San Francisco, California and San Francisco Bay Area: Catholic places of interest
About the Catholic Church in San Francisco:
The city of San Francisco draws its name from the patron saint of the Franciscans, Saint Francis of Assisi. The Franciscans accompanied the early Spanish explorers in this area, and the first Church was the Mission San Francisco de Asís, which was founded in 1776. The mission church that stands today was completed in 1791 and attached next door is Mission Dolores Basilica.
The city of San Francisco had a population of about 808,000 as of 2024 and the surrounding San Francisco Bay area numbers around 7.7 million.
Catholic places of interest in San Francisco:
Church of Our Lady of Victories (Notre Dame des Victoires): French church founded by the Marist Fathers, one Sunday Mass in French
Mission Dolores Basilica: founded by Junipero Sera
National Shrine of Saint Francis of Assisi: relics of both Saint Francis and Saint Clare, as well as Saint Anthony of Padua
Our Lady Star of the Sea Catholic Church & Marian Shrine: Latin Mass, Perpetual Adoration, Shrine to Marian Apparitions.
Shrine of Saint Jude Thaddeus in Saint Dominic’s Church: one of the most beautiful churches in San Francisco
Catholic places of interest in the San Francisco Bay area:
In addition to San Francisco, the San Francisco Bay area includes cities such as Oakland, San Jose, Santa Rosa and South San Francisco.
Santa Rosa: several churches in this city named for Saint Rose of Lima including the Cathedral of Saint Eugene
South San Francisco: Church of Saint Veronica
Traveling to San Francisco:
Although the city is relatively small geographically, because of the hills, we recommend a one, three, or seven-day visitor pass at either the airport or any Walgreens. This allows you access to the buses, trams, street cars and — most importantly — the cable cars.
Also, pack a light sweater….depending upon what part of the country you come from, temperatures can be chilly, even in the summer. July average highs are around 70°F with daily low temperatures around 56°F.
⇐ Back to Catholic Travel Destinations in the U.S.A.