Free Things to Do in San Francisco During the Summer

San Francisco really comes alive in the summer. Our summers vary, by the way, from cloudy to extremely temperate. But you see a lot more people on the streets in the summer, and there's more stuff to do.

Sigmund Stern Grove has hosted many headliners during its summer series, including such celebrities as Diana Krall and Otis Taylor. There are usually a ballet and opera performance as well among the mix. The last performance is on August 23^rd, which is a performance by the San Francisco Opera. Sigmund Stern Grove is located at 19^th and Sloat Avenues, and I recommend you take public transportation (as do the Sigmund Stern Grove people, due to the extreme scarcity of parking in the area). The MUNI has two streetcar lines which stop about a block away - the K and M lines. You can hop both of these in downtown San Francisco, on Market Street. The 23 and 28 MUNI buses also stop nearby this area, about a block away. These concerts are extremely popular, so try and get there early, and bring your folding chair and sunscreen. I have listed a link below for their summer calendar.

The Golden Gate Park Band performs every Sunday at 1:00 p.m. from April 26^th through October 4th in the Spreckels Temple of Music, in the Music Concourse at Golden Gate Park. If you're unfamiliar with Golden Gate Park, this is the big band shell located in the plaza between the de Young Art Museum and the California Academy of Sciences. The Golden Gate Park Band plays a very wide range of music, including opera, Broadway show tunes, and big band swing. They've been doing this since 1882, so you will be getting a fun dose of San Francisco history as you listen! I have posted the link to their calendar as well, if you want to know exactly what you'll be checking out. Golden Gate Park is accessible by the MUNI's N Judah, and the MUNI's 7 and 71 lines go here, as do the 44 O'Shaughnessy. MUNI's 5 Fulton and 21 Hayes stop about a block away, at 8th and Fulton. Plan on doing some walking, though. If walking isn't your thing, I recommend MUNI's Culture Bus, which stops right in front of the Music Concourse. I have listed this link right after the one for the Golden Gate Park Band, and it's a great reference to have anyway, if you're planning on hitting all of the San Francisco hot spots. The Culture Bus is also known as the MUNI 74X. There's lots of parking in Golden Gate Park, but you have to get there very early.

Want to check out some world-class jazz for free? We San Franciscans are very proud of our rich jazz heritage, and this summer presents a full array of the best. The lineup for the SFJAZZ Summerfest includes Lavay Smith, Doug Beavers, Jaz Sawyer and the California Honeydrops. All of these concerts are free, and they are held at different locations all over San Francisco. I have listed the link to the SFJAZZ summer schedule below, but if you want to call them for further information, try 415-398-5655.

There are a number of big museum "free days" this summer, and if you have museum-goers in your group, these might be worth a try. The Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, which include the Legion of Honor (in Lincoln Park, at 34^th Avenue and Clement Street) and the de Young Museum (Golden Gate Park, alongside the Music Concourse), are free on the first Tuesday of each month. (However, this does not include access to the special exhibitions, such as the King Tut exhibit at the de Young.) The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (151 Third Street, between Mission and Howard) is free on the first Tuesday of each month as well. The other big museum draw right now is the California Academy of Sciences (Golden Gate Park, alongside the Music Concourse), and its big free day is on the third Wednesday of every month. I'd better warn you, though, you could be waiting on line for hours, so bring sunscreen and a good book. If you'd like a listing of always-free museums, which are typically small snapshots into San Francisco history, I have listed a link for these as well. Any history buffs might really enjoy them.

This is just a small sampling of what's available. It would be difficult to list everything, but I've tried to list the most popular events. Have fun, and hope to see you around!

www.sterngrove.org/2009season.html (here's the schedule for the Stern Grove Festival)

http://www.goldengateparkband.org/Upcoming_Concerts.html (The Golden Gate Park Band summer schedule)

http://www.sfculturebus.org/ (The schedule for the San Francisco Culture Bus)

http://www.sfjazz.org/concerts/2009/summer/schedule.asp (Calendar for the SFJAZZ Summerfest)

http://www.famsf.org/ (The Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco)

http://www.sfmoma.org/pages/visit (San Francisco Museum of Modern Art visitor information)

http://www.calacademy.org/visit/plan_a_visit/ (California Academy of Sciences visitor information)

http://sanfrancisco.about.com/od/museums/ss/freemuseumdays.htm (a list of always free museums)