Favorite San Francisco Experiences

Every city offers experiences that are unique, that express the personality of the place. They're not usually the most popular sights, or the most often-mentioned activities. Instead, they're the intimate glimpses of a city's unique character, and when you experience them, they'll redefine your image of the place forever. These are my favorite San Francisco experiences.

• The walk from Crissy Field to Fort Point may be the most beautiful urban hike in the world. Westward, you face the Golden Gate Bridge and on the return, it's the San Francisco skyline. Share the pathway with local bicyclists, dog-walkers and joggers, or take a detour to dodge the waves along the water's edge.

• Chinese Funerals are a uniquely San Francisco tradition. Starting from North Beach's Green Street Mortuary, the procession winds down Columbus Avenue and sometimes through Chinatown's streets. Led by a brass band playing western religious music and a convertible carrying a larger-than-life picture of the departed, it's an east-meets-west contradiction that typifies the city it happens in. You're most likely to see one on Saturday morning.

• Walk down Telegraph Hill from Coit Tower, following the steps on the east side of the hill. You'll pass through a wooded area, houses accessible only via wooden steps and a flower-filled hillside garden.

• The Golden Gate Bridge is beautiful to look at, and fun to drive over, but a walk across it is the only way to fully experience the structure. At its center, you're over 200 feet above the water, with the towers rising almost 300 feet above.

• City Guides' indomitable volunteer tour guides lead walking tours rain or shine. Go behind the scenes in the Palace Hotel, visit rarely-seen upstairs murals at Coit Tower, or explore dozens of other San Francisco locations. Tours are free, but donations are appreciated.

• Cruisin' the Castro is a walk through San Francisco's gay and lesbian history, and Trevor Hailey is one of the city's best and most engaging tour guides.

• Vampire Tour, led by playwright Kitty Burns, mixes vampire fantasy with Nob Hill history in a performance that's sure to entertain.

• The Beach Chalet is my favorite alternative to the tourist-filled Cliff House located just up the beach. Explore San Francisco history through the downstairs murals, then go upstairs to the microbrewery, ask for a window table and enjoy a meal or drinks while you watch the breakers roll in or the sun set.

• The Marin Headlands are another good place to watch a sunset (if the day isn't foggy), with the bridge and the city behind it. To get there, drive north on US101, exit at the first exit after the bridge, then turn left and drive uphill on Conzelman Road. Skip the first busy stop you pass and stop about halfway up the hill.

• Fillmore Street is one of San Francisco's best local shopping streets. Filled with local boutiques and with hardly a chain store in sight, it's a good bet for shopping, people-watching and a good meal.

• Baker Beach boasts one of the best Golden Gate Bridge views in the city, but the views aren't its only attraction. Here, in the great San Francisco tradition of tolerance, fishermen, tourists and dog-walkers roam the beach, ignoring nearby sunbathing nudists.

• Stern Grove Concerts, held every summer Sunday, are a long-standing San Francisco tradition. Pick up a picnic lunch, and join the crowd for a free concert in the middle of a stately eucalyptus grove.

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