Coit Tower in San Francisco, California. lunamarina/Shutterstock
San Francisco is a tourist's delight. With well-known spots like Fisherman's Wharf, Pier 39, Chinatown, Haight-Ashbury, the Castro and Golden Gate Park, first-time visitors have so many attractions to keep them busy.
But the compact city has several other neighborhoods begging to be explored, from an artificial island within city limits to attractions on the residential west side where you can taste amazing international food, explore locals' favorite green spaces and hit up personality-filled bars. You can walk or use the city's Muni public transit system to explore.
Here are the best neighborhoods in San Francisco to experience the City by the Bay's boundary-pushing spirit and welcoming, diverse communities.
1. Bernal Heights
Best low-key alternative to the Inner Mission
Bernal Heights is a tight-knit residential neighborhood that's also chock full of personality-filled dive bars with local live music – especially on Mission St between Cesar Chavez and 29th St – plus excellent restaurants.
Grab a simple, hearty pasta at the whimsical Emmy's Spaghetti Shack, beefy, saucy lomo saltado (Peruvian beef stir-fry) at the group-friendly Mi Lindo Perú or hard-to-find grilled nem nuong (grilled meatballs) at Bac Lieu. Then head to the cash-only, dimly lit Royal Cuckoo for organ-based bands or a quiet time on the romantic back patio; the queer-friendly El Rio for raucous backyard parties and performances; dance-worthy DJ nights at the space-themed Mothership; or The Knockout for a punk show and boilermaker (beer cocktail).
Also consider going two blocks west of the strip (a five-minute walk) to local favorite Mitchell's Ice Cream (don't forget to grab a number near the entrance), which is open until 11:00pm and known for its Asian flavors like macapuno (a type of coconut).
Where to stay: Bernal Heights is residential, so your best bet will be vacation rentals like those on Airbnb, but also consider the bed-and-breakfast Noe's Nest a half-mile north.
2. The Sunset and The Richmond
Best neighborhoods for Asian food
While San Francisco is a small 49 sq miles, many transplants and visitors hesitate to travel "far" to the largely residential westside. However, the ocean-bearing half of SF is a gold mine of casual Asian and international eateries, and there are green spaces to explore that give a deeper understanding of the city. Major westside neighborhoods include The Sunset, which lies south of Golden Gate Park, and The Richmond which lies to the north. Both have inner and outer sections separated by busy 19th Ave, which runs north–south.
While containing a diversity of ethnicities, Clement St in The Richmond is known as the city's second Chinatown. Irving St in The Sunset could also be considered a third. In recent years, the Chinese Historical Society of America, in conjunction with the Western Neighborhoods Project, created exhibits that share more widely the long-known local knowledge about these bustling communities.
Clement St has New May Wah Supermarket (for Chinese and other Asian groceries galore), century-old Schubert's German bakery and pioneering Burma Superstar. Or chomp down on five-spice chicken garlic noodles at PPQ Beef Noodle House, giant beef rib pho at Gao Viet Kitchen and flaky-topped, butter-filled Hong Kong pineapple buns from Pineapple King.
Upper Outer Richmond houses the wild, rocky Lands End for easy-to-moderate hiking, plus remnants of old San Francisco like Sutro Baths, Cliff House and the Camera Obscura. Take a long walk along windy Ocean Beach or settle down by a beach fire pit (March to October only). Close to the Noriega food strip are the mosaic-covered 16th Ave Tiled Steps and the Hidden Garden Steps nearby.
Where to stay: There are a handful of beachside motels along Ocean Beach, though visitors wanting more updated accommodations should consider vacation rentals via VRBO, Airbnb and similar booking sites.
3. Bayview-Hunters Point
Best neighborhood for Black-owned businesses
Bayview-Hunters Point (BVHP) is an oft-ignored part of SF tucked away in the southeastern corner of the city. The Hunters Point Shipyard boomed during WWII, providing job opportunities for many Black families during The Great Migration. Post-war decline of the yard and the US Navy's toxic waste left the area less desirable and hazardous to residents' health. That said, there have been environmental clean-up and revitalization efforts, and the old shipyard now houses Hunters Point Shipyard Artists; its studios are regularly open to the public.
