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Voykit pocket guide · United States
Sausalito
Go as a half-day or one night from San Francisco: ferry over, walk Bridgeway to Caledonia, ferry back. Skip the car — parking is scarce and pricey.
Sausalito is a small bayside town of about 7,300 people on the north side of the Golden Gate Bridge, 25–35 minutes by ferry from San Francisco. The waterfront strip is walkable in an afternoon; the reason to sleep here is the view back across the bay and easy access to the Marin Headlands and Muir Woods. Most visitors come for a few hours, not a week.
- Country
- United States
- Best months
- Sep–Oct (clearest bay views); May–Jun also good
- Avoid
- Dec–Feb (rain, grey); summer weekend afternoons (crowds, fog)
- Stay
- 1 night
Checked 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change; anything marked (check) is not confirmed.
Essentials
- Currency
- USD
- Money
- Currency is the US dollar (USD, $). Cards and phone payments work almost everywhere; carry a little cash for tips and small vendors.
- Daily spend
- Budget $60–110 excl. bed · Mid $110–200 excl. bed · High $200+ excl. bed (estimate; check)
- SIM and data
- AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile cover the country; prepaid SIMs at their stores and Walmart/Target (passport required), or an eSIM before you fly.
- Emergency
- Police, fire, ambulance 911
- Plugs
- Types A, B · 120 V · 60 Hz · Chargers are dual-voltage; hair dryers and straighteners from 230 V countries need a converter.
- Tipping
- Sit-down restaurant: 18–22% of the pre-tax bill.; Bar: US$1–2 per drink or 20% of the tab.; Taxi / ride-hailing: 15–20%, in the app.; Hotel housekeeping: US$3–5 a night.; Porter / valet: US$2–5 per bag or car.; Tour guide: US$10–20 per person for a day tour.; Counter service / tablet prompts: Optional; 0–15%.
- Water
- Tap water is drinkable nearly everywhere; boil or treat water from streams in parks.
- Toilets
- Free public toilets are scarce in big cities; use cafés, department stores, libraries, stations. Rest areas on highways are free.
What things cost
| Item | Price |
|---|---|
| Coffee | $4–7 |
| Breakfast or brunch main | $15–25 |
| Casual lunch main | $18–30 |
| Dinner main, mid-range | $25–45 |
| Draught beer or glass of wine | $8–16 |
| Ferry to San Francisco, one way | $8–11 |
| Bay Model Visitor Center entry | Free |
Desk estimates, checked 2026-09; check locally.
Get in
By air
- SFO · San Francisco International
- About 30–45 min by car via US 101; no direct rail link to Sausalito
- OAK · Oakland International
- About 40–60 min by car; longer by transit
- SJC · San José Mineta International
- About 1 h 15 min–1 h 45 min by car; the least convenient of the three
Typical fares
- Golden Gate Ferry, Sausalito → San Francisco Ferry Building
- about $8 one way, 25 min
- Blue & Gold Fleet, Sausalito → Pier 41
- about $11 one way, 30–35 min
- Taxi or rideshare, Sausalito → downtown San Francisco
- $45–70, 20–35 min depending on traffic (check)
Show 7 more sections and the pocket cardHideGet around, See and do, Sleep, Phrase card, Etiquette, safety and scams, One and two days, Sources, Pocket card
Get around
Walk. The ferry landing, Bridgeway and Caledonia Street are all within about 15 minutes on foot. Golden Gate Transit and Marin Transit buses link to San Rafael, Mill Valley and Bolinas; the Mill Valley–Sausalito Pathway is a bike-and-foot trail. A car is useful only for the Marin Headlands, Muir Woods and points north.
