I travelled to San Francisco with my kids (ages 8 and 7) and my husband who was on a business trip. This was our kids’ first trip to California and I wanted them to see as much of San Francisco as possible but was reluctant to drive myself through all the neighborhoods and I cringed at the idea of taking a big bus tour. I stumbled upon this “Skip the Bus” tour which was actually cheaper than the big tour bus companies and I booked a morning tour.
On the day of our tour we had a private minivan all to ourselves with our tour guide, Brian. Brian started off the tour promptly at 9 am and began providing us with city history even as we boarded the minivan. Brian took us to all the listed stops and shared amazing stories and relevant history of each area of the city with enthusiasm and wit. Unlike the big tour buses, we were actually able to drive through each area and neighborhood while also jumping out to take a quick picture (which is certainly something you can’t do on a big bus city tour). When our kids started to get a little restless, Brian modified the tour and took us to an unplanned stop where our kids played on an amazing city landmark (designed by a child) and had an absolute blast. After the “kids’” stop, Brian gave each one of us a specialized “San Francisco” snack made up of Boudin sourdough bread, California grapes, almonds, local and freshly-made chips, and Ghirardelli chocolate squares - it was SUCH a nice touch. We ended the tour at another secret stop which was probably the most memorable part of both our tour and our entire trip. I highly recommend this tour — with or without children.