Spotlight On San Francisco
The tourism promotion body for San Francisco is “Grateful” memories of 1960s San Francisco music aren’t “Dead.”
And, says San Francisco Travel spokeswoman Laurie Armstrong, the city is gearing up for a major celebration of a pivotal time in the city’s lively history.
Next year marks the 50th anniversary of San Francisco’s famed Summer of Love, a period that solidified its position of being in the epicentre of the 1960s counter-culture movement and made the city a mecca for young, free-spirited people.
“We’re doing a big international push. It’s getting a lot of attention,” Armstrong said during a Tuesday Toronto promotion.
1960s San Francisco was typified in part by a flourishing music scene underlined by the likes of The Jefferson Airplane and The Grateful Dead, and the city’s Haight-Ashbury district became somewhat symbolic of 1960s counter-culture. Armstrong said Haight-Ashbury is now a fixture on tourism circuits, although it has become somewhat gentrified. “The hippies grew up and bought homes. But the spirit lives on.”
Armstrong said her multi-cultural city is tolerant of different lifestyles, saying that tolerance is one of “San Francisco values.”
Armstrong added that visitors seeking sophisticated entertainment can easily do so, with symphony, opera and ballet performances available, and art galleries commonplace. “There are so many wonderful things,” she says of chic and sophisticated sides to the city. “We don’t wear tie-dye shirts.”
Armstrong said visitors will find a flourishing food scene, with city residents having “no tolerance for bad food.”
Daniel Schwartz of San Francisco Travel said the city’s relatively smallish size and its public transportation system means visitors don’t need rental cars.
Meanwhile, Rand Hardy of Pier 39 – home to restaurants, shops and attractions and which Hardy said is the city’s top tourist attraction – noted that it offerings includes bay cruises and an aquarium. “It’s really a good time for the whole family.”
The gathering was also told that Yosemite National Park can be visited on day tours from San Francisco and visits to Monterey – found south of San Francisco – provide “a nice drive down the coast” to a locale where claims to fame include the Pebble Beach golf course.
Air Canada will begin Calgary-San Francisco service June 18, with Calgary being the sixth Canadian city the carrier will send people to San Francisco from.
Rekindling memories of the Summer of Love by flashing peace signs are Schwartz; Charmaine Singh, Connect Worldwide Canada, which represents San Francisco in this country; Armstrong; Hubertus Funke, San Francisco Travel; and Javier Fernandez, Connect Worldwide Canada.
