A Rainy Day in San Francisco: Indoor Museums, Markets, and Cafes

Overview

This day is for when the weather pushes you indoors and you want to stay mostly dry. The route keeps outdoor exposure short by clustering downtown and waterfront stops in the morning, then making one transit hop to Golden Gate Park for an afternoon under one large roof. Plan a full day. Museums here are the main expense, so a CityPASS or membership can pay off if you’re hitting several. Two timing notes: SFMOMA is closed Wednesdays, and the California Academy of Sciences opens at 9:30 a.m. most days, which shapes the order below.

SFMOMA

Start downtown at SFMOMA, 151 Third Street, a large modern and contemporary art museum spread over seven gallery floors. It’s open Friday through Tuesday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Thursday noon to 8 p.m. (closed Wednesdays). General admission runs $30 for adults, with anyone 18 and under free. Note that the Free First Thursday program is on hold as of early 2026, so don’t count on a free evening. Plan two to three hours. It’s about a 10-minute walk to the Ferry Building, or grab transit if it’s really coming down.

Ferry Building Marketplace

The Ferry Building on the Embarcadero is fully indoors and open daily 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. The marketplace hall has food vendors, coffee, bakeries, and shops, so this works as a lunch stop and a dry place to wander. If your day is a Tuesday, Thursday, or Saturday, parts of the farmers market run outside under cover. Give it an hour for lunch and browsing. The Exploratorium is a short walk north along the Embarcadero at Pier 15, though you’ll be outside for a few minutes.

Exploratorium

The Exploratorium at Pier 15 is a hands-on science museum with hundreds of interactive exhibits, good for all ages and entirely indoors. It’s open Tuesday through Sunday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. (closed Mondays), with Thursday evenings 6 to 10 p.m. reserved for adults 18 and over. Plan two hours or more. After this, you’ve covered the waterfront cluster. To reach Golden Gate Park for the afternoon, take transit west, roughly 30 to 40 minutes, which keeps you out of the rain for the long crossing.

California Academy of Sciences

The California Academy of Sciences in Golden Gate Park combines an aquarium, a planetarium, a four-story indoor rainforest, and a natural history museum under one roof, so it’s a strong rainy-afternoon anchor. It’s open Monday through Saturday 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Adult admission runs roughly $45 to $55 depending on the day, with peak pricing in summer; EBT cardholders pay $5. Plan two to three hours. Everything is indoors once you’re in.

Asian Art Museum (alternate)

If you’d rather stay near downtown than cross to the park, swap in the Asian Art Museum at 200 Larkin Street in Civic Center, open Friday through Monday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. (closed Tuesday and Wednesday). General admission is free on the first Sunday of each month, with special exhibitions discounted to $15 that day. It’s a short transit ride from SFMOMA and entirely indoors, which makes it an easy substitute when the park feels too far in heavy rain.

Practical Tips

San Francisco rain is usually a winter-and-spring thing, and it tends to come in bands rather than all day, so plan to move between buildings during breaks. Bring a real rain jacket over an umbrella, since the wind off the bay turns umbrellas inside out. Transit is the dry way to make the downtown-to-park jump; a Muni day pass covers the hops. If you’re visiting two or more of these museums, price out a CityPASS before paying separate admissions. For coffee and a warm break, the Ferry Building has several cafes, and there are coffee spots near SFMOMA in the Yerba Buena area.