Most Beautiful Places In San Francisco

Let’s close our eyes for a moment and imagine a warm spring day. The air smells like flowers, but there’s more, a tint of salt, and you can feel the sea close. You start walking, and suddenly, you’re across the iconic Golden Gate Bridge, feeling the fresh Pacific breeze on your face as you gaze out at the shimmering bay! In this article, we’ll take a virtual tour of the most beautiful places in San Francisco, revealing hidden gems and must-see attractions that will leave you breathless and writing down this beautiful city as your next destination.

Whether it’s your first time here or your tenth, prepare to fall in love with the City by the Bay. So, settle in, and let’s explore the magic of San Francisco together!

Picture by Maarten van den Heuvel on Unsplash

Most Beautiful Places In San Francisco

Twin Peaks

Let’s start our virtual tour with a place where you can take in the whole city with only a glance. Twin Peaks, at over 900 feet high, gives you a panoramic view of San Francisco. From the Golden Gate Bridge and the downtown skyline to the Pacific Ocean stretching into the horizon. You can drive up to the parking lot, hike one of the moderate trails, or take the 37 Corbett bus. For the most magical experience, try waking up at the crack of dawn and going there as the first rays of the sun start grazing the city.

Bernal Heights Park

If you’re so in love with the city that you just want to keep looking at it, let’s try from another angle. In Bernal Heights Park, while you get a 360-degree panorama of the city, you’ll also get a less crowded experience, as it is far less popular than Twin Peaks. If you’re not particularly afraid of heights, you should take a photo of two in the tree swing near the top, just keep an eye out for the red-tailed hawks and coyotes. Don’t interact with them, please. Remember that they live in the park; you don’t, so be respectful.

Alamo Square & The Painted Ladies

Want that picture-perfect San Francisco shot to remember your visit for years to come? Head to Alamo Square Park, one of the most interesting places to visit in San Francisco and certainly one of the most popular with photographers and artists. Here you’ll find those iconic Victorian houses you’ve probably already seen in postcards. They’re called the Painted Ladies, as a wink to the elegance of their architecture and how lovely they look, so colorful and proper next to each other. These beauties were built way back in the 1890s. For the best light, try to go during Golden Hour, when the sky behind the houses passes through all the colors of the rainbow.

Photo by Joshua Sortino on Unsplash

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Crissy Field

Keeping up with the incredible views of the city, let’s go now to Crissy Field for an impressive Golden Gate Bridge. It used to be a military airfield, but now it’s a lovely waterfront park where you can have a picnic, admire the wildlife, and even ride a bike. If you like walking and exploring, you can grab some snacks and start the trek to Fort Point and Presidio right there.

Fort Point

And like that, from Crissy Field we have arrived at Fort Point, one of the most beautiful places in San Francisco. This is the perfect spot for a closer view of the Golden Gate Bridge, and as a plus, you’ll get a dose of history. This old brick fort was built under the bridge to protect San Francisco Bay against naval attacks during the Civil War. Walking around it gives you a unique perspective of the bridge, with the waves crashing below it. If you happen to visit on a particularly foggy morning, you’ll see how dramatic and mystic it is, and if you really enjoy the macabre, you can join a candlelight tour on Saturday nights.

Photo by Craig Dennis

Treasure Island

Such a romantic name, isn’t it? It makes you think of old stories and pirates. But really, it’s not as old as it might seem. It was originally constructed for the 1940 Golden Gate International Exposition and is now a residential neighborhood. But it is beautiful, one of the most incredible spots in San Francisco, a photographer’s dream. The spot is especially magical during and after sunset, with the changing lights reflecting in the water. And, after you’re tired of walking around taking pictures, you can stop at Treasure Island Museum to learn more about its construction, or at a local winery like Treasure Island Wines or Sottomarino Winery.

Lands End & The Labyrinth

If you prefer a rougher area to a man-made viewing point, there’s a place you’ll love visiting. Lands End is a rugged coastal area in San Francisco, a lesser-known spot with spectacular ocean views and a touch of mystery. It has several cliffside trails that you can follow along to enjoy the views better, like Lands End Trail or the one that leads to the Sutro Baths. These were once home to the largest indoor swimming complex in the world, but have been abandoned since then, resting as interesting ruins for curious travelers to visit. But by far, the most interesting feature in the area is the labyrinth, a stone construction from 2004 that invites visitors in to enjoy the peaceful surroundings and reflect for a while.

Baker Beach

You can’t visit San Francisco without relaxing a bit on one of its beaches, and the best one we can recommend is Baker Beach. Like most of the viewing points we’ve mentioned so far, it has a nice view of the Golden Gate Bridge. If you’re getting your swimsuit ready, then put it back down. We’re sorry, but this beach is not good for swimming in. The water is cold, and the currents get very strong. But you can enjoy the sun and have a nice picnic! And see weird wildlife get trapped in tile pools during the low tide.

Photo by Giorgio Trovato on Unsplash

Sutro Heights Park

Just right above Ocean Beach, there’s another place that you’ll like to visit in this virtual tour to the best places in San Francisco. Sutro Heights Park used to be the estate of Adolph Sutro, a rich man who lived in the 19th century. The park used to be quite the extravagant area, with gardens, mazes, and statues. But after the master died, it fell into disrepair. Now, you have to play the archaeologist and walk around looking closely to find proof of them, like fragments of stone walls, tiles from the greenhouse, and even two original statues.

Billy Goat Hill

Let’s finish the journey like we began it, with a nice hike to a quiet spot where you can get an incredible panoramic view of San Francisco. Billy Goat Hill is a hidden gem in San Francisco, and you’ll rarely see it mentioned in tourist guides. But if you do happen to read about it, especially if it’s in an old source, you’ll read about a rope swing that used to hang from an eucalyptus tree. It was removed due to safety concerns in 2016, but from time to time, unofficial swings pop up. So maybe you can swing from there, maybe you won’t.

Expert Tips to Enjoy the Most Beautiful Places in San Francisco

• Get a restaurant with a view: If you like the places we recommended, especially the ones where you can just breathe and take in the whole city at a glance, you’ll like this recommendation. Places like the Cliff House and Waterbar combine the views of the city with incredible food, so you can relax and sit down for a while with the stunning landscapes right in front of you.

• Ride the Cable Cars: Not only are they a great way to go from one point to another in San Francisco, but you’ll also enjoy the historic and scenic trip.

• Take the Ferry to Alcatraz: Alcatraz in itself is a great visit you can’t skip. But the ferry ride will give you the best views of the Bay and the Golden Gate Bridge.

Photo by Joshua Sortino on Unsplash