HI TJS!!!!!
I am SO happy you've decided to visit San Francisco! I was just there this past summer and lived off one dollar a day so I have some great suggestions for you as well as other places to splurge!

1. The Tenderloin is one of the biggest different types of cultural areas there is. Here you will find lots of homeless and it's a really humbling expierence to walk the streets and see the different types of people who live in SROs (Single Room Occupancies). There are tons of food banks around San Francisco like St. Anthonys or the one off Ellis Street across from YWAM (Youth With A Mission). If you make your way to Market street there are a ton of little shops and TONS of locals. Market is huge so if you span the entire width of it you'll go from historic sites and museums to expensive shopping stores, but if you really want some high quality shopping then Civic Center is where to go. Also a lot of locals and artists hang out in the direct center place, it's a nice plan to drink a coffee and chill for an afternoon.

2. Red Light District. One of the most controversial districts in the city it is packed with strip clubs, clubs, and restaurants. What is interesting is houses live right across from it. If you visit it during the day it is a ghost town and at night it is absolutely packed. They have a lot of good clubs there you will want to visit to have a party night!

3. Castro. It is lit up in lights and everyone loves to dance and of course be friendly! This is another place that is huge at night and is a unique experience!

4. California Street. It is toward the touristy side of San Fran with the Ritz and such on the biggest hill. You can see for miles up there but it is a hike. Also you can take the trolly rides which are fun if you stand for five bucks to get up one hill to another. If you continue up California you will find a beautiful Cathedral, the name escapes me right now but if you enter it has amazing stained glass windows and a huge labyrinth for meditation.

5. Alacatraz. it is an important site in America's history as one of the only isolated prisons that held some of the nation's most dangerous men and then was inhabited by Native Americans by the AIM movement. It has some of the amazing stories you can take tours by guides or get a headset and walk it yourself by listening to an audio tour. its one of my favorites.

6. Golden Gate Bridge. It's huge and expansive. You can walk it for free or ride a bike across but its truly amazing to see such a gigantic man made structure. If your walking from the city over to the county on the other side, there is an amazing little spot to take pictures with the bridge in the background.

7. Chinatown. It's loaded with cute little shops and amazing cheap authentic places to eat. One of my favorite's is Floating Boat Sushi.

8. Museums and Attractions. There is something called Citypass San Francsico. It is an amazing deal! it's $49 and includes tickets to six major museums in San Fran and attractions to Aquarium of the Bay, a San Francisco Bay Cruise and unlimited of the cable cars and MUNI transportation.

9. TOURS. there are tons of them around the city for whatever you want to do but if you want a unique tour I highly recommend segway tours. Their these little machines that guide you around the city by two wheels. Their VERY easy to manage and really fun! It saves your feet since youll be walking all over the city every other day. These segway tours are on the waterfront and depart daily every three hours. They give you a free instruction lesson with it. If your interested in that its on 757 Beach Street. or heres their website

9. For your Reward trip they have helicopter tours over the cities r you could take a sailing catamaran excursion in the Bay. It leaves from PIER 39. My personal favorite is a seaplane tour over the bay and Delta waterways. You can get group rates too. If you want major adventure, however, they have Great White Shark encounters at 156 Lombard Street, Suite 20. their website here. go there by limo with A Bauer's Limosine and Transportation. here's their website too.

I'm sorry this is so long TJs but im just so excited! i hope your experience was as wonderful as mine!

