Jackson Square is the north-eastern region of the formerly known, Barbary Coast in San Francisco, California. Barbary Coast was then notorious for the crime and prostitution prevalent in the area. Today, Jackson Square is the oldest commercial district of modern day San Francisco. The area was constructed on a fill site containing wreckage from abandoned ships, which are believed to still lie beneath the ground. Buildings in this part of the city were made out of brick and ornate iron in the 1850s. The three story buildings which are seen even today are reminiscent of San Francisco during the Gold Rush.

Although it retains some buildings of those times, modern day Jackson Square is very different. The area has now become the ‘interior designer’s district’. Today, one can find English style furniture of the 18th century, antique carpets, 19th century French paintings and even 21st century modern designs in the same area. Jackson Square is now famous for arts antiques. One can take walking tours to revisit the history of the area and galleries of Californian art and European posters. You can also buy furnishings and wall coverings from highly reputed dealers in this region. If hungry, Jackson Square can offer you some of the finest restaurants in the neighbourhood.

Also known as the Sentinel Building, the Columbus Tower had work on it started in 1905 with directions and money pouring in from Abe Reuf, a lawyer and politician of San Francisco. The earthquake of 1906 and the fire that followed just left the steel framing of the building. The edifice was completed in 1907 with a copper cladding, and the top floor housing Reuf’s offices. Reuf himself, however, was convicted of bribery in 1909 and given a 14-year sentence. By the time he was released, the copper had oxidized and the building had turned green as we see it today.

Legend has it that the Caesar salad was first served at a restaurant called ‘Caesar’s’, located in this building, which was closed down in accordance with the Eighteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution in 1919. In the 1960s, ‘The Kingston Trio’ owned the building and recorded their songs in the studio they built in the basement. By the 70s, the building had started to fall apart, when Francis Ford Coppola, director of Godfather movies, came to its rescue. Coppola bought the building, renovated it and set up his American Zoetrope studio in here. Columbus Tower is landmark number 33 on the list of San Francisco landmarks, and also has a bistro called Zoetrope Café that sells wine from the Napa Valley.

City Lights is an independent bookstore- publisher combination that specializes in world literature, the arts, and progressive politics. It also houses the nonprofit City Lights Foundation, which publishes selected titles related to San Francisco culture. It was founded in 1953 by poet Lawrence Ferlinghetti and Peter D. Martin. Both the store and the publishers became widely known following the obscenity trial of Ferlinghetti for publishing Allen Ginsberg's influential poem Howl and Other Poems (City Lights, 1956). In 2001, City Lights was made an official historic landmark.

Located on the Broadway Street, the Beat Museum is more of a cult museum. A visit to this museum is the same as traveling back in time to the age of the Beat movement. From personal belongings of the heroes of the movement to the perception of the society, as seen from newspaper cuttings, you can find it all under one roof, only at Beat Museum.
Earlier located on Californian Coast between Big Sur and the city of San Francisco, the museum was relocated to the birthplace of the Beat Movement, the North Beach area. It was here in 1955 that Allen Ginsberg first read ‘Howl’. Other Beat writers like Lawrence Ferlinghetti and Jack Kerouac made North Beach a platform for free speech. Other than the memorabilia of the movement like posters, artwork, books and Kerouac’s tweed jacket, the museum tells you about the movement's begining, its significance, the arrest of Ferlinghetti, the Howl Trial and what happened to the women who participated in the movement. To top it off, the museum also houses Ginsberg’s copy of Howl, which he had sent to other writers for review. It also shows you how the movement was influenced by events like space programs, demands for gay rights etc.
You can also collect your own piece of San Francisco history in the form of souvenirs like T-shirts, sweatshirts, books, CDs, posters, artwork from the gift shop and make your visit truly memorable.

The National Shrine of Saint Francis of Assisi was established in 1849. Located in the heart of San Francisco’s historic North Beach district, it features amazing architecture, colorful murals and stained-glass windows.

Since 1946, Biordi Art Imports has been mesmerizing everyone with its array of polychrome ceramics. It features shelves lined with brightly hand painted Ceramics and a museum-like attraction. Visitors will find there Italian Renaissance style Maiolica: exquisite objects d'art finely crafted, dinnerware handsomely hand painted, unique decorative accessories and much more.

North Beach Museum is a free-of-charge history museum. It features historical artifacts that tell the story of North Beach, Chinatown, and Fisherman's Wharf. The museum also displays an amazing collection of photos of the 1906 earthquake and fire, of some of the first Chinese and Italian immigrants and child-sized shoes made for a Chinese woman's bound feet.

Washington Square, established in 1955, is considered a green oasis in the tight grid of one of the most densely populated parts of San Francisco. The square consists of a gorgeous park, surrounded by eating establishments and the Sts. Peter and Paul Church.