City Guides: Things to do While Boating in the San Francisco Bay Area

From the rocky shores of the Pacific to the cable cars and Victorian homes of San Francisco, California’s Bay Area is a fusion of fun, history and stunning scenery. The area is known for its famous tech giant neighbors in Silicon Valley, but it ranks high on its own as a world-wide destination. Whether it’s art, recreation or sea lions you seek, you’re sure to find it among the many attractions and activities in the Bay Area.

Today, we’re going to take a look at some fun things to do while you’re boating in the San Francisco Bay Area. Grab your log book and pencil in some of these attractions to check out from private boat dock rentals in San Mateo or the Bay.

San Francisco Zoo

Photo: San Francisco Zoo Facebook

Located on 100 acres in the southwest side of the city, between Lake Merced and the Pacific, the San Francisco Zoo makes a fun day trip from nearby boat slip rentals. It has more than 2,000 exotic, rescued and endangered animals that run the gamut from amphibians and reptiles to birds, mammals and more. There’s also a sculpture plaza and gardens with native and foreign plants. Exhibits include a three-acre African savanna with giraffes, lions and tigers.

Pier 39

Photo: Pixabay

You can’t go to California without seeing sea lions. The best place to see them is at the K-Dock overlook at Pier 39, which has been home to the playful marine mammals for nearly 30 years. The pier is full of restaurants, shops, watersports, outdoor dining and entertainment such as the San Francisco Carousel, the Sea Lion Center, the Aquarium of the Bay and thrill rides like The Flyer and The Bay Plunge.

Walt Disney Family Museum

Photo: Walt Disney Family Museum Facebook

If you love Disney, you won’t want to miss the Walt Disney Family Museum. Opened in 2009, it’s located in The Presidio, which is part of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area. Leave the boat at the private slip rental and peruse the art, music and imagination of Walt Disney, along with galleries focused on his life and times from his boyhood in Marceline, Missouri to his move to Hollywood and the creation of that famous mouse. There are exhibits focusing on the Disney studios, original artwork from early projects, European influences, trains and the tools of animation from the earliest thaumatropes (rotating discs that make a complete picture or scene when turned) to modern day computer animation.

San Francisco Museum of Modern Art

Photo: San Francisco Museum of Modern Art Facebook

The SFMoMA is one of the largest art and culture centers in the U.S. You’ll find 45,000 square feet of space filled with paintings, sculptures, architecture, photography, design and media art. Work from artists such as Georgia O’Keefe, Henri Matisse, Frida Kahlo and local and modern artists are on display in traveling and permanent exhibits. Past exhibits have included artists such as Paul Klee, Andy Warhol and Wayne Thiebaud. The museum is free and has a sculpture terrace, grab-and-go dining, a museum store and kid-friendly spaces.

Alcatraz Island

Photo: Alcatraz Island National Park Facebook

What’s more iconic to San Francisco than Alcatraz Island. Okay, maybe the Golden Gate Bridge. But to get the true Bay Area experience, you’ve got to visit Alcatraz. The former maximum-security prison site is on 22 acres in the middle of the Bay. It has gardens, bird nesting sites, remnants of an 1850s fort and Alcatraz Lighthouse, the West Coast’s first lighthouse.

It’s located 1.5 miles off the coast of California, so you’ll have to take a boat ride to get there. The area opened to the public in 1973 and is now a national park site. Visit the museum, which has exhibits spanning years of Native American history and infamous prison artifacts like handcuffs and shackles.

Angel Island State Park

Photo: Wikimedia

Angel Island State Park has the cool factor of being the largest natural island in San Francisco Bay. It’s accessible by private boat or a 25-minute ferry ride from Tiburon or San Francisco. Boat slips for rent near San Mateo are excellent anchorages for visiting Angel Island. There are day use docks and overnight mooring areas as well as restrooms, picnic tables, hiking trails and a to-go cafe.

The island has seen life as a cattle ranch, a processing area for returning and embarking soldiers during WW I and II, a hunting ground and a missile base. It became a state park in 1954 and offers great views of Mount Tamalpais, the Marin Headlands and the Bay Area.

Have you found some new things to do while boating in the Bay Area? Hopefully this list has helped. Happy travels!