going to san francisco alone..18 years old..is it safe?

i just turned 18 in june,it has been my dream for years to visit SF

(i want to move there when i get done with college..its weird but i have a connection to a city ive never been to, its just so beautiful)

i never had the money to go on holiday outside of ireland before but now i have almost $3000 saved which i am thinking about using to visit san francisco.

i cant convince any of my friends to go, theyre all 15-22 year olds who are struggling thru school/college so they cant afford it. none of my family will come because of the long flight (13hrs+)

so i think i may just go on my own. is this safe? the hotel i will be staying in is on union square..i know better than to go down small alleys or stay out at night..but im just wondering is it a bad idea to go alone?

also what time does it start to get dark at in SF in mid-late november, and what is the weather like at this time of year?

thank you!

going to san francisco alone..18 years old..is it safe?

Yes, if you have some street smarts it will be safe. (Not clear if you%26#39;re male or female.) What hotel have you booked?

There are areas near Union Square you don%26#39;t want to be walking around at night; specifically the Tenderloin. You%26#39;ll want to locate that area on a map and stay away.

Be careful for pickpockets; keep your wallet, ID, purse, etc. close and safe.

By mid-late November we%26#39;ll be off Daylight time and it will get dark relatively early ... I%26#39;m guessing around 5-5:30PM. (1700-1730 for you).

But you will be very safe around Union Square and going over to North Beach, Chinatown, Fisherman%26#39;s Wharf etc.

Just realize you%26#39;re in a big city and take the usual precautions.

Have a great trip.

going to san francisco alone..18 years old..is it safe?

yes, it%26#39;s perfectly safe, especially in Union Square.

Have you thought about staying in a hostel? It%26#39;s a good way to meet people your age (or a bit older) and go sightseeing/eating out together.

thank you both for replying!

im a girl

i am going to stay in the chancellor hotel..i read great reviews about it on this site and its pretty affordable too since i found a site with 20% off each night [winter sale].

is the street this hotel is on safe?

is 5 days enough to see the city? since ive never flown before i think i will be pretty jet lagged and need a day or two to recover. my flight arrives in at 12.30pm SF time on the arrival day, and leaves at 14.30 on the day i will be leaving, so i really only have 5 days in between.

i dont want to stay in a hostel..im not sure how safe hostels are in other parts of the world but ive stayed in two in dublin(ireland) and the first one my room was broken into and the second i was grabbed by a junkie while walking into the reception area and i%26#39;d just prefer to know i%26#39;m safe.

i%26#39;m going to the city mostly to take photographs (im a photography student) and just lots of sightseeing..i dont really care about making friends or anything (that sounds kind-of rude but i just want to cram as much into my trip as possible)

thanks again

I%26#39;ve visited San Francisco many times by myself and have found it to generally be very safe. I haven%26#39;t stayed at the Chancellor but have heard many good things about it. Union Square is a busy area with lots of people around, restaurants, etc.

Take the tips from the previous posts and enjoy! Have a wonderful trip!

thanks for the reply

thank you!

somebody said it gets dark about 6pm, so i will probably stay in my hotel room after it gets dark just to be safe.

would it be a bad idea to get a bus out to treasure island alone at night? i%26#39;d really love to take photographs of the city from there at night but i don%26#39;t know if any buses go to there from union square?

Welcome to San Francisco! It%26#39;s too bad you can%26#39;t talk anyone into joining you, because most people have a great time here.

The Chancellor will be ideal. It is next to Union Square. The manager, Wes Tyler, is a regular participant here and from what I read, he is glad to make the acquaintance of people from TA. The cable cars run on Powell Street until almost 1:00 a.m. With cable cars, buses, and streetcars (a historic line runs on Market Street maybe a a quarter mile/0.4 km away), you will never lack for a ride to every part of the City.

Several museums are in the area of Yerba Buena Center and Moscone Convention Center, around Mission and Howard streets between 2nd and 4th streets. They include the S.F. Museum of Modern Art, Museum of the African Diaspora, Contemporary Jewish Museum, and California Historical Society. Someone in the last few days mentioned the Museum of Cartoon Art that may be especially interesting to a young person.

Other places you might enjoy, especially as a photographer, are Golden Gate Park, the Presidio, and the ocean. On Telegraph Hill, along with spectacular city view, you might get a peek at the famous wild parrots. You can take buses to all of them. The Haight-Asbury is a place you may have heard your parents or even grandparents talk about. It was the center of the hippie cultural phenomenon of the late 1960s.

You do not have to shut yourself inside after sunset. Just be aware of your surroundings and don%26#39;t carelessly get in harm%26#39;s way, and let common sense tell you where to go and where to avoid. You can walk around much of the Union Square area at night. Major shops and shopping centers are open until 9:00, some later. There is a Borders store (books, magazines, maps, music, and cafe) within sight of the hotel that is open until 11:00 (I think) and you could while away some of the night there if you are leery of going far. The area is literally full of restaurants, and you are a short walk from live stage theatres (if you%26#39;re interested, check on these when you arrive to be sure tickets are available). Along Powell and for a block or two of the cross streets, some businesses operate 24/7. They aren%26#39;t all the kind we would expect a nice young lady to be visiting, but you can be assured there are always people around. The farther you get from Powell, the less activity there will be, and at night, don%26#39;t go west of Mason or Taylor.

We think you%26#39;re showing a lot of bravery and initiative to come across the pond all by yourself to see our city. At your age, the best I could do was halfway across the U.S.! Enjoy your planning and let us know anything else we can do to help.

P.S. Treasure Island has great views of the City, but there is not much activity at night. It is almost entirely residential. You might be uncomfortable walking around there simply because there%26#39;s very little going on, and not a lot of people out and about.

Before I forget--late November will be well into our rainy season. We can get periods where it will rain for several days. Being from a more northern latitude than S.F., this may be OK with you. Bring a raincoat or all-weather coat.

Clear winter days are gorgeous. The storms clean up the air and there%26#39;s raely any fog. It%26#39;s brisk and the sky is a bright blue that almost hurts your eyes! On a day like that, go to the Ferry Building and take photos of the Bay, then take a ferry to one of the other Bay Area cities for a little different scenery. And when you return, browse around the Ferry Building marketplace and enjoy one of the nice restaurants.

http://www.ferrybuildingmarketplace.com/