happens in the Twin Peaks area. There are great views of the city from Twin Peaks at a place called Christmas Tree Point. You can drive and park there. You can also park and walk to nearby Noe Peak. From these vistas, you can see Market Street run all the way up to the Bay. It's neat and I recommend it.

Really lovely and small side street close to Union Square! It's like a little Parisian oasis…read moresmack-dab in the middle of the dystopian financial district of San Francisco. Came here recently for a SF Junk Journal event. There was live music by a jazz band, and it was super welcoming. It was super cold and windy, even on a sunny day. It IS San Francisco, after all, so come bundled up!

Nestled between Union Square and Nob Hill, Maiden Lane is a pedestrian-only alleyway with…read moreParisian-inspired architecture, unique shops, and charming cafes. Stepping onto Maiden Lane feels like stepping onto a quaint European street. The brick-paved alleyway, lined with gas lamps and adorned with colorful flowers, creates a romantic and inviting atmosphere. Maiden Lane is home to unique boutiques offering one-of-a-kind finds from vintage clothing and handcrafted jewelry to homeware and art galleries. In here, you can enjoy a leisurely brunch, a quick coffee break, or a romantic dinner in a charming setting. Choose from French cafes with sidewalk seating to intimate bistros and trendy restaurants. However, the place is small so there's limited options for shopping and dining. Also, there are no public restrooms and no cars are allowed in this alleyway.

This is a beautiful mosaic mural, by Margarita Soyfertis, located on the outside of the building at…read moreCastro Valley Marketplace. You can easily view and admire this artwork while sitting in the outdoor patio of this food hall, enjoying your snacks and beverages. It was created during the pandemic to incite positivity among locals and visitors, with elements of music, nature, and community in the tile design. Such intricate detail, weaving together colors and images that ease the heart. If visiting the marketplace, it's definitely worth a closer look.