If you are looking for things to do for a weekend in San Francisco, you’ve came to the right place! This November I went to San Francisco for a last minute trip for one of my closest friend’s 30th birthday. It was a perfect weekend and I’m happy to share the details.

Rent a GoCar and Tour the City

Renting a GoCar was both one of the most terrifying and exhilarating things that I did in San Francisco. A GoCar is a bright yellow miniature car that takes you on a tour around San Francisco. The car comes equipped with a GPS and virtual tour guide. The car guides you to top sightseeing attractions while narrating your ride.

When you arrive at GoCar Tours, you have to sign a wavier. You know, the one that basically says if you die it’s on you. You also have the option of buying car insurance for the time that you are renting the car. It was under $20 and we purchased it because I don’t have the money to buy a new mini car if something happened to it.

After all the formalities, you watch a five minute safety video, get your helmet, and take off. We immediately got lost. But they had a number you can call that got us right back on track. We made our way to the Golden Gate Bridge and learned a lot on the way thanks to the navigation/tour guide.

The car even led us to a beach to walk and take pictures on. It was the perfect afternoon trip.

Website: gocartours.com

Pricing: $85 for 1hr, $150 USD for 2hrs (they have specials on their website as well) You can also add on more hours for an additional cost.

Places you can see on tour: Golden Gate Bridge, Pacific Ocean, Lombard Street, Fisherman’s Wharf, Crissy Field, Fort Point, Fort Mason, The Legion of Honor, The Marina, The Presidio, Palace of Fine Arts, Crooked Street, Russian Hill and more.

Tips: Don’t get it the drivers seat if you’re afraid of driving up and down steep hills. You’re driving the GoCar on the streets with regular cars so it can be intimating at first. But the people of San Francisco went extremely nice and gave you space to figure everything out.

Visit Golden Gate Fortune Cookie Factory in China Town

This was one of the most memorable experiences that I had during my weekend in San Francisco. This place is famous and a staple in the community. They sale all kinds and flavors of fortune cookies, but the reason that we went was to make personalized fortunes.

We we walked up to the location, there was a line out the door which wasn’t surprising given the notoriety. Thankfully, we were able to skip it to go straight to the fortune making table. You take a slip of paper that is provided, write your message on it and hand it to the women making cookies so they can put the fortune in it.

My best friend Chelsea and I wrote fortunes for each other and swapped cookies. You can make as many as you would like. I have to shoutout the amazing owner that showed us such kindness. When he found out that it was Chelsea’s 30th birthday he gifted us the cookies for free, along with the mug. We felt very welcomed there.

Website: https://www.goldengatefortunecookies.com/visit

Price: Varies, but for a custom fortune about $2 USD a cookie.

Address: 56 Ross Alley San Francisco, CA, 94133, United States

Jones 620

Jones 620 is a restaurant and drag show in Union Square San Francisco. The food was and the drinks are delicious. As a group we got the devil eggs and ribs for our starters. For the main course, we ordered the breakfast burrito, classic eggs benedict, JFC Jones Fried Chicken & Waffles, and the breakfast pizza.

The only thing that we didn’t really enjoy was the chicken and waffles. Other than that the food was really good! And on top of that you got free entertainment with the drag show. The drag show doesn’t start until about 11 am on Sundays, but I recommend getting there earlier because the crowd starts coming in around 10:30ish for the show.

Pricing: $15 to $18 per entrée, $13-$16 per cocktail

Website: https://620-jones.com/

Address: 620 Jones St. San Francisco, CA 94102

Visit Pier 39 and the Sea Lion Sanctuary

A weekend in San Francisco is not complete without a visit to Pier 39 and the Sea Lion Sanctuary. Pier 39 is a pier filled with shopping, dining, and attractions. The pier is especially known for its seafood restaurants on the water and the Sea Lion Sanctuary.

Now I must admit I was very skeptical of visiting the Sea Lions, but they are massive, mystical creatures. You can watch them jump in and out the water and sunbathe on the dock. It’s quite fascinating. There is a strong smell coming from the area, so it’s not for the weak of stomach.

Along with restaurants and seeing the Sea Lions, there’s a 7D Experience, Sailing Charters, Aquarium, Amusement rides, Caricatures, Bike Rentals, Escape rooms, Mirror Maze, Whale Trips and more. It’s a must visit.

Address: PIER 39, The Embarcadero, San Francisco, CA 94133

Fisherman’s Wharf

If you want great seafood and people-watching Fisherman’s Wharf is the place for you to visit. There’s food stands lined up in a row with all the seafood you can imagine from clam chowder to lobster. I recommend you go on a weekend because some of the stands aren’t open on the weekdays. There’s also plenty of sit down restaurants at fisherman’s wharf that you can experience.

Address: https://www.fishermanswharf.org/things-to-do/