San Francisco never disappoints. With the iconic Golden Gate Bridge straddling the shimmering bay, grand Victorian architecture, and rolling hills lined with historic cable-cars, it’s arguably the most beautiful city in America. While many visitors to San Francisco will stick to its blockbuster attractions, from Alcatraz to the iconic Bridge, San Francisco’s appeal is as much about its laidback charm. Home of the hippie movement, the city continues to be a creative, counterculture hub, bursting with street art, craft breweries, colourful neighbourhoods, and boutique galleries, and whether you’re a long-term local or just passing through, there’s always an extraordinary experience in San Francisco to discover. The city that inspired the Summer of Love is the go-to-getaway for couples. With its mild climate, California cuisines, world class cultural attractions and outdoors lifestyle, you’ve got a golden (gate) ticket to romantic fun!

Urban Hike

With a compact city centre, pedestrian-friendly neighborhoods and almost 100 miles of hiking trails, there’s no better way to explore San Francisco than on foot. Active couples will love discovering the city’s biggest and best highlights on this 3-hour guided urban adventure. Choose from three hike options, including ‘Urban Jungles and City Hikes’, ‘Union Square, Nob Hill and Chinatown’, and the ‘Tales of the City Tour’, which leads you through North Beach, Telegraph Hill, and Russian Hill. You’ll get a real insight into the city, seeing hidden gems and walking secret trails that only the locals know about.

Featured Experience: San Francisco Urban Hike - From $60

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Culinary Tour

There's no better way to explore the wonderful food options in San Francisco than taking part in this gourmet culinary experience. Your local foodie guide will escort you to the best eateries in the area, where you'll be able to try fresh coffee, pizza, pastries, truffles, sandwiches and much more. You'll be able to make your way through the Chinese markets if you take the Chinatown route, exploring their samples and ways of working. Try some authentic cuisine in this culinary adventure, perfect for food lovers. 

Featured Experience: Gourmet Culinary Tour of San Francisco - From $90

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Japanese Tea Garden Tour

Leave the bustling city streets behind as you experience the serenity and harmony of a traditional Japanese garden in Golden Gate Park with your loved one. With tranquil koi ponds, an arched drum bridge, stone lanterns, elegant pagodas, and an abundance of cherry blossom, entering the garden is like stepping into old Kyoto. Take a meditative walk on the stepping-stone path, watch the gracefully swimming koi, pick up your own sake set at the gift shop, and enjoy a refreshing cup of tea and fortune cookie at the custom-designed irori (family table) in the Japanese-style Tea House. It’s the perfect place to find your zen together in the heart of the city.

Featured Experience: Japanese Tea Garden San Francisco Tour

Visit the Exploratorium

More than just a museum, the Exploratorium is a mad scientist’s laboratory, a joyful celebration of art and human perception, and a funhouse all rolled into one. A participatory museum pioneer in a beautiful bay side location on Pier 15, its six indoor and outdoor galleries are packed with immersive experiences. Step into a tornado, walk a fog bridge and turn your world upside down in a huge, curved mirror. Explore living cells, bubbles, cosmic rays, illusions and more before picking up a one-of-a-kind souvenir in the museum gift shop and enjoying a delicious, sustainable lunch in the Seaglass Restaurant with incredible views over San Francisco Bay.

Featured Experience: Visit the Exploratorium at Pier 15

Visit Coit Tower 

This slim white column, Coit Tower, rising 210 feet from Telegraph Hill, has been a beacon on the San Francisco skyline since its competition in 1933. Buy tickets in the gift shop and take the elevator to its observation deck for unparalleled 360-degree views of the city and the bay. Enjoy a unique perspective on the city’s long, steep streets, join the dots between city landmarks including Lombard Street, Nob Hill, Pier 39 and the Golden Gate and Bay Bridges, and check out the historically significant, depression-era murals inside the tower. It’s the perfect location for a romantic excursion as a couple.

Featured Experience: San Francisco Coit Tower Tour

Bowling

There’s a reason bowling is a classic date night idea. It’s super-fun (even if you suck at it), you don’t have to dress up, it gives you a shared activity as well as opportunity to talk, and you can pick up something to eat and drink while you play. Presidio Bowl has a classic bowling alley vibe, a roster of over 45 beers, and a mouth-watering grill with everything from quesadilla to burgers. Play a few rounds, chat between frames, refuel with something from the restaurant, and work your way through that impressive beer list.

Featured Experience: San Francisco Presidio Bowling

Dance Lesson

There’s no better way to stoke the fire between you and your partner than with a private tango dance lesson. With an emphasis on playful movement, expression and close connection, tango is the most passionate of partner dances. Head to one of three Bay Area dance studios and learn the basics over 50 fun-filled minutes. Your professional instructor will break the dance into easily accessible steps from the open step to the forward cross, so that you and your loved one will be burning up the floor by the end of the session! Then take your newfound skills for a spin in one of San Francisco’s buzzing nightspots. It takes two to tango!

Featured Experience: Bay Area Tango Dance Lesson For Two - From $160

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Wine Tour and Hike

Connect with nature and each other in the magical Muir Woods on this 1.5-hour hike through the National Monument. Walk hand-in-hand in the dappled shade of old-growth redwoods, taking in the sights, sounds and smells of this beautiful location, and keeping your eyes peeled for wild residents from woodpeckers and owls to deer, chipmunks, skunks and otters. Then head to Sonoma Wine Valley where you’ll line your stomach with a tasty lunch, and peruse the quaint local stores, before spending the afternoon sampling the area’s prized vintages at a range of boutique wineries. Cheers!

Featured Experience: Muir Woods and Sonoma Winery Tour - From $180

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As you can see, there’s so many things to do for couples in San Francisco, so whether you’re looking for something for you and your other half to do in the city, or you’d like to give a San Francisco experience gift to another couple in your life, you’re spoilt for choice.