San Francisco - Areas to Avoid?

[Onward Allusion]

Going to SF for a well deserved vacation in the near future. We're staying in the Nob Hill area and hoofing it or cabbing it everywhere 'cause it really doesn't make sense to drive in that city.

Any particular areas to avoid? (yes - I do listen to the news...& have no want or desire to venture out of the main city)

Being on vacation, I will not be carrying so the best my wife and I will have is reliable one-hand lockblade & a couple of Kimber Guardians (pepper).

 

[JJE]

I lived in SF for 15 years and still work there. Even though you can read about people being killed in SF every single day (and moreso in Oakland where I live now), you really have to go looking for trouble to find it in SF, especially if you're starting on Nob Hill. You will probably see a lifetime's worth of deranged individuals but street people are generally not dangerous if you don't provoke them. You'll quickly get tired of being hit up by panhandlers, but feel free to ignore requests for change (they're used to being turned down).

A couple of exceptions might be Haight Street and the Mission District, which STILL aren't dangerous unless you're drunk and out late at night (which is probably true of any part of any big city). There is absolutely no reason to go to the worst parts of town and they aren't that easy to get to.

I would avoid really crowded buses (example: the 38 Geary that goes through Union Square and most of the Chinatown/North Beach buses are often packed). During the week crowded buses are full of schoolkids who can get rowdy. The BART rail and MUNI light rail systems can also get crowded but BART is generally kid-free and MUNI has much fewer delinquents than the buses. You have to be pretty clueless to get your pocket picked - I'm sure there are many thieves around, but as long as you don't keep your wallet in your back pocket and keep an eye on your stuff (people often walk away from laptops in coffee shops and have them stolen that way) you'll be OK. Strong-arm robbery is pretty unusual (again unless you are out late and drunk).

Have fun!

 

[janedoedad]

Former S.F. Police Dispatcher here;

Do not go wandering about Hunters Point, avoid the Tenderloin. The Haight is interesting but sadly many of the denizens are still stuck in the 60's - in their 60's.

The best Chinese restaurants are downstairs from street level and have very little signage. Stay out of the alleys.

Golden Gate Park is not a place to play at night.

The Sea Lions at Pier 39 (Yes, it is a tourist hell!) are worth seeing. It's a great story about Man vs Nature and nature winning!

As JJE says, you will some very interesting street life. Most of them are harmless.

GFor getting around town, check into a Muni City Pass (or whatever they are called these days) The pass allows unlimited use of Muni Bus and Rail and the Cable Cars.

Have a great trip!!


Have a great trip!

 

[mljdeckard]

I spent a day there with my family and decided I won't go back until I can go with only sensible adults who can keep a sense of awareness.

Even if the panhandlers are actually harmless, they have developed a level of behavior that they couldn't get away with anywhere else. My wife got grabbed by one as she walked past, and I had to remind myself that just because I could get away with breaking his wrist ANYWHERE ELSE, in SF it's better to just keep walking. The city has allowed a culture of drug abuse, crime, and entitlement to rule the place after decades of touchy-feely public policy.

Nob Hill is pretty, just remember that every hill you walk down means a hill you will have to walk back up. And yes, while there are certainly parts of town that are worse than others, I can't say that anywhere in town is 'safe' in the sense that most of us are used to. Use the buddy system, and at night, I wouldn't walk anywhere, I would use taxis.

 

[9mmepiphany]

Hunters point is the first thing that comes to mind...but why would you even go there.

i grew up in The City and it's a pretty safe place. i don't live there anymore, mostly because i can't afford it, but i do like to visit. i find it much more foot than car friendly.

just don't do things you wouldn't in any other big city. being drunk and wandering into a dark alley by yourself in a pretty bad idea anywhere.

whe i was in high school..back in the 60's...we used to hang out in Golden Gate park at night "looking for zombies"...we did some pretty stupid stuff when we were young

 

[JJE]

we used to hang out in Golden Gate park at night "looking for zombies"...

Hah! Those weren't zombie's, they were hippies who short-circuited their brains "experimenting" with drugs. They're still there to this day.

