The expanded Westfield San Francisco Centre, located adjacent to Union Square and Yerba Buena Gardens, will be a 1.5 million square mixed-use destination and the largest urban shopping center west of the Mississippi River. Home to the largest Bloomingdale's outside of New York and the second largest Nordstrom in the U.S., the center will house more than 170 specialty stores and upscale boutiques - including Abercrombie Kids, Furla, Hollister, The Art of Shaving, Antik Denim, John Atencio, Hollister and Tourneau among others as well as fine dining in The Restaurant Collection and an international gourmet marketplace called the Food Emporium. Films will be shown at the nine-screen, state-of-the-art Century Theatres and CinéArts. The centerpiece will be the 102-foot wide steel and glass dome restored from the now-gone Emporium department store.

Orchard Garden Hotel, California's First Hotel Built to U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) standards debuts. July 12, 2006 is opening day for San Francisco's 86-room Orchard Garden Hotel, 466 Bush St., and California's first hotel built to the nationally accepted standards for green buildings developed by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC). The new construction followed the "Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design" (LEED®) Green Building Rating System in order to earn the LEED certification. The hotel's green practices include chemical-free cleaning products, a 100% tobacco-free environment, recycled paper and soy-based inks, and the San Francisco debut of a guestroom key card energy control system. Twenty-eight rooms and four suites offer views of the city's dramatic skyline. Two of the spacious suites have open-air terraces. A roof garden tops the nine-story building. The hotel will also include a 56-seat restaurant and bar, serving breakfast, lunch, dinner and cocktails. Available through Sept.30, 2006, the hotel's opening package "Love Your Mother (Earth)," offers deluxe accommodations, morning newspaper and turndown service at $149 per night. For more information, telephone 888-717-2881 or visit www.theorchardhotel.com.

Titanic: The Artifact Exhibition Docks at San Francisco's Metreon "Real objects, real stories, real people" bring the story of the RMS Titanic to life in a 300-item exhibit now open at Metreon, 101 Fourth St. The largest collection of artifacts recovered from the wreckage, Titanic: The Artifact Exhibit includes a 30,000-pound portion of the ship's hull. Stunning room re-creations include the grand staircase, first class staterooms and third class cabins. Visitors are immediately sent back in time to 1912 - with a boarding pass in hand bearing the name of an actual passenger, they will experience the story of the Titanic from construction yard to recovery of the wreckage. In the past decade more than 17 million people have toured this exhibit in 50 cities worldwide. Admission ranges from $10 (school groups) to $22 per person. The exhibition is slated to run through January 2007. For more information, telephone 415-421-TIXS (8497) or visit www.sftitanic.com.

1906: A Journey Through The Mythical City Premieres at Theatre 39, Pier 39 Gregangelo's Velocity Circus, a San Francisco-based cast of circus performers, musicians, and comic actors, has created a power-packed tour of San Francisco's history, culminating in a phantasmagorical futuristic extravaganza for the centennial year of the 1906 earthquake and fire. Breathtaking circus acts, spine-tingling special effects, dazzling dancers, superb singers and wittily comical characters navigate through the history and heart of San Francisco's sensational century. Performances are June 23-Aug. 26, 2006 at Theatre 39, Pier 39; tickets are $46.50. For information, telephone 415-433-3939 or visit www.gregangelo.com.

New Musical Love, Janis Celebrates the Life and Music of Singer Janis Joplin: The life and music of rock-n-roll icon Janis Joplin explodes onto the stage in Love, Janis a new rock musical making its Bay Area premiere at the Marines Memorial Theatre, 609 Sutter St., second floor, from July 7-Sept. 3, 2006. Based on the book of the same name by Joplin's younger sister Laura Joplin, the play offers a glimpse into the essence of a legend both through the letters she wrote home and the many songs she made famous. For more information, telephone 415-771-6900 or visit www.marinesmemorialtheatre.com.

