patrick.net

I am a native of Bay Area. Try Airbnb. You can get your own private place with a kitchen for the equivalent or less than the price of a hotel. And you get to experience a neighborhood and live like a local during your stay. If you write which cities you are interested in, can give further information on location and safety of neighborhoods and historic/coolness factor.

Are you just doing the city? Lot of lovely places around- leisurely drive up north through 1, parking and hiking on and above the Golden gate bridge, Sonoma/Napa counties, spectacular and secluded northern coastline, redwood forests, Sierra nevada mountains, lake Tahoe, volcanic caves and mountains in the NE, Lake shasta and the houseboats(though I don't know how they are with the drought), Yosemite, Highway 395 and the bristecone pine that are literally older than jesus-just too many spectacular places to list. However if you are the urban type, the city is great-just stay away from the tenderloin district-SF can go from good to bad in a few blocks. .

Indiana Jones says

I am a native of Bay Area. Try Airbnb. You can get your own private place with a kitchen for the equivalent or less than the price of a hotel. And you get to experience a neighborhood and live like a local during your stay. If you write which cities you are interested in, can give further information on location and safety of neighborhoods and historic/coolness factor.

@Indiana Jones. You are awesome! Thank you for getting back. I'm in the early planning stages, so I haven't put together a list, yet. I get so few vacations (my last was four years ago) that I tend to take the planning to the ridiculous. But my kids, to this day, still remember the trip I planned driving from London to Edinburgh... and all the cool places we went to and stayed along the way. They were five at the time... and still remember some details of the Tower (the spikes where they put decapitated heads made quite an impression). And they still remember the Mathematical Bridge (I made a really big deal about seeing it and we were all expecting it to be big and it was a little, dinky bridge), the Cotswolds, and the "place where the Queen was under house arrest before she lost her head." Anyway, I love, love, love destinations that come with interesting stories. My vacations are infrequent and never restful, but I try to make them unique, interesting, jam-packed, and memorable. I'm currently researching my SFBA destinations list. What would you say are the top 3-5 places that tell the best story about the area?

lostand confused says

Are you just doing the city? Lot of lovely places around- leisurely drive up north through 1, parking and hiking on and above the Golden gate bridge, Sonoma/Napa counties, spectacular and secluded northern coastline, redwood forests, Sierra nevada mountains, lake Tahoe, volcanic caves and mountains in the NE, Lake shasta and the houseboats(though I don't know how they are with the drought), Yosemite, Highway 395 and the bristecone pine that are literally older than jesus-just too many spectacular places to list. However if you are the urban type, the city is great-just stay away from the tenderloin district-SF can go from good to bad in a few blocks.

The Golden Gate Bridge is kind of a must... The hike would be awesome. It doesn't have to be all urban. As I said above, I love places with interesting stories to tell.

You're kind of asking for it going in the summer, unless you like fighting the crowds. Actually, late fall and late winter are some of the nicest times to go see SF and often less foggy and not that cold, with less tourist hassle. In the summer, the fog could start coming in as early as 3PM, and you might be crying for sunshine.

A more bucolic place in Marin on the more sunny side of the coastal hills, bed & breakfast, Airnb, whatever with strategic sorties into the city to particular spots during off traffic times might be my preference. That would also allow the access to the NoCal spots above the bay, like Point Reyes, Napa, Sonoma, Redwoods etc. Get ready for heavy parking fees.

Alcatraz, Sutro Baths/Cliff House are nice tours to get a sense of the Pacific's majesty in relation to the city.

You could also stay in colorful Berkeley by U of C close to BART, and just take BART and public transport to and around the city.

The Golden Gate bridge is beautiful. You can also do a helicopter tour or a boat tour under it! Parking and hiking it is spectacular. There are parking spots on either end on the northbound side. Once you go past the bridge and past the parking area and stay in the right lane, there is an exit to Sausalito-if you take that , hit the stop sign, turn left through the tunnel, it heads back to the southbound lane and just before you hit the entry to the south lanes, there is a steep right hand turn that takes you up the hill. Spectacular views all along-old forts and batteries with some cannons and you are actually above the bridge in altitude and look down on the bridge from the hill. You can keep going further and hit the last place for parking and hike the batteries/forts there-that point is evry high. Then there is a narrow twisty road at the end-most people don't know and just take a u-turn. But that road is spectacular with amassive incline -it almost feels like you ar egoing vertical down-with a spectacular ocean view in front-best to go down in 1st or 2nd gear at most . It goes down and you will see a lot more batteries/forts/ocean view with a lot of deer. Then take the road back and can come back either south or north.

