In One Day

If you've got only 1 day to explore the city, put on your walking shoes and start early. You've got a lot of ground to cover just to get to the must-sees, but luckily, condensed geography (and hopefully weather) are in your favor. The whirlwind tour starts with a scenic ride on a cable car followed by a tour of Alcatraz Island. Next you'll hoof it up to two of the city's most colorful neighborhoods -- Chinatown and North Beach -- for lunch, shopping, browsing, cocktails, dinner, and cappuccino. Get an early start, because you're about to have a long yet wonderful day in the City by the Bay. Start: Bus no. 2, 3, 4, 30, 45, or 76 to Union Square.

1. Union Square

Union Square -- which was named for a series of pro-union mass demonstrations staged here on the eve of the Civil War -- isn't an attraction in itself, but it's the epicenter of the city's shopping district. Macy's, Saks, Tiffany's, Barneys, and company are located here and are surrounded by blocks crammed with hundreds of other high-end boutiques. There are very few shopping bargains here, but it's fun to play lookey-loo. Just 3 blocks down, at Powell and Market streets, is the cable car turnaround where you'll embark on a ride on the nation's only moving National Historic Landmark.

2. Cable Cars & Lombard Street 

Don't be intimidated by the line of people at the cable car turnaround at Market and Powell streets -- the ride is worth the wait. The $5 thrill ride starts with a steep climb up Nob Hill, and then passes through Chinatown and Russian Hill before plummeting down Hyde Street to Fisherman's Wharf. It's an experience you'll never forget. (Note: If you want to check out the famous winding stretch of Lombard Street, hop off the cable car at the intersection of Hyde and Lombard streets and, when you've seen enough, either walk the rest of the way down to Fisherman's Wharf or take the next cable car that comes along.) For maximum thrill, stand on the running boards during the ride and hold on Doris Day style.

3. Buena Vista Café

After you've completed your first Powell-Hyde cable car ride, it's a San Francisco tradition to celebrate with an Irish coffee at the Buena Vista Café, located at 2765 Hyde St. across from the cable car turnaround (tel. 415/474-5044). The first Irish coffees served in America were mixed here in 1952, and they're still the best in the Bay Area.

4. Alcatraz Tour 

To tour "the Rock," the Bay Area's famous abandoned prison on its own island, you must first get there, and that's half the fun. The brief but beautiful ferry ride offers captivating views of the Golden Gate Bridge, the Marin Headlands, and the city. Once inside, an excellent audio tour guides you through cellblocks and offers a colorful look at the prison's historic past as well as its most infamous inmates. Book well in advance because these tours consistently sell out in the summer. Bring snacks and beverages -- the ferry's pickings are slim and expensive, and nothing is available on the island.

5. Chinatown 

One block from North Beach is a whole other world: Chinatown. San Francisco has one of the largest communities of Chinese people in the United States, with more than 80,000 people condensed into the blocks around Grant Avenue and Stockton Street. Although frequented by tourists, the area caters mostly to Chinese, who crowd the vegetable and herb markets, restaurants, and shops carrying those ubiquitous pink plastic bags. It's worth a peek if only to see the Stockton Street markets hawking live frogs, armadillos, turtles, and odd sea creatures destined for tonight's dinner table. Tip: The dozens of knickknack shops are a great source of cheap souvenirs.

6. House of Dim Sum

You can't visit Chinatown and not sample dim sum. Walk to 735 Jackson St. to the House of Dim Sum (tel. 415/399-0888) and order shrimp dumplings, pork dumplings, sweet buns, turnip cake, and the sweet rice with chicken wrapped in a lotus leaf. Find an empty table, pour a side of soy sauce, and dig in.

7. North Beach 

One of the best ways to get the San Francisco vibe is to mingle with the locals, and one of my favorite places to do so is in San Francisco's "Little Italy." Dozens of Italian restaurants and coffeehouses continue to flourish in what is still the center of the city's Italian community. A stroll along Columbus Avenue will take you past eclectic little cafes, delis, bookstores, bakeries, and coffee shops that give North Beach its Italian-bohemian character.

8. Mario's Bohemian Cigar Store

Okay, so the menu's limited to coffee drinks and a few sandwiches (the meatball is my favorite), but the convivial atmosphere and large windows that are perfect for people-watching make this tiny, pie-shaped cafe a favorite even with locals. It's at 566 Columbus Ave. (tel. 415/362-0536).

9. Dinner at Capp's Corner 

The best thing about North Beach is its old-school restaurants -- those dusty, frumpy, loud, and over-sauced bastions of red sauce and chianti. Capp's Corner (1600 Powell St.; tel. 415/989-2589) is one of my favorites, where patrons sit at long tables and dine family style via huge platters of Italian comfort food served by brusque waitresses, while Frank Sinatra croons his classics on the jukebox.

10. Caffè Greco 

By now you should be stuffed and exhausted. Good. End the night with a cappuccino at Caffè Greco (423 Columbus Ave.; tel. 415/397-6261). Sit at one of the sidewalk tables and reminisce on what a great day you had in San Francisco.