The town began with this mission, founded in 1817, which served as a sanatorium for Native Americans suffering from European diseases. The present building is a tidy replica dating from 1949.
Mission San Rafael Arcángel
Marin County
Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
14.4 MILES
When Frederick Law Olmsted, architect of New York's Central Park, gazed in 1865 upon the plot of land San Francisco Mayor Frank McCoppin wanted to turn…
14.77 MILES
Was it the fall of 1966 or the winter of ’67? As the Haight saying goes, if you can remember the Summer of Love, you probably weren’t here. The fog was…
14.01 MILES
If you look close today at the clinker-brick buildings lining these narrow backstreets, past the temple balconies jutting out over bakeries, acupuncture…
13.87 MILES
No one could have predicted the cultural force City Lights would become when it first opened in 1953. Sure, it had a proletarian ethos suggested by its…
San Francisco Museum of Modern Art
14.75 MILES
When the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art expanded in 2016, it was a mind-boggling feat that nearly tripled the institution's size to accommodate a…
13.6 MILES
If you want to really see San Francisco, head to Coit Tower, a 1933 art deco beaut designed by Arthur Brown, Jr. and Henry Howard that sits high up on…
11.52 MILES
Few cities boast a structure so iconic as the Golden Gate Bridge, commemorated in everything from films like The Maltese Falcon to not one but two emojis…
15.79 MILES
Welcome to San Francisco's sunny side, the land of street ball and Mayan-pyramid playgrounds, semiprofessional tanning and taco picnics. Although the…
Nearby Marin County attractions
1.59 MILES
Although he didn't live to see it built, this was architect Frank Lloyd Wright's final commission. He designed the horizontal hilltop buildings to flow…
3.24 MILES
East of Hwy 101 is the hulking mass of San Quentin, California’s oldest and most notorious prison, founded in 1852. Johnny Cash recorded an album here in…
3.49 MILES
It should be no surprise to find this small, friendly museum in Marin County, where the sport of mountain biking was born on the slopes of Mt Tamalpais…
4.07 MILES
About 6 miles northeast of San Rafael, this is a pleasant place to stop for a picnic or short hike. From Hwy 101, take the N San Pedro Rd exit and…
4.95 MILES
Several blocks west of downtown is Old Mill Park, perfect for a picnic. Here you’ll also find a replica of the town’s namesake sawmill, and a small…
6. Marin Municipal Water District
5.17 MILES
The bulk of Mt Tamalpais' natural areas are managed by the water district. The five reservoirs provide water to Marin County residents, and are beautiful…
7. Richardson Bay Audubon Center & Sanctuary
5.77 MILES
This beautiful 10.5-acre waterfront nature reserve is centered around a magnificent lemon-yellow 1876 Victorian mansion. The reserve is home to a huge…
8. Muir Woods National Monument
6.11 MILES
Muir Woods National Monument is located just a few miles north of San Francisco in Marin County, and is a prime peaceful destination for reflection within…