Through The Dragon Gate: San Francisco Chinatown Tour

Meet your guide right outside the Dragon Gates, where two guardian lions (shishi) protect the traditional "Paifang" style entrance to a land where wonder merges with history. Follow your guide as they set the stage, quickly taking you through the symbolism within the concrete. Then, walk into the heart of the neighborhood and learn about the immigration flood in the mid-19th-century. Listen to stories of the thriving businesses here and all the vices that followed. Walk into sites of significance like the old St. Mary's Cathedral and Waverly Place. Pay attention–your guide will divulge some stories and myths that might sometimes seem too incredible to believe!

Stop by stores that, while modern, also keep a foot in the traditional past, are famously loved by locals for doing so. Enter a local apothecary, a stall that sells essentials of the afterlife, or the exclusive, strictly-locals-only shops for dim sum, Sichuan, and Cantonese cuisines. A highlight of your tour will be the visit to the famous Golden Gate Fortune Cookie Factory where you can see handmade cookies come straight off the oven and even take a custom one home for yourself. Towards the end of your tour, your guide will tell you about the three foodie neighborhoods that you can easily walk to.