Expert: Ernest Tufft - 8/13/2006

Question
Hi Mr. Tufft

My wife, stepdaughter and I would like to spend a few days in SFO before we turn in our RV and go back to Denmark.
Can you recommend a RV park ?   We would like to be able to go downtown SFO to see the sights as easy as possible.
Can you recommend "what not to miss" ?   Is Alcatraz a must-see ?   Can you recommend a good restaurant for the "last night on holidays" dinner (prefer a special/fun restaurant or steakhouse from a pricey french restaurant which looks the same all over the world)

Thanks in advance !

Brgds
Morgan Green, Copenhagen, Denmark

Answer
I'm new on this expert forum, and I'm also not highly knowledgeable about the RV spaces, so please forgive me, but I just answered a similar RV question from another person today.  I provided more researched details there, but I would also like to know where you must drop off the RV.  I assume that you want to avoid the price of a hotel in SF, so what you'll likely want to do is park in Larkspur, and catch the high speed commuter ferry into the city (see Golden Gate Ferry and BART on-line websites for maps and details).  As for activities in the city, the scope ofcourse is very large, but in general, if everyone in your family is ready to walk, that's what I'd prepare for.  If you arrive at the Ferry Bulding from Larkspur, time browsing the artist stalls and farmer's market area is a great start.  Then, walk through the financial district, taking care to walk through the Embarcadero Shopping Center, which has a second floor roof top patio walk for several blocks and excellent views of the skyscrapers above.  The walk through Market/Powell through to Union Square, Chinatown, and up to Nob Hill will take your breath away, in more ways than one.  Two cable car lines run through this area, and the third intersects by way of Nob Hill.  To avoid the tourist lines at the end stations, I recommend hiking through Chinatown and up to Nob Hill, around to the cable car barn museum, and then catch the cable car going downhill.  You can simply jump on and pay the brakeman the cash, and enjoy the best of a roller coaster ride downhill and around corners.  In addition, taking the antique trolley line along Market out to the gay capital of the world--Castro District--is an interesting people watching diversion that will amuse your step daughter.  If you are in the city for only a couple of days, I generally don't recommend Alcatraz.  I'm certain that Denmark's ferries are a common enough experience that the old rusty prison could come as a time consuming tourist trap experience.  To a large extent, I feel the same way about Fisherman's Wharf--a tourist haven without any commercial fishing purpose except bay cruises--although watching the wild sea lions living on the wharf and walking through the sidewalk souvenir is worth it for a first time visitor.  As for the restaurants, there are too many for me to help here, there are a number of web based reviews for restaurants which you can browse through--type in Google:  Best SF restaurants.  San Francisco has some good steakhouses, but in general this is not a city tourists stampede toward for a steak.  California has it's own great food that will rival the French, but as you know the prices will be very high.  Good low priced food is found in the Mission District, where Mission Dolores still stands.  I've recently enjoyed good food in the West Portal Neighborhood in the south part of the city, which can be easily reached by the Muni underground.  These areas are all easily reached by the MUNI transport system of one sort another.  Try posting this question at virtualtourist.com for more information...Have fun.