ditto on the congratulations for selecting to visit san fran...It's one of those cities that grows on you with each additional visit...So many places to visit and not enough time...All previous suggestions are worthy of consideration...May I add another to the visual attractions?...A cabaret stage presentation, and definitely a san francisco classic visited by thousands of visitors as a testatment to it's enduring popularity is the show "Beach Blanket Babylon" at Club Fugazi at 678 Green St....Very entertaining and funny and you'll be surprised as to the gender of the cast members!...That show fits in with the multicultural identity of the city...And understanding that the TJ's are on a limited budget, they may try the the city tour via Gray Line motorized trolley's located at the waterfront near pier 39...The advantage to this tour is it's flexibility in allowing tour members to get off at the numerous stops and sample the vicinity at their leisure and then later to continue on at when another trolley comes by at the drop off...Various options on this tour allows them latitude on the amount of sights to take in...My favorite city view is from the Marin Headlands across the bay which is along the way if they travel across the Golden Gate Bridge, another must-see...Another economical way to see the "city" is via the amphibious vehicle on the San Francisco Duck tours @ bayquakers.com...It takes in the various areas of the city as well as a view from the water since it's a vehicle with wheels that can float and maneuver on the bay...The colorful narration by the driver makes it all the more fun and the prices are affordable...City walking tours with guides is informative and fun... Muir Woods is a quick and easy side trip that allows one to take in the majesty of the California redwoods, then visit the seaside town of Sausalito, maybe take an easy kayak tour on the calm bay...Alcatraz is another unique tourist destination...Napa/Sonoma valley, the wine country would be a worth a visit also...As for eating out...San Francisco and vicinity is a mecca for all kinds of dining options that to sort through it all can be dizzying and endless...They may refer to a foodie forum that's unpretentious and current at chowhound.com...I see that the TJ's had fun in Orland, FL at DisneyWorld...The bay area has it's share of similar though not on such a grand scale...6 Flags/Marine World Vallejo, or Great America Amusement park at Santa Clara...Or Monterrey Bay Aquarium which is world class {Take a commuter flight from SFO and a taxi to the aquarium for nice and quick day trip}...No matter what they decide to do, I can't see the TJ's not enjoying their San Fran jaunt...Aloha

If they are going to Wine Country, Zach absolutely has to check out the Charles M. Schultz Museum and the Redwood Empire Ice Arena, "Snoopy's Home Ice". It's in Santa Rosa, about an hour north of San Francisco.

http://www.schulzmuseum.org/

I don't know if this is obvious or not, but you can actually walk over the Golden Gate Bridge during daylight hours. Bikes and pedestrians can cross free of charge, and it has great views and nice sunsets. It can take a while to get across (about 2.75 km), and of course you have to return the way you came, so take that into account. Access is from Golden Gate Park.

Warning: the fastest way through San Francisco on foot is almost never a straight line. Allow for extra time for going up and down steep hills, or plan on using the cable cars or busses. The SF Muni passport (you can get it as a weekly pass) is good for both.

For seafood check out Pacific Catch, 2027 Chestnut Street at Fillmore. Really cheap - my fiance and I love the Poke Bowl. Dungeness Crab is in season - the cheapest place I've found in the tourist area is #2 Fisherman’s Wharf. There's no name on the place and no fancy dining room -- it's just you and a boiled crab. 1/2 a crab is enough for a meal, it's that big, meaty, and sweet.

For Chinese food, the place to go for dim sum is Four Seas, 731 Grant Avenue. For baked goodies, especially egg custard tarts (daan tat), pork buns (chas siu bao), or moon cakes to bring home, go to Golden Gate Bakery, 1029 Grant Avenue.

www.chaingarden.com

The group should see an all american rock band! Contact Brent (tell him adam sent you) and arrange a show. These guys know how to rock the house, and the group will have an awesome time!!

Another touristy thing to do is visit Lombard Street, "the crookedest street in the world."
http://www.sftravel.com/lomabardcrookedstreet.html
The street also straightens out downhill however, so make sure you head the right way.

Hi TJs! So glad to hear that you're making your way to San Francisco. I moved to the Bay Area from Hawaii about three years ago, and I adore my adopted city!

Public transportation around San Francisco is fairly good, and both the MUNI and BART websites have detailed maps and schedules to help you find your way around and get where you need to go. BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) is great if you want to visit other cities in the Bay Area. You can easily head to Oakland or Berkeley and do some exploring if you feel adventurous.

If you are headed to the Fisherman's Wharf district or to the Castro, I highly recommend riding the F Line. This is a train line that runs between the Castro and the Wharf, and it passes right through Market Street in the heart of the city. The fare is $1.50 (exact change) each way. The neat thing about the F Line is that each trolley is a historic electric streetcar. You can read more about this project on this page. Each car is painted in a unique color scheme. This is to represent several American cities' own streetcar systems, before the rise of the automobile made this kind of public transportation obsolete. There are cars representing Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Brooklyn (New York City), Kansas City, Cincinnati, Chicago, Boston, Newark, Louisville, Baltimore, and even some from Milan, Italy too! Even more historic streetcars operate between the Ferry Building and Fisherman's Wharf. People mention San Francisco's cable cars a lot, but I personally think the F Line is just as historical and just as great! There's also a museum dedicated to the streetcars in the Ferry Building.

At Pier 45 in Fisherman's Wharf, there's an arcade called the Musee Mechanique. It's a collection of old coin-operated attractions, musical instruments, arcade games, and a lot of strange mechanical dolls. Admission is free, but bring lots of quarters so you can make all those things work!

