USA

The Perfect 3-Day Itinerary For San Francisco (2023 Updated Travel Guide)

September 16, 2022 by Bino 4 Comments

This is a long overdue guide to one of my favorite cities in the world. For a place that has less than one million people, San Francisco has definitely pushed above its weight in terms of contributions to the world. From Levi’s and Gap to UBER and Airbnb, the city has always managed to keep itself in the cutting edge. For the casual visitor, the number of things to do seems to be disproportional to the city’s land area and it’s often hard to decide how to plan a visit to San Francisco especially when it’s the first time.

This itinerary groups together attractions and places that are near or connected to each other for a more organized trip to the city by the bay. It offers a great mix between scenic spots, eating, shopping and with a few hipster areas thrown in. Without further ado, here’s a 3-day itinerary that you can follow for San Francisco.

…

The Perfect 2-Day Itinerary for Carmel & Monterey

September 18, 2021 by Bino 1 Comment

Monterey and Carmel are two of the most popular destinations in California’s Central Coast, but they’re best seen as a pair. Located around 2 hours’ drive from San Francisco, these twin destinations are popular for weekend trips from the City by the Bay. The Monterey Bay Aquarium is one of the world’s top 10 aquariums, and it has quickly become a must-see tourist attraction for visitors to Monterey. Some people like to combine their visit with a day trip to Pebble Beach Golf Links or Point Lobos State Reserve; others prefer to stay in Monterey and explore its charming downtown area.

This sample itinerary aims to show how you can cover the two towns of Monterey or Carmel in as little as 2 days. This can be easily done as a weekend trip out from the Bay Area or as part of a wider trip tracing California’s coastline.

…

The Essential 3-Day Itinerary for New Orleans – Most Exotic City in the United States

February 18, 2019 by Bino 2 Comments

The mix of cultures in New Orleans makes the city one of the most interesting places in the world to visit. “The Big Easy” is known for its history and architecture, music and art, and cuisine and nightlife.

There is so much to see and do that travellers return again and again to expand their explorations. With more than 1,000 restaurants and cafes, the food options alone guarantee a unique experience every time. The city is always humming with the sounds of its celebrated jazz and blues musicians, as well as frequent festivals and other events.

For those who have only three days to spend in New Orleans, here is a suggested itinerary.

…

New York For First-Timers : Should You Get the CityPASS?

November 9, 2016 by Bino 1 Comment

As the preeminent city of the USA and a world leading center of culture, business and politics; there is no other place quite like New York City. I visited the Big Apple for four days a couple of months ago and thought I had barely scratched the surface. There are just too many things to see and do there that it’s hard to figure out where to start.

As it was my first time to visit the city and I only had a few days to spare, I got myself a New York CityPASS as it offered access to the very sights I wanted to visit – at a fraction of the cost of buying them separately. I also did not want my trip to turn out to be a check list of things to see and do and the six attractions that come with the said pass were manageable and I could spend the rest of my time doing other things.

…

Golden Gate Park

November 30, 2009 by Bino Leave a Comment

One of my favorite spots in San Francisco is Golden Gate Park, a mere eight minutes walk from where I used to live. Some guidebooks cite this rectangular piece of land as one of the must-sees in the city, and rightfully so. Unfortunately, its location away from the main tourist areas makes it less frequented by tourists.

While most locals wouldn’t be caught dead near many of the city’s top attractions – for example, walking around Fisherman’s Wharf, visiting Lombard’s “Crooked Street” or riding one of those touristy cable cars are no-nos for San Franciscans; Golden Gate Park today is a living, functioning landmark which is visited by tourists and locals alike. As a 1000 acre park that is 3 miles long, Golden Gate is larger than New York’s Central Park and dare I say, more varied. Aside from the usual trees and park benches that are mainstays of city parks anywhere in the world, Golden Gate houses a music concourse, museums, windmill, botanical greenhouse, beach chalet plus a roaming ground for bison.

Walking from one end of the park to another is possible, although tiring. I ended up walking at least 4 hours in order to see all the main sights. From the western end, I started at the windmill as most people do. A curious sight in San Francisco, it was actually built in 1903 as a functional supplier of water.

windmill at the park

the bisons have been here since 1891

From the windmills moving eastward, the next stop is usually the bison paddock, which contain these grazing animals normally associated to the United States. A number of artificial lakes are also located in this section of the park, including Stow Lake and the man-made island in the middle.

the japanese tea garden

Towards the eastern side of the park is the public Japanese Tea Garden, reputedly the oldest Japanese garden in the United States. The five-acre enclosure is a chargeable area, at $5 a pop.

conservatory of flowers

flower beds

The main highlight of the park is probably the grand, white-colored conservatory. It is the oldest building within the compound. During summer, the main lawn facing the greenhouse is filled with elaborately-designed flowerbeds.

de young museum inside the park

I was fortunate to be in San Francisco when the De Young Museum was opened right after the new building was completed. They offered free admission as well as souvenirs to the visitors during the first week. There is a viewing deck at the topmost floor that has good views of the park’s long expanse.

street performers during museum launch

SF Botanical Gardens

Other activities: biking, rollerblading, rent a boat, play frisbee, enjoy a free concert

How to get there: Take Bus 5 from downtown San Francisco and get off at Fulton Street. The bus goes through the whole length of the park.

