Visiting San Francisco with an 18-month old -- Any Suggestions?

[BargainMomforLuke]

Yesterday DH planned an impromptu 1 week vacation to San Francisco for the 3 of us.

We leave next week. This is our first bigger vacation since DS was born. We've taken a few 4 or 5 day trips, but we've always stayed within a fairly close flight to Florida.

DH visited SF many years ago & I've never been.

If you have any suggestions for us, we'd love to hear them.

So far, this is what he has planned & we'll have a rental car:
Hotels: First 3 nights in Hotel del Sol in SF. Next 3 nights in the Cobblestone Inn at Carmel-by-the-Sea. Last night in Half Moon Bay.

Day 1 Visit Fisherman's Wharf, Ghirardelli Square, & Alcatraz.

Day 2 Visit Nob Hill, Chinatown, North Beach, Lombard St., go for a cable car ride, Ferry Building Marketplace, & Golden Gate Park (does that all seem a bit ambitious with an 18 month old?)

Day 3 Visit Muir Woods, Stinson Beach, & the Exploratorium.

Day 4 Drive to Monterey & visit the aquarium.

Day 5 Beach day in Carmel. Maybe a walking tour of Carmel.

Day 6 No plans yet

Day 7 Santa Cruz (1/2 day) & Half Moon Bay (1/2 day). Spend the night in Half Moon Bay

Thanks for any suggestions!

Natalie

eta: Should I buy the Entertainment Book? It will cost $26 for expedited shipping.

[tny915]

There was a post on SF a while back. This may help. But note that when the post mentions "Where the Wild Things Are" in the Metreon, that exhibit's closed.
http://www.windsorpeak.com/dc/dcboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=37&topic_id=250467&mesg_id=250467&listing_type=search

Day 2 is pretty ambitious, but it depends how deeply you want to explore each neighborhood. If you're just driving through and seeing things from the car, it's doable.

I'd recommend changing up day 3 to do the Bay Area Discovery Museum instead of Exploratoreum. Discovery Museum has a tot spot that's completely geared to toddlers and preschoolers. Exploratoreum is fun, but more for school-age kids.
http://www.baykidsmuseum.org/

In Monterey, there's the Dennis the Menace playground that I'm sure your DS will love. We took DD right before she turned two and she had a blast.
http://www.cityitinerary.com/activities/index.php?s=30

Have a fun trip!

[Momof3Labs]

I found Fisherman's Wharf and Ghirardelli Square to be terribly overrated, so would suggest spending less time there and moving some of your day 2 stuff up to day 1. Keep in mind if you are walking a lot in these neighborhoods that some of the hills are killers (at least to a midwest girl like me, lol) without a stroller in front of you!

[Momof3Labs]

I found Fisherman's Wharf and Ghirardelli Square to be terribly overrated, so would suggest spending less time there and moving some of your day 2 stuff up to day 1. Keep in mind if you are walking a lot in these neighborhoods that some of the hills are killers (at least to a midwest girl like me, lol) without a stroller in front of you!

[marit]

I think you're plan is great. It is all a little ambitious, but it good to have a plan and also be flexible to changes, if need be. I can't think of anything important that you've missed. Oh, wait. What about SF Zoo? Maybe on day 6?

[marit]

I think you're plan is great. It is all a little ambitious, but it good to have a plan and also be flexible to changes, if need be. I can't think of anything important that you've missed. Oh, wait. What about SF Zoo? Maybe on day 6?

[rlu]

We love the zoo but I think you have so much planned you probably will not have time for the zoo. If you go, 1) the penguins are always a hit with DS, 2) feeding time for the big cats is interesting but loud and you might need to put your kid on your shoulders to see - we prefer to see them in their normal area, 3) there is a big playground in the middle, if you don't want to get "stuck" there, get a map and avoid it, 4) DS loves the carousel & train! Note they do have reciprocal agreements with other zoos, so if you belong to a different zoo, you might check to see if the SF Zoo gives you discounted admission. ALSO - the zoo is right at the beach - free parking and beach playing on the Great Highway (I think - but right there next to the zoo). www.sfzoo.org

Otherwise, there are playing fields and gardens (and a lake!) to explore at Golden Gate park - it can be more than just a drive-through. We like the Japanese Tea gardens and we used to be members of the DeYoung but we tried going several times with DS and he isn't ready for quiet musuems yet. There's an aquarium at Golden Gate, but we greatly prefer the Monterey one.

Also, second PP some of those SF hills are brutal and a bit intimidating to drive let alone walk.

Are you planning to go to Santa Cruz beach or just anywhere in that area? I'm not sure if the Santa Cruz boardwalk is open yet. http://www.beachboardwalk.com/

We prefer the state park beaches New Brighton (we camp here twice yearly), Seacliff (cool cement boat at the end of the pier to look at) or Rio del Mar. You can get free parking sometimes at Rio del Mar. Sunset has great sand dunes to play on, they don't recommend swimming there. Here's a link, see the ones in Santa Cruz county (page 3).

http://www.parks.ca.gov/parkindex/results.asp?resort=1&searchtype=30&id=&sort_field=county&submit2=go

Have a great trip!

[BargainMomforLuke]

You all have awesome suggestions! Thanks so much for your responses. I will share some pics when we return! :-)

Natalie