There are multiple ways to get from San Francisco to Muir Woods, with or without a car. We go through the best and worst ways to get to these famous redwoods near San Francisco.
Muir Woods is a ‘must- do’ while in San Francisco – but how do you get there? Unfortunately it isn’t as easy as you think. Here are the best ways to get to Muir Woods.
By the way, did you know our Dylan’s Famous Tour with Muir Woods is one of the top-rated ways to get to and explore Muir Woods. It gives you access to Muir Woods without the hassle. Book the #1 Muir Woods Tour!
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10 Ways to get from San Francisco to Muir Woods
- Drive across the Golden Gate Bridge to Mount Tamalpais
- Bike across the Golden Gate and up Mt. Tamalpais
- Lyft/Uber to Muir Woods and use a payphone to a call a cab after
- Hire a private car for the afternoon
- Stay at the Pelican Inn, only three miles/five kilometers from Muir Woods
- Take a Muir Woods Tour With Alcatraz
- Bike the Golden Gate Bridge & take Marin Transit’s 66F Muir Woods Shuttle from Sausalito Ferry Terminal
- Ferry to Sausalito & take Marin Transit’s 66F Muir Woods Shuttle from Sausalito Ferry Terminal
- Bike the Golden Gate Bridge & Shuttle to Muir Woods with Dylan’s
- Explore San Francisco and Muir Woods on Dylan’s “Famous Tour”
Highlights include:
- Explore the top neighborhoods with your local guide and learn the stories, history, and diversity of San Francisco.
- 10 locations, 5 amazing photo stops
- Enjoy lunch with a view in the beautiful waterfront town of Sausalito. (Only available on the 8:00 AM departure tour.)
- Spend over an hour in Muir Woods and stand in awe of the famous redwood trees.
Before you go to Muir Woods read below!
Even though Muir Woods National Monument isn’t IN San Francisco, it’s a quintessential part of visiting San Francisco and luckily the distance is not too far from San Francisco to Muir Woods. Remember, it’s not Muir Woods San Francisco.
Some of the Coastal Redwoods at Muir Woods are over 2,000 years old and nearly 300 feet/92 meters!
But, there’s a catch.
The Muir Woods location is in a quiet valley nestled into Mount Tamalpais and sees thousands of visitors every day but there are only a few hundred parking spots and you have to reserve one on time to park there.
Getting from San Francisco to Muir Woods can be tricky, but it’s still possible to do a Muir Woods day trip at any time of the year.
There are multiple ways to get from San Francisco to Muir Woods, including taxis, rideshares, ferries, San Francisco bus tours, and shuttle buses.
Check out the video below to learn more about how to get up to Muir Woods.
How far is Muir Woods from San Francisco?
First off, let’s start with the distance from San Francisco to Muir Woods so you know what you’re dealing with.
To visit Muir Woods, it’s about 16 miles (about 26 kilometers) north of the city. If you’re driving with no traffic (unlikely), it takes about 40 minutes to get to Muir Woods. For public transit, it can take well over an hour.
Now that you know how far away Muir Woods is, let’s dive into how to get there! Here are 10 ways of getting to Muir Woods by bike, bus, or ferry.
*Note: The Muir Woods entrance fee is $15 for individuals ages 16+, so add that into your Muir Woods cost when planning your trip.
How to Get to Muir Woods from San Francisco
Drive across the Golden Gate Bridge to Mount Tamalpais
While simply driving to Muir Woods might seem like the most direct way of getting to the redwoods, it’s also one of the worst ways of getting to Muir Woods.
Thousands of people visit the towering Coastal Redwoods at Muir Woods every day. The only problem with that is there are only a couple hundred parking spots at the Muir Woods parking lot, tucked away into this mountain. and you also have to make a reservation for a spot. Sounds pretty easy but the parking spots sell out quickly, so you have to reserve your spot on time.
This means if you aren’t there by 9:30 am, you might end up walking up to 30 minutes away from the park entrance!
Bike across the Golden Gate and up Mt. Tamalpais
Although the distance from San Francisco to Muir Woods is 16 miles, you can bike it if you’re really motivated.
Biking the bridge is one of those things everyone should try at least once in their lifetime!
Biking up Mount Tamalpais from San Francisco to Muir Woods? That’s a totally different story.
While it is *technically* possible to bike to Muir Woods from San Francisco, the road you take will have no bike lane and is filled with cars, SUVs and 30 foot Muir Woods tour buses taking hairpin turns around the mountain.
Lyft/Uber to Muir Woods and use an honest-to-goodness payphone to a call a cab after
Since there’s no direct public bus to Muir Woods from San Francisco, you might be tempted to turn to a rideshare app, but this is one of the least cost-effective ways of getting to/from Muir Woods.
You’ll be able to rideshare your way from San Francisco to Muir Woods, but since there’s no cell phone reception you won’t be able to order one for the way back.
Luckily, there’s still a functioning payphone that you can use to call a cab to take you back to Sausalito or the city, but it will cost you a pretty penny for the cab ride back.
Hire a private car for the afternoon
If you want to arrive in style, this is for you. You won’t have to worry about calling a ride if you have a private driver already waiting for you!
Most companies require a minimum of four hours, but they’ll pick up/drop off to your hotel and you can explore at your own pace. Once you’re done, you’ll be picked up and dropped off directly from Muir Woods to San Francisco.
