What to do in San Francisco

After a 10-hour flight and an 8-hour time difference, you'll probably sleep badly, wake up far too early and feel exceedingly sluggish. So blow away the cobwebs by catching a ferry across the Bay to Sausilito. With the Golden Gate Bridge to port, you'll understand why evangelist Billy Graham once said how: 'The Bay area is so beautiful I hate to preach about Heaven while I'm here.'

Since the enormous ferry terminal wharf also houses several superb food stores, you might want to stock up on a picnic if the weather is warm, especially on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday mornings when it also hosts a farmers' market. From arty-yachtie Sausilito catch the number 10 bus back to town (buy the ticket from the driver) back across the Bridge.

Read David Wickers Panama Canal Cruise Ship Holiday Diary, which takes in San Francisco.

San Francisco is a city of neighbourhoods, each with a distinctive demographic, ranging from hippie Haight-Ashbury to gay Castro. One of the least known is Hayes Valley, a delightful mix of boutiques, friendly cafes, restaurants and galleries and is probably the area I'd choose to live (assuming I couldn't afford a full frontal view of the water). Aim for the intersection of Hayes and Gough Streets and wander. If you're planning to eat in the Valley, try Absinthe, a highly-rated brasserie that could have just flown in from Paris.

Better-known neighbourhoods to target include Chinatown, the largest Chinese enclave outside Asia. A meal is a must. Try the R&G Lounge, with much more interesting dishes than the familiar UK Chineseries, although it's crowded, noisy and decoratively challenged.

You should also explore the old Italian North Beach area, which was the crucible of the Beat movement. The City Lights bookstore was the literary roost for Lawrence Ferlinghetti, Allen Ginsberg, Jack Karouac and other rebel writers. Visitors should take heed of the sign that implores visitors to 'Open Door, Open Book, Open Mind, Open Heart', and be sure to go to the top floor devoted entirely to poetry, including volumes of works by The Beat Generation.

The iconic, beautiful and almost delicate Golden Gate Bridge is designed for vehicles, but there's a 1.7-mile sidetrack for walkers and bikers (you can rent a mount from one of the Blazing Saddles outlets). For a lazier approach you should ride aboard one of the open-topped, hop-on, hop-off buses operated by the Big Bus Company, which will also stop at other key sights including Union Square, the main hub for department stores, and Fisherman's Wharf for general tourist razzmatazz and a terminal for the city's famous bell clanging, cable driven, antique street cars which seem to utterly flaunt every health and safety rule in the book, with passengers hanging on to the sides.

Golden Gate Park, which stretches from the city to wild Pacific beaches, is the biggest urban park in the world. It's also home to the excellent California Academy of Sciences. Go early to avoid the queues for its three-star attractions: the Planetarium, the Rainforest and the Earthquake House where you'll be shaken, rattled and rolled to show you just what the city's two major quakes in 1906 and 1989 would have felt like, and prepare you for the next one - the city stands on the San Andreas fault line where two tectonic plates are locked in marital disharmony, forever threatening a repeat performance.

Bang opposite is the de Young museum, with an important collection of American art, a Japanese garden and tea house, and a botanic garden, so reckon on a full day out, with walks or bike rides in between. Best to avoid the weekends.

Take the BART, the city's metro/suburban rail, to Berkeley, arriving in time for a saunter around the leafy University of California campus, shaded by enormous eucalyptus and cedars, and a stroll along Telegraph Avenue before going to dinner, booked at least 4 weeks ahead, at Chez Panisse. Set up in the 70s by Alice Waters, doyenne of California cuisine, the cedar-shingle clad house serves food that is 'all about what we can get' according to the waiter, meaning local and (mostly) organic. The upstairs Cafe has a set meal, which costs US$28, as well as a la carte, while the downstairs restaurant has a daily changing, classier three-course menu with no choices for US$65.

'Break the rules and you go to prison. Break the prison rules and you go to Alcatraz,' says a sign at the entrance. The one-time infamous high-security island prison, which once housed Al Capone, stands perched on a rock in the middle of the Bay, surrounded by cold water currents that can reach speeds of up to 60 mph. It's a moody place, especially when the Bay is shrouded by one of the city's notorious fogs that creep in through the Golden Gate gap. The ticket includes a boat ride and audio guide that will lead you around the cell blocks in the company of former guards and prisoners.

Where to stay:
For a treat, stay at the Mandarin Oriental, which occupies the top 11 floors of one of the city's tallest, 48-floored buildings, so has wonderful views, plus a top spa. Or try the Taj Campton Place, just yards from Union Square and all the big stores, which also has a Michelin-star restaurant. For details of flights see ba.com.

Read David Wickers Panama Canal Cruise Ship Holiday Diary, which takes in San Francisco.