4 Days: San Francisco Plus NorCal
Four days is enough to add a rest day that doesn’t involve a car at all: Muir Woods, then wine country, then Berkeley by BART, no driving required the morning after a day of tasting. This assumes San Francisco itself already has its own two days elsewhere; our city guide covers Alcatraz, the cable cars and the bridge, and this itinerary picks up where that one leaves off. Only have three days? Drop day four and see the 3-day version .
Book these before you go
- Muir Woods parking or shuttle reservation, book the moment your dates are fixed: gomuirwoods.com
- No car for the redwoods? A small-group tour with a ferry option: Muir Woods and Sausalito on GetYourGuide
- Wine country without driving yourself: Napa and Sonoma day tour
- Rental car for days two and three: Discover Cars, San Francisco
- Hotel for your four nights: check rates on Booking.com
Day 1: Land, settle in
BART into downtown from SFO runs about 25-30 minutes for $10-11, plus a roughly $5.51 airport surcharge. Get a Clipper card, drop your bags, and keep tonight simple. Save the driving for tomorrow.
Day 2: Muir Woods and Sausalito
Cross the Golden Gate Bridge, about 17 miles and 30-35 minutes. Muir Woods needs the parking or shuttle reservation booked in advance, plus a separate $15-per-person entrance fee on top of it. Walk the main loop, 1-2 hours among old-growth redwoods, then drop into Sausalito for lunch before crossing back ahead of evening traffic.
Day 3: Napa or Sonoma wine country
No train, no BART; 60 to 90 minutes each way by car, tour, or car service, Napa generally the closer of the two. Tasting fees at name-brand wineries run $40-75 a person and add up across three or four stops. Book a tour if nobody’s volunteering to stay sober behind the wheel.
Day 4: Berkeley, the day you don’t drive
BART gets you there in 25-30 minutes, no traffic, no parking search. Telegraph Avenue and Tilden Park fill the afternoon easily, and campus-adjacent parking is scarce enough that driving here is a genuine mistake, not just a missed chance to save five dollars. Return the rental car this morning if you haven’t already; it’s dead weight for the rest of the day.
Why put Berkeley after wine country instead of before?
Because a lazy BART day is the ideal recovery from tasting-room fatigue and a rental-car return, not a warm-up for it. Doing Berkeley first wastes the low-effort day before you actually need one, and you’ll still be fresh enough on day three to enjoy Napa or Sonoma properly.
Do you need the rental car on day 4?
No. Return it the morning of day four or the evening before; BART handles Berkeley entirely, and paying for an idle rental all day is money spent on a car sitting in a garage.
The distances, side by side
| Day | Focus | Distance / drive time from SF | What it costs |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Arrival, settle in | 0 miles, in the city | BART from SFO $10-11 plus $5.51 airport surcharge |
| 2 | Muir Woods and Sausalito | ~17 miles / 30-35 min | $15/person entrance, $10 parking or $4 shuttle |
| 3 | Napa or Sonoma | 60-90 min | Tasting fees $40-75/winery; tour or car service recommended |
| 4 | Berkeley | ~12 miles / 25-30 min by BART | BART fare only, no car needed |
Return the rental the same day you’re done driving. A fourth day of parking fees for a car you’re not using is the one cost on this trip that buys you nothing.