42nd Street Moon Presents 14th Season with Li'l Abner and More Uncommon Musicals: Known for their uncommon musicals, 42nd Street Moon opens its 14th season with a revival of the 1956 hit satire Li'l Abner. This foot-stomping musical fantasy brings Al Capp's beloved characters to life, July 20-Aug. 13, 2006. Following the hijinks in Dogpatch, USA, the season continues with George and Ira Gershwin's Pardon My English in October, followed by Flora the Red Menace in November, Zorba in March and a romp in April with Cole Porter's Gay Divorce. For tickets and complete details on performance dates and times, telephone 415-255-8207 or visit www.42ndstmoon.org.

Chat Up the Performers at Free San Francisco Theater Festival, July 23, 2006: Only The Bard meets Bali in the third annual San Francisco Theater Festival, July 23, 2006, 11 am to 5 pm at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, Zeum Theatre and Yerba Buena Gardens. A one-day, annual celebration of live theater the festival embraces 50 professional theater groups performing short pieces on 10 stages, plus 10 shows for children. Shakespeare, hip-hop, Balinese marching music, improv, Chinese folk tales, solo performers, comedy, drama, and a full children's program are all part of an ethnically diverse play-a-thon. "This is the only theater festival that allows people young and old to sample a huge variety of theater performances in one place, on one day. " said producer Bill Schwartz. "It harkens back to theater's roots when theater was not exclusive or pricey, but a people's art form. And, they can chat with the actors and producers at tables we set up." Last year's festival drew more than 4,500 people. For more information, telephone 415-291-8655 or visit www.sftheaterfestival.org.

A Chorus Line to Have Exclusive Pre-Broadway Opening in San Francisco: The only pre-Broadway engagement of A Chorus Line is slated for San Francisco's Curran Theatre, 445 Geary St., July 23-Sept. 2, 2006. Bob Avian, who co-choreographed the original production with Michael Bennett in 1975, will direct this new production. The "touchstone" of Broadway theater, A Chorus Line won nine Tony Awards and the Pulitzer Prize for Drama. For information, telephone 415-512-7770 or visit www.shnsf.com.

Kathleen Turner and Bill Irwin Among Stars for 2006-2007 SHN Season: SHN's Best of Broadway subscription season includes Kathleen Turner and Bill Irwin in Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf; Hollywood-inspired premieres of Legally Blonde and Edward Scissorhands; a new musical titled Altar Boyz; the national tour premiere of Tony Award-winning Jersey Boys, and the Pulitzer Prize-winning play Doubt, starring Tony Award-winning actress Cherry Jones. The season begins on Aug. 1, 2006 with The Light in the Piazza. This marks the company's 36th season. For tickets and complete details on performance dates and times, telephone 415-551-2050 or toll free 877-797-SUBS (7827) or visit www.shnsf.com.

New Conservatory Theatre Center Announces Pride Season 12 - Sanctuary: "A sanctuary is a place of refuge or asylum. The New Conservatory Theatre Center (NCTC) is such a place - a sanctuary where bold, intimate and engaging stories about the drama and folly of our lives find life on stage." With that introduction NCTC's Artistic Director Ed Decker defined the essence of Pride Season 12 - Sanctuary which opens Aug. 12, 2006. Plays include the world premiere of Bay Area playwright Brad Erickson's The War at Home; the U.S. premiere of Terre Haute by Edmund White; the West Coast premiere of Farm Boys by Amy Fox and Dean Grey; two comedies, A Queer Carol for the holidays and Legends; three dramas: Kiss of the Spider Woman, The Dying Gaul and Take Me Out, plus the musical Convenience for a total of nine shows. For tickets and complete details on performance dates and times, telephone 415-861-8972 or visit www.nctcsf.org.