http://www.everytrail.com/guide/walking-the-golden-gate-bridge

If you head north, you will enter marin county and if spectaculr shoreline/scenery is your thing-Point reyes is great. It does nto matter which season you visit, SF and north will require a few layers just in case. Point Reyes is beautiful-can be foggy-but beautiful wild coean with mountains, dairy farms , horseback riding-wild unspoiled country.
https://www.nps.gov/pore/index.htm

If you go north of that on 1, you will hit spectacular Sonoma county beaches-secluded, wild, windy, hills, mountains etc and nice hotels on the way-even an old Russina fort.
Goat rock state beach-small beach but spectaular scenery, dramatic drive down and beautiful all around. Can park on the side before decline and hike up and down and see the ocean fom different altitude points-simply spectacular.
https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g33107-d116911-r129931817-Sonoma_Coast_State_Beach-Sonoma_Sonoma_County_California.html

If you go past that, you hit Jenner-which River road from the 101 ends into and then take a nice ocean drive up the hills with spectacular ocean views and hit Salt Point state beach-one of my favorites. Rugged formations, rocks, wild, wild, wild ocean, with big violent waves-which you watch from the comfort of high altitudes and nice hotels/restaurants around.
http://www.yelp.com/biz/salt-point-state-park-jenner

Past that 1 goes into mendocino and Humboldt county-I have done the whole drive, but IMHO upto sonoma is the best and after that si more of the same-wild ocean and hills, I usually double back and take River road back to 101 and back to east bay-when I lived there.

However 101 goes N and takes you to the redwood forests and the Avenue of the Giants. The 1 will lopp back into the 101-but will cost you an extra day. The Avenue of the Giants is supposed to be the largest redwood trees in the world and there are live trees where you can actually drive your car through!
http://www.roadsideamerica.com/story/2043

Now the Sierra and the N.E.
Lassen Peak is the most famous and is considered an active volcano, with boiling water and sulfur. It is in the N.E part of the state close to redding-high altitudes and the views.
http://www.yelp.com/biz/lassen-volcanic-national-park-mineral

Soemwhat close to lassen are other volcanic wonders mainly Lava Beds National Monument. It has spectacular caves -though not lighted or ranger led-so you have to bring your own flashlights and other lighting devices if you want to enjoy them. But beautiful and far NE of CA.

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g60884-d143194-Reviews-Lava_Beds_National_Monument-Tulelake_California.html

Then the Lake tahoe area. Coming up from the bay area, you have the cave tour area. Three or 4 caves all located very close to each other. Moaning cavern you cna actually rapel down the cave instead of going down the 200+ steps. Heavset people may have a weight limit. No discrimination-just safety!!

http://www.angelscampfun.com/resources/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=3&catid=1

Then you hit Lake Tahoe itself which you cross 8,000+ feet to reach. From there 395 from NV down south can take you back to LA,w ith soem of the most spectacular areas. Juno Lake, bristlecone pine, Mono Lake-it is my favorite road of all the places I have seen. It is close to Bishop and has the oldest living being there-some are supposed to be as old as 4,000 years-which is 2,000 years before Christ!!
http://www.bishopvisitor.com/activities/bristlecone-forest/

Also Yosemite which can be accessed from 395(when the roads open after snow) or the bay area. beautiful, beautiful space. The drive down from Yosemite to join 395 is spectacular and has lot of places to stop and enjoy. nearby on 395 is the abandoned town of Bodie and a lot of cold spots on 395.

Kings canyon/Sequoia is also in the south of Yosemite.

But I enjoyed these in the 7+ years I stayed in the bay-sigh I miss CA-so many memories and so much to do!! But just some spots for your research-you may hit some of them or just stay in the city and close by-you can't go wrong! Enjoy your trip.

And yes-ceffer is right, fall/winter is best-much less fog and spectacular after a rainy day-but the snow areas will be a challenge and not enjoyable!

lostand confused says

helicopter tour

My son would go nuts over that.

@lostand confused and @Ceffer. Thank you! I've printed your posts out and they are in my official SFBA file. I know what you both are saying about the summer. Other times of the year are just difficult with school and activities. Summer and Christmas/New Years are the only times when the kids don't have school and they also have a break in their activities schedules. Also, August and the end of the December are the slowest times at the office... which also helps.... at least until I become independently wealthy.

