Golden Gate Park/Ocean Beach/Haight Ashbury
DeYoung Museum, California Academy of Sciences, Japanese Tea Garden, Botanical Garden, Stow Lake, Ocean Beach, Haight Ashbury
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Duration: 1 day
Distances: Partial Golden Gate Park & Ocean Beach: 4.9 miles/ 8km, Land End Trail: + 2 miles per direction/ 3.2 km Extension: Haight Ashbury & Alamo Square + 1.5 miles/ 2.4 km You also can combine the walk through Golden Gate Park and hike along Lands End Trail with the San Francisco car tour or a visit to Hayes Valley.
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Getting here:
By car: along Golden Gate Park you will find street parking at Fulton Street and Lincoln Way. By public transportation: From Union Square/Yerba Buena Gardens take bus no. 5 that brings you to Fulton Street and Golden Gate Park. From Fisherman’s Wharf take the streetcar to 7th and Market Street and change into bus no. 5. |
Bike rentals close to the park:
SF Bike Rental, 1816 Haight Street: http://www.goldengateparkbikerental.com/
Park Wide Bike Rental, different locations around Golden Gate Park: http://parkwide.com
On demand bike rentals San Francisco: BayWheels or Jump Bikes
SF Bike Rental, 1816 Haight Street: http://www.goldengateparkbikerental.com/
Park Wide Bike Rental, different locations around Golden Gate Park: http://parkwide.com
On demand bike rentals San Francisco: BayWheels or Jump Bikes
1st stop: De Young Art Museum and California Academy of Sciences
The De Young Museum and the Academy of Sciences are the two most popular museums in San Francisco.
The DeYoung Art Museum was opened in 1895 to show fine arts during the Californian Midwinter International Exposition. Its original building was seriously damaged during the big Loma Prieta earthquake in 1989. The museum's new building was finished in 2005 and showcases American art from the 17th through the 21st centuries, international contemporary art, textiles, costumes, and art from the Americas, the Pacific, and Africa.
More information about temporary exhibits, opening hours and admission is available at http://deyoung.famsf.org/
The California Academy of Sciences is one of the largest natural history museums in the world. The academy was founded in 1853 and opened its first museum in 1874. Similar to the De Young Museum the Academy was damaged through the Loma Prieta earthquake in 1989 and had to be closed. It wasn’t until 2008 when the museum re-opened.
More information about admission, hours and the exhibits is listed under https://www.calacademy.org/tickets/index_improved.php
2nd stop: Japanese Tea Garden - http://japaneseteagardensf.com/
A beautiful escape from San Francisco’s hustle and bustle is the Japanese Tea Garden in Golden Gate Park.
The garden was originally built as a Japanese village in 1894 for the Californian Midwinter International Exposition. Inside the Japanese Tea Garden, you have a beautiful landscape with ponds, koi fishes, Japanese monuments, flowers, and plants. For admission and hours please go to their website.
3rd stop: San Francisco Botanical Garden - http://www.sfbotanicalgarden.org/
On the opposite of the Japanese Tea Garden is the San Francisco’s Botanical Garden. For a better overview of the 7000 flowers and plants, the organization offers free guided tours. The Botanical Garden has two gates. The main entrance and exit are close to 9th Avenue, the side entrance at Tea Garden Drive across the Japanese Tea Garden. For admission and hours please check their website.
4th stop: Stow Lake - http://sfrecpark.org/StowLake.aspx
Stow Lake is the largest lake inside Golden Gate Park. Visitors can rent pedal boats, bikes, and rowing boats at the boathouse to explore the lake. Also, you can walk along the beautiful lakeshore and over one of the bridges to Strawberry Hill Island. Sights around the lake include the artificial cascading over 100 ft tall waterfalls and a Chinese pagoda, which was given to San Francisco by Taipei, one of the city’s sister cities.
5th stop: Ocean Beach and the windmill
At the end of Golden Gate Park is Ocean Beach, the city's beach. It runs for miles parallel to the Great Highway and is a popular recreation and surf spot.
From the shore, you have a nice view towards the windmill that is located at the left side of Golden Gate Park. Originally there were two windmills installed in 1903 to water the park. The one in the North was kept by the city and later Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands added a tulip garden as present to the city in front of the windmill.
To the right standing in front of Ocean Beach, you see the Cliff House, one of the oldest restaurants in California. It had to be rebuilt five times since it fell victim to bad construction, fires, and an explosion.
The Cliff House’s Sutro Bar and Restaurant open nice views over the shore, in particular during sunset. While all people are heading to the upper floor I recommend the lower floor since it is less busy. http://www.cliffhouse.com/.
Behind the Cliff House starts the ‘Lands End Trail’, a scenic path along the ocean cliffs that runs down to China Beach Park and with some detours ends at Baker’s Beach. If you love hiking and don’t mind a 4-mile roundtrip I highly encourage you to do Lands End Trail. From the path, you have amazing views over the Pacific and Golden Gate Bridge.
To return to the entrance of Golden Gate Park or to spend the rest of the day in Haight Ashbury take bus no. 5 from Cabrillo and the corner of La Playa Street. Exit at Fulton and Clayton and walk down Ashbury Street to Haight Street.
6th stop: Haight Ashbury
The corner of Haight and Ashbury Street is the famous gathering point of the Love & Peace devotees in the 1960s. Since then the Haight is known as the origin of the hippies. The quarter’s hippie culture is preserved until today. Many shops are still selling bell-bottoms and bohemian wear and the smell of dope is still unmistakable.
Walk down Haigh Street to Buena Vista Park. From the top, enjoy a nice view of Victorian houses and San Francisco.
If you are still energized head to the famous ‘Painted Ladies’ at Alamo Square. Follow Haight Street down to Scott Street and turn left for another four blocks.
The term 'painted ladies' is used for Victorian buildings painted in more than 3 colors. The Steiner Row became a famous sight in the city because the houses appeared in several visitor brochures, ads, movies, and TV shows. From atop of Alamo Square you have the best view over the row of houses (built between 1892 and 1896) and its colorful facades. If the sky is clear you also have a postcard view over the city’s skyline.
If you are calling it a day take the bus, call a cab/Uber/Lyft or rent a bike on demand.
If you can walk even further spend the evening in charming Hayes Valley. The residential area is known for many good restaurants and bars. Walk down Hayes Street towards the Civic Center. After four blocks you reached the quarter’s center.