A.C.T. Celebrates Four Decades of Great Theater at Home in San Francisco: Founded in 1965 by William Ball, the American Conservatory Theater (A.C.T.) opened its first season at the Geary Theater. Ball picked San Francisco to nurture his dream, knowing that here he would find audiences that were passionate and adventurous. His faith in San Francisco has been reciprocated and this year A.C.T. marks its 40th anniversary. Actors ranging from Rene Auberjonois to Peter Donat, Annette Bening to Olympia Dukakis, and playwrights from Tom Stoppard to August Wilson have made A.C.T. a familiar name to audiences around the world. This season some of those legends return. On Sept. 14, 2006 the season opens with Tom Stoppard's Travesties, followed by Lillian Hellman's The Little Foxes on Oct. 27, W. Somerset Maugham's The Circle on Jan. 4, 2007 and Henrik Ibsen's Hedda Gabler on Feb. 9. From March 22-April 22, A.C.T. revisits Fillmore Street in Japantown just as more than 100,000 Japanese Americans are returning from internment camps in Philip Kan Gotanda's After the War. This world premiere is described as "a powerful valentine to San Francisco - and to the everyday people who built this city with their lives, loves and stories." Blackbird, by David Harrower, makes its West Coast premiere April 27 and the repertory season closes with Moliere's The Imaginary Invalid, June 7-July 8, starring none other than Rene Auberjonois. For tickets and complete details on performance dates and times, telephone 415-749-2250 or visit www.act-sf.org.

San Francisco Conservatory of Music Moves to New Home September 18, 2006: Almost without missing a measure, the San Francisco Conservatory of Music (SFCM) will move from its old location to a new $80 million, state-of-the-art performance and teaching facility in the heart of San Francisco's performing arts civic center. One of the leading music schools in the country, SFCM serves more than 1,300 students and presents more than 1,500 performances to more than 100,000 annually. The building will be dedicated on Sept. 18, 2006, followed by a series of special concerts. For more information, telephone 415-564-8086 or visit www.sfcm.edu.

Emerald Bowl Makes a Date for AT&T Park on Dec. 27, 2006: Kick-off time is 5 pm (PST) on Wednesday, Dec. 27, 2006 for the fifth annual Emerald Bowl, San Francisco's college football post-season bowl game. The game will again be played at AT&T Park, 24 Willie Mays Plaza, and televised nationally on ESPN. The only bowl game between the Pacific-10 Conference and Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC), the Emerald Bowl will match the Pac-10's fourth- or fifth-place team against the ACC's fifth-, sixth- or seventh- place selection. For more information, call 415-947-BOWL (2695) or visit www.emeraldbowl.org.

Nighting in Napa? Get Some Tickets for the Napa Valley Opera House: Taking in a performance at the Napa Valley Opera House, 100 Main St., Napa, may be the perfect ending for a day in the wine country. This summer their eclectic lineup includes off-Broadway's Late Nite Catechism, June 21-July 2; Buckwheat Zydeco and Marcia Ball, June 27; the San Francisco Circus in Elevation 63: Vertigo, July 14-16; comedian Robert Dubac in The Male Intellect: an oxymoron, July 28-29; FLY Dance Company, Aug. 11-12; the Chilean music of Inti-Illimani, Aug. 18, and an evening with Rosanne Cash, Aug. 30. For performance updates and tickets, telephone 707-226-7372 or visit www.nvoh.org.

Alcatraz Contract Signed with Hornblower Yachts: Service Continues with Blue and Gold Fleet through Summer, 2006: On May 9, 2006 the National Park Service signed a 10-year contract with Alcatraz Cruises, a division of Hornblower Yachts, for transportation and visitor service to Alcatraz Island, which is a unit of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area. Alcatraz Cruises will not begin boat service until Sept. 25, 2006. In the interim, Blue and Gold Fleet will continue boat service through Sept. 24, 2006. Alcatraz Cruises will provide advance ticketing and reservations for ferry service for departures occurring on or after Sept. 25, 2006. Information on securing tickets before Sept. 24 can be found at www.blueandgold.com; information on acquiring tickets after Sept. 24 is available at www.alcatrazcruises.com.

Fast Forward to the Past: Get the (MP3) Download on Historic Barbary Coast Trail Inaugurated in May, 1998, the 3.8 mile Barbary Coast Trail has added a digital twist with the addition of an MP3 audio narration laced with everything from the rumblings of the 1906 earthquake to the shouts of Gold Rush pioneer Sam Brannan. Beginning at San Francisco's circa 1874 Old Mint, currently the focus of a $55 million restoration campaign, the trail rambles past more than 20 of the city's most historic sites before ending at Aquatic Park. Researched, designed and coaxed into reality by Daniel Bacon, the two ends of the trail are connected by the Powell-Hyde cable car line, which has a track record of 130-plus years, too. Audio versions of the north or south half of the trail are each available for $14, or together for $25. Printed versions of the tour including a pocket map ($8.95) and book, Walking San Francisco on the Barbary Coast Trail ($15.95) are still available as well. For more information, telephone 800-497-4949 or visit www.barbarycoasttrail.com.

