San Francisco has a long-running program of free guided walking tours, along with several routes you can walk on your own. Here is how to find them.
SF City Guides
SF City Guides is a nonprofit founded in 1978 that runs free guided walking tours led by trained volunteers. It offers more than 70 different tours covering neighborhoods, history, and architecture, from Chinatown and North Beach to the Mission murals, Pacific Heights Victorians, and the Gold Rush downtown. Tours run about 90 minutes to two hours. They are free, with a suggested donation of $20. Walk-ups are usually welcome, though some tours have limited space and ask you to sign up online. The current schedule is on sfcityguides.org.
Other free tours
The San Francisco Public Library and several neighborhood groups also offer occasional free walks. Holiday weekends, such as Presidents’ Day and Martin Luther King Jr. weekend, often bring an expanded slate of free tours across the city.
Self-guided routes
If you would rather set your own pace, the Barbary Coast Trail is a marked route of about four miles with bronze medallions set in the sidewalk, linking downtown and waterfront history sites from the Old Mint to Aquatic Park. The Lands End Trail runs along the coast on the northwest corner of the city, with views of the Golden Gate Bridge and the Sutro Baths ruins. The Embarcadero promenade is a flat walk along the bay from Fisherman’s Wharf to Oracle Park.
What to bring
San Francisco summers are cool and often foggy, especially in the Richmond, the Sunset, and along the coast. Bring layers and comfortable shoes. Most tours run rain or shine.
