Over the Rainbow in the Castro: A San Francisco Chronicle Self-Guided Tour
- 1–1.3 hour
- Guided in English
- Instant confirmation
- Private tour
Highlights
Discover San Francisco’s Castro neighborhood and its rich history with this affordable, self-paced walking tour. • Find out all about the queer predecessors who paved the way for everything from marriage equality to the popularity of the drag art form • Hear from Tony Bravo, the San Francisco Chronicle's Arts & Culture writer, as he guides you around the Castro neighborhood • Do it all in an hour or linger at stops along the way with complete control over when you start and finish • Get unlimited use before your booking date and after it • Use the virtual tour option at home Once you’ve booked, you’ll receive a ticket with instructions and a unique code listed under “Before You Go”. Then simply install the VoiceMap app and enter your code. The app displays directions to the starting point, and when you’re in the right place, just pop in your headphones and tap start. VoiceMap has automatic GPS playback, with turn-by-turn directions. It also works offline.
Inclusions
What's included
- Lifetime access to this tour in English
- VoiceMap app for Android and iOS
- Offline access to audio, maps, and geodata
What's not
- Tickets or entrance fees to any museums or other attractions en route
- Food and Drink
- Smartphone and headphones
- Transportation
Itinerary
Since the 1970s, San Francisco’s Castro neighborhood has been one of the foremost gayborhoods in the world. Explore its history with this self-guided audio tour.
The tour starts at the Jane Warner Plaza. You'll hear how the tour works using the VoiceMap app as well as an introduction to the Castro neighborhood.
The tour takes you past Twin Peaks Tavern, the first gay bar in San Francisco, with plateglass windows to show that the community no longer had to meet in secret.
The tour passes by the century-old beauty of the Castro Theatre, which actor and filmmaker John Cameron Mitchell described as "a gay cathedral".
The tour passes by Moby Dick bar where you'll have the chance to see the mural on the side of the bar by artist Serge Gay Jr. “Gear Up,” which features wardrobe staples of different queer subcultures like a leather jacket, Converse Chuck Taylors, a red bandana, black Christian Louboutin high heels, and a sailor cap.
The tour gives you the chance to take in the plaques along the Rainbow Honor Walk — the queer version of the Hollywood Walk of Fame — which pays homage to queer royalty like disco darling Sylvester.
The tour passes by the real Castro Camera, where pioneering gay city Supervisor Harvey Milk ran his political campaigns.
The tour passes by the Harvey Milk Civil Rights Academy. This San Francisco public elementary school was renamed for Harvey in 1996.
The tour passes by the GLBT Historical Society Museum, which houses over 900 collectables of LGBTQ art and history.
The tour ends at Harvey Milk Plaza, next to the home of Gilbert Baker’s world famous rainbow pride flag.
Cancellation
All sales are final. No refund is available for cancellations.
Reviews
4.0
- 51
- 40
- 31
- 20
- 10
Ratings come from 2 reviews collected by our booking partner. They are travellers' own words, in the order they were written — never reordered to flatter the experience.
Know before you go
- Meeting point
- Before arrival, please install the VoiceMap mobile app and use the code provided on your confirmation ticket. This is a self-guided audio tour that you can start, pause, or restart at any time and complete at your own pace. Detailed starting point instructions are available after downloading.
- Pickup
- Everyone meets at the starting point; there is no pickup.
- Ticket type
- Mobile or paper ticket accepted
- Operated by
- VoiceMap Audio Tours
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
How it compares in San Francisco
- Its from-price is 95% below the median of the 204 city tours we list in San Francisco.
- It is shorter than most of them.
- By number of reviews it ranks 111 of 204.
About San Francisco
San Francisco crowds steep hills onto a peninsula between the Pacific and its bay, with cable cars, the Golden Gate Bridge and colourful neighbourhoods.
The Golden Gate Bridge spans the strait at the mouth of the bay, often wrapped in fog, and walking or cycling across it is a classic. Boats cross to Alcatraz, the former island prison, while Fisherman's Wharf is known for seafood and the sea lions that bask on the docks of Pier 39. The Ferry Building is a food lover's market.
Top-ranked sights in San Francisco: Golden Gate Bridge, Union Square, San Francisco Chinatown.
Special offers in San Francisco
Was/now prices come from the operator, never from us.
