This was published 2 years ago
What you’ve missed: The 2022 guide to San Francisco
San Francisco is a must-visit destination.Credit: San Francisco Travel Association and Umer Sayyam
This is sponsored content for Visit California
When 200,000 people turn out for the Outlands Music Festival in San Francisco back in October 2021, or 18,000 turn up to watch Steph Curry land another 3-pointer for the Golden State Warriors, it is clear San Francisco has moved beyond the pandemic.
This Californian city still delivers all the happy cityscapes from Hollywood movies like the island-prison of Alcatraz, Haight-Ashbury hippy-dom, and the looming orange spider web of the Golden Gate Bridge, but this cosmopolitan town is in a constant state of evolution and all about community.
This year, San Francisco has bounced back from its coronavirus blues with a fresh burst of energy, so it's no wonder Time Out recently named it the world's best city for its Covid-19 responses, community spirit, green spaces, cultural attractions and restaurants.
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Say hello to the sea lions at Fisherman's Wharf.Credit: San Francisco Travel Association
If you've visited before you'll find plenty that's new, but first-timers will want to see the icons. Take a tour of Alcatraz, check out the resident seals basking on Pier 39, relive the 1960s flower-power era in Haight-Ashbury, and plunge into the narrow streets of America's oldest Chinatown.
Top attractions, tours, museums, restaurants, bars and clubs have all reopened, and Welcome Ambassadors are out and about in the city's main tourist hotspots to answer questions, provide directions and welcome visitors.
When it's time to lay down your head, San Francisco's hotels are back in business too, with an assortment of new hotels to check in to from the retro-chic The Alton at iconic Fisherman's Wharf and arty, colourful citizenM Hotel in Union Square, to the extensively-refurbished Hyatt Regency San Francisco Downtown SOMA.
Dining
Over 50 Bay Area restaurants were awarded stars in the 2021 MICHELIN Guide to California. A further 64 have a Bib Gourmand for great food at more budget prices.
San Francisco's dining scene is constantly producing new and exciting venues that showcase its multicultural food scene.
Among them are The Tailor's Son for north Italian dishes, San Ho Wan for Korean from three-Michelin-star chef Corey Lee, and Jaranita for Peruvian. And yes, you can enjoy the best Californian cuisine, too, at new venues Boulevard and La Bande.
Check out the neighbourhoods: North Beach for Italian, Fisherman's Wharf for seafood, The Mission for Mexican.
With the Napa and Sonoma Valleys not far away, you're always sure to find a fine matching Californian wine. The reopening of San Francisco Wine School gives wine lovers the opportunity to join workshops and tasting sessions.
The California Street cable car is a San Francisco classic.Credit: San Francisco Travel Association
Culture
The arts scene is buzzing again. Among 2022 exhibitions is a major Diego Rivera retrospective at the always boundary-breaking San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, and a comprehensive look at radical painter Alice Neel at De Young Museum.
Meanwhile, the Asian Art Museum, whose expanded collection covers 6,000 years of Asian art history, takes a particular look at influential Filipino-American artist Carlos Villa.
Kids young and old will love the focus on nature and distant galaxies at the California Academy of Sciences, and the interactive and educational funhouse that is The Exploratorium, where they will encounter glowing jellyfish, green worms, mirror mazes and much more.
Music lovers should check out the new San Francisco Music Hall of Fame.
Immerse yourself in the vibrant streets of San Francisco.Credit: San Francisco Travel Association and Sam Beasely
Sport
Nowhere does sport like the USA and San Francisco is home to some of the very best, from the NBA's Golden State Warriors to NFL's 49ers and the MLB's Giants. Give the big foam finger a workout on your next visit.
Outdoors
With so much of recent times spent between four walls, take advantage of San Francisco's huge green spaces.
The city has become more outdoorsy than ever, having made its recent outdoor-dining program permanent, which brings ongoing buzz and liveliness to footpaths, streets and parks.
There's no problem walking off all those meals afterwards. The Embarcadero takes you along the waterfront with views over the bay and Alcatraz; while Golden Gate Park is so massive it has its own herd of bison.
Presidio has abundant hiking and cycling trails and some of the best views of the Golden Gate Bridge. And the SkyStar observation wheel, installed in 2020, gives you an extra boost onto the scenery.
Top off your trip with a visit to The Golden Gate Bridge Credit: San Francisco Travel Association and Edgar Chaparro
New this spring is Presidio Tunnel Tops, a series of splendid parklands atop road tunnels with yet more great outlooks onto San Francisco's famous bridge.
To get your San Francisco adventure off to a smooth start, fly direct to San Francisco International Airport. It's close to the city and has plenty of convenient transport options including the BART metro train, which can have you downtown in 20 minutes.
For more inspiration for your trip to San Francisco check out sftravel.com
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