Presidio of San Francisco
Three nations — Spain, Mexico, the United States — each garrisoned this headland for over two centuries. Now it's yours to walk.
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Continuously fortified from 1776 until the Army handed the keys to the National Park Service in 1994, the Presidio sits at the southern foot of the Golden Gate Bridge with unobstructed views across the Bay and out to the Pacific. Preserved military structures include an 1861 brick-and-granite fortification (Fort Point) and an 1904 coastal artillery battery (Battery Chamberlin), alongside wooded hills and ridges now serving as scenic viewpoints.
What to look for
- Fort Point, an 1861 brick-and-granite fortification built directly beneath the Golden Gate Bridge — open Friday through Sunday
- Battery Chamberlin's 1904 coastal artillery display at Baker Beach, now a seacoast defense museum
- The Golden Gate Bridge approach road crossing the park, placing the bridge's southern anchorage right at ground level
Reach the main visitor center via the Presidio Go Shuttle from the adjacent Presidio Transit Center; Fort Point is open Friday, Saturday, and Sunday only.
Presidio of San Francisco is one of 31 sights worth the detour in San Francisco, all bundled offline in Voyage GO — download the San Francisco pack and it sits on your map with no signal, filling your travel passport the moment you walk past.
More to see in San Francisco
- Golden Gate BridgeOpened May 27, 1937 as simultaneously the world's longest and tallest suspension bridge — you can walk the 4,200-foot main span yourself.
- Alcatraz IslandFor 29 years, cold Bay tidal currents did what bars alone could not — make escape nearly impossible.
- Transamerica PyramidAn 853-foot pyramid that ruled San Francisco's skyline for 45 years — still on the Transamerica logo even though the company quietly moved its HQ to Baltimore.
- Golden Gate ParkSan Francisco turned three miles of bare shifting sand dunes into the country's third-busiest urban park — starting from scratch in 1870.
- San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA)The West Coast's first museum devoted solely to 20th-century art, now stretched across 170,000 square feet after a 2016 expansion that nearly sextupled public space.
- Alcatraz Federal PenitentiaryA 9-by-5-foot cell surrounded by cold bay currents — the federal government once staked its reputation on the claim that no one could leave.