Halloween

October 22, 2009 by Bino 4 Comments

Since it’s that time of the year again, I thought I’d do a Halloween-related post to heighten the atmosphere here a bit. This entry takes me back to the public Halloween costume party in Castro Street in San Francisco, USA. Once considered to be the leading Halloween celebration in the country, it was a well-known city event from the 1970’s up until it was canceled in 2007 due to security issues.

one of the more tame pictures, as a teaser

one of the tamer pictures, as a teaser

I had the chance to see the second to the last Halloween celebration in the Castro. This mainstay in San Francisco’s gay district was immensely popular with city folks of all backgrounds as well as tourists. The 2005 Halloween party was loud, boisterous, shocking, funny and kitschy yet we as spectators just could not help but watch.

After dinner on the 31st of October, me and my roommate took the bus from our dorms to the Castro. All I had on was a lame postman costume but it was alright. Some of our local friends had suggested that we check out the quirky San Francisco style of celebrating Halloween. And yeah, it was really eye-opening.

Pictures after the jump. Some of the pictures may be considered offensive, so be aware of that. Hope you view with an open mind as I did!

…

California Road Trip

October 20, 2009 by Bino 4 Comments

Taking a road trip around the US is a highly recommended way to explore this massive country. It may be a more time-consuming affair but I believe it’s the way to go for travelers who want to see what the American heartlands are like. Road travel in America is convenient, (mostly) safe, and fun. From my experience, there’s always something interesting to see at every exit (trust me, there’s always a sign that advertises the nearest tourist trap).

Back when I was still a student in San Francisco, we rented a car one weekend and drove all around Central California without any itinerary or idea of what we could see. It actually turned out more fun that way, as it was easy to get around and the journey itself was very pleasant. Our route was as follows – We started in San Francisco in the morning, then drove to Daly City to pick up lunch, then drove south via Highway 1 but not before stopping by Santa Cruz’s beach and its historic boardwalk. We drove further down and upon reaching Pebble Beach near Monterey, we took the 17-mile scenic drive which included the lone cypress, and a brief stop at the affluent town of Carmel. We spent the night at this drive-in hotel in Pacific Grove – a town bordering Monterey. The following morning, we explored Monterey’s downtown, with a stop at their aquarium and Cannery Row. Then, it was a 2 hour drive via Highway 101 to Gilroy and its humongous outlet store complex. We drove further north and spent the night back in San Francisco (though we planned to use the car for one more day). Woke up early the next day and drove up past the Golden Gate Bridge to the densely forested Muir Woods. We then made our way up north to Petaluma and had an early dinner there. Drove back to San Francisco afterwards, and took the scenic route via Lombard “zigzag” street and Twin Peaks before returning our car back to the rental company. Our route map is shown below:

[googlemaps http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&hl=en&msa=0&msid=107439875309703422813.000476559b1ad2d443b38&ll=37.437793,-122.13501&spn=1.875474,1.373291&z=9&output=embed&w=500&h=860]

Just a tip for those who are planning to rent cars for such trips, it’s very easy to negotiate with rental companies. Discount coupons are usually easy to find in the internet (just make sure they’re not expired) by entering “name-of-company coupons.” In our booking, we managed to get a discount for our 3-day rental plus a car upgrade which wasn’t a bad deal at all.

Some pictures of the trip.

santa cruz

It was low season during our visit so there weren’t many people at the beach. Many of the attractions at the boardwalk were likewise closed.

pebble beach in the 17-mile scenic drive

cypress point lookout in the 17-mile scenic drive

There is a small charge (per car) to enter the 17-mile scenic drive, but it’s worth it! There are more than a dozen points of interest within that stretch.

the lone cypress

The lone cypress is the main attraction in the 17-mile scenic drive, and is a staple in postcards and brochures featuring Monterey and surrounds.

the golden state theater in monterey

Many of California’s historic theaters were built with a Spanish-influenced baroque facade (San Francisco’s Castro Theater is another example), and this one in Monterey is no exception.

muir woods

Many of the trees in the conservation area are several hundreds or more than a thousand years old. The area is so densely forested that light only penetrates in narrow beams such as this one.