things to do
IN SAN FRANCISCO
- Stroll Fillmore Street, our go-to for boutiques, coffee, and a slice of the city's jazz history.
- Wander the Ferry Building and the Embarcadero, where the waterfront market serves up local food and wide bay views.
- Walk the Presidio, Crissy Field, and the Palace of Fine Arts for parkland, a glassy lagoon, and the Golden Gate up close.
- Pick up an Irish coffee at the Buena Vista, then ride the Hyde Street cable car up over Russian Hill, stop for a scoop at Swensen's, and wander down Polk Street's shops and cafes.
- Spend a slow morning in Golden Gate Park, with the de Young museum and the California Academy of Sciences ready if the rain rolls in.
- Explore North Beach and Chinatown by day, for espresso, dumplings, and the city's oldest streets.
- Catch the view from the Legion of Honor and the Lands End trail, out on the quiet, cliff-lined western edge.
- Treat yourselves to a Dungeness crab dinner--January is peak season, and it's a local specialty worth planning a night around.
NORTH OF THE CITY
- Taste your way through Napa or Sonoma, where January means quiet rooms, warm fireplaces, and easy reservations, about an hour and a half away. Some of our favorites are Caldwell, and Saintsbury.
- Walk among the redwoods at Muir Woods, a cathedral of old-growth trees 45 minutes north — make sure to reserve parking or the shuttle before you go.
- Ferry over to Sausalito, a waterfront town of bay views and unhurried lunches, reached by boat from the Ferry Building.
- Chase the coast to Point Reyes or Stinson Beach, for dramatic shoreline and a lighthouse on a clear day.
SOUTH OF THE CITY
- Escape to Santa Cruz, a closer stretch of boardwalk and redwoods about an hour and a half down the coast.
- Drive the 17-Mile Drive through Pebble Beach to Carmel-by-the-Sea, a classic coastal day — give it the full day, as it's about two hours each way.
- Slip out to Half Moon Bay, the shortest coastal getaway, with wide beaches and a charming main street under an hour away.
