i know im asking the usual questions but can you help?

Hey, I%26#39;m heading to California beginning of july with my boyfriend, both 24.

My plan is to fly to sfo from dublin, stay for maybe 4 nights and then on to la.

I want to see alcatraz, what is best site to buy tickets?should i book now?

I will see the golden gate bridge, fishermans wharf.

Want to go to yosemite, no car...what isbest way to get there? how long will it take?should i stay at yosemite over night?

Thinking union square best place to stay? budget hotel?

Are there any other day trips yo should advise?not wine country!

we are young and want to have some fun!

what wil weather be like beginning of july?

help much appreciated! cheers

i know im asking the usual questions but can you help?

Amtrak can take you to Yosemite (its a combo train/bus (a fair amount of time on bus) to Yosemite. There are also tours that take you to Yosemite from San Francisco. I would plan on being in Yosemite overnight as to see the best parts of Yosemite take pretty much a full day.

www.amtrak.com/servlet/ContentServer…

Main sites to see are the 2 falls, Happy Isles, Meadow Area, Half dome, etc. There is a free shuttle bus in Yosemite Valley that will take you to the many sights to see. Well worth your time.

For Union Square, See if chancellor hotel meets your price range.

There are also a couple of hostels in San Francisco that might work if $ are a major concern.

http://www.hostels.com/en/us.ca.sf.html

I think just having fun in San Francisco will keep you busy - if you want to see redwoods, go to Muir Woods in San Francisco.

For Alcatraz, reservations can be made on this site

http://www.alcatrazcruises.com/

In summer, I%26#39;d recommend booking in advance.

I have not used the new operators, so hopefully someone else can help with timing. With the former operator, it was good to book 1 to 2 weeks in advance.

July can be foggy...however if you are here July 4th, you will be here for our 4th of July. Sometimes you see the fireworks; sometimes they are lost in the fog.

hae fun planning.

i know im asking the usual questions but can you help?

irish-shamrock said «maybe 4 nights»

The ';Don%26#39;t-miss SIGHTS in San Francisco'; page geocities.com/iconoc/Articles/Sights.html has enough to keep you busy for nine twelve-hour days. It includes links to your best source of advice on WHERE TO EAT here, the UseNet Group ba.food, and the quite-good sfSurvey. It also has a WEATHER CHART with a link to current conditions.

«and then on to la.»

I presume Los Angeles but maybe you mean Louisiana?

«no car»

The best on-line MAP of San Francisco is an inter-active PDF created for the San Francisco Municipal Railway: geocities.com/iconoc/Grafix/CityWide.pdf. I recommend 150% or greater magnification. There%26#39;s also a link that will tell you HOW TO GET THERE FROM HERE. Other links on the page, geocities.com/iconoc/Grafix/FlagMaps.html are a map of our CABLE CAR ROUTES and a superb map of GOLDEN GATE PARK.

«Thinking union square best place to stay?»

Yes.

«Are there any other day trips yo should advise?»

No! With only four days you won%26#39;t have time to see very much here.

«want to have some fun!»

The frequently-updated SPECIAL EVENTS page has irregularly-scheduled music and dances as well as links to seven calendars of regularly-scheduled dances, a composite of five of them, and one of dance cruises and events around the world: http://geocities.com/dancefest/Specials.html

«what wil weather be like beginning of july?»

See first URL above.

I%26#39;m sure Mini meant to say “Muir Woods near San Francisco” in her suggestion to take a trip out of town to see some redwood trees. Although that%26#39;s well worth it, if you%26#39;re going to Yosemite you%26#39;ll see plenty of redwoods %26#39;though in settings not as lovely as Muir Woods.

Mini said «if you are here July 4th, you will be here for our 4th of July. Sometimes you see the fireworks»

The Fourth of July is the USA%26#39;s Independence Day.

July 4 is a holiday here, Yosemite lodging will be FULL UP if not already, book early. Might be a busy week for San Fran as well. King George is a good budget hotel if ColumbusMotorInn.com or ChelseaMotorInn are out of your price range.

Piggy-backing on the other excellent posts:

I cannot emphasize enough the importance of booking your lodging at Yosemite ahead of time. As the other poster said. DO IT NOW. Do not hesitate.

Since you will not have a car, you will be staying inside the park. Yosemite Lodge and Camp Curry (aka Curry Village) will be the most economical, but don%26#39;t expect them to be cheap.

For other information about SF stuff, see the Inside Page for ideas:

tripadvisor.com/Travel-g60713-s1/…Inside.html

Oh, and ...

For help in planning, getting around, YARTS:

http://www.yosemite.com/

For reservations inside the park: Camp Curry, Yosemite Lodge, etc.:

http://www.yosemitepark.com/

The national park:

http://www.nps.gov/yose/

live cams, just to get you salivating:

http://www.yosemite.org/vryos/index.htm

Make for sure when you do the Alcatraz tour that you do the ';audio'; tour. You will be given a set of headphones and it sounds like the old Alcatraz and you will learn alot more about the place.