San Francisco: know before you go

San Francisco International Airport (SFO) sits 13 miles south of downtown. BART is the fastest and cheapest way into the city: trains leave from the International Terminal every 15–20 minutes and reach downtown in about 30 minutes. Tap any contactless credit or debit card at the fare gate, or use a Clipper card. The one-way fare to downtown runs about $10–11. A taxi or ride-share to downtown costs $50–70 and takes about 30 minutes without traffic. Oakland International Airport (OAK) is across the bay; BART also connects it to downtown SF with a short AirTrain link at the Coliseum station. Amtrak trains and the California Zephyr stop at Emeryville, with a connecting Amtrak bus to the city. The Caltrain commuter rail line from San Jose and the Peninsula terminates at 4th and King, near Oracle Park.

San Francisco's Muni system covers buses, light-rail Metro trains, historic streetcars, and the cable cars. A single ride costs $2.85 on a Clipper card or MuniMobile app and gives you 120 minutes of unlimited transfers. The cable car is a separate $9.00 per ride. If you plan to ride more than twice a day, the 1-Day Visitor Passport at $15.00 pays for itself the moment you board a cable car. For a longer stay, the 3-Day ($35.00) and 7-Day ($47.00) passports cover all Muni services including cable cars. BART is a separate regional rail system that is fast for crossing the city but is not the same as Muni. The Clipper card works on both. Walking is San Francisco's best transit mode: the city is only seven miles across, and hills reveal views buses miss. But do not underestimate those hills. Plan your route to avoid climbing Nob Hill on foot with luggage.

San Francisco adds a 14% Transient Occupancy Tax to every hotel room and short-term rental under 30 days. On top of that, most hotels in the city center add a Tourism Improvement District assessment of 2.25% and a Moscone Expansion District assessment of 1.25%. What looks like a $200 room will land closer to $235 after all taxes and fees. There is no additional city tourist tax at the airport or in restaurants beyond standard California sales tax. Cards are accepted everywhere; you can get through a San Francisco trip without touching cash. Tipping follows standard U.S. norms of 15–20% at restaurants. For currency and national tipping customs, see the United States country guide.

San Francisco is a safe city for tourists who use the same street sense they would in any large American city. The Tenderloin, roughly between Union Square and Civic Center, has concentrated street homelessness and open drug use; it is best avoided on foot at night, though most visitors never need to pass through it to reach major attractions. Car break-ins are a genuine problem across the city. Never leave anything visible in a parked car: not a bag, a charger cable, or loose change. Windows get smashed for items that look like they might contain valuables. Beyond that, the neighborhoods you are likely to explore on foot (North Beach, the Marina, the Mission, the Castro, the Haight, the Richmond, the Sunset) are walkable and welcoming. For any emergency, call 911. For non-emergency city services or to report a problem, call 311.

Alcatraz is the one attraction you must book before you leave home. Tickets for the ferry and island sell out weeks or months in advance, especially for the popular night tour. Book directly through Alcatraz City Cruises, the official concessionaire. Once you have a confirmed ticket, the experience is well-run and the audio tour is excellent. Beyond Alcatraz, make dinner reservations for any restaurant you have your heart set on, especially Thursday through Saturday. The city's dining scene runs on reservations, and walk-in tables at the best places are rare. If you are visiting during a major event like Dreamforce or a big conference at Moscone Center, book your hotel as early as possible: rooms can vanish citywide.

San Francisco has free public Wi-Fi along Market Street, in many parks, and at public libraries. Coverage is spotty but functional for basic browsing. All three major U.S. carriers have strong 5G coverage across the city. If you are visiting from abroad, an eSIM with a U.S. data plan is the easiest way to stay connected without hunting for a physical SIM card. Most coffee shops, bars, and hotel lobbies offer free Wi-Fi.

English is the primary language everywhere in San Francisco. Spanish, Cantonese, and Mandarin are widely spoken, especially in the Mission District and Chinatown. The city's 311 information line offers assistance in over 160 languages. Most signs, transit announcements, and public information are in English only, with some Spanish and Chinese in neighborhoods with large immigrant communities.

All Muni buses and light-rail vehicles are wheelchair-accessible with ramps or lifts. Every BART station has elevators and accessible fare gates. The historic cable cars are not wheelchair-accessible due to their 19th-century design, but the F-line historic streetcars are accessible. Most major attractions, including the Ferry Building, the Exploratorium, and the California Academy of Sciences, are fully accessible. The steep hills and older sidewalks in neighborhoods like Nob Hill and Russian Hill can be challenging for visitors with limited mobility. Plan routes that use the flatter corridors: the Embarcadero, Market Street, and the Mission District are much easier to navigate.