Enjoy World-Renown San Francisco Museums- & more . . .

San Francisco has a wealth of cultural centers and museums most of which are less than a mile away from the San Remo Hotel. Of San Francisco's major museums, the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA) is the "hottest" spot in town. The combination of SFMOMA's stunning building, designed by Swiss architect Mario Botta, and its extensive collection of twentieth-century art is almost too much for one's senses to handle.

Other major art museums include the M. H. de Young Memorial Museum in Golden Gate Park and Asian Art Museum on Larkin Street in San Francisco. For those with an interest in science, there is the California Academy of Sciences on Howard Street, and the Exploratorium in the Palace of Fine Arts in the City's Marina District. The Academy of Sciences is many science museums under one roof, including the Steinhart Aquarium and the Morrison Planetarium.

If you only have an hour or two for museum-going, consider a visit to one of San Francisco's many smaller museums. At Fort Mason, a former Army base in the Marina District, your choices include the Mexican Museum, the Museo Italo Americano, the San Francisco African American Historical/Cultural Society, and the San Francisco Craft & Folk Art Museum. The Mexican, Italo Americano, and African American museums pay tribute to their respective cultures, both in their native lands and in California. The Craft & Folk Art Museum is the only museum in Northern California devoted to contemporary crafts and traditional folk art.

San Francisco Museums & Historic Sites listed by distance from hotel:

Located at the west end of San Francisco's Fisherman's Wharf, the San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park includes a fleet of historic vessels tied up at Hyde Street Pier, a visitor center, and a library/research facility. Visitors can step aboard turn-of-the-century ships, visit the maritime museum's exhibits and ship models, and learn traditional seafaring arts like boatbuilding and woodworking. Visitors to this National Park can also participate in a variety of educational, music and craft programs designed for all ages.

Aquatic Park Bathhouse Building (Maritime Museum): The Bathhouse building was built in 1939 as a joint project of the City of San Francisco and the New Deal Works Progress Administration (WPA), and is the focal point of the Aquatic Park Historic Landmark District. This unique structure was designed in the Streamline Moderne style, a late offshoot of the Art Deco period, and mimics the clean lines of an ocean liner. The building is a showcase for art created during the 1930s by Sargent Johnson and Hilaire Hiler. Dazzling murals cover the interior walls. Stop by to enjoy the vibrant colors depicting a dreamy and strange underwater world.

Fort Point   •  4.6 miles

South anchorage of the Golden Gate Bridge at the end of Marine Drive on the Presidio of San Francisco.    (415) 556-1693
From its vantage point overlooking the spectacular Golden Gate, Fort Point protected San Francisco harbor from Confederate and foreign attack during and after the U.S. Civil War. Its beautifully arched casemates display the art of the master brick mason from the Civil War period.

Fort Point has stood guard at the narrows of the Golden Gate for nearly 150 years. It has been called "the pride of the Pacific," "the Gibraltar of the West Coast," and "one of the most perfect models of masonry in America." When construction began during the height of the California Gold Rush, Fort Point was planned as the most formidable deterrence America could offer to a naval attack on California. Although its guns never fired a shot in anger, the "Fort at Fort Point" as it was originally named has witnessed Civil War, obsolescence, earthquake, bridge construction, reuse for World War II, and preservation as a National Historic Site.

Fort Point was built between 1853 and 1861 by the U.S. Army Engineers as part of a defense system of forts planned for the protection of San Francisco Bay. Designed at the height of the Gold Rush, the fort and its companion fortifications would protect the Bay’s important commercial and military installations against foreign attack. The fort was built in the Army’s traditional "Third System" style of military architecture (a standard adopted in the 1820s), and would be the only fortification of this impressive design constructed west of the Mississippi River. This fact bears testimony to the importance the military gave San Francisco and the gold fields during the 1850s.

Although Fort Point never saw battle, the building has tremendous significance due to its military history, its architecture, and its association with maritime history.

In the late 1930s, plans for the construction of the Golden Gate Bridge also involved plans for the demolition of Fort Point. Fortunately, Chief Engineer Joseph Strauss recognized the architectural value of the Fort and created a special engineer arch which allowed the construction of the bridge to occur safely over the Fort. In 1959, a group of retired military officers and civilian engineers created the Fort Point Museum Association and lobbied for its creation as a National Historic Site. On October 16, 1970, Fort Point became a National Historic Site.

Fort Point is cold and windy most of the time. You can probably count on the temperature being at least 10 degrees cooler that the current listing below. Spring and Fall generally offer the best weather. Dress warmly for your visit, with layers of clothing.