I took my kids to SF eight years ago, and we had a wonderful time. We visited relatives in Oakland, so took BART back and forth to downtown every day. Never saw homeless people, never had any problems whatsoever. Took buses all around the city to tourist attractions, took the cable car, walked up the twisty street, ate great meals, went to all the museums, rented a car to drive through Napa. Kids loved it. I'm sorry if the city has taken a turn for the worse. So sad. It's a beautiful city. We have wonderful memories of our trip.

I was there recently with my five year old. It was great. Yes more homeless people than I typically see in DC but no one ever approached us. We stayed by Embarcadero and walked many places, Ubered others. I felt totally safe. It was a great trip.

Anonymous wrote:We went very recently and it felt much safer than parts of DC. We didn’t have any issues in SF with kids for a week.

I like how every poster who has actually been there recently says "it's fine based on my direct personal experience". And the only ones saying not to go are completely relying on media reports that only focus on a few parts of a big city.

We went very recently and it felt much safer than parts of DC. We didn’t have any issues in SF with kids for a week.

Anonymous wrote:I was just there with kids 4, 9, 10. We had a great time, and walked everywhere. I never felt unsafe, though I did notice it is pretty dirty in some areas.

How much was the private security?

Anonymous wrote:No, I wouldn’t. Skipping chicago for same reason.

ROFL at this

SF is not a pleasant place to visit for vacation, given the filth and the homelessness problem. Even the networks are starting to pull reporters for safety reasons (https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/gma-warns-reporter-to-avoid-dangerous-downtown-san-francisco-during-segment-on-closing-westfield-mall/ar-AA1cCbq0), and some hotels and retailers have pulled out for reasons related to both crime and the economy (https://www.cbsnews.com/news/park-hotels-leaving-san-francisco-clouded-recovery/). The city needs new leadership that will clean up the city, once a national treasure.

I was just there with kids 4, 9, 10. We had a great time, and walked everywhere. I never felt unsafe, though I did notice it is pretty dirty in some areas.

We went over spring break with our 2 young DDs to spend some time with family who live nearby. Stayed at Wyndham Canterbury. Did touristy things (Fisherman’s Wharf, Golden Gate Bridge, Golden Gate Park, Muir Woods, Alcatraz, a few hours at the beach) and had no issues.
Similar to any other big city, you just need to be aware of your surroundings.