San Francisco is a great city, but there are even more things to do in the surrounding areas--which we've barely begun to explore. Here are some random resources and thoughts on visiting and living near the Bay. New! Free/Almost Free Things to Do Entertainment Guides: find things to do and see - MetroActive is a South Bay free paper - The Wave is another free South Bay paper, emphasizing entertainment - SF Gate has the SF Chronicle's broad range of news, events, restaurant reviews, and so on - SF Station for the funkier side of (mostly SF-specific) events - Citysearch also has extensive, searchable restaurant and event listings - East Bay Express is smaller and East Bay-oriented - The San Francisco Bay Guardian has its own alternative opinions about all of the above - San Francisco for Visitors at About.com is useful for visitors, but less so for regulars or residents than the other sites listed - Anime Shopper's Guide for the Bay Area - Craig's List has lots of entertainment possibilities: all kinds of free stuff, personals and Missed Connections, classes and art shows, tickets for sold-out events, and lots more - NEW: Artsopolis has discounted tickets to major shows, concerts, etc. - NEW: Gold Star Events has free-discounted tickets to comedy shows and manyother events Practical Issues: Transportation and lodging - Transit Info and its TakeTransit tool are indispensable for SF and East Bay public transportation - Check live traffic at the Chronicle or KGO 810 AM - I think Mapquest has the best local maps, but-- - Yahoo's Yellow Pages function combined with their mapping is the easiest way to find the closest Chinese restaurant, bookstore, or whatever from wherever you are - Totally indispensable site will help you find cheap Priceline hotel rooms in the Bay Area itself or for trips away - Keep an eye on earthquakes in the region - Weather: Possibly coming soon - We're thinking about writing a guide to free and cheap amusements in this expensive region. Is this a good idea? - We also might put together a restaurant journal The To-Do List: A few of the San Francisco Bay Area things I would like to do someday (in progress) - Tea at the Palace or another tearoom - A second-run movie at the Parkway, with couches and pizza - A classic movie at the Paramount, an amazing movie palace, with Wurlitzer performances, newsreels, and 'toons beforehand - Visit the museum-type-things I haven't been to yet, including the Palace of the Legion of Honor, Musee Mecanique, the Monterey Bay Aquarium, Chabot Space and Science Center, and the planetarium there or at the Academy of Sciences - Try some of the best East Bay and greater Bay Area restaurants - Take day or overnight trips to the Greater Bay Area, especially Carmel/Monterey and Sausalito/Tiburon - Visit California National Parks like Yosemite and Pinnacles - A fancy breakfast somewhere - Regular hiking (rambling) around East Bay regional parks - Take a Wok Wiz, Victorian houses, North Beach or one of the other San Francisco walking tours - Visit the Japanese and Italianate gardens in Saratoga - See the Bay Model - Get a tour of the Stanford Linear Accelerator - A variety of the other things mentioned on SF Gate and Bay Area Backroads and such, and our various travel books. Back to the main page