A Holiday Trip to San Francisco

We can't seem to get enough of San Francisco! It has become the go-to location to kick off our long breaks. We went at the beginning of summer vacation and returned again just last week to kick off winter break. Each season in this city is beautiful and we loved seeing it decked out in holiday decor. We are our kids enjoy San Francisco just as much as we do and that they do really well during all the exploring we like to do!

After flying in and taking the BART into the city, we jumped on a trolly which took us to Fisherman's Warf where our hotel was located. After doing some unpacking and some relaxing in the big, comfy hotel beds, we changed, got bundled up and headed out to enjoy our first night. 

We ate at Luigi's Pizzeria on Pier 39. From our table, we could see the Bay Bridge which looked like it was lit up with a thousand little twinkle lights. The rest of the evening was spent exploring Fisherman's Wharf, and we ended up at Ghirardelli Square enjoying a yummy hot fudge sundae. Ghirardelli Square was my favorite part of the trip because it was decorated so festively with Christmas trees, lights and a lifesize menorah. 

The next morning we met up Nathan's sister Chenoa, who came down to have lunch with us. We walked up into Little Italy which was just a few blocks away. The weather was perfect for walking and enjoying the city. We grabbed lunch at Golden Boy Pizza which serves Sicilian style pizza. It was a cool, eclectic place with random stickers all over the walls and the only seating was on barstools. 

After lunch and walking the neighborhoods for a little while, we ended up at a park where the kids played on the playground. The park was bustling with artists, vendors, people walking their dogs and other mothers and fathers like us who were letting their kids get their wiggles out.   

After a good little while, we headed back down to the Wharf to check out the seals. It was crystal clear and we could see the bridge perfectly too; it was quite picturesque. We did some shopping and Hudson jumped a few times on the big bungee trampoline (I think this is his favorite part of our SF trips).

That evening we did a fun, festive activity which was riding around the city in an old-fashioned, open-air fire truck looking at Christmas lights. We drove from Fisherman's Wharf, down to Union Square, past the Bay Bridge and back down to the Pier. It was cold, but we had old fireman coats across our laps as blankets to help us keep warm. 

We ended the night and our trip with a cable car ride. I mean, you can't go to San Francisco and NOT ride the cable car! It was a quick ride down to Powell and back, but the kids love it and it is my favorite way to see the city.

The next day we flew back home to LA, clearly, the kids wore themselves out.