"The coldest winter I ever spent was a summer in San Francisco."

Mark Twain

Stanyan Park Hotel (beginning of GG Park) and Ocean Park Motel (Outer Sunset by Ocean beach) are two nice (and safe) historical places to stay at. GG Park is more interesting than GG bridge and has plenty of things to do for a whole day. Cliff House/Sutro baths is nice and the adjacent Presidio good for a hike. Driving up 101 north to Mendocino (or 101 South to Monterey/Carmel) is always worthwhile. But that's not bay area anymore.

Another nice feature of Berkeley, including the BART ride to SF, is the Lawrence Hall of Science in the hills above the campus. Great, large technology museum for the kids to explore and one of the most stunning views of the greater bay area. You can drive up there every day to watch the fog roll in while you are still in sunshine.

Turtledove: I am going to start from the South and go North. My focus is on kid-friendly places, so not mentioning all the Napa and Sonoma county wine tours and such. Some of these places are well known and some a little off the beaten path.

Central Coast

Monterey Bay Aquarium -- one of the best Aquariums in the country.

Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk is super fun in the summer. It's been around over 100 years and has some history to enjoy as well as plain fun. You can do beach/boardwalk or just do the boardwalk. We do at least one trip there a year and I still love it after many years. The weather is better in Santa Cruz (slightly less foggy and warmer temperatures than in the BA). There will be crowds.

Also, Big Sur and Carmel are beautiful. But doing the Central Coast may be a whole trip in itself.

San Jose

Tech museum in San Jose fits perfectly within Silicon Valley. It has a bunch of interactive displays and can def. spend a few hours there and check out downtown San Jose (nothing spectacular there) or try the Winchester Mystery House.

http://www.winchestermysteryhouse.com/

http://www.thetech.org/

Moss Beach

If you go up the coast on Highway one, after Half Moon Bay you will get to Moss Beach and its haunted restaurant. You can sit on their outside deck and they will supply you with warm blankets as you sip hot chocolate or tea or whatever suits your fancy from the bar. BTW - the coast line from Santa Cruz (Highway 1) to SF is beautiful with lots of rugged and beautiful beaches to stop and explore and beautiful photo ops.

http://www.mossbeachdistillery.com/ghost.html

East Bay

Alameda

It sounds like your kids like a bit of intrigue, and the uss hornet is a haunted ship or so they say.

https://www.uss-hornet.org/visit-hornet/

Berkeley - has a lot to do if you want to explore the east bay. Besides beautiful Tildon Park, there is the botanical gardens (much better than the botanical garden at GG park) the Berkeley Rose Garden and a quintessentially Berkeley park for kids called Adventure Playground near the Berkeley Pier. If you want to get a good "Bezerkley"/hippy vibe, take a walk down Telegraph Avenue near UC Berkeley.

http://botanicalgarden.berkeley.edu/

http://www.ci.berkeley.ca.us/adventureplayground/

San Francisco

There is a ton to do in SF -- some highlights are:

SF MOMA just reopened after a 3 year remodel and addition.

A must stop - if you are checking out Fisherman's wharf (and it's free) -- Musee Mecanique:

"We will take you on a journey from turn of the century hand cranked music boxes to modern video arcade games. This is a trip down memory lane. It is a chance to show your children or grandchildren what you did for fun when you were their age. Before video games at home, perhaps before television, perhaps what you remember sitting in your grandparent's parlor

For those of you who grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area, it is a chance to remember Playland at the Beach, Sutro Baths and the Cliff House. There is our own "Laffing Sal", "Susie the Can-Can Dancer" and the fascinating "Carnival." Other things have been brought in from around the world for your amusement."

http://museemecaniquesf.com/

Also from Fisherman's wharf you can do the Bay Cruise or visit Alcatraz.

The Exploratorium is great for kids and all ages. Can do at least a 1/2 day here.

http://www.exploratorium.edu/

There there is a ton of fun to be had at Golden Gate park- the Academy of Sciences and Aquarium, the De Young museum, Japanese Tea garden and Stowe Lake where you can rent paddle boats or canoes.

China town and Japan town are fun to visit.

For a nice hike in the city, I'd recommend Land's End. A beautiful walk on the beach can be had at Baker Beach - nice view of the GG bridge.

There is also a drive to the top of Twin Peaks lookout for an amazing view of the city and Bay Area.

