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Take these shortcuts to most informative resources and best spots to hang out in San Francisco, Marin County and
Sonoma County. Just a small sample of the live links in each edition of Renting Paradise.
If you're planning to travel beyond Northern California, check out Slow Travel, a website built of the philosophy of really
settling in and really discovering what a place has to offer best done by renting a vacation home. Many of the rentals
listed are in Europe and there is an active member forum. Read Pauline Kenny's beautifully expressed ode to the
joys of slow travel.
SAN FRANCISCO
Getting Your Bearings
The San Francisco Convention and Visitors Bureau is a great place for general information including a calendar of
events. Check the FAQ page for an explanation of how to use public transportation.
The San Francisco Chronicle has compiled the best guide to the city’s neighborhoods I’ve seen. In addition to
capturing the distinctive personality of each, each description recommends specific shops and restaurants.
If you know the city well, SF Travel.com is an independent guide that cuts to the chase about what's worth seeing and
how to avoid the “lamest tourist traps”.
Also check out (or cast a cote for) the "City’s Best”—representing a wide range of categories from “Best Romantic
Restaurants” to “Best Places to Take the Kids”.
Once your feet are on the ground, a fun way to begin to “get your arms around” the city is to walk it. Volunteer San
Francisco City Guides lead free walking tours (each about two hours long) that cover every neighborhood as well as a
variety of themes, such as “ghost walks” or “downtown deco”.
FOOT! Comedian-Led Walking Tours do the same thing—with a humorous twist.
Getting Around
The city’s most efficient mode of travel is the San Francisco Municipal Railway. Better known as “Muni," this network of
buses, cable cars, and vintage streetcars will take you anywhere in the city. The F-Market Line features a fleet of vintage
street cars from Hiroshima, Melbourne, New Orleans, Philadelphia and Milan running along the Embarcadero from
Fisherman’s Wharf to Market St. An online Trip Planner will show you the best way to get from point A to point B
throughout the Bay Area, taking into account the time of day you plan to travel.
Cool places to hang out
Caffe Trieste. The West Coast’s first espresso coffeehouse, still at the corner of Vallejo and Grant Sts., North Beach
(San Francisco’s Little Italy). The Giotta family serves up live Italian opera with your coffee on Saturday afternoons.
Ferry Plaza Farmer's Market. Try yak butter tea. Sample olive oils flavored with blood orange or Persian lime and
cheese, freshly harvested Hog Island oysters and spicy Sicilian sausages at the market kiosks in the historic Ferry
Building, a landmark on the Embarcadero at Market St.
The Presidio. Hiking the cypress, pine and eucalyptus forests with sweeping views of the bay, you’ll wonder if you’re
still in the city at all.
MARIN COUNTY
Getting Your Bearings
The Marin County Visitor Bureau has a general introduction to the communities along Highway 101 on the way to the
Napa and Sonoma Valley wine regions.
If you’re traveling to Point Reyes National Seashore, Tomales Bay State Park and the surrounding villages of Stinson
Beach, Inverness, Dillon Beach, Marshall, Olema, Point Reyes Station and Tomales, check out the West Marin
Chamber of Commerce or Coastal Traveler. Both have articles about the history of Point Reyes towns, as well as
links to specific restaurants, shops and attractions.
Getting Around
Check schedules for ferries San Francisco and the Bayside towns of Sausalito and Larkspur.
If you plan to go farther, you’ll need a car. Most rental companies have offices at the airport and in the city.
Cool Places to Hang Out
The sophisticated Bay-side communities of Sausalito, Mill Valley, Larkspur and Tiburon cultivate a Mediterranean-style
love of life’s simple pleasures—good food, sweeping views and a cloak of mountains laced with hiking and bike
paths.
On the lower slopes of Mount Tamalpais, most visible point in Marin County, Muir Woods National Monument is the
Bay Area’s last virgin redwood forest. Some trees are a thousand years old. The tallest stands 254 feet high; the
thickest is 14 feet across. The 560-acre park includes six miles of paved, mostly level trails. “Mt. Tam’s” triple peak
profile—said to resemble a sleeping Indian girl—dominates more than 6,000 acres of rolling coastal hills in Tomales
Bay State Park.
The Point Reyes Peninsula is separated from the mainland by Tomales Bay (not to mention the San Andreas Fault).
