20 Fun (And Safe) Things to Do in San Francisco This Fall

1. Culture is most certainly not cancelled this year. Constellation—a collaboration between Alonzo King’s LINES Ballet, visual electronic artist Jim Campbell and mezzo-soprano Maya Layhani—is being streamed online for free. You can still catch Act II through October 23…and consider donating to the LINES Community Relief Fund, which is helping artists through these uncertain times.

2. Better late than never. The highly anticipated Frida Kahlo exhibit “Frida Kahlo: Appearances Can Be Deceiving” is back on and the de Young is open to visitors, offering timed tickets for all museum admission to follow social distancing protocols.

3. Nob Hill’s Grace Cathedral is always thinking outside the box. Projecting Grace, an outdoor art series supporting social justice (through December), will briefly light up the church’s exterior around nightfall the last weekend of each month. Themes are expected to revolve around inclusivity and voting, and exact dates and times will not be announced in an effort to minimize crowds.

4. This year’s Litquake festival has gone virtual. Join for the grand finale—a global, multi-city Lit Crawl on October 24, where you can get a taste of literary scenes from all over the world through Zoom and Facebook Live “events” going on all day long.

5. Now, this is pretty groundbreaking. After six months of being closed, SFMOMA has reopened and is offering free admission, plus free parking, through October 18. Get your timed ticket, and check out exhibits emphasizing local Bay Area artists, including beloved figurative painter David Park.

6. Get ready to roll: Golden Gate Park’s giant ferris wheel, which was originally supposed to open in March, is finally ready for its big debut. The 150-foot-high SkyStar Wheel is part of the park’s 150th-anniversary festivities and officially opens October 21. Reservations required.

7. Attend a livestream event or drive-in movie screening during this year’s Mill Valley Film Festival, including Nomadland with Frances McDormand; The Comeback Trail with Robert De Niro and Morgan Freeman; and Star Wars, Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back on October 16.

8. We’re all missing the city’s nightlife scene, but thanks to Oasis, you can reserve a rooftop spot for dinner, drinks and a drag show at this SoMa institution.

9. Tickets are all sold-out for the final Fort Mason Flix drive-in screenings, but you can still catch Halloween-themed drive-in flicks (including Ghostbusters, The Exorcist and The Rocky Horror Picture Show) all month long at both the Alameda County Fairgrounds and Monterey County Fairgrounds.

12. Reserve a wine tasting experience at the new Faust Haus. The Glass Fire spared the historic Victorian property, which has safely reopened to visitors and can’t wait to welcome you in with a glass of its classic Napa Valley cab.

13. Attend a Virtual Cider Tasting through UC Berkeley’s Botanical Garden. Buy tickets to the virtual event online and then pick up your cider tasting kit at Redfield Cider Bar and Bottle Shop before the event.

14. Experience fall in Yosemite. Starting November 1, you won’t need reservations to get into the park. Set up camp at Upper Pines Campground, and cycle around on the scenic Yosemite Valley bike loop.

15. It’s fall and that means apple picking is in order. Make a u-pick reservation and take the whole family to Apple-a-Day Ratzlaff Ranch in Sebastopol (the town’s orchard history runs deep) for all the Gravensteins, Rome and Golden Delicious you desire.

16. Halloween won’t be quite the same this year, but there are plenty of creative ways to enjoy the frightful holiday—from pumpkin picking and socially distanced corn mazes at the Petaluma Pumpkin Patch to a drive-through haunted house to the Oakland Zoo’s Boo at the Zoo scavenger hunt and Filoli Gardens’ Howl at the Moon.

17. Breathe in the wonderful, fresh air we’ve been having lately, and hike SF’s 17-mile Crosstown Trail winding all the way through the city.

18. Take virtual school on the road with a stay at Hotel SLO, which is offering a Learn, Play, Explore package for families that includes educational excursions to a local safari ranch, a city walking tour and a private whale watching experience.

19. Change up your workspace for the day and head to Healdsburg for Harmon Guest House’s Work, Stay, Play package. Now through November 30, you can book the property’s luxurious Founder’s Suite, complete with a state-of-the-art ergonomic workstation, for day use or overnight stays.

20. This fall, we could all use a getaway. Let the luxury Farmhouse Inn wine & dine you with their progressive picnic winery tour, where you’ll be privately chauffeured to a private picnic experience and tastings at three exceptional wineries (Gary Farrell, Flowers and Lambert Bridge).