Nob Hill
About Nob Hill
Nob Hill is a residential and hotel district at the summit of the hill. Several of the city’s grand hotels are clustered here, on land that held the mansions of the late-19th-century railroad and silver magnates before the 1906 earthquake and fire destroyed most of those buildings.
What to See & Do
The Fairmont San Francisco at 950 Mason Street has a marble-and-gilt lobby open to walk through. The InterContinental Mark Hopkins at 999 California Street has an exterior glass elevator. The Top of the Mark, on the 19th floor of the Mark Hopkins, has served drinks with a 360-degree view of the city since 1939. There is a dress code (no athletic wear, no flip-flops).
Grace Cathedral occupies the western edge of the hilltop at 1100 California Street. The cathedral has a tiled indoor labyrinth modeled on the one at Chartres, a Keith Haring altarpiece in the AIDS Interfaith Memorial Chapel, and a regular schedule of services and concerts.
Huntington Park is across California Street from the cathedral. The fountain at its center is a replica of the Fontana delle Tartarughe (Turtle Fountain) from the Piazza Mattei in Rome.
The Pacific Union Club at 1000 California Street occupies the former James C. Flood Mansion, the only one of the railroad-era hilltop mansions to survive the 1906 fire (brownstone is more fire-resistant than wood). The club is private.
Where to Eat & Drink
The Tonga Room & Hurricane Bar in the basement of the Fairmont serves Polynesian-style food and runs an indoor thunderstorm across the pool at the center of the room every 30 minutes. A live band plays from a barge on the pool.
The Top of the Mark serves drinks and small plates with the panorama. Dress code applies.
Filmed in Nob Hill
All San Francisco films →60 productions filmed around Nob Hill, oldest first.
1938Alexander’s Ragtime Band
1948I Remember Mama
1950D.O.A
1950Woman on the Run
1952Sudden Fear
1958Vertigo
1958The Lineup
1960Midnight Lace
1961Pleasure of His Company
1968Petulia
1968Bullitt
1973Magnum Force
1974The Towering Inferno
1974Freebie and the Bean
1976Family Plot
1978A Night Full of Rain
1979Time After Time
1981Chu Chu and the Philly Flash
1982Shoot the Moon
1983Sudden Impact+40more on recordEvery film shot in San Francisco →Where to Eat
All restaurants →House of Prime Rib
Do not order a starter, because the salad, the creamed spinach, the Yorkshire pudding and the potato all arrive with the beef anyway.
Swan Oyster Depot
Anthony Bourdain called this his favorite seafood spot in America on No Reservations.
Grubstake
If you're looking for a late night diner experience.
Bob’s Donuts
A 24-hour counter on Polk Street. Go late for fresh apple fritters and old-fashioneds
Where to Drink
All bars →
Things to Do
All activities →
Antique Vibrator Museum
Free museum inside the Good Vibrations shop on Polk Street displaying antique vibrators from the Victorian era onward, when they were sold as medical devices. Sexologist Dr. Carol Queen leads free guided tours on the third Sunday of each month (72-hour reservation).
Alchemy Springs
A 2,500-square-foot sauna and cold-plunge garden on Lower Nob Hill anchored by a 40-person circular sauna with tiered seating. Also includes cold-plunge tubs, rain showers, thermal benches, and a fire pit. Drop-in is around $57 for two hours; intro 3-pack runs $99. On Post Street, booked online.
Cable Car Museum
San Francisco's cable cars have run from this powerhouse since 1887. Watch the 14 foot winding wheels grip the cables that run under the city's streets. Free, about 30 to 45 minutes, with stops on the Powell-Mason and Powell-Hyde lines.
San Francisco Cable Cars
Skip the hour-long Powell turnaround line: walk two or three blocks up Powell and board mid-route, or take the California Street line instead.
