San Francisco's landmark Ferry Building was built in 1898 and once served as the city's transportation hub. Today it's a public food market.

Visitors to Miami can’t miss South Beach, Chicago has its upscale Magnificent Mile, New York boasts of Times Square and Central Park and Los Angeles is home to Hollywood.

As for San Francisco, well, it is simply the best.

The city where Tony Bennett left his heart in 1961 offers what we have long considered America’s best tourist experience. We just returned to our south Georgia home after spending the holidays in San Francisco, where we were again reminded of why we enjoy this city so much.

The City by the Bay is compact, a great walking town. It offers excellent public transportation, is home to superb restaurants, and enjoys interesting vistas at nearly every corner.

Its hills, cable cars, museums, waterfront, architecture and rich history make it an ideal destination for almost anyone. San Francisco has downsides – especially the cost – but ask a resident why he or she lives there and you’ll likely learn that it’s because they love the city.

San Francisco’s most renowned attractions are always worth the time and effort. Visitors can take a ferry to the infamous prison-on-a-rock where Al Capone was held for four and a half years, snack on a crab roll at Fisherman’s Wharf, enjoy street musicians who perform for tips and take in the city’s famed, crookedest street.

You can cruise San Francisco Bay, visit excellent museums, take several guided tours, enjoy a theater production or two, walk on a windy beach and schedule a tour of the wine country. Go a little further afield, and you can tour Yosemite National Park, less than four hours away.

We never run out of places to explore. We have visited the city, built around a Spanish fort and mission in the 18th century then remade after an earthquake and fire in 1906, on more than a dozen occasions. Each time we’ve discovered something new.

But many treasures are so special, we return year after year. How could someone tire of visiting Golden Gate Park and walking across the Golden Gate Bridge?

Visitors to the urban park of more than 1,000 acres are free to stroll its winding walkways and bicycle paths, taking in the scenery and watching the people of San Francisco at no cost. It is a great, inexpensive diversion for travellers on a budget.

Those willing to pay admission will find plenty else to do. The park is also home to top-notch science and art museums, an arboretum, a Japanese tea garden, carousel, flower conservatory, and even a Dutch windmill.

Another memorable trip for the budget conscious is across the iconic suspension bridge, which opened in 1937 and has since been a symbol of San Francisco and its technological prowess. The three-mile span is open to walkers and bikers who wish to experience the thrill of crossing the bridge about 250 feet above San Francisco Bay under their own power.

Walking at a moderate pace, next to U.S. Highway 101, takes about 45 minutes each way. The walk can be windy, noisy and, on weekends, crowded. But the views can be both daunting and unforgettable.

There is so much to explore in San Francisco, whether it’s by taking a ferry to Sausalito, with its expansive marinas, or jumping on a cable car for a ride up California Street to Nob Hill, which was once home to the mansions of the city’s super-rich only to be remade, like everything else, after 1906.

No matter how many days we spend in the city, at the end of each trip we depart wishing we had more time.

No destination is perfect. San Francisco’s weather can be uncomfortable, with chilly temperatures during summer and rainy spells during the winter. Still, unlike many major cities, it seldom suffers temperature extremes.

San Francisco’s homeless population is among the largest of any major U.S. city, according to the government. Although homeless people seldom cause trouble for visitors, encountering so many can be startling and depressing, especially for those of us from small towns.

Then there is the high cost of living and visiting– a downside for all but dot-com millionaires and billionaires. The city is generally considered the second- or third-most expensive in the United States. Yet it is possible to visit without hocking your home or selling the children. Some of our favorite spots are free, or don’t cost a lot.

For example, there is the 210-foot tower atop Telegraph Hill, built in 1933 with funds donated by Lille H. Coit. Murals circling the first floor depict local industry. For a nominal charge visitors can take the elevator to the top of the art deco tower for one of the most sweeping, impressive views of one of America’s finest cities.

David and Kay Scott are authors of “Complete Guide to the National Park Lodges” (Globe Pequot). Visit them at www.valdosta.edu/~dlscott/Scott