Welcome to the Golden Gate National Parks!

One of the world's largest urban national parks, Golden Gate National Recreation Area hugs the California coastline for nearly 60 miles in and around San Francisco.

For our neighbors who live and work in the Bay Area, we are their "backyard" national park. The place where they windsurf, walk the dog, go for a run, or bring their kids to explore nature and get a taste of history.

The park also attracts visitors from across the country and around the world, a total of 17 million annually are drawn here by the unparalleled recreational opportunities, stunning natural beauty, and riveting stories.

Where else can you experience a "working" Nike Missile Site, the isolation of a maximum security federal prison, the conversion of an abandoned airfield into hundreds of acres of productive coastal wetlands, and some of the best beaches and hiking trails in the nation? And then take a cable car to dinner?

If you have a question about the park or its resources, are planning a visit, or just plain curious, we hope our website will help you find whatever you are looking for—and perhaps offer up a few surprises along the way!

We welcome your interest and hope to see you in the park sometime soon.

Brian O'Neill, Superintendent