New Ferry Building Line Cruise Offers Three Tours, Three Bridges and Three Islands: Red & White Fleet has introduced a new cruise service this summer, the Ferry Building Line which departs from its namesake, the Ferry Building, Wednesday-Sunday. The 90-minute cruise offers passengers three audio tours: Architecture (available in English, German, Japanese and Spanish), Natural History and Native American. Listeners can skip from one historically-enriched tour to the next using personal headsets or just sit back and enjoy the views. The tour travels along the waterfront, under the Bay Bridge, around Yerba Buena Island and Treasure Island and past Alcatraz. Tickets are $39 for adults, $26 ages 5-11, free for children 4 and under. For more information, telephone 415-901-5253 or visit www.ferrybuildingline.com.

San Francisco Duck Tours:As the only amphibious tour of San Francisco, San Francisco Duck Tours has true splash appeal for visitors this summer. The 80-minute guided tour departs from Anchorage Square, 2800 Leavenworth St., in Fisherman's Wharf. The 32-passenger, U.S. Coast Guard Certified World War II landing craft have been re-painted and re-christened with such fetching names as Diva Duck, Peking Duck and Duck El Pato in honor of the various neighborhoods they trawl. After an approximately 60-minute circuit of Fisherman's Wharf, Chinatown, North Beach, Union Square and South Beach they splash down in McCovey Cove near AT&T Park for a bay cruise. For more information, telephone 415-431-DUCK (3825) or visit www.bayquackers.com.

Mr. Toad's Vintage Car Tours: Mr. Toad's Vintage Car Tours has been operating in San Francisco since July 2005. This family-owned and operated sightseeing company features brand-new, environmentally friendly, custom-built pre-1930s vehicles. The 11-passenger models include a 1929 Model A "woody," a 1912 Rambler and a 1925 Yelllowstone bus. Tours depart daily from the corner of Taylor and Jefferson streets in Fisherman's Wharf. The 80-minute "hop around the city," visits Fisherman's Wharf, North Beach, the Embarcadero, Chinatown, Nob Hill, the Cable Car Barn, Pacific Heights, the Presidio, Golden Gate Bridge, Palace of Fine Arts, Ghirardelli Square and Union Street. For more information, telephone 877-4MR-TOAD (467-8623) or visit www.mrtoadstours.com.

Plenty to Squawk About at the San Francisco Zoo: It's all happening at the San Francisco Zoo, or so it seems.

· For a nominal fee visitors can feed Patricia, Floyd, Gezi, Kristen and Bettiti, the five giraffes who live in the new three-acre African Savanna. Limited feedings available at 2 pm each day, giraffes willing, first-come, first-served. Visitors might also be able to see one or both of the zoo's plucky newborn giraffe calves.

· Another group of inspiring young newcomers at the zoo are four orphaned northern elephant seal pups, recently rescued by the Marine Mammal Center and staying at the zoo before ultimately being returned to the ocean.

· On June 8 the zoo also added Binnowee Landing, its new walk-in aviary where kids and birds connect. "Binnowee," an Aboriginal word meaning "place of many birds," perfectly describes this exhilarating exhibit that features more than 600 Australian birds through the end of October. Visitors can carry special feed sticks into the aviary and feed these birds by hand. A $2 admission to the exhibit includes one feed stick; additional feed sticks cost $1. For more information, telephone 415-753-7080 or visit www.sfzoo.org.

