Festivals and Events
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Chinese New Year
San Francisco’s annual conga of ethnic festivals kicks off with the celebrations for the Chinese New Year. The main events take place in Chinatown climaxing with the Golden Dragon Parade.
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St Patrick’s Day
Irish roots are honoured with church services and a big parade along Market Street.
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San Francisco International Film Festival
Celebrates its 50th anniversary in 2007.
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Cinco de Mayo
Remembering the Mexican victory over the French at Puebla in 1862. Festivities and the crowning of a fiesta queen.
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Carnaval
The largest multicultural festival in California.
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The Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Pride Celebration Parade
Market Street.
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Fourth of July
Independence Day is celebrated with a public holiday and fireworks by Crissy Field and on Golden Gate Bridge.
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North Beach Jazz Festival
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The San Francisco Blues Festival
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Columbus Day
Celebrated in style by the Italian community in North Beach. Also church services and a parade to Fisherman’s Wharf for the blessing of the fishing fleet.
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The San Francisco Jazz Festival and Thanksgiving celebrations
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Christmas in ‘Frisco
Elaborate displays in department store windows, carol services, performances of The Nutcracker by the San Francisco Ballet.
Theatre, Cinema and Opera
The city’s daily newspaper, the Chronicle, carries listings of mainstream cultural events in the city. A bumper compendium called Datebook comes out on Sundays.
The world class San Francisco Ballet company stages a regular season at the War Memorial Opera House in the Civic Center between February and May (www.sfballet.com) and the San Francisco Symphony performs at the Louise M Davies Symphony Hall. www.sfsymphony.org. Among San Francisco’s theatres are the Curran and the Golden Gate, which feature Broadway musicals and other stage hits and the Magic, which specialises in new plays and new writers. Many multi-screen cinemas are available, the biggest being Loews Theatres Metreon.
Museums and Galleries
San Francisco can boast some interesting and unusual museums. The Museum of the City of San Francisco is an absorbing miscellany of memorabilia, particularly from the city’s two earthquake experiences. The Cable Car Barn is still used as a maintenance and control centre for the city’s famous cable cars, but now also doubles as a working museum. There’s a planetarium, an aquarium, a cartoon art museum, a wax museum and what’s called the Exploratium – a quirky museum of art, science and human perception with 650 hands-on exhibits. The Yerba Buena Center for the Arts is a multi-million dollar collection of art galleries, film and performance theatres, a gift shop and café.
For Children
With its big city feel and abundant parks, beaches and amusements, San Francisco is ideal for a family holiday. Older children will enjoy the Exploratium (above), the California Academy of Sciences and also the Bay Area Discovery Museum where they can man a fishing boat and crawl through an undersea tunnel. There’s a playground in Golden Gate Park and others in Washington Square (North Beach), Portsmouth Square and Yerba Buena Gardens. Zeum is an entertainment centre on top of Moscone Convention Center with a vintage carousel, bowling complex, skating rink, theatre and interactive museum. When out eating, there are many family-orientated restaurants with high-chairs, child portions and even table-top amusements.
