Visit San Francisco: is this the world’s most eco-friendly city?

by Jana Free on Jan 20, 2012 | 0 comments

Many people consider San Francisco to be the most beautiful city in the world. It might also be the world’s most eco-friendly city to visit.

If you’ve ever stood on the beach at Crissy Field and looked around at panoramic views of the Golden Gate Bridge towering overhead, the skyline of the Financial District with the Transamerica Pyramid in the distance, and the rolling green hills holding up the Coit Tower, you may think that perfection begins and ends in this awesome city. And it does, in more ways than one.

Its beauty aside, San Francisco is one of the most innovative and progressive cities on the planet.

Business owners and public officials go to great measures to not only preserve San Francisco’s urban and marine eco-systems but to integrate “green” practices into daily life.

These efforts conserve valuable resources for the enjoyment of future generations of residents and visitors.

Waste-free city

A couple of things that you may notice on holiday to San Francisco are the citywide recycling and composting programs that restaurants, hotels, and government buildings actively participate in, and the ban on plastic bags and containers that has been in effect since 2007.

City-sponsored events also refrain from selling plastic water bottles and San Francisco has made it a goal to be “waste-free” in the year 2020.

Contributing to its eco-presence, tourists find that San Francisco’s public transportation system, locally known as the “Muni,” is on par with the finest in the world and is considered very safe.

Rapid rail lines, buses powered by biodiesel, and the BART subway that runs throughout the city and into Oakland make navigating extremely user-friendly.

Of course you can always hop on one of the historic cable cars, walk on foot down Victorian-lined streets Market Street to the Wharf, or rent a bike at one of the many corner shops.

So, where do you stay? What do you do? And where do you eat when you want to be an environmentally-conscious traveler to the City by the Bay?

Here are some of the best places to go to enjoy an eco-friendly vacation in San Francisco…

Stay in eco-friendly hotels

The Orchard Garden Hotel and its sister property, The Orchard Hotel, are THE premier eco-friendly properties in San Francisco.

Located close to the Financial District, Chinatown, and Union Square, these two sustainable hotels cater to business and leisure travelers and are within walking distance to shopping, theater, and fabulous restaurants.

The Orchard Garden Hotel is LEED certified, and both hotels house restaurants that serve an inspiring menu made from organic and local ingredients.

Two Kimpton properties, Hotel Triton and Hotel Palomar, make protecting the Earth a normal, everyday business practice. The Kimpton Hotels do not sacrifice guest comfort to lower their carbon footprint.

Organic coffee, teas, and wines are served at the evening reception, the housekeeping staff cleans guestrooms with supplies that are safe for the planet and for guests, and many energy-efficiency programs are in place.

Eat at San Francisco’s vegan restaurants

San Francisco isn’t short on restaurants featuring food that is responsibly grown and harvested with ecologically sound methods.

Some of the best eateries in the city strike a wonderful balance between artful and flavorful dishes, and the desire to remain in graceful harmony with their surroundings.

Café Gratitude, in the Mission District, is an all-vegan, all delicious gem in the city, with a mixed menu of raw and cooked foods that are created with local and organic ingredients.

Ordering is part of what makes this community café so special, as patrons choose from the “I Am Whole” grain and vegetable bowl, the “I Am Enlightened” vegan BLT sandwich, and other wonderful life-affirming meals.

Gracias Madre, also in the Mission, offers organic and vegan Mexican fare, while Herbivore’s 3 locations treat visitors to vegan breakfasts, burgers, soy “chicken” wraps, burritos, and desserts.

Kids and adults love Underdog, in Inner Sunset, a mostly take-out restaurant that sells amazing vegan sausage hot dogs and signature “tater tots.”

For an upscale dining experience, that just happens to be vegan but is probably the best meal you’ll ever have in the city, sit down at Millennium and enjoy the Chef’s Five Course Tasting Menu or the Raw Tasting menu.

Nature loving activities

One of the first things you must do in San Francisco is to spend a few hours at the California Academy of Arts and Sciences, in Golden Gate Park.

The building alone is worth a view, as it was built from the basement to the Living Roof with sustainability and nature in mind. The two-acre blooming roof is home to 1.7 million plants and is credited with reducing storm water run-off by two million gallons per year.

The California Academy of Arts and Sciences hosts a four-storey interactive rainforest, a planetarium, aquarium, and a natural history museum all in one of the “greenest” buildings in the city.

Outdoor enthusiasts can spend the entire day in Golden Gate Park, picnicking in open green spaces, sipping tea and wandering past pagodas or koi ponds at the Japanese Tea Garden, or strolling about through the Conservancy of Flowers.

There are some great concerts that are held weekly in Golden Gate Park, highlighting favorite music genres like jazz, opera, folk, and symphony.

If you’re a shopper, you’ll want to check out the Flea Market in the historic Alamo Square. Merchants come together every Saturday to peddle gently used books, jewelry, clothing, toys, and home goods.

And you’re feeling lucky, head over to Telegraph Hill or Upper Fort Mason, near the Golden Gate National Recreation Center, to catch a glimpse of an elusive population of feral parrots who have made the areas their home.

Is San-Francisco the world’s most eco-friendly city? Do you know anywhere better? Was there anything we can add to this list? Let us know in the comments below!