Only in San Francisco Slumber Parties: Following the San Francisco Giants game vs. the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim on June 21, 2006 join the Giants for their fourth annual slumber party at AT&T Park. This chance of a lifetime to pitch a tent and spend the night on the field of AT&T Park is $180 per person. Overnighters will need to bring their own sleeping bag and pajamas; however, the following is provided: bleacher seat for the Giants-Angels game; slumber party favors; pizza, midnight snacks and more; photo of guest taken on the field; games; movies, and breakfast on the field. To sign up online, visit www.sfgiants.com or telephone 415-947-3115.

This isn't the only opportunity visitors have to sleep out under the stars in San Francisco. Angel Island State Park offers nine camp sites, some of which have spectacular views of the skyline; fees start at $20 May 15 to Sept. 15, $15 the rest of the year. Each site accommodates up to eight campers. There is also an ADA accessible site which gives priority to campers qualifying under the Americans with Disabilities Act; the kayak camp ($30, holds up to 20 people) has beach access and can be reached via kayak. For details, telephone 415-435-3522 or visit www.angelisland.org; camp site reservations are handled by Reserve America, 800-444-PARK (7275).

Three historic ships, the USS Pampanito submarine, the Balclutha tall ship and the USS Hornet aircraft carrier have sleep-aboard programs. Geared for organized youth groups, they require a 25-person minimum (30 for USS Hornet which also welcomes families) and adult chaperones. Experiences vary from swabbing the decks and riding a bosun's chair into the rigging to learning how to track submarines underwater but all participants earn their sea legs by the time reveille is sounded.

For more information on USS Pampanito and Balclutha which are both berthed at Fisherman's Wharf at the San Francisco Maritime National Historic Park, telephone 415-567-4653 or visit www.maritime.org. Media contact: Lucas Lineback, 415-567-4653, llineback@maritime.org.

For more information on the USS Hornet, docked at Pier 3 at the former Naval Air Station in Alameda, telephone 510-521-8448 ext. 280 or visit www.hornetevents.com. Media contact: Rick Thom, 510-521-8448 ext. 268, info@uss-hornet.org.

Two New Suites Just for Kids Debut at Personality Hotels on Union Square Personality Hotels on Union Square has added two additional kids' suites for the playground set. The Little Divas Suite at the Hotel Diva, 440 Geary St., celebrates famous child actors. Outfitted in bright pop art colors, the suite features modern beds, a tent, balancing cushions and a drawing table. Special diva touches including a selection of kid-rated movies, a microwave stocked with popcorn, a large trunk filled with dress-up gear and a karaoke machine; there?s an adjoining room for adults accompanying minors. The Ring in the Kids Suite at Hotel Union Square, 114 Powell St., sounds an historical note and is embellished with a large mural of kid-friendly San Francisco landmarks, a trundle bed (and a large king-size bed as well in this corner suite), and a computer stocked with history-related games. Personality introduced their first kids' suite at the Hotel Metropolis, 25 Mason St., in 2000, which features pint-sized furniture, bunk beds and rubber ducky décor in the bathroom. For more information, telephone 800-553-1900 or visit www.personalityhotels.com.

Asian Art Museum Marks 40th Anniversary: On June 11, 1966 the Asian Art Museum opened as a wing of the M.H. de Young Museum in Golden Gate Park, the result of a gift of more than 7,000 Asian artworks to the City of San Francisco by Avery Brundage, an American industrialist associated with the Olympics for many years. Having long outgrown its original building, the museum moved into the home of San Francisco's former main library, 200 Larkin St., in the Civic Center in March 2003. Holding nearly 16,000 Asian art treasures spanning 6,000 years of history, the museum is one of the largest in the Western world devoted exclusively to Asian art. A Curious Affair: The Fascination Between East and West, currently on view June 17-Sept. 3, features more than 75 unique examples of paintings, ceramics, furniture and other decorative arts revealing the legacies of the interaction and mutual fascination between Asia and Europe for the past four centuries. For more information, telephone 415-581-3500 or visit www.asianart.org.

