I accompanied some of my company's new hires on a tour yesterday. Because I'm a native of San…read moreFrancisco, I contemplated lying about where I'm from just to see if I could catch our guide sharing inaccurate or exaggerated stories. Suffice to say that I was completely blown away by Stuart's deeply researched knowledge, family history in the city, and passion - so much so that I am planning to recommend this tour to my own friends and family who have also lived here their whole lives. My colleagues even commented afterwards that they probably know more about San Francisco now than their own hometowns.

Great tour by Stuart this past Saturday. I was impressed with his friendliness and deep knowledge…read moreof San Francisco, but esp with his 'our of the box' thinking when it comes to how he runs his tours. I also loved the small group size and that he provides some pictures of what this city looked like at specific points in time. Highly recommend it!

Very informative walking tour, even for a San Francisco native. Our group was very small (8 total,…read moreincluding our docent, Lois) compared to the other Chinatown walking tour groups that we saw along the way. Our docent customized the tour to what each person of the group wanted to hear/learn more about which I thought was very cool. Our tour was also accompanied by print outs of articles and photographs which were helpful aids. Though they say to arrive 10-15 minutes prior to the tour to check in, on Saturdays, when the tour begins at 10am, it is not quite as necessary to arrive earlier. The Chinese Culture Center is not open until 10am and the docents don't arrive until 10am either. We parked at Portsmouth ($4/hour) since we wanted to arrive earlier to check-in, but we actually had enough time to park at the (farther) garage that the Chinese Culture Center validates.

Fun and Informative! We're San Franciscan natives and some friends decided to take this tour…read morethrough the Chinese Culture Center. Esther, the docent, had in-depth knowledge of the history, culture and struggles of Chinese in America! She provided us with many "gems" and "tidbits" of history that we were not even aware of, i,e., learning what living in an *'8x8ft" Single Room Occupancy (SRO) would be like (-wow), visiting the oldest temple in Chinatown, various plaques in and around and on the streets in Chinatown. We had a great time and we recommend taking the 2 hour Chinatown Walking Tour through the Chinese Culture Center!!

We highly recommend taking this richly informative tour. Our guides were super friendly and we…read morelearned so much about the history, culture, politics, and community as well as some interesting stories and key events. It a great way to truly gain a deeper understanding and a better appreciation of the Asian community and culture that adds a richness to the city.

Sure, we've done walking tours before. But we quickly realized that there are parts of San…read moreFrancisco that we literally never set foot in. Our friends organized a tour here that focused mostly on Chinatown, but also touched on North Beach (the Italian section) and the Embarcadero (near the Ferry Plaza Farmer's Market). As a kid, I have fond memories of visiting San Francisco's Chinatown. It was one of our first big family vacations and remember seeing so many unusual things -- even if slightly shocking to a 6 year old -- like a street person making out with the Chinese lions at the Chinatown Gate! (and likely high on something!). This was a major workout -- something like 5 hours of walking. We love getting in steps and always forget just how hilly San Francisco can be. Our guide took us to places we never knew existed, like the tiny patch of redwood trees at the base of the Transamerica Pyramid Building, a peek inside the secret underground tunnels that were used possibly during prohibition and still can be seen under the Artist and Craftsman Supply Store and Chinatown's very first Michelin-starred restaurant called Mister Jiu's. But I was most thrilled by where the tour ended! There is a new food hall that I've been wanting to try called China Live (which sounds more like a TV show to me than a food emporium). There is a wine bar, cafe and cute gift shop. They also have clean bathrooms and that's always a plus in Chinatown!

The Emperor's tour is informative, fun, funny, and memorable…read more He is a delightful, knowledgeable gentleman.

All hail Emperor Norton and his Fantastic Time Machine! One of the best things I've ever done in…read moreSan Francisco -- and the way I came across this tour was by total chance! I happened to be walking through Union Square one weekend morning and saw a gentleman dressed as Emperor Norton. I thought he was a street performer, but boy was I surprised to find out he was about to lead a walking tour! Being a history nerd and someone who was already familiar with the Emperor, I bought a ticket for the downtown tour on the spot, and had such a good experience the next day I bought a ticket for the waterfront tour. It's an enjoyable, leisurely stroll through San Francisco -- full of fun facts and trivia about the city, and Joseph is a delightful host and guide. I feel he lives up to the ideals and sentiments of both Emperor Norton and the city of San Francisco itself, and this is my #1 recommendation whenever a friend tells me they're going to visit SF (although, of course, I'm always sure to NEVER refer to it as "Frisco").

Before we got to SF, we did some research on Bay Cruises. We as budget travelers decided not to…read morebook anything online and just go with the flow. BEST DECISION; we walked by and heard the guys saying it was $15 cash, so we instantly paid. They let us bring wine on the ride. We got close to Alcatraz, went near the Bridge and even saw some marine wildlife (dolphins and sea otter). We were incredibly happy with the decision! The captain was super knowledgeable with the area and the history and he even made some jokes. The best part was when he played "Boats n Hoez" from the step brother movie! When we go back, we will def do it again. The captain was a good host and made sure we had a good time! :)

This is one of the best deals in the city and tons of fun. Even when I lived in SF I always did…read morethis tour, and every time I visit I want to do it again. Awesome views, amazing value!!! I guarantee you'll have fun

The Good? You get to see many attractions along the route. I got the 48 hour option. I was able to…read morestop at a few of my must-see places on my list while I was in town including The Golden Gate Bridge, Palace of The Fine Arts and Pier 39. It is a bang for your buck and you will save - especially if you didn't rent a car and are ubering around. It's a good value. If the weather permits, it's fun sitting on the top of the bus. Always bring a sweater or coat just in case. I loved the automated audio guide you can listen to with the headphones provided. Learned some really cool facts about the city. The Not So Good? It is a long ride. I would guess about a two hour ride from stop to finish. I did two days and the bus drivers weren't very friendly.