Just remembered, North Beach, which is a big tourist destination, has gotten a pretty bad reputation for violence in the last couple of years, but again, mostly at 2AM on Saturday and Sunday when all the bars and clubs simultaneously kick all their drunk patrons into the street.

 

[4v50 Gary]

Ditto, stay out of Hunter's Point unless you have Hellfire equipped drones guarding you from above, a column of uparmored Humvees to extract you, and some fire support from some Abrams. It's a cesspool. Tenderloin is nasty too. Druggies and parolees run amock there.

Go to Liguria Bakery on Stockton & Filbert (btwn 8:30 am and 12 noon). Best foccacia bread in town. Buy two slices and walk down to Pier 39 and munch on them there while you look at the seals.

If you want to go to Alcatraz, buy your tickets on line and in advance. I have to go there this Saturday for a (uggh) meeting. However, this Saturday also features Civil War Days on Alcatraz. While famous as a prison, Alcatraz was a fortress that guarded San Francisco for most of its existence.

If you want to catch the cable car, catch the California street line. No waiting unlike the other two lines.

Best Italian restaurants are Firenze by Night (Stockton between Green and Vallejo) and Tomasso's Pizzeria (Keaney btwn Broadway & Pacific). Both have real Italian cooks and not Brazilians of Italian or partial Italian descent.

 

[CWL]

Only the Tenderloin can be accidentally wandered-into since it is between Union Square and Market Street. Be careful of Mission St. at night, lots of great restaurants there, but ask them to call you a taxi after dinner. You have to seriously be in need of drugs to make it to Bay View/Hunters Point.

Generally, SF is the most popular vacation city in the USA because it earned it by being a generally safe place to be, live-in and visit. The 'touristy' places are generally safe during daytime and at night.

You can get around by BART, feet and taxi without getting into trouble.

 

[9mmepiphany]

Generally, SF is the most popular vacation city in the USA because it earned it by being a generally safe place to be, live-in and visit. The 'touristy' places are generally safe during daytime and at night.

that's my feeling too. the only safer places in America are Disney World and Disneyland...they have set the gold standard for a long time

 

[Onward Allusion]

Thank you to everyone for their response. Great ideas and advice, BTW.

My wife and I consider ourselves "hags" so we're probably going to be tucked away in bed @ 2AM or hanging out in the hotel's lounge.

 

[B yond]

Areas to avoid?

San Francisco.

 

[harrygunner]

San Francisco is a fascinating city. Beautiful sights for sure, interesting mix of people, food and smells.

I haven't felt like there is a greater threat level in SF. But, I stay pretty much north of Market and east of Van Ness. The only problem I have (besides the city government) is parking costs me $50 a day, by time I park in a couple of places.

Love the Golden Gate Bridge, an engineering feat. I drive over to Sausalito to a place where you can sit and look back at the city across the bay. Sometimes huge billows of fog roll down the hill north of the bridge like a slow moving avalanche.

Next February, I'm walking across the bridge for the first time. Before then, I can't enter the areas at the bases of the bridge with a CCW since the ends are National Parks.

 

[mljdeckard]

I don't know how you guys can even imagine to yourselves that SF is a safe place at all. Their crime rates are through the roof. It's not like it isn't obvious just walking down the street.

 

[harrygunner]

There's no safe places.

I'm in "Condition Yellow" when I'm out and about. But, there are plenty of cities I've been in where there's more potential threats to consider than SF. Try Hialeah in Florida, Cincinnati, KCMO, Los Angeles near the 110 Fwy and parts south. Everything is relative.

 

[RS14]

Being on vacation, I will not be carrying so the best my wife and I will have is reliable one-hand lockblade & a couple of Kimber Guardians (pepper).

I'm not a lawyer, but looking over the SF Codes it appears that you may be able to carry if not prohibited by CA law. The notorious SF handgun ban does not appear to apply to non-residents.

Section 3600A subsection 1.3

"It is not the intent of the people of the City and County of San Francisco to affect any resident of other jurisdictions with regard to handgun possession, including those who may temporarily be within the boundaries of the City and County."

Don't take my word for it of course, but if you would like to be able to carry on vacation, consult the code (and a lawyer) yourself.

