San Francisco Travel Forum

As some of you are already aware, I've been put in the delightful and challenging position of planning a budget student tour to and from San Francisco. Don't worry - it's a collective effort and a lot of work has already gone into the planning stages. I'm, however, developing the driving logistics at the moment where we have a bus full of students arriving into San Francisco on a Friday afternoon via 1-5 from Redding. They'll be travelling down via 1-5, hooking onto the 505, then onto the 80, over the Bay Bridge and into San Francisco.

What I'm curious about is... can anyone think of a decent stopping place for an early lunch along the way? I know there are some tiny, tiny towns along the 1-5 such as Dunnigan or Williams, which has fast food outlets in a neat and tidy location so the bus can park and the students can go off, eat, and come back to the bus in a timely fashion. But if anyone has a particularly great idea (such as a shopping mall with a food court that's immediately off the highway), I'm all ears! :)

Second, when I was in San Francisco last month, I flew in and drove out via the route I just described above. As a result, I never got the chance to check out the various driving routes in and out of the city.

While our group will be taking the Bay Bridge into SF, does it make sense to take the Golden Gate via the 580 back to 80 on our way back north? Since I haven't driven that section of freeway, I really don't know if it's much of a detour of if it takes about the same time. Essentially, we just want to get back onto the I-5 to get back to Oregon on the same day. Would this secondary route be advisable? We will be bringing the students over the Golden Gate Bridge regardless of whether we choose to use it as a departure route.

Thanks for any insight! :)

And by "1-5", I really do mean I-5. I've driven up and down that interstate to know better!

The route you describe coming in is the classic and easiest route. Vacaville along I-80 would be a good place to stop for lunch - there should be all the fast food restaurants any kid's heart could desire. In fact it is at Vacaville that the I-505 meets up with I-80. As for your return trip, it would be nice for the kids to travel the Golden Gate. You will be on 101 - just watch for 580/Richmond-San Rafael Bridge and take this which will take you directly to I-80. Hard to comment on how much extra time it will take - it could be about the same.

Taking the 101 to the Golden Gate Bridge means driving along surface streets through San Francisco, so, unless there's a wreck or particular jam on the Bay Bridge, I doubt that taking the 101 would be quicker. It's much more scenic though.
Also note the toll structure: Richmond-San Rafael (580) and Bay Bridge (80) are both westbound only while the Golden Gate (101) is southbound only. The Golden Gate is also $5 versus $4 on the other bridges.
If you do decide to do the 101, don't follow the 101 down Van Ness/Lombard. Instead, take the 280 to the CA 1 exit (19th Avenue) and follow that through Golden Gate Park to the bridge. It looks like it would take longer, but Van Ness has terrible traffic on it on weekday afternoons. And, some may disagree, but Van Ness from Market to about Broadway isn't particularly attractive while CA 1 through the park is and actually has relatively few traffic lights.
hth

The Golden Gate Bridge is certainly more scenic, as is the route along 37 to 80 in Vallejo. But it could add up to an hour, depending on time of day and your starting point. If you're staying in one of the motels on Lombard St or even in Fisherman's Wharf it makes more sense than if you're right downtown or south of Market. If you drive along Marina Blvd you won't have quite as much traffic and/or lights.

I know you'd like to have things planned out ahead of time, but whenever I have a choice of routes I call 511 on my cell phone when I set out. You can get traffic conditions anywhere in the bay area.

My favorite food court on the west coast is in Emeryville (just before the bay bridge), about 2 blocks off the freeway. Take the Powell St off ramp, left on Powell, left on christie, right on Shellmound. It's quick and there's a lot of good, locally made food. No fast food, just quick. There are a couple of dozen stalls with food from different countries. It really doesn't take any longer than fast food and it's lots lots better. My favorite is the moroccan stand.

Thanks everyone for your help!

We're actually staying on Van Ness, so we'll likely come in via the Bay Bridge and exit via the Golden Gate.

Vacaville - is there one particular area you'd recommend where the restaurants are all clustered together around one parking lot? The reason for this requirement is that we'll be bringing 55 students (plus the driver and the guide) all at once. I don't want to swarm one restaurant as we'll be there forever. :)

Emeryville - I'll have to look into that, as it sounds fantastic. I'm not necessarily looking for junky food, just somewhere where I can let loose 55 students where they can have various options to buy a cheap lunch in one location. That's why food courts work the best, but only if they're easy to access with a massive 50 foot motorcoach. ;)