Sausalito: A Perfect Half-Day Escape from San Francisco, Sausalito, California

Visiting Sausalito on the public ferry is one of the best travel deals in San Francisco. The round-trip cost is $28. Since I am a senior, I only paid $16.

If you only have three days in San Francisco, I still recommend you dedicate half a day to this adventure.

Why? There is something timeless about approaching Sausalito by water. The town was never meant to be seen from a highway first. It was meant to rise slowly into view - white boats rocking in the harbor, hillside homes stacked like a Mediterranean postcard, and sunlight glinting off the bay. I swear I thought I was docking at a Cinque Terre village in Italy.

Before Sausalito became a weekend escape for San Franciscans, it was a working waterfront with grit. During World War II, the town transformed almost overnight into a major shipbuilding center.

The Marinship Corporation constructed Liberty ships here at astonishing speed, employing thousands of workers - including women and minorities who were newly entering industrial jobs. The population surged as laborers poured in to support the war effort. Temporary housing filled the hillsides. The waterfront hummed with welding torches and steel hulls. ...... (follow the instructions below for accessing the rest of this article).