See and do
Known for
- Golden Gate Bridge views from the bay
- Ferry ride from San Francisco
- Bridgeway waterfront and Caledonia Street
- Houseboat docks and the Bay Model
Day trips
| Where | How | Time |
|---|---|---|
| San Francisco | Golden Gate Ferry from the Sausalito terminal to the Ferry Building, or Blue & Gold Fleet to Pier 41 | 25–35 min on the water |
| Mill Valley | Marin Transit route 17, or the Mill Valley–Sausalito Pathway by bike or on foot | About 20–30 min |
| Tiburon | Drive or bike around the bay; no direct ferry between the two | About 20–30 min by car |
| San Rafael | Marin Transit route 17 or Golden Gate Transit route 130 | About 30–40 min |
| Muir Woods | Car via CA-1 and Muir Woods Road; shuttle in season | About 25–35 min by car |
| Bolinas | Marin Transit route 61 | About 1 h |
Sleep
- Bridgeway waterfront
- Hotels and inns facing Richardson Bay; walk to the ferry in minutes. Priciest.
- Caledonia Street
- One block back from the water; cafés, shops and quieter streets. Still walkable to the ferry.
- Marinship / north end
- Near the Bay Model and boat docks; fewer beds, more parking, 15–25 min walk to the ferry.
- Fort Baker / Cavallo Point
- Below the bridge's north end, about 10 min by car from downtown; parkland setting.
Phrase card
| English | Say or show |
|---|---|
| Where is the ferry terminal? | Where is the ferry terminal? |
| One ticket to San Francisco, please | One ticket to San Francisco, please |
| Can I pay by card? | Can I pay by card? |
| Is this seat taken? | Is this seat taken? |
| The check, please | The check, please |
Etiquette, safety and scams
Etiquette
- Greeting: Handshake and 'hi, how are you?' — reply 'good, thanks'; avoid: Treating the question as a real health enquiry
- Restaurants: Tip 18–22% and wait for the check; avoid: Leaving without tipping
- Personal space: Keep an arm's length in queues; avoid: Standing close to strangers
- Politics and religion: Listen more than you speak; avoid: Opening with hot-button topics
- Smoking: Smoke only in marked areas; avoid: Smoking near doors or in parks where banned
Scams and watch-outs
- Ferries fill up late in the day, especially weekends; board early if you need seats or bike space.
- Parking near the ferry and Bridgeway is limited and metered; check posted limits before leaving the car.
- Fog can sit over the bay even when inland Marin is sunny — bring a layer.
- Some waterfront restaurants are aimed at day-trippers: check the menu and prices before sitting.
Very safe for a town this size; the real issues are petty car break-ins in waterfront lots, fast traffic on Bridgeway, and cold water — no swimming in the bay. 911 for anything urgent.
One and two days
No timed day plan for Sausalito yet. Suggested stay: 1 night. Build a day from the list below, mornings for the big sight.
- Golden Gate Bridge views from the bay
- Ferry ride from San Francisco
- Bridgeway waterfront and Caledonia Street
- Houseboat docks and the Bay Model
Sources
Written by Voykit; facts cross-checked against these sources, last desk check 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change: check on the day.
- Golden Gate Ferry — Sausalito service: www.goldengate.org/ferry/
- Blue & Gold Fleet — Sausalito service: www.blueandgoldfleet.com
- US Army Corps of Engineers — Bay Model Visitor Center: www.spn.usace.army.mil/Missions/Recreation/Bay-Model-Visitor-Center/
- Bay Area Discovery Museum: bayareadiscoverymuseum.org/
- Marin Transit — routes and timetables: marintransit.org/
- Wikivoyage: Sausalito, revision 5242957 (CC BY-SA 4.0): en.wikivoyage.org/w/index.php?oldid=5242957
Pocket card
Cut along the border and keep it in your wallet. Show the local-script lines to a driver.
Sausalito
To this address, please
To this address, please
My hotel (write the name and address in the local script)
- Police, fire, ambulance911
No embassies in Sausalito; consulates-general are in San Francisco (most countries).
English is the only language you need here.
Voykit · checked 2026-09
Printed from Voykit (/sausalito). Written by Voykit; checked 2026-09. Estimates only: confirm prices, hours and entry rules on the day.