How is the San Francisco secrets, scandals and scoundrels free walking tour?

After having attended the San Francisco in one day walking tour, I registered for another one, also created and led by Britt, the Secrets, Scandals and Scoundrels tour.


The best guided San Francisco tour

After having attended the San Francisco in one day walking tour, I registered for another one, also created and led by Britt, the Secrets, Scandals and Scoundrels tour.

As surprising as it seems, during this other tour, we learned even more things in a shorter period of time!

Again a very interesting tour that was definitely worth the time and would be worth every penny - but as a name your own price tour, it is actually free to register and attend the walking, and at the end of the tour we can pay what we think the tour was worth, which is a lot.

Secrets, Scandals, and Scoundrels free walking tour registration
The best walking San Francisco city tour!

Secrets, Scandals, and Scoundrels Tour

San Francisco: Find local activities

We started by meeting at a very busy intersection, and I actually misunderstood the meeting point. However, I found the group on time, and was the latest to arrive.

We started nearly right away to walk around the city, with the first explanations on how somebody managed to build one of the most expensive buildings in the city with stolen money, building that still exists nowadays!

Walking in the city, we got some information from our guide, Britt, on how scoundrels managed to steal money from fresh immigrants in the city. All was of course very interesting, as usual with these great tours.

We kept walking in the streets, trying to rush a bit as the weather was rainy at the time of our visit.

On the way, we passed in front of some recent interesting building, such as a robotic coffeebar... well, San Francisco also is a place for innovation, with the nearby Silicon Valley.

Cafe X: Robotic Coffee Bars in San Francisco

However, what interests us the most on this tour, are the funny stories about the origins of San Francisco city, as many things happened in its early days, when it was full of freshly arrived immigrants, and how a few people managed to use them at their advantage to become rich.

Hidden secret public terrace in San Francisco CBD

Suddenly, we turn on the side, and we enter a building. From there, Britt explains us that all buildings in San Francisco are required to use a small percentage of the constructions costs to somehow contribute to the city.

Some of them do it by creating public terraces, which are hidden from the public as they are not directly visible from the street.

We are actually going in one of them, something that we would never have found alone, and that most likely even the locals don't know about!

On top of the public, getting out on the hidden secret public terrace, we are greeted by beautiful flowers, which I take the time to immortalize in photographs.

Then, we first have a look around, as the view is impressive, from a hidden terrace on top of a building in the heart of CBD.

We started by taking a few pictures around, and enjoying the beautiful and unique view other the city.

Then, we sat down on the chairs that are available on the terrace, and get to hear some more funny stories about San Francisco secrets.

This time, the stories were related to the harbour, on which we were actually having a look from our terrace, and a war fought about... breakfast eggs, in San Francisco.

Well, this city is definitely full of surprises, and has an history much richer than what we would initially think!

While we were listening to the stories, we had a nice look around, and the light rain wasn't a big issue.

After that, we went down the building, and reached another hidden room inside that same building, in which artifacts found during the building construction were on public display.

However, it wasn't as interesting as the next story we would hear about was!

The first Emperor of the United States

We then got to hear an incredible story, about a self proclaimed Emperor of the United States, that went as far as printing his own money while being on USA territory, right there in San Francisco.

That funny personality was actually a homeless that managed to get everything he wanted and even more, becoming a famous personality of the city.

We heard more about his story from a square in which a plaque is set to his memory.

That incredible story led us to continue our walk, entering another park, in which beautiful fountains are on display.

Other statues and work of arts are also accessible in that park, which is also the result of that same law that led to the hidden terrace, a percentage of the building construction costs used to give back to the city.

It started to rain a little more, and it was time to put our hood on to remain dry.

Hidden in the park, we looked down at an imperial landmark, one of the few that have been erected in honor of the former United States Emperor.

Once again, something we would never had noticed if it wasn't for Britt's awesome walking tour, full of information, fun facts, and interesting stories.

We then slowly arrived to the last stop of the tour, and our guide started to wrap up the visit.

The rain was not calming down, and it was time to go home, trying not to get too wet.

Our tour was amazing, and our guide did an amazing job - I nearly regretted that I didn't have more time to spend in San Francisco to join more tours, but the day after I was taking off for the 6th stop of my world tour, and my 49th country, Tahiti in French Polynesia!

Secrets, Scandals, and Scoundrels free walking tour registration

Frequently Asked Questions

What unique perspectives does the San Francisco Secrets, Scandals, and Scoundrels tour offer, and what type of historical insights can participants expect?
This tour offers perspectives on the lesser-known, intriguing aspects of San Francisco's history, including tales of notorious figures and events. Participants can expect entertaining stories that provide a different view of the city's past.

Michel Pinson
About the author - Michel Pinson
Michel Pinson is a Travel enthusiast and Content Creator. Merging passion for education and exploration, he iscommitted to sharing knowledge and inspiring others through captivating educational content. Bringing the world closer together by empowering individuals with global expertise and a sense of wanderlust.



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