Walking Tour of Nob Hill - Cable Cars, Luxury Hotels, French-Gothic Cathedral

5.0 (2 reviews) 2 hours Free cancellation Private tour

out of 5

2 reviews

5.0

Ismenia on Powell/Hyde Cable Car in Union Square — Photos: the activity supplier, via Viator

The First Concierge in America, Tom Wolfe at the Fairmont Hotel — Photos: the activity supplier, via Viator

About this activity

When Robert Louis Stevenson visited San Francisco in 1879, he declared, "Nob Hill, the Hill of Palaces, must certainly be counted the best part of San Francisco. It is here that millionaires gathered together, vying with each other in display". My Nob Hill tour is a 2-hour walking photo-shoot tour that starts with a Cable Car ride and a visit to a French Gothic Cathedral and ends at the Top of the Mark on the 19th floor of the InterContinental Mark Hopkins Hotel for photographs and beverages at sunset.

The eclectic history of Nob Hill includes:

The Gold Rush (not the San Francisco 49r cheerleaders)
The Silver Bonanza (not including Ben Cartwright, Ben, Hoss or Little Joe)
The Transcontinental Railroad
The 1906 Earthquake and Fire, and
A spectacular French-Gothic design Episcopal Cathedral that took nearly 40 years to build.

The opportunities for photography are endless on Nob Hill!

Private and Luxury Private Sightseeing Tours Photography Tours Architecture Tours Trolley Tours Cable Car Tours DSA non-compliant Short term availability

At a glance

Duration: 2 hours
Confirmation: Instant confirmation
Ticket: Mobile or paper ticket accepted
Group: Your group only
People per booking: 1–5
Guide: English
Operated by: Michael Sullivan

Ages: Adults (21–69 years)

What is included

Included

Included: Guided sightseeing experience with a photographer, blogger, content creator and certified guide
Included: 20 of the best photos for digital download and a few specially edited photos for each person.

Not included

Not included: OPTIONAL: Alcoholic Beverages
Not included: OPTIONAL: Cable Car (or Uber transportation if necessary)

Itinerary

Cable Car Museum

Passing by

We'll ride a cable car (not go to the museum!) on the California Street Cable Car Line. If everyone is on time we'll take some photos with parked cable cars. Each cable car ride is $8.00 but a MUNI Mobile all-day pass is only $13.00 (for unlimited MUNI rides anywhere in San Francisco). The ride up to Nob Hill on the California Street Cable Car Line takes about 15 minutes passing through the Financial District and Chinatown.
Financial District

Passing by

Beaux Arts Architecture, the oldest restaurant in San Francisco, Wells Fargo Bank, 555 California, much more.
Chinatown

Passing by

Grant Street is the oldest street in San Francisco, Chinese lanterns, Edwardian buildings with Pagoda enhancements, Old Saint Mary's Cathedral
Huntington Park

10 min

The holiday lights on all the trees are red and green. The Fountain of the Turtles is a copy of 16th century Fontana delle Tartarughe located in Piazza Matteo in the Sant'Angelo district of Rome. Architect Giacomo Della Porta and sculptor Taddeo Landini built the original between 1580 and 1588. The replica was made in the early 1900s and donated to Huntington Park by the Crocker heirs in 1955.
Grace Cathedral Episcopal Church

20 min

Grace Cathedral is the 3rd largest Episcopal Church in the United States. The French Gothic Architecture, Ghiberti Doors, ecumenically themed murals and stained-glass windows call for dramatic or pensive expressions. The vaulted ceilings may transport you to another side of the globe. For myself, different aspects of Grace Cathedral remind me of the Cologne Cathedral, Notre Dame de Paris and Reims Cathedral. With a little help from my friend, Archivist Michael Lampen, I’ve had the privilege of photographing a number of fascinating areas in the Cathedral including the Bell Tower, the sacristy and the Columbarium.
Stop 6

30 min

The Fairmont Hotel

The Fairmont Hotel was built between 1902 and 1907 in honor of James Graham Fair who made a fortune mining silver and gold in Nevada’s Comstock Lode during the 1860s. After we pass by the statue of Tony Bennett and enter the magnificent ‘beaux arts” lobby of the Fairmont Hotel we will walk over to the Roof Garden looking out over North Beach onto San Francisco and Suisun Bay. We’ll see the 1933, Timothy Ludwig Pflueger designed Cirque Bar which was the first bar to open in the City following the repeal of Prohibition. I always enjoy stopping in on proprietor and “master product presenter”, Sultan, at Charisma Crafts where you’ll be amazed at the exquisitely beautiful detail on fabrics that take years to handcraft into garments. If we’re lucky we’ll get to spend a minute with the “First Concierge in America” and Fairmont Hotel historian, Tom Wolfe.
The InterContinental Mark Hopkins building

one hour

Top of the Mark

Our tour ends on the 19th floor of the InterContinental Mark Hopkins Hotel, “Top of the Mark” for "no host" beverages and photos at sunset. The Mark Hopkins Hotel guests have included leading statesmen, royalty, and celebrities, such as, Elizabeth Taylor, Elvis Presley, Michael Jackson (who required a personal chef to prepare his vegetarian meals) and The Rolling Stones (who took two entire floors for themselves and their entourage). As much as I love history, it’s the view at Top of the Mark that keeps me coming back to try to get the perfect photo at sundown and early “blue hour".