Small-Group Yosemite Day Tour from San Francisco

Overview

Yosemite National Park is a must-visit California gem, and this day trip from San Francisco makes it easy. Leave the urban hustle-bustle behind and journey through Central Valley, Gold Country and the Sierra Nevada foothills to UNESCO World Heritage–listed Yosemite National Park. Take a 1.5-hour narrated van tour of Yosemite Valley, including Yosemite Falls, Half Dome, Bridalveil Falls and El Capitan, and then set off on your own for three hours to explore independently. Numbers are limited to 23 on this small-group tour, ensuring a more personalized wilderness experience.

City: San Francisco

Fri 25 Oct

Other dates

You can choose the date already on the booking website

Starting at $179.00

Make a reservation

Fri 25 Oct

Starting at $179.00

Make a reservation

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What's Included

Yosemite National Park entrance fee

Narrated in-coach tour of Yosemite (1.5 hrs)

Full-time professional, knowledgeable guide

Transport by biofueled mini-coach

Hotel pickup and drop-off from select SF hotels

3 hours of free time in the Valley

Additional Info

Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
Public transportation options are available nearby
Specialized infant seats are available
Suitable for all physical fitness levels
Hand sanitiser available to travellers and staff
Social distancing enforced throughout experience
Regularly sanitised high-traffic areas
Transportation vehicles regularly sanitised
Guides required to regularly wash hands
Contactless payments for gratuities and add-ons
Face masks recommended

What To Expect

San Francisco Bay

As you settle in for the journey, we’ll pass by some exceptional San Francisco sights. Catch views of the Golden Gate Bridge, Alcatraz Island and the incomparable San Francisco Skyline as we head east on the Bay Bridge. The journey to Yosemite typically takes about 4 hours.

Oakdale

You’ll taste a piece of California’s rich agricultural hub as we pass through a slice of the Central Valley famous for specialty fruits and nuts such as almonds, walnuts, cherries, and strawberries. Here we will also make a stop at a grocery store for you to pick up lunch and any other supplies you'll need for the day.

Tunnel View

We’ll continue into the mountains as we connect with the rich history of California’s gold country, passing through some of the first settlements built during the Gold Rush. Take in the earthy forest smell as we make our way to the heart of the park. Your guide will pepper you with stories and historical facts about the different sights. The climb through Yosemite Valley offers breathtaking views as we wind our way up to 4,500 feet above sea level. Arrive at Yosemite National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage site famous for its spectacular granite cliffs, waterfalls, massive sequoia trees and biological diversity. Admire famous Half Dome, depicted in famous photographs by Ansel Adams, and watch rock climbers scale El Capitan's 3,000-foot (914-meter) sheer granite rock face. Enjoy incredible vistas from the Tunnel View overlook, and end your in-coach tour near the base of Yosemite Falls, the tallest waterfall in North America.

Yosemite Valley

The suspense is over! Once we reach the drop off location, you’ll have around 3 hours of free time to explore. Want to hike or bike around? Your guide will point out the best spots on your map. You’ll have options to meander or bike down paved paths, hike the trails, engage further with the park’s history at the visitor center, or visit the Ansel Adams Gallery. Although you could spend three weeks in Yosemite, the three hours you get on your own is enough time to understand why Yosemite is one of America’s most popular national parks.

Yosemite Falls

During your free time in Yosemite Valley, you can talk a walk or bike around the base of Yosemite Falls to take in its beauty.

Ansel Adams Gallery

During your free time in Yosemite Valley, you can choose to visit the famous photographer' gallery to view a collection of Ansel Adams' original photographs.

San Francisco

Once we’ve had our time to explore, we’ll come together in the late afternoon and set our course back to San Francisco, stopping for a short break before arriving back in the city. You will arrive back at your hotel by around 8:30 – 9:00 p.m. to sleep off the days’ adventures.

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Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Traveler Photos

Reviews (350)

beatnikjoss

Oct 2019

I took this tour from San Fran during my recent stay and Yosemite has always been on my Bucket list. I truly fell in love with the beauty of it all. Our guide was great ! She made sure to communicate with us and gave us some interesting facts along the way there and back. Once we were at the park we got to have free time. The park itself is breath taking, despite the falls being dry during this time of year, one day is not enough and I will def be back in the spring. I highly recommend this tour if you don’t want to drive yourself.

Response from Host

Nov 2019

Thank you for taking the time to write a review. In Yosemite, each season is different and hard to say what time of year is the most beautiful! We are happy to hear that you plan to go back!

dpach87

Oct 2019

Matt was a great tour guide! He hit the major sites within Yosemite and gave us time for ourselves to explore.

qzong

Oct 2019

Honestly by far the worst tour I've ever been on. When I spend $200 per person on a tour, I expected a knowledgeable guide who would give us a local's perspective of the region, guiding us in making the most of our limited time in the region. It would however seem that little to no effort went into planning this 'guided' tour whatsoever. Our tour guide barely spoke during the 4 hour drive, making quick comments on what we were passing by but never really gave any real insight into each of the locations. He struggled to answer simple questions such as 'why is the golden gate bridge famous?' - his reply? 'I'm not sure... guess it's the red colour, I personally like the bay bridge better but that's just my opinion'. Asides from seeing the iconic locations, one of the highlights of the trip was supposed to be a 3-hour self-exploration of Yosemite Valley. Our tour guide gave no recommendations of available hiking trials, sights to see and difficulty levels, and given 3 hours is quite a short time to actually have in a large area such as Yosemite Valley, honestly as a first timer who travelled from the other side of the world - who probably will be unlikely to return anytime soon, I honestly would have appreciated more of a guide of what the 'essentials' are in terms of where I could find the best trials and see the best of Yosemite Valley in such a limited time. I honestly feel like this day was an absolute waste of my time and money and we might as well have just paid for a round trip bus without the promise of a guide.

Response from Host

Oct 2019

We are so sorry your experience was not up to your expectations. We take pride in our guides and the experiences they provide, and I can assure you that this is not a normal occurrence. We will be investigating this further with your guide to make sure it doesn't happen again. If you'd like to continue the conversation on this matter, feel free to reach out to [email protected] and we can assist you.