San Francisco Special Events
February
Largest night-time illuminated parade in North America.
Chinatown
Website: www.sanfranciscochinatown.com
CAAM's San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival
March
Features over 130 films and videos from around the globe.
Castro and Kabuki Theatres
Website: www.asianamericanmedia.org
San Francisco Jazz Spring Season
March-June
Palace of Fine Arts Theatre and other venues
Website: www.sfjazz.org
San Francisco International Film Festival
April-May
More than 200 films and videos showcased.
Castro Theatre and other venues
Website: www.sffs.org
The Yerba Buena Gardens Festival
May-October
Features more than 100 free events, including classical, jazz and world music; theatre; traditional and contemporary dance; children's and family programmes.
Website: www.ybgf.org
Carnaval
May
San Francisco's version of Mardi Gras.
Mission District
Website: www.carnavalsf.com
International Arts Festival
May-June
Various Mission District venues
Website: www.sfiaf.org
North Beach Festival
June
The city's oldest street fair.
North Beach
Website: www.sfnorthbeach.org/festival
Escape from Alcatraz Triathlon
June
An icy cold 2.4km (1.5-mile) swim from Alcatraz Island to the San Francisco shoreline, a 29km (18-mile) hilly bike ride through the Presidio and a 13km (8-mile) trail run through the Golden Gate National Recreation Area.
Website: www.escapefromalcatraztriathlon.com
San Francisco's Dine About Town
June
The annual prix-fixe promotion of more than 100 restaurants.
Website: www.onlyinsanfrancisco.com
San Francisco Jazz Festival
June and October
One of the biggest and best around, with stars from all over the world.
Various outdoor venues
San Francisco
Outside Lands Music & Arts Festival
August
More than 40 artists and groups including Radiohead, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, and Jack Johnson.
Golden Gate Park
Website: www.sfoutsidelands.com
San Francisco Fringe Festival
September
Theatre performances.
Various downtown venues
Website: www.sffringe.org
Blues Festival
September
Great Meadow above Fort Mason
Website: www.sfblues.com
San Francisco International Dragon Boat Festival
October
Nearly 100 dragon boats and 2,500 paddlers from across North America race the 500m (550yd) course.
Treasure Island
Website: www.sfdragonboat.com
Litquake
October
The West Coast's largest independent literary festival with readings, panels, and events all week long, culminating in the notorious Lit Crawl.
Various venues
Website: www.litquake.org
Tours of San Francisco
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Travel Deals for San Francisco
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Finland Activity & adventure holidays Finnish Lapland has enormous areas of untouched wilderness and mile upon mile of wild rolling fells. This vast open countryside, sparkling in the winter sunshine, just begs to be explored by
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Orlando Adrenaline Whether you’re enjoying the hair-raising delights of the world’s only flying rollercoaster called Manta at SeaWorld or racing through the Everglades on an airboat in search of alligators, one thing’s for
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Cambodia Luxury holidays Today Cambodia is symbolised by awesome Angkor Wat, the largest man-made religious structure in the world. However, Cambodia is also home to some of the finest boutique hotels in the world
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Laos Inspire Me When the French colonised Indochina they had a saying: "The Vietnamese grow the rice, the Cambodians watch the rice grow, and the Lao people listen to the rice grow." This is
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Vietnam Cultural breaks Vietnam is a country with a rich and varied history that is now firmly focused on her bright future. This is why it has become one of the hottest destinations for
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Dominican Republic Family holidays The Dominican Republic has soared in popularity as a tropical hotspot for families seeking sun, sand and an affordable holiday in the Caribbean. The island's main attraction is magnificent golden sand
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