Pacific Tradewinds Hostel

North Beach & Chinatown


San Francisco's smartest all-dorm hostel has a blue-and-white nautical theme, a fully equipped kitchen (free coffee, tea, and peanut butter and jelly sandwiches), spotless glass-brick showers, a laundry (free sock wash – so smart), luggage storage and no lockout time. Bunks are bolted to the wall, so there's no bed-shaking when bunkmates roll. No elevator means hauling bags up three flights – but it's worth it. Great service; fun staff.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby North Beach & Chinatown attractions

1. Commercial Street

0.07 MILES

Back when the red lights of Commercial St could be seen from the waterfront, this strip provided many provocative answers to the age-old question: what do…

2. Wells Fargo History Museum

0.09 MILES

Gold miners needed somewhere to stash and send cash, so Wells Fargo opened in this location in 1852. Today this storefront museum covers gold rush–era…

3. Portsmouth Square

0.1 MILES

Chinatown's unofficial living room is named after John B Montgomery's sloop, which staked the US claim on San Francisco in 1846. SF's first city hall…

4. Chinese Culture Center

0.11 MILES

You can see all the way to China from the Hilton's 3rd floor inside this cultural center, which hosts exhibits ranging from showcases of contemporary…

5. Old St Mary's Cathedral & Square

0.11 MILES

California's first cathedral was started in 1853 by an Irish entrepreneur determined to give wayward San Francisco some religion – despite the cathedral's…

6. Transamerica Pyramid & Redwood Park

0.13 MILES

The defining feature of San Francisco's skyline is this 1972 pyramid, built atop a whaling ship abandoned in the gold rush. A half-acre redwood grove…

7. Chinese Telephone Exchange

0.15 MILES

California's earliest high-tech adopters weren't 1970s Silicon Valley programmers – they were Chinatown switchboard operators c 1894. To connect callers,…

8. Waverly Place

0.15 MILES

Grant Ave is Chinatown's economic heart, but its soul is Waverly Place, lined with flag-festooned, colorful temple balconies and family-run businesses…