San Francisco people

[churipu 4]

Hello everyone,

my friend's sister and her husband would like to plan a beach vacation in SF for about a week in june. They saw pics of these amazing waterfront cottages and villas supposedly for rent, and that's the type of accomodation they would like, preferably close enough to the city stuff that tourists usually want to see in SF. Unfortunately for me I do not know the area at all (we live in MD), so although google is your friend...I noticed it is quite confusing, at least to me, to figure out which ones are the best beaches in SF or close to it. I thought I'd post here since I am sure there are members who live in the area. Also...where can I find these type of properties? I did run a search on google, cragslist etc. but they list all kinds of location bringing me back to the problem stated above...I have NO idea where these towns/locations are! I suppose that once I get some info on what the names of the towns/beaches etc. are it will get easier...

Thank you so much for any help, I'd really appreciate it.

[churipu 4]

bump

[Trompe le Monde 1,107]

hmm, I don't really think of San Fran as a beach destination. I guess what she saw might overlook Ocean Beach on the west side? It's a nice location and fairly central though she would want a car. I personally wouldn't swim in the ocean there as it is very cold and the tides are quite strong

[lucyrich 20]

The nearest beachfront cottages I can think of would be at Stinson Beach, about an hour and a half from San Francisco via some really twisty roads. Maybe Carmel might have something. Sea Ranch has cottages, but they're a lot further than Stinson.

The ocean is cold, foggy, and windy here. And the closer you are to the Golden Gate, the colder and windier it is. If you want sunny warm and relaxing, get as far from the beach as possible. That's especially true in summer, when at 3:00 in the afternoon it'll be a foggy 50 degrees with 30mph winds at the beach, but 72 and sunny at Union Square, and 95 in Napa.

Seriously, the weather forecast in all of June, July, and August says "coastal low clouds and fog overnight, clearing around the bay during the day, with fog lingering at the beaches all day, afternoon highs from the 50s to the 90s". They repeat that same forecast on KCBS AM 740 every ten minutes, 24/7, 1008 times a week. I really don't know why they bother.

If you want to see downtown sights like Chinatown, the Cable cars, Union Square, Fisherman's Wharf, etc., your best bet is to find a hotel close to there and don't get a car (parking is awful in SF, expensive and not readily available).

The craigslist travel forum might be another good place to get suggestions. There are a lot of SF people who post there, and it's on topic.

http://sfbay.craigslist.org/forums/?forumID=42

Edited March 28, 2008 by lucyrich

[desert_fox 32]

SF is not known for its beaches. The currents bring the ocean from Alaska...and its cold and not suitable for swimming. SF is always the same temp year around and is fogged in most of the day in the summers...always have a coat handy.

Beaches begin around the Monterey area with fantastic sceanery....smimmabloe water begins around the Santa Barbarbara area...and furthur south around the beaches in Ventura, Los Angeles, Orange and San Diego counties.

Dont go there for a beach vacation...you will freeze.

[churipu 4]

Thanks for the info guys, I will definitely let them know about all these things.

[Flames9_RN 358]

San diego is nice!!!

[redkitty 0]

I would suggest Santa Cruz, so many great little rental houses/condos/cottages right at the beach. SC gets lots of sun and its a lovely town to visit. They can drive up Highway 1 through Half Moon Bay and up to San Francisco.

[nane1104 146]

Off topic but I LOVE SAN FRANCISCO!!!

Not that anybody would care....

[redkitty 0]

I care!!! It's home and I love it too!!!

[jpaula 20]

My favorite spot is half way netween SF and Santa Cruz. You would need to rent a car, but it is a beautiful spot, often beyond the fog zone, and puts you in easy commute proximity to SF to touristy stuff and Santa Cruz for beach stuff. Plus, the drive down Highway 1 to get there is amazing.

http://www.costanoa.com/site.php

[churipu 4]

My favorite spot is half way netween SF and Santa Cruz. You would need to rent a car, but it is a beautiful spot, often beyond the fog zone, and puts you in easy commute proximity to SF to touristy stuff and Santa Cruz for beach stuff. Plus, the drive down Highway 1 to get there is amazing.

http://www.costanoa.com/site.php

AAWW so beautiful...

BTW Thanks everyone, I reported all the info to my friends so they can make a decision.

Now I wanna go too...