A huge thank you to Hotel Spero for hosting us for our stay in San Francisco!
I can’t believe our trip to the Bay Area has come and gone! Last week I shared all about our time in San Jose, and today I am excited to share more about what we did while in San Francisco for a few days. Traveling to San Francisco with a toddler can be a bit tricky since it’s such a busy city, but we found a few key activities that we all enjoyed during our stay! Ever since living in San Jose, San Francisco quickly became one of my favorite cities ever. I think it can sometimes get a bad rap, but we always love visiting there. If it wasn’t so expensive I always said I would enjoy living there because of the endless options of things to do and see!
Traveling to San Francisco with a Toddler
Where to Stay: Hotel Spero
I mean, can we first talk about this awesome view? We were lucky enough to stay on the top floor of Hotel Spero and this was the first time ever having a cool city view from a hotel room in San Francisco. When we lived in San Jose, my husband and I would often go on little staycations in the city. We have stayed at a ton of different hotels over the years, and I have to say Hotel Spero is my new favorite. The location is great, making so many attractions and restaurants a quick walk or drive away.
Harper made herself right at home the first night we were there and cozied up on the bed to watch Moana. We were all so tired from a long day, we wound up checking out their restaurant Jasper’s Kitchen downstairs for a quick dinner. The food was delicious – Harper and I shared the fish & chips and my husband had the fried chicken sandwich. Next time I definitely want to try their breakfast!
The room itself (including the bed) was super comfortable! We didn’t have any issues at all with noise, which is very rare when staying in San Francisco. Usually you can always hear the hustle and bustle from the streets below, but staying up on the highest floor made a huge difference. The decor throughout the hotel was right up my alley. Air plants in the room? Check! I loved the modern vibe and decor, and we truly can’t wait until our next trip to stay here again.
Family Friendly Activities around the City:
California Academy of Sciences
My husband and I had visited the California Academy of Sciences once before and fell in love. We had debated driving down to Monterey during our trip to go to the aquarium there, but opted to try the Academy of Sciences instead. Not only do they have an aquarium, they also have a planetarium, a rainforest, a natural history museum, and a living roof! You can definitely spend the entire day here because there are so many different exhibits to look at. One of my favorite attractions is always the rainforest exhibit. The cost is a bit pricey for a day pass, but honestly worth it!
San Francisco Giants Game
We took Harper to her first ever San Francisco Giants game while we were visiting. It was actually her first baseball game ever, and she did amazing! We actually weren’t even planning on going to the game when we planned out our trip, but spur of the moment we figured why not! With baby boy coming soon, I’m not sure when we will be back in the Bay to visit or check out a game so it was the perfect time to go. If you ever go to a Giants game, you must get some garlic fries while you’re there!
Take a Ferry Ride:
During the years we lived in the Bay Area and all of the trips we have taken there, we had never taken a ferry ride before. We did go to Alcatraz once years ago. Since Harper loves anything water related, we thought it would be fun to take a ferry ride around the Golden Gate Bridge. We booked our ride with Red and White Fleet for the Golden Gate Bay Cruise. I originally wanted to try the Bridge to Bridge tour, but time didn’t allow for it. Seeing the bridge up close was incredible and I highly recommend a ferry tour next time you’re in the city!
Our Favorite Places to Eat:
I could go on and on about food in San Francisco. The options are endless, and they have some of the best food I’ve ever tasted. See that breakfast above? Probably our favorite meal we ate this time in San Francisco! We were walking to a breakfast spot I had found that was close by the hotel, and after seeing how long the wait was we opted to keep walking. I’m so glad we did because we stumbled across Lapisara Eatery and oh my goodness. AMAZING! Even though we were stuffed from brunch, I really wanted to make sure to stop by Mr. Holmes Bakehouse. Best.Pastries.EVER. The lemon meringue croissant was life changing!
We are super #basic and had to stop at Boudin Bakery for a clam chowder bread bowl. San Francisco is the only place I’ll eat clam chowder so it was one of those when-in-Rome situations. I may or may not have taken an entire loaf of sourdough bread back home with me this time. Looking back, we actually didn’t get to try too many new spots this trip due to the limited amount of time we had there. For some more food favorites, you can always check out my previous 24 hours in San Francisco post.