You can do some ice skating at the Embarcadero Center. Admission is $7.00 and skate rental is $3.50.

If you are looking for fast food, In-N-Out Burger is somewhat of a fast food icon in California that has now expanded into Arizona and Nevada. There is only one location in San Francisco on Jefferson Street. There are many in the surrounding cities too. The food is good and relatively cheap. There is a "secret" menu of items that they serve but are not on the in-store menu if you are interested. Animal style is my favorite.
location: http://www.in-n-out.com/location_details.asp?id=154

secret menu: http://www.tiburon-belvedere.com/cgi/home.cgi?c=In_N_Out

history: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/In-N-Out_Burger

Hey TJs! I hope you are enjoying seeing America. I am so excited you guys are going to San Francisco over LA. I am from LA, but San Francisco is more charming, and everything is all in one place. You all will have to come to LA sometime, though. Anyway, when in San Francisco, you must go on the trolley because they are just amazing, Alcatraz, Union Square (I suggest Macys... I think it is better than the one in NYC), Chinatown, and for the best chocolate, go to the Ghirardelli store. I hope this helps. Enjoy the rest of your time.

i think you should visit all the city landmarks.
take a trip in golden date park. walk through all the differnt distericts. if you wanna head somewhere out of the city. i would recomend going to albany's beach, brekley is pretty fun to go through, oakland is fun for night life so is san jose, try making it to jack london square in oakland but it might still be underconstruction, and if you like wine napa valley is the palce to go. the bay area has so much stuff to do and to see. the museums are awesome in san francisco. make sure you make it to the golden gate bridge, coit tower, union square, pier 39 and fishermans warf, the ferry building(farmers market is awesome), the palace of fine arts, exploritoreum, Ghiridelli square, the mission district and chinatown is full of culture, and oeacen beach. San Francisco has so much to offer. its the best city in the nation. even the travel chanel seems to think so. it won the award.

allright it took me forever to get a dicovery sign in and everthing to post a reply on this stinking site so you have to read this...ok....San Francisco is a very cool place not trying to take anything away from it at all but dont you think that everything that you guys are saying they should do could be done in like maybe three days comeon guys you have to go up to sacramento well past sacramento up to coloma where the famous gold rush took place there is a lot of Asian influence on this trip and I think it is only fair to give them a look in to what very well may have been one of these peoples grandparents came to America for anyways that is enough ranting for today thanks for hearing me out -Eric

Hey TJS! I'm so excited to see what happens when you guys reach the Bay Area! San Francisco is one of my fave cities! The Haight-Ashbury district is a must when visiting...Be sure to check out this awesome store called the Piedmont Boutique. You can't miss it...it has a pair of GIANT LEGS coming out of the building! The boutique has a lot of bright, fun, costume type fashions...I'd love to see some of the guys try on something over there! ^_^

Also, stop by Pier 39 because the place is always filled with performers and free open air shows. There's lots of restaurants and some cool little art galleries around there. If you're by the piers at night and you're lucky, there are sometimes artists that do these amazing spraypaint pieces of the Earth, outer space, cityscapes and more. I'm not even sure how to catagorize it, but they have cans of spraypaint and come up with these great pieces of art in a matter of seconds to blaring techno music...It's awesome!

And a side note: There's this guy in San Francisco who likes to scare tourists by hiding behind things and jumping out at you and yelling...then he proceeds to laugh at your reaction. I've encountered the guy a few times at Fisherman's Wharf...Harmless, I'm sure, but very startling if he catches you off guard. Maybe someone should scare HIM! :P

Ghiradelli Square is also a pretty cool place to visit. Nighttime is when its best since they have some of the best desserts. They also give you lots of free chocolate samples at the shop!

well I hope that helps some. enjoy your stay in San Francisco! ^_^

Forget all the tourist crap that there is to do in San Francisco and see it from a native San Franciscan's perspective. First, visit Golden Gate Park on Sunday (provided it isn't raining) people gather in a field behind childrens playground to play drums at a place called hippie hill-ask someone on Haight Street how to get there, most people will know what you are talking about. You should also go to the Castro, a truly unique San Francsico neighborhood with great people watching and quirky shops. North Beach is a great place for food and coffee, but avoid Fishermans Wharf like the plague-total tourist trap! Welcome to San Francisco! Don't forget your jacket!

I love your show! I look forward to every episode. Last time I was in San Francisco I went to Alcatraz. It was fun but kinda scary too. I think you guys should go there.