The 3rd St business corridor, part of the SF African American Arts and Culture District, ranges from the historic Bayview Opera House to Tallio's new-wave coffee. The district also sponsors community programming from block parties to mural unveilings, which you can see along 3rd St and other parts of BVHP.
On Innes Ave (bordering the India Basin neighborhood), you can enjoy a sauna session and rooftop café wind-down at the locally well-known Archimedes Banya Russian bathhouse, then feel re-energized to climb the 87 tiled steps of the Flights of Fancy (aka the Arelious Walker Stairway) a few yards away.
Also nearby is Posh Green, the first SF weed dispensary independently owned by a woman of color. Nearby, Cafe Alma serves house-baked granola and food from local vendors. Cross the street to peep at the historic Albion Castle.
Parking can be especially hard to find here, so consider taking the Muni Metro T Third Street Line that travels directly into Bayview.
Where to stay: There are a handful of vacation rentals in the neighborhood, but expand your options by considering the nearby Dogpatch neighborhood to the north.
4. Broadway and Columbus in Chinatown/North Beach
Best neighborhood to experience Chinese, Italian, Beat Generation and red-light district history
You can experience much of SF's history in a short amount of time and with minimal walking here. Start at the corner of hilly Broadway St and Columbus Ave, which is the convergence of Chinatown, Italian and beatnik North Beach, and the red-light district strip club area along east Broadway.
Beat poet Lawrence Ferlinghetti's City Lights Bookstore anchors the northwest corner of the intersection, boasting three floors of progressive literature. Nearby is Beat bar Vesuvio Cafe and the aptly named Jack Kerouac Alley. The Beat Museum is chock full of memorabilia, and Specs bar displays its history as a meeting place for misfits and weirdos. Just south of Specs, you'll begin to discover North Beach's Italian history, with the century-old Tosca Cafe and its signature dark red leather interior and top-notch cocktails.
Heading north on Columbus, travel deeper into North Beach for Caffe Trieste's espressos, Mario's meatball or grilled eggplant sandwiches, Tony's pizza or Liguria Bakery's famous focaccia. Order any of the recommended food for takeout and sit in Washington Square Park to people-watch.
At dinnertime, enjoy savory soup dumplings from China Live, a cocktail from the intimate Cold Drinks Bar upstairs, or Cantonese seafood dishes like crispy salt-and-pepper prawns at Yuet Lee. Don't forget the 60-year-old Golden Gate Fortune Cookie Factory, where samples of hand-folded treats are aplenty. Cross the alley for art gallery 41 Ross, then head east on Jackson to the revamped Great Star Theater for burlesque shows or Chinese opera performances.
East on Broadway from the starting intersection, many of the city's strip clubs go live at night – echoes of the city's unruly Barbary Coast days, when the area was a red-light district with dance halls and jazz clubs alongside brothels. The Condor Club right on the corner is the first SF strip club to gain legacy business status and was the first topless club in the country, thanks to legendary dancer Carol Doda.
5. Treasure Island
Best new neighborhood for unbeatable city skyline views
Close to the halfway point between San Francisco and Oakland is 400-acre Treasure Island, created as an artificial land mass for the 1939 Golden Gate International Expo. Its role since has included being a seaplane harbor for Pan-Am airlines and a decades-long naval base. Treasure Island became an official residential SF neighborhood in 1997.
The view of the SF downtown skyline – especially from Avenue of the Palms – is unbeatable, and the island is now in the early years of a 20-year development plan that includes housing, hotels, parks, restaurants and more. To get there, you can hop a ferry from the SF Ferry Building for a quick 10-minute ride to the island or take the 25 Muni bus from the Salesforce Transit Center downtown. More advanced cyclists can bike to Treasure Island from the East Bay. A SF bike path to Treasure Island may be built in the future.