North Bay

Going North over the GG bridge is Muir Woods which has fairly easy hikes among amazing redwoods - highly recommend this and so close to SF. Parking can be a big issue and you may have to take the Muir Woods shuttle. I'd try to go on a weekday.

https://www.nps.gov/muwo/index.htm

Close to Muir woods is Mt. Tam - going to top of Mt. Tamalpais gives you stunning views and there is a nice level loop-hike around the peak.

Other post have already talked about coastline in this area -- beautiful. Two more kid-friendly beaches are Muir beach and especially Stinson Beach both in West Marin.

Close to these areas are the towns of Marin which many have quaint downtown areas with local shops and restaurants. Recommend Sausalito, Mill Valley, Larkspur, San Anselmo, and Fairfax (for a hippy vibe). You can take a ferry from SF to Sausalito's cute downtown area.

Further north but inland from the coast is Russian river/Guerneville which is a big vacation area and home to another amazing forest - Armstrong Woods.

Other misc. idea is visiting the California Missions for some history -- I can think of a few - Missions Carmel (near Monterey), San Francisco, San Jose (in Fremont), San Rafael and Sonoma.

There is also Mt. Diablo in the East Bay - on very clear days from the summit it is said you can see Half Dome in Yosemite Valley and Mt. Lassen to the north. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mount_Diablo

And finally, a few tips: if you are in the Bay Area, especially in SF, locals don't like San Francisco to be called "Frisco". Instead use "SF" or "The City". If you are in SF or near the coast, always bring a jacket/layers with you, just in case, no matter how warm the day may seem to be.

This is all I can think of for now.

On the off-chance that you are in the military or retired military, Moffett Field has guest lodging on the Base. You would need a DOD ID card to stay there. (Being a veteran does not count)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moffett_Federal_Airfield

Another thing that seems totally square but are great are the Gray Line tours. They will let you out at places to spend a bit of time along the way. They can also cover a surprising amount of territory and sights.

I love them in the cities I have been in to get a well rounded sense of the place and to see some fair chunks of the areas for further exploration.

lots of great recommendations here. believe it or not the palace hotel in downtown sf has some reasonable deals and is truly central and fairly historic. beautiful atrium.

i think the kids absolutely have to walk over the gg bridge at least. the ferry rides to angel island, sausalito, or alcatraz are fun in themselves. and the exploratorium is really fantastic if they like science at all.

let me know when you have dates and maybe we can meet up in the city with my wife and kids.

Oh and Santa Cruz mystery spot is kid friendly-I enjoyed it as an adult!
http://www.weirdus.com/states/california/unexplained_phenomena/mystery_spot_santa_cruz/

rando says

lots of great recommendations here.

I can't thank you all enough. There's nothing worse than looking forward to a trip and accidentally doing days of lame, touristy stuff... and by the time you figure out the good stuff, it's time to head back home.

rando says

let me know when you have dates and maybe we can meet up in the city with my wife and kids.

I'd Love to. I'll email you when we settle on the dates. I'm hoping my husband can come along, too... But with the new practice it might not be practical for both of us to leave on the same week. My kids have been sidelined a lot this year. I'm just looking forward to giving them my undivided attention even if it's just for a week.

turtledove says

I've lived in CA most of my life and, yet, I've never been north of San Luis Obispo.

When strenuous tonights show those bodacious tittys as you promised?

That should read "when are you to show those bodacious titties as you promised?"

A promise is a promise...

I think everyone covered the good stuff. Here's some random thoughts:
Fun Ess Eff death march with the kids. Lunch at the Ferry building (Acme bread sandwich of the day). Walk along waterfront to Exploratorium. Pay to go inside if you want to spend half a day there (fun hands on science stuff). Walk up the Filbert steps to Coit Tower and take in the views. Walk down towards the Waterfront. For the most part, I would say avoid Pier 39 at all costs, but it can be fun to stop (grab an ice cream cone) and see the sea lions . Next over to Musee Mechanique on Pier 45. If you have ca$h and patience, you can take a cable car to Market Street. Cheaper (and almost as much fun) is to take the historic street cars back to Market Street. Is it night yet? SFMOMA is free for those 18 and under (at the very least, stop in as they have some first floor free exhibits). Visit MLK memorial at Yerba Buena Gardens (dinner at the food court).
Visit the Marin headlands (you son would probably like the historic military batteries).
Get out on the Bay at least once. Either tour of Alcatraz (includes boat ride) or visit Angel Island (the Ellis Island of the West).