 

[9mmepiphany]

please don't take his word for it and have a happy vacation.

that's the problem of reading laws out of context.

they are referring to non-residents of the city and county, you'd still need to have a CA CCW permit

 

[RS14]

they are referring to non-residents of the city and county, you'd still need to have a CA CCW permit

This is true. I am unsure if you have such a permit.

Now, I am lead to believe that you can OC in California without a permit so long as your gun is unloaded, subject of course to the numerous restrictions you would expect in such a state.

Open Carrying in San Fransisco, though... Legal, maybe, but it doesn't sound like much of a vacation.

please don't take his word for it and have a happy vacation.

He's right, please don't take my word for it. It's worth repeating this.

 

[JJE]

I can understand mljdeckard's reaction to SF. I'm sure that it seems completely out of control to visitors from a lot of different places. If you spend time in SF (like many big cities), you'll learn that there are a few simple rules to avoiding trouble. SF is a tourist town and the city spends a lot of tax money to make sure that tourists stay out of trouble. The street people know that screwing with tourists isn't tolerated by the SFPD, but they are allowed to ask for $$$, look like cr*p, and basically be an eyesore as long as they don't cross the line of being "aggressive". If they cross that line, just call 911 and you can watch them get proned out with a knee on their back, cuffed and hauled away. On the other hand, anyone who gets drunk in public or wanders around late at night is fair game.

 

[9mmepiphany]

as much as i've heard of folks speak of the community of small towns, i must say that The City has a very close knit neighborhood sense to it.

people are always willing to help and come to the aid of strangers...plus being more a "walking town" than a "driving town" people actually look and talk to each other.

another thing to remember is that you may think of them as weird, but the other side of that coin is tolerance for differences.

i'm a "city kid", so i know i come from a different perspective and comfort zone, but i feel much more comfortable in The City than in either Savannah or Houston...and i know how dangerous Orlando is outside of Disney World

 

[bshnt2015]

Don't stand to close to the edge of the curb, chances are you'll get hit by the muni bus.
Maybe watch your step around Market St., section 8 housing by pier 39, broadway where the adult theaters are and avoid the bayview area. But have fun to.

 

[Z-Michigan]

Just one bit to add - if you go the Pier 39 and surrounding areas, be prepared for aggressive panhandling, political cause-pushing and other intrusive behaviors to a degree you haven't seen in just about any other US city, including NY and Chicago. In my (admittedly limited) experience some people may get in your way or in your face. If you have basic immunity to such things you can go around and keep walking and not have an issue. Just an FYI for anyone not already accustomed to panhandling etc.

I also used the BART to/from the Emeryville area (I think I was technically in Oakland) and while I was not 100% comfortable I didn't have any problems. I would echo the comment about rowdy schoolkids being on public transportation.

The cable cars that start/end in the touristy area are mildly amusing but be prepared for a wait to ride one.

 

[jhco]

Tenderloin

 

[okespe04]

SF if fine, have a good time. If your not looking for trouble your most likely not going to find any. Just use common sense.

 

[mljdeckard]

I should cool my tone a little. I'm not saying SF is a bad place overall. It is one of the last places in America with a truly unique character and feel. I think I could spend a year there and not get to all of the good food. There is a lot of history, architecture, art, language, culture, and diversity there, and I love the feeling of being immersed in it.

I just don't want to walk down the street while explaining to my kids, the oldest of whom is 11, why it's ok if the guy who smells like pot grabs mom as we were walking away from him after he got mad that she wouldn't give him some money. It's a place where all of their bubbles will get busted at once, and I have to treat them like an infantry squad as we walk down the street, watching all directions for their safety. This is not acceptable to me.

Now with my wife, or a group of guys, just going to clubs and restaurants, running around and having a good time, that would be fine. It's just not a good place to take people who aren't already conditioned to situational awareness.

 

[9mmepiphany]

It's a place where all of their bubbles will get busted at once, and I have to treat them like an infantry squad as we walk down the street, watching all directions for their safety. This is not acceptable to me.

i'm sorry but that sounds like something Kate Gosselin would say