Biking around Golden Gate Bridge & Embarcadero

Places I covered on a Bike

1. Golden Gate Bridge
2. Ghirardelli square
3. Dragons Gate
4. Union Square
5. China Town
6. Ferry Building
7. Embarcadero
8. Fisherman’s wharf
9. Pier 39
10. Cupid’s span
11. Crissy Fields
12. Palace of fine arts
13. Yerba Buena Gardens

San Francisco

San Francisco is one of the top 5 Bike Friendly Cities in North America renowned for its cosmopolitan flair, beauty, steep rolling hills, and eclectic mix of Victorian and modern architecture. As a Non-Biker, I have always wanted to explore the city on a bike but never got a chance to do that.

Now that I was travelling to a Bike friendly city , I rented the Bikes from Bay Bike City Rentals. SFO is a hilly city and as a non biker, I was sure that I might get tired easily on a Bike and so I planned my half of the trip on Bike and rest by SFMTA (San Francisco Muni).

Day – 1

Total Miles : 6

Duration : 5 hours

I started my Day -1 early in the morning heading towards Bay Bike Rentals to collect the bikes which I rented online on their website. So I hopped on a Cable car which was just 2 blocks away from my hotel.

Cable Car

The Cable Car drops you right infront of the Bay City Bike Rentals which is the last destination.There they quickly explained everything about the bikes and directions via map which took about 15 minutes and from there we headed towards China Town.

China Town

I always love visiting China towns and love their lively atmosphere. Walking under the lanterns , tasting their authentic Chinese food , exploring their culture and shopping at it’s cheapest price you can ever find in USA will make you feel like you are in China.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BWlhr7bh21l/?taken-by=eazynazy

Dragon’s Gate

Don’t forget to stop by Dragon’s gate in China Town and appreciate it’s wonderful architecture

Union Square

From there we went to Union Square which is Just 0.3 miles away. What’s not to love about this place? It’s an High end shopping district where you can find almost  everything you want or you can just sit here for hours and watch the live entertainment as there is tons of seating available.You can also find San Francisco’s hearts here which are cool for a photo op.

Cupid’s Span

From there we went to Cupid’s span which was 1.2 miles away. This is also one of the best place for photo ops in SFO . It’s a giant contemporary sculpture depicting Cupid’s bow, situated on a lawn with bay & city views. It also has a place where you can sit and have a picnic or just stroll around the area.

Cupid’s span

Embarcadero

From here, The Embarcadero Begins. This is a 3 mile roadway with waterfront and from which piers extend into the bay. It has Ferry Building Market place, Pier 35 (from where cruises depart), Pier 39 (the most visited place in SFO) and the Fisherman’s wharf.

Pier 39 is the second most visited place in San Francisco after the Golden Gate Bridge . Besides it’s live performances, Food and Shopping , it has alot of activities for kids from Merry go round to Aquarium . The coolest part was ‘The Musical Stairs’ – presented by Artist Remo Saraceni . You can Actually create your own music while you walk up and down the stairs which is something I have never experienced.

Pier 39

Fisherman’s Wharf is  another tourist trap in San Francisco which was 0.4 miles from Ghirardelli Square. There’s plenty to see & Plenty to do here with many stores to Shop for less, sizzling Sea Foods to try, Free Exhibits, Paid Museums, Street performances, Artists , Breathtaking views of the bay bridge , Alcatraz ,Ocean and Sea lions will make a perfect place to relax or for a photo opp . Don’t forget to take a selfie at the Historic Crab Sign before you leave 😉

Fisherman’s Wharf

Ghirardelli Square

Ghirardelli Square is a landmark public square with shops and restaurants ,which was just 0.5 Miles away from the Bay City Bikes. We went there only to taste the Ghirardelli Choclates & Ice creams as it was their first store in USA. It was crowded with tourists with long waiting lines but the lines move fast. I ordered the world famous fudge sundae and it was perfectly delicious(Absolutely worth the wait). You can’t think of missing this place if you are in San Francisco.

From Ghirardelli, we went back to the hotel which was 1 mile away and parked our Bikes in the hotel and continued the rest of trip on SFMTA. If you want you can park your bikes at Bay City Bikes which is just 0.5 miles away from Ghirardelli.

Day – 2

Total Miles – 5

Duration – 5 hours

This was the day which I was dreaming from such a long time “Biking on the Golden Gate Bridge” . Yes, Finally the day has arrived when we went to see this beauty with our naked eye. Trust me this was the best experience I ever had and I will try my best to do justice to it by explaining how I actually felt Biking on the Golden Gate Bridge.

Yerba Buena Gardens :

As always we started our day early in the morning heading towards Yerba Buena Gardens. These are some beautiful gardens in the middle of the city where you can just come and relax or have a picnic. It’s opposite to St. Patrick’s church .There’s a play area for kids and a nice waterfall where you can walk under.

Yerba Buena Gardens

Golden Gate Bridge :

Golden Gate Bridge was 5 miles away from Yerba Buena Gardens, So we hopped on a Golden gate Bridge bus (4$/person) with our Bikes which takes you directly to the Bay bridge .

Golden Gate Bridge from fort Point

As soon as I saw her, I couldn’t stop gazing. She’s gorgeous and so the view surrounding her. So many mixed emotions and I just paused for a while admiring the beautiful piece of work.

The Bridge itself was 2.5 miles long with a special place allotted for the bikers which made us feel safe through out the journey. We were there on the Bridge at around 11am in the peak summer and the Bridge was covered with fog to give it a bit of mysteriousness.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BWtaQShhtLz/?taken-by=eazynazy

Unfortunately we were pressed for time, so we din’t get to cross the complete bridge (which makes me plan a second trip to SFO lol) . We Biked for a Mile or so and returned back to the fort point to pose for some pictures.

Tip : It was foggy, chilly and windy up there even in the peak summer, so cover yourself with some layers before you go there.

Crissy Field Overlook :

From the Fort point , we went down to the Crissy field overlook via Long avenue  which was the most beautiful scenic drive I have ever been. Ocean on one side and Hills on the other which takes you to a little forest like area with lots of huge trees , Horse stables and cottages, and from there we landed up on Crissy Field.

Crissy Fields

Crissy Field is 1.2 miles from the fort point but as it is a down hill, we reached there with in minutes. Crissy Field is a part of Golden Gate recreation Area with a beautiful view of ocean and Golden Gate bridge . It has a grass to setup a picnic or to do a photoshoot.

Palace of Fine Arts :

From there we went to the Palace of Fine Arts which was 1mile away. As the name itself says it’s truly a ‘Palace’ of Fine Arts. This place is absolutely jaw dropping with it’s Gorgeous architecture surrounded by a lake full of turtles, swans, and ducks. There are also tons of benches for you to sit, relax, maybe even have a picnic. The best thing about this place is, it’s full of greenery and fresh air away from the hustle and bustle of the city.

Palace of Fine Arts

From there we went to the Bay City Bike Rentals to drop our Bikes by SFMTA no:30 as we were so tired , And continued the rest of the trip in the evening by SFMTA.

Over all this is an experience that’s not to be missed. I will highly recommend renting a Bike specially for a city like San Francisco which is the most Bike Friendly City in North America.

Summary :

San Francisco is a hilly city so i would recommend renting electronic bikes or Just follow my map if you are renting a hybrid bike.

For a Non-Biker like me, it would  not have been possible to know the rules, directions and the routes without Bay Bike City Rentals so, Thanks alot for those amazing Bikes and making my trip so Successful .

Here you can read my full post on what Bay Bike City has to offer!!