The farther you travel on Highway 1, the more remote and magnificent it is. Past Stinson Beach–with its five-mile swath
of white sand and reliable sunshine—Bolinas Lagoon is a birder’s paradise. Even amateurs can glimpse some of the
115 species at Audubon Canyon Ranch.
At the tiny crossroads of Olema (the Miwok Indian word for coyote), you’re at the gateway to Point Reyes National
Seashore. The Bear Valley Visitor Center (half a mile west of downtown Olema, on Bear Valley Rd.) has interesting
exhibits of the abundant plants, animals and marine life in the area. Check the board for daily gray whale sightings
January through May off Point Reyes Lighthouse on the blustery tip of the peninsula.
Tomales Bay State Park. A sanctuary for kayakers and swimmers (yes, the water is actually warm enough to swim in
here at sweet spots named Heart’s Desire and Shell Beach). Pierce Point Road is the entrance to the Tule Elk
Preserve where you may see a herd of the once endangered elk grazing.
Small historic towns of Marshall, Tomales, Dillon Beach and Point Reyes Station were whistle-stops along the 1870s
route of the North Pacific Coast narrow gauge railroad. Marshall is a favorite of kayakers and best known for fresh
oysters. Dillon Beach, located where Tomales Bay merges with the Pacific Ocean, has powdery sand with great views.
Tomales and Point Reyes Station have some the area’s best restaurants. Point Reyes Station is the largest, with
wonderful gift and curio stores, art galleries and locally grown cheeses from the Cowgirl Creamery.
SONOMA COUNTY
Getting Your Bearings
When you’re ready to start planning your trip, you’ll find a wonderful resource at www.sonomacounty.com.
Bodega Bay Charter a boat for an afternoon of sport fishing in this quaint village, where fishing is still serious
business. You may recall the historic schoolhouse and church in the neighboring town of Bodega from the classic
Hitchcock thriller, “The Birds.”
Occidental. Shopping—or just hanging out—in this former logging community, you’ll feel embraced by the lush
redwood forest and surrounding hills. Treat yourself to traditional family-style Italian dinner at Negri’s.
Sonoma The heart of this casually sophisticated town is an eight-acre Spanish plaza built in 1835 when General
Mariano Vallejo created a town next to the Sonoma mission. Today, it’s lined with up-to-the-minute boutiques, galleries
and top-rated restaurants. But it’s still fun to step back to the early 1800s touring Mexican army barracks and Mission
San Francisco de Solano.
Healdsburg Tucked between the Alexander, Dry Creek and Russian River valleys, you’ll be in easy range of more than
60 wineries and right on the banks of the Russian River. That’s if you can tear yourself away from the shops, tasting
rooms, gourmet grocery and free Sunday concerts on the Plaza.
Geyserville There are two good restaurants in this historic crossroads, making it a nice stop or a home base for
exploring the Alexander Valley wineries along Hwy. 128.
The Sea Ranch You’ll need to display a special pass (available to anyone who rents a vacation home through Sea
Ranch Escape) to explore this private coastal community by car. Once you arrive, you probably won’t see any reason to
leave. There are 10 miles of coastal trail to hike, as well as bike trails, three year-round recreation centers, an
equestrian center and an 18-hole golf course.
Cool Things to Do
Osmosis Residents and in-the-know tourists beat a path here. Rated one of the country’s “Top 10 Spas” by Travel &
Leisure. Reserve your Japanese-inspired “cedar enzyme” bath or creek-side massage near the weekend so you can
stop into Wildflower Bakery (open Friday through Monday only) for a loaf of hand-kneaded, brick oven-baked bread.
California Carnivores This Sebastopol is believed to have the country’s largest selection of carnivorous plants.
Paddle Up Kayak Rent a kayak, take a lesson or take a tour of the Petaluma River and Wetlands.
Kayak tours include The Petaluma River History Tour, Eco-Tour, Bird-Watching and Full Moon Paddles.
Ramekin’s Sonoma Valley Culinary School How many times in your life will you have the luxury of learning the secrets
of a renowned chef and culinary expert—and the leisure to practice your new skills in a fully stocked kitchen?
Nominated as “Cooking School of the Year” by the International Association of Culinary Professionals, Ramekins offers
a wide variety of cooking and wine courses to “home cooks” in its two state-of-the-art teaching kitchens.