TRAVEL

Touring San Francisco by ferry boat, foot, trolleys and cable cars

Tim Viall
On the Road
San Francisco’s Ferry Building is 123 years old.

Seeking to beat our Valley heat, soak up some culture, take in marvelous views, exercise and save money? Tour San Francisco by ferry boat, trolleys, cable cars and on foot (it’s also a bike-friendly option).

This one-day adventure comes with spectacular waterfront views and harbor tours, free parking, historic buildings galore, unique shops and world-class restaurants. So, plan to utilize the public ferry system, the historic trolleys that clatter along San Francisco’s Embarcadero, your feet or a bike — even cable cars — to tour The City.

You have several choices of ferry starting points. Our favorite is to head for Oakland’s Jack London Square, park in the Square’s parking deck and get your parking ticket validated at the ferry entrance, offering free day-long parking. Start your early morning with a several-block walk to the old Produce District and the Oakland Grill, 301 Franklin St., for marvelous breakfasts, including bacon and spinach omelet, crab Benedict and other tasty options. Then walk a few blocks to the ferry terminal for your scenic cruise over to San Francisco’s Waterfront.

Ferries coming and going at the Ferry Building in San Francisco.

Your ferry makes a quick stop at Alameda, then churns its way across the bay, under the Bay Bridge, offering wonderful views of the San Francisco skyline to your portside, with Oakland’s busy waterfront and Treasure Island to starboard. Your round-trip is a bargain (best price by purchasing online, $9 round trip for adults, half off for seniors 65 and older, kids younger than five, free; purchase a paper ticket on the ferry for a bit higher price).

The ferry docks at the historic Ferry Building, 123 years old and revitalized in 2003. With a choice of sit-down or grab-and-go restaurants and unique shops, the facility is a treat in itself. A favorite for lunches is the Hog Island Oyster Company with a wide variety of seafood choices; enjoy your leisurely lunch and realize what a marvelous people-watching place this is as ferries regularly arrive or depart with new passenger multitudes of ferry-riders.

Old Embarcadero trolley, this one from Milan, Italy.

With San Francisco’s usual sunshine and temperatures in the 60s, you have a choice to walk from the Ferry Building along the Embarcadero to Fisherman‘s Wharf, less than two miles, or take an historic trolley, imported from other US cities and foreign countries.

You pass the Exploratorium on Pier 15, offering scores of exhibits and a marvelous adventure for kids and adults. Here, explore the geography and history of the bay and other insights which explain why San Francisco is so special to so many.

Stop at Pier 39 long enough to walk to its northwestern end to see the scores of sea lions typically hanging out on the floating docks most of the year. The huge creatures always attract massive amounts of tourists, so we make this a short stop. 

Pier 39’s sea lions attract crowds of visitors.

Heading further west, check out two World War II-era vintage ships on Pier 45, the SS Jeremiah O’Brien, the last surviving liberty ship (of thousands of cargo ships built for service during the war) and the USS Pampanito, a WWII attack submarine. Both ships are open for tours and should you think the engine room of the Jeremiah O’Brien looks familiar, it was used for filming of the movie "Titanic."

You’re now in the heart of historic Fisherman's Wharf, providing a host of seafood restaurants and grab-and-go food vendors. Just west, take the opportunity to tour the historic old sailing and steam-powered ships at the Hyde Street Pier. Consider the tour through the nearby San Francisco Maritime Museum, and walk along the pretty Aquatic Park, home to two vintage rowing and swimming clubs where you’ll always find serious swimmers in the bay, year-round. 

You’re just a block from the waterfront terminus of the San Francisco Cable Car system, offering another optional adventure that will take you to San Francisco’s downtown retail shopping Mecca.

The Balclutha and Eppleton Hall, historic ships at the Hyde Street Pier.

Should you desire to take the continuing waterfront tour, walk or bike through historic Fort Mason, through the Marina District to the Palace of Fine Arts, preserving the buildings of the Panama Pacific Exposition of 1915, which celebrated the debut of the Panama Canal and its anticipated positive impacts on the state. Continue westward, to Crissy Field, the old World War I airfield and Civil War-era Fort Point, located under the southern end of the Golden Gate Bridge, to complete your waterfront jaunt.

After an energetic day, return to Oakland via another ferry departing Pier 41, providing a potentially stunning evening harbor cruise. Jack London Square offers a number of fine restaurants (Scott’s Seafood Grill a favorite) for evening dinner before you pick up your auto. Note for the future; repeat the ferry trip to San Francisco, but start and finish in Vallejo, for another adventurous day!

More info: Jack London Square, jacklondonsquare.com; (510) 645-9292 San Francisco Ferry, sanfranciscobayferry.com, (415) 705-8291 Ferry Building, ferrybuildingmarketplace.com, (415) 983-8030; Exploratorium, exploratorium.edu, (415) 528-4444; Pier 39, pier39.com, (415) 981-7437; National Maritime Museum and Hyde Street Pier; nps.gov/safr, (415) 447-5000.

Contact Tim at tviall@msn.com. Happy travels in the west!