Our friends over at SF Modern Limo are $55/hr for a town car and $70/hr for a limo (if you REALLY want to travel in style).
Stay at the Pelican Inn, only three miles/five kilometers from Muir Woods
Not many people know about this seven-room English-inspired bed and breakfast tucked away in the tiny Mt. Tam community of Muir Beach.
Pelican Inn is a stone’s throw from the Pacific Ocean and is home to a hearty little English pub on the bottom level (perfect for after a long hike through Muir Woods)!
It will take over an hour to walk to the entrance of Muir Woods, but it is possible, and it’s one of the closest places to stay for accommodation near Muir Woods.
Note: if you’re looking for Muir Woods camping, there are no campsites that are within the national monument. The closest campsites are Alice Eastwood and Pantoll campgrounds in Mt. Tamalpais State Park. Pelican Inn is a good alternative if you don’t want to go camping, or simply want something a bit more luxe that’s still nearby.
CATCH A RIDE TO MUIR WOODS AND GET TICKETS TO ALCATRAZ WITH DYLAN’S FAMOUS TOUR + ALCATRAZ
If you are trying to see the most in one day, the 2-Day San Francisco City and Alcatrac Tour is for you. This 2-Day San Francisco, Muir Woods and Alcatraz tour will show you everything the Bay Area has to offer!
You’ll spend time at Alcatraz (aka Pier 33), as well as over an hour exploring both Muir Woods and Sausalito and a full San Francisco City Tour.
If you are thinking about an Alcatraz tour Alcatraz tickets can sell out months in advance. This tour sells out quickly so get your tickets now!
Bike the Golden Gate Bridge & take Marin Transit’s 66F Muir Woods Shuttle from Sausalito Ferry Terminal
(SEASONAL: May-October WEEKENDS ONLY)
We never get tired of biking across the Golden Gate Bridge, so this is always a fun option before visiting Muir Woods!
The only catch is that the Muir Woods bus provided by Marin Transit runs on weekdays and holidays year-round, but only on select weekdays in the summer.
It’s $3.50 for a roundtrip ticket for those 16 and older. Kids 15 and younger ride for free. You pay at Muir Woods and show a receipt to board the bus back to the Sausalito Ferry Terminal.
You can leave your bike with a bike valet for $3 per bike before taking the bus to Muir Woods, that way you won’t have to worry about it while you’re hiking!
Renting a bike and biking across the bridge before catching the bus to Muir Woods is a great option. Dylan’s offers whole day San Francisco bike rentals really close to Fisherman’s Wharf, so you don’t have to bike through the whole city to get to the bridge. Rent your bike via the website to get a discount!
Ferry to Sausalito & take Marin Transit’s 66F Muir Woods Shuttle from Sausalito Ferry Terminal
(SEASONAL: May-October WEEKENDS ONLY)
You can catch a ferry to Sausalito from either Pier 41/Fisherman’s Wharf OR the Ferry Building at the end of Market Street for about $12.
It’s a beautiful 20-30 minute ferry ride with absolutely stunning views (depending on Karl the Fog) of the Golden Gate Bridge, Alcatraz and the San Francisco skyline. Once in Sausalito, you can catch the seasonal shuttle bus from Sausalito to Muir Woods.
It’s $3.50 for a roundtrip ticket for those 16 and older. Kids 15 and younger ride for free. You pay at Muir Woods and show a receipt to board the bus back to the Sausalito Ferry Terminal.
Bike the Golden Gate Bridge & Shuttle to Muir Woods with Dylan’s
Have we mentioned how much we love biking the Golden Gate Bridge? We just hate that the shuttle to Muir Woods doesn’t run year round!
Luckily, with our ‘bike the bridge’ tour you can bike the Golden Gate Bridge with a Pedego electric bike from Dylan’s, then ditch the bike at our partner shop in Sausalito before hopping onto minibus tour to Muir Woods!
The best part? You don’t have to bike back to the city after your hike, our shuttle will bring you back to San Francisco from Muir Woods!
Explore San Francisco and Muir Woods on Dylan’s Famous Tour with Muir Woods
Trying to get to Muir Woods from San Francisco? Why not make it a combo tour that encompasses most of what you want to see in SF with some quality time in nature!
Okay, so we might be the tiniest bit biased, but our “Dylan’s Famous Tour with Muir Woods” is the best way to get to Muir Woods from San Francisco AND see all the must-see sights in San Francisco AND have lunch in Sausalito AND explore Muir Woods for over an hour before getting dropped back off in the city.
If you really want to see it all and make the most of your trip to San Francisco, this is your best option to visit Muir Woods.
Seven hours fly by with our local tour guides and you’ll be impressed with how much ground you’ll have covered in a single day!
And as a bonus, you don’t have to worry about following multi-step directions to Muir Woods as you do with many of the other options.
Don’t miss out on our Famous Tour of San Francisco and Muir Woods. Explore the Golden Gate Bridge, Muir Woods’ ancient redwoods, and more. Book your tour today and embark on an incredible journey!
Looking for something more custom? Check out our San Francisco private tours.
Note: If you’re flying into San Francisco and want to head directly from SFO to Muir Woods, you can easily take BART (one of our public transit options) into the city from the airport, and get picked up by us once you’re anywhere downtown.
Looking for more Muir Woods inspiration? Don’t forget to check out our related posts below!
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[Featured photo by Caleb Jones via Unsplash]
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