Just beyond the official Treasure Island entrance is the commanding art deco Building One where you'll find the free Treasure Island Museum, which has artifacts from the World's Expo and contemporary island history. Dine and play bocce ball on the Great Lawn next to the water at Mersea, which houses Golden Hour Bar in collaboration with Gold Bar Whiskey. Or enjoy an outdoor fireside brunch at Aracely Cafe. You can rent a paddleboard or kayak from the nonprofit Treasure Island Sailing Center, too. Since the island is under rapid development, check the status of places you plan to visit before heading over.
Where to stay: Hotels on Treasure Island are still being built, so you're currently best off staying close to the Ferry Building or downtown, the easiest being both chain and boutique hotels.
6. The Tenderloin and Little Saigon
Best neighborhood for early SF LGBTIQ+ history
The Tenderloin gets a bad rap. Parts of it are rough, but it's also a neighborhood filled with culture, delicious food, artists, cool nightlife, young families and fierce community advocates giving the neighborhood a resilient vibrancy. Many people experience poverty and homelessness in the Tenderloin and some may be susceptible to substance addiction and mental health crises. Although that's generally not a safety concern for visitors, it's something to be aware of. Just use common sense when traveling through the neighborhood, wear closed-toe shoes and don't mind the smell in some areas. Most folks on the street are minding their own business.
Try to attend a famous, jubilant Sunday morning service at Glide Memorial Church, regardless of your religious leanings. Visit the Tenderloin Museum ($10 general admission) for a better understanding of the Tenderloin's role in jazz, queer, immigrant and sex worker history. And if you would feel more comfortable with a guide who knows the area, book a museum-led neighborhood walking tour ($15).
Food is plentiful along Larkin St in Little Saigon, from a hearty Saigon Sandwich Shop takeout bánh mì (cash only) to modern Northern Vietnamese cuisine at Bodega. Yemen Kitchen has comforting lentil soup and Outta Sight Pizza sells pizza slices topped with ingredients from Heart of the City Farmers' Market.
You can experience earlier vestiges of queer SF history by attending a drag show at the nearly 40-year-old Aunt Charlie's Lounge, just around the corner from the former Compton's Cafeteria, the location of a 1966 uprising predating NYC's Stonewall. Newer jazz clubs Black Cat and Mr Tipple's pay tribute to the area's jazz legacy.
Where to stay: Some hotels in the area are SROs, so research carefully. Consider the rock and roll Phoenix Hotel (which also throws legendary pool parties) on the southern end near Market St, HI San Francisco Downtown Hostel if you're on a budget or hotels in the neighboring Theater District or Union Square.
7. Divisadero Street
Best neighborhood for independent eating, drinking and live music venues
Along a stretch of Divisadero St (or just "Divis"), running north–south from Golden Gate Ave to Page St – and just down the street from the Painted Ladies – you can have a full, locals-heavy nightlife experience within seven straight (if slightly hilly) city blocks or less. Once you take a rideshare to the area or Muni bus 24, it's easy to spend an evening eating, drinking and being musically merry in some of the city's best places.
From the top near Golden Gate Ave and going south, dig into Southern comfort food at Brenda's Meat & Three, barbecue and chicharrones (fried pork belly) at the spacious 4505 Burgers & BBQ or a takeout slice of bulgogi and kimchi sourdough pizza from Sunset Squares Slice Shop, then Ethiopian food, drinks, dancing and live music at the historic Club Waziema. Or center the night around a midsize indie rock or hip-hop show at The Independent, first with well-executed cocktails at the Arts and Crafts movement–inspired Horsefeather, then sweaty dancing at the intimate Madrone Art Bar or relaxed drinks at The Page.
Where to stay: A few boutique hotels, such as the Metro Hotel, and bed-and-breakfasts including Chateau Tivoli dot the neighborhood, as well as Airbnbs, mostly in Victorian properties.