Planes, Trains and Cable Cars

The San Francisco Bay Area really has something for everyone. Whether you're visiting or you live here, there's no end of amazing places to see.

If you've got kids that are into "things that go" - or even if you are yourself - the Bay Area has got you covered. From the Cable Car Museum to Oakland Aviation Museum. From the USS Hornet to San Francisco Railway Museum. There's something for everyone.

Today I'm sharing a round up of our favorite museums dedicated to "things that go" in the Bay Area.

Cable Car Museum
When you think of San Francisco, what are the first few things that spring to mind? Chances are, one of them will be the iconic cable cars. San Francisco's classic cable cars have been carrying locals and tourists alike up and down all of those steep hills since the 1870s. But just how do they work? Well, if that's a question that you've ever wondered, the Cable Car Museum is the place for you. Not only is the museum home to interesting vintage cable cars, tools, and paraphernalia, it's also home to the actual cables that run the entire system! It's pretty amazing to see. The cables are attached to giant wheels that spin continuously. This keeps the cables moving throughout the city. The cable cars themselves are not actually powered. Rather, they grip onto the cable and get dragged along. When it's time to stop, the conductor pulls the grip to release the cable. Pretty cool, hey?

The Cable Car Museum is always one of our favorite places in San Francisco to take visitors. There are plenty of ways to get to the museum but the best way, of course, is by cable car! All four lines go by the museum but I always recommend taking the California Street line. It's not as popular with tourists as the other lines so there is never a queue and the views over the Bay are pretty amazing.

The San Francisco Cable Car Museum is located at 1201 Mason Street in San Francisco.  It is open daily (apart from certain holidays) and admission is free. You can find more information about the museum and San Francisco's cable cars at http://www.cablecarmuseum.org/

Cable Cars, Ribbons and Hearts

No visit to San Francisco is complete without a ride on the famous cable cars. Last time my parents visited us from Australia we somehow missed taking a ride on a cable car so this time we made sure to fit it in.

Riding the cable cars is definitely a fun novelty, especially if you get to stand on the outside, however as it's at the top of most tourists' "must do" lists there can be a long wait. To avoid the long queues we always avoid the Powell/Mason and Powell/Hyde lines and hop on the California line. While the California line doesn't take passengers to popular tourist destinations like Fisherman's Wharf, Ghirardelli Square or Lombard Street it does have some of the most breathtaking views over the Bay and, in particular, the Bay Bridge. And the best bit? There's never a queue to hop on! 

San Francisco Cable Car Museum

A few weeks back we spent the day playing tourist in San Francisco. We started off the day with a visit to the Cable Car Museum followed by a long walk through Crissy Field to see the SFMOMA On the Go exhibit (which you can see here).

Now if you're going to go to the Cable Car Museum there's only one way to get there: by cable car of course! Ok, so you can get there many other ways too but catching the cable car is definitely the most fun. We hopped on the California line at its start down by Embarcadero and made our way to the museum near the top of Nob Hill. I always suggest to visiting friends that if they want to ride the cable car purely for the fun of riding the cable car then this is the line to choose. There's never a queue and the views down California Street towards the Bay are pretty stunning.