What do I wear? San Francisco

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Mark Twain said, ‘The coldest winter I ever spent was a summer in San Francisco’.

This being said, I have come up with the list of the main staples you need to pack for San Francisco. By no means would I say my summer in San Francisco was the coldest winter I have ever survived. But, I would say it has been my coldest summer. Needless to say, the weather is all out of whack here, or should I say not what you would expect.

I don’t know about you, but when I plan a trip one of the last things I do is pack or even think about packing. Here is a break down of what to pack by month. Your insider scoop is that the weather is near impossible to figure out. SF has ‘micro-climates’ this basically means you could be in the city and hot then turn a corner and be freezing.

Pack for San Francisco Breakdown:
December - March

The coldest and rainiest months.

Pack Me:

When we first moved here my husband got me 4 JACKETS from EXPRESS. I wear them all the time and EXPRESS always has a sale! Who doesn’t love a sale?!?!?

Not only will you need to pack a big puffy jacket. But, you will also want to pack an umbrella, shoes that can get wet (rain boots are a big thing) and a rain jacket. If you are just traveling, hit up Target or cute and affordable rain gear! You will thank me later 🙂

Moving from Florida these are the coldest months. but it was the wind that makes it truly cold. The weather report may say 63 degrees and sunny, but the wind at 20+mph, makes it feel 40 degrees.

April - August

Still chilly

Pack Me:

It is still cold, but you can put away the rain boots and umbrella. The rain stops for the most part. The sun starts to peak out and you can catch a few warm days in between the windy cold weather. My favorite is a day game at the Giants Stadium where at the beginning of the game you are sweating and by the end you are ready to cuddle up in one of my Express jackets. Makes my inner Florida girl happy!

These months are clearer, not as much fog, it usually burns off before 10 am. Perfect for sightseeing, just pack your layers.

September- October

Warmish (as warm as it gets)

Pack Me:

These are your summer months. It gets hot! A lot of buildings do not have AC, and these are the few months where you need it during the day. If you are visiting check your hotels to make sure they include AC. Here are a few of my go to’s for booking a room in SF: Bookit, Expedia, and Hotel Tonight.

The nights are always cool and depending on where you are in the city you can gauge how much wind there will be. It is a safe bet to pack a jacket. Typically, by the beach it is windier and the middle of the city you can get caught in a wind tunnel or in hot stillness from the sun.

For our warmer months I like to shop at Zaful, Francesa’s, and you can never go wrong with Express.

November

Random

Pack Me:

Sunny? Warm? Cold? Windy? Rain?

You never know what you are going to get. The wind picks up during the day and jackets are a necessity. You can catch a few days where a jacket isn’t a must, but it will starts to cool down at night.

This is when layering is key. Pack a few items that can be layered each day, this trick will save you. YI recommend bringing a jacket, walking around the city with a nice backpack or purse, helps with laying too. If I go out during the day and know there is a chance I will be out after happy hour, I ALWAYS bring a coat too, just in case. I would rather carry a jacket then be cold.

Now that you have the break down of what not to forget on your trip to San Francisco, I cannot express how important it is to come out to the city. San Francisco no matter the time of year is beautiful. It has everything you can imagine from history and culture to modern museums, hikes, you name it. What ever it is you are searching for you can find it here. Trust me the weather won’t stop you! Check out all the fun things to see and do in San Francisco on my travel guide.

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Mark Twain said, ‘The coldest winter I ever spent was a summer in San Francisco’.