San Francisco Cable Cars - Guide and Tickets

Photo Contest 2011 Winner, Danny Le

You need to ride a world famous San Francisco cable car but you want to get the most bang for your five-buck (one way) ride. Don't just passively sit there or you'll feel ripped off when the short (about twenty minutes) ride ends. You need some insider information. Position is everything when stepping into the cable car fray.

You want to be in the front of the cable car and for Maximum Fun you want to be hanging onto a pole while standing on the running board. This is the best spot on San Francisco's cable cars and sure beats being cooped up inside where you won't see anything. Just make sure to scoot your boot when passing other cable cars and traffic, you don't want to turn yourself into road-pizza because your caboose got clipped by a delivery truck. Keep listening to the cable car's lyrics because in the cable car fray - things can get pretty wild...

San Francisco cable cars run along three different routes roughly every ten minutes. The two main lines, Powell/Hyde and Powell/Mason, start off at the busy intersection of Powell and Market and vaguely make their way towards the popular destination of San Francisco's Fisherman's Wharf. The other San Francisco cable car route is the California/Van Ness line which starts at California and Market and continues on until Van Ness. The Powell/Hyde line actually ends up close to Ghiradelli Square where you can shop or eat (check out Ana Mandara, a Vietnamese restaurant that is owned by Don Johnson and Cheech Marin).

Cable Cars in Motion By: Yu-Chen Chiu

Along the way you can exit the cable car at Lombard Street, famous for being "The world's crookedest street." If you aren't going to Lombard Street then get your camera ready because at the top of this hill (Hyde and Lombard) you are treated to an unobstructed view of San Francisco's Alcatraz Island. Across the street from the end of this line (at Hyde and Beach) is The Buena Vista Cafe, where legend has it that the Irish Coffee was born. If you don't feel like shopping at Ghiradelli then you can visit the San Francisco Maritime Museum, the Hyde Street Pier, or just relax by the water and watch the boats go by.

The other cable car line is the California/Van Ness line. This cable car rides through the hills of the Financial District and hits the top of Nob Hill where you'll find luxury hotels and nightclubs with some of the most stunning views of the city. Go up to the 19th Floor of the InterContinental Mark Hopkins Hotel to the Top of the Mark and sip a martini while listening to some cool jazz. The cable car then makes its way down the hill to Van Ness Street where it stops and goes back the other direction. There is no turnaround for this line because the cable car has a grip at both ends of the car.

If you're lucky enough to be visiting during the month of July then you won't want to miss the annual cable car bell ringing contests. The contests are held in Union Square and draws thousands of spectators, both locals and visitors. Some of the grip men are extremely good at what they do and the applause that they receive can be thunderous with approval. Grab a hot dog and make a day of it, the event draws celebrities and local dignitaries like the Mayor of San Francisco so you know you'll be in for a wild time.

The cable cars begin operating around 6:00 in the morning and continue until about 12:30 at night. While there is a printed schedule available from MUNI the cable cars generally run about every 10 minutes. As of this writing the fare is $5.00 and all fares are one way. If you anticipate using the cable cars more than once in a day you should get a day pass which is $11.00.

Cable Cars Tricks - San Francisco

By: Drew McKinney / Copyright SFTRAVEL LLC