The Golden Gate Bridge opened in 1937 and spans the strait connecting San Francisco Bay to the Pacific Ocean. Its 1,280-metre main span was the world's longest at the time, and its International Orange colour makes it stand out in the fog. Visitors walk or cycle across, with classic views from Battery Spencer and Fort Point.

The Palace of Fine Arts was built for the 1915 Panama-Pacific International Exposition in San Francisco's Marina District. Its grand Roman-style rotunda and colonnades reflect in a peaceful lagoon surrounded by gardens. It is one of the city's most romantic spots and a favourite place for photos.

Fisherman's Wharf is a bustling waterfront area on San Francisco's northern shore, known for seafood stands serving Dungeness crab and clam chowder in sourdough bowls. Pier 39 is home to a colony of sea lions, shops and restaurants. Ferries to Alcatraz and bay cruises depart nearby.

Alcatraz Island in San Francisco Bay was a federal maximum-security prison from 1934 to 1963, holding notorious inmates such as Al Capone. Earlier a military fort, it was later occupied by Native American activists from 1969 to 1971. Ferries take visitors to the island for an audio tour of the cellhouse.

Lombard Street in San Francisco is famous for its one-block stretch with eight sharp hairpin turns on Russian Hill. Built in 1922 to reduce the steep slope, the brick-paved road is lined with flower beds and elegant homes. It is often called one of the most crooked streets in the world.

Coit Tower is a 64-metre Art Deco tower on top of Telegraph Hill in San Francisco, completed in 1933. Its ground floor features murals painted by local artists during the Great Depression. An elevator to the top offers panoramic views of the bay, the Golden Gate Bridge and the city.

San Francisco's Chinatown is the oldest in North America, established in the 1840s. Entered through the Dragon Gate on Grant Avenue, it is filled with temples, herbal shops, dim sum restaurants and lantern-strung streets. Waverly Place and the Golden Gate Fortune Cookie Factory are popular stops.

The Painted Ladies are a row of colourful Victorian houses on Steiner Street facing Alamo Square park in San Francisco. Built in the 1890s, they are framed by the modern city skyline behind them. Often called Postcard Row, they gained worldwide fame from the opening credits of the TV series Full House.

Muir Woods National Monument protects one of the last old-growth coastal redwood forests near San Francisco. Some trees are more than 75 metres tall and over 1,000 years old. Boardwalk trails wind along Redwood Creek through Cathedral Grove. It was named after naturalist John Muir in 1908.