They say every 15 minutes, but it's it's more like every 70 mins. I have been waiting on this hot…read morebus for 30 mins now while the drive is "taking a break". So far I'm very unimpressed! If you say every 15, it should be every 15. I waited 30 mins for the bus to show up at stop 17, it drove 1 mile. Made us switch buses, that took 10'min, then wait for the driver to finish their 30 min break before the buss stars moving. I'm 70 mins in and have gone anywhere and seen anything. And still in a hot buss with no ac waiting for the you shove more people on the buss. Pretty horrible way to start A $300 bus ride.

Better have a reservation and if possible fill out any waivers and forms online. We did not and it…read moretook almost an hour. Staff was friendly but the process was a problem. The max something is great for someone who has mobility issues. Staff was great and let us store a mobility scooter there. Plan your route before you go. Options made us pick wrong route and friends car didn't have GPS audio tour working. Again, staff was great and helped out. Good tour, expect long process and plan ahead.

My husband and I rented the GoCar E-Sport yesterday and we had a blast! As Bay Area locals we…read moredecided to be the ultimate tourists and take one of these for his birthday weekend. Customer service over the phone was great, the tour was awesome and we learned new things about San Francisco that we had never learned before. The views were STUNNING and the open air car was awesome. Bring a jacket, the day was perfect sunshine which is unheard of for San Francisco this time of year and I was still frozen at the end of our ride. There were just a few things that kept this from being a 5 star experience: Car condition: the breaks on this e-car literally SCREAMED each time we stopped. The car stopped with no issue, but it totally freaked us out - especially on some of the steep hills. Otherwise the car was in excellent condition and we only depleted maybe 10% of the battery in our 3 hour tour. Front desk staff: check in and out was easy enough, but the front desk staff were realllllllly indifferent. They also talked like auctioneers, crazy fast. They showed all of the folks in the office this map route and talked at the speed of light. Now, we knew about 40% of the stops we would take and still got confused. How on earth are tourists supposed to understand this map direction situation. Seriously, the company would be better off instructing the front desk to say "your car will guide you through this map" than to try to have them explain where people are going. Or at least tell guests that "this seems like a lot, but you have a map in your car and the car will guide you, we are giving you this info so that you have some of the locations in your mind". Tour Guide/GPS: the GPS/Tour Guide storyline sounded like it was for the yellow car only. There were a few times that we were thinking, this can't be referring to our car. For example, there was one steep hill decent that we were going to go on and the GPS/Tour Guide said "I'm only designed to go 25 mph, so take care down this steep hill" we couldn't tell if we were only allowed to go 25 mph or if this cars speed was capped at 25 mph, but the website says that the top speed is 80 mph. Also, we were told that this car can go across the Golden Gate Bridge and the GPS said several times that it is not allowed to go on the bridge. Overall, we had a wonderful time, the GPS worked the entire time and we learned new facts about SF and saw new things that we hadn't noticed before. We also got MANY compliments on this car and almost every group that saw us said that they want to take this car out while on their trip. This was an awesome experience and we will bring family/friends here when they visit for amazing views of the city.

Last week we had a team offsite... which somehow (and thankfully) led us straight to Blandina…read moreFarley and the Noodle to Noodle walking tour. Honestly, it might be the most delicious "team building" we've ever done. We started in North Beach and walked all the way to Chinatown. Apparently it took three hours, but between the food, the stories, and our group of 10 professional talkers, none of us noticed. Along the way we stopped for tastings, met some local vendors. That was cool hidden treasures I would say. We went to Cafe Sport in North Beach. I will absolutely be back. The pasta and sauce were amazing, and the homemade bread? Let's just say it didn't stand a chance. Then we made our way to Chinatown where Blandina dropped some history on us things I definitely didn't know before. We then went to Chinatown stopped by Far East (Restaurant), where we had some spicy, delicious chowmein it is must to go back. Managing a group of 10 chatty adults is no small task, but Blandina handled us like a pro (and with great patience ). Thanks Blandina it was memorable!!!

Our North Beach tour was a highlight of our week in SF. We live in Santa Cruz and are familiar with…read moreNorth Beach, but this authentic insider experience was fascinating. Blandina has lived in the neighborhood for decades and was able to share both the Italian and Bohemian past and present. She was generous with her information, time, and energy. We cannot give enough positive feedback for this special woman and learning about all the points of interests and businesses we have walked past dozens of times over the years!

Our Vantigo Tour with Chad was the BEST way to spend our first day in SF! We hit all the hot spots…read morewhich gave us a better lay-of-the land for the remainder of our trip. The VW bus Lillie is a fully restored gem. The tour was a great mix of history, pop culture and humor all told by a life long local. Highly recommend and would even do it again!!!

Chad(the driver/tour guide) and Harvey(the blue VW Bus) were exceptional hosts. They both…read morecheerfully drove us around the beautiful city of San Francisco. It was a great experience for my family as we got to see and learn so much more than we would have with a big tour company(think double decker hop on/off). I truly felt like a local for the morning. Hands down the best tour in SF. Highly recommend for a family or anyone looking for a more intimate tour experience. Definitely worth a repeat on our next SF adventure!