Unprecedented Visual and Interactive Chicano Exhibit Opens at de Young Museum Inspired by comedian and actor Cheech Marin's vision to highlight expressions of his native Mexican American culture, Chicano is made up of two major exhibitions: Chicano Visions: American Painters on the Verge, a vibrant art exhibition that presents the works of a wide range of leading Chicano artists in the U.S., and Chicano Now: American Expressions, a 5,000-square-foot interactive multimedia exhibition for families. A third exhibition, Chicano Encounters: Local Places & Global Communities, has been created by the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco's curator Dr. Daniell Cornell in collaboration with Chicano/Chicana artists working with San Francisco's Mission Cultural Center. Chicano will be on display at the de Young Museum, Golden Gate Park, July 22-Oct. 22, 2006. For more information, telephone 415-863-3330 or visit www.thinker.org or visit www.chicano-art-life.com.

"A Gallery Without A Ceiling" To Cap SFMOMA Rooftop in 2010: San Francisco-based Jensen & Macy architects has been selected to design a rooftop sculpture garden for the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA). Conceived as an integral part of SFMOMA's exhibition space, the design involves the replacement of the entire back wall of the fifth floor with glass above the garage structure on Minna Street, just behind the Museum's Mario Botta-designed building. Visitors will be able to move from the current building to the rooftop via an enclosed passageway. "It will be an extension of the museum, not a remote cul-de-sac. The garden is a gallery without a ceiling that can be curated," according to winning architect Mark Jensen. The 14,000 square foot garden will be the eventual home of works from the collection on an ongoing basis, including those of Alexander Calder, Alberto Giacometti, Henry Moore and Mark di Suvero. Plans call for the addition to open in 2010, coinciding with SFMOMA's 75th anniversary. For more information, telephone 415-357-4000 or visit www.sfmoma.org.

Bloomers Pub,
3155 Scott St.,
415-922-3000,
www.edwardii.com:
Bloomers Pub has opened in the comfy, unpretentious Edward II bed and breakfast inn, 3155 Scott St., in San Francisco's Marina District. Afternoon tea and a selection of fine British foods and beers is the mainstay here.

Bong Su,
311 Third St.,
415-536-5800,
www.bongsurestaurant.com:
Media contact: Robert Beisheim, 415-536-5800, info@bongsu.com.
Earlier this year, Bong Su ("plumeria" in Vietnamese) transformed a former American diner into an exotic 140-seat restaurant wrapped in gossamer drapery, dark walnut and bamboo furnishings. The long tiled bar has become a hot spot for after-work cocktails and the spacious glass-enclosed wine cellar is the focal point of the lounge area.

Café Maritime Seafood & Spirits,
2417 Lombard St.,
415-885-2530,
www.cafemaritimesf.com:
Those who have sipped and supped at Café Maritime in San Francisco's Marina District wax on about "the terrific New England seafood chowder" and "great oysters." Open since 2004, the intimate 45-seat café has just added a weekend seafood brunch from 10 am to 2 pm. Dinner nightly 5:30 pm to 1 am, and for working stiffs there's the Industry Hour, 11 pm to 1 am nightly which offers 12 Hog Island Oysters for $13 and draft beer for $3.50.

Luella,
1896 Hyde St.,
415-674-4343,
www.luellasf.com:
Sunday night is kid's night from 5 to 8 pm at the friendly neighborhood restaurant with a Mediterranean-inspired menu, open since December 2004. Children can order from a full "little luella" menu for diners under 10. Entrees for the more mature dinner (ages 11 and up) include seared day boat scallops and house made gnocchi. Inventive dessert choices include sweet ricotta fritters with wild honey and strawberry shortcake with balsamic red wine sauce. Wine flights, Monday-Thursday, at the bar price out at $15 and can be supplemented with pizzettas and fingerling potato chips among other snacks.

Samovar Tea Lounge,
730 Howard St.,
415-227-9400,
www.samovartea.com:
The tea lifestyle - relaxation, health and social intimacy - and 5,000 years of world tea drinking are honored at the Samovar (from the Eastern European or Southeast Asian tea invention meaning "self-boiler") Tea Lounge perched on top of San Francisco's convention facility, Moscone Center, in the heart of Yerba Buena Gardens. Opened in May 2006, it is the perfect match for Yerba Buena (Spanish for "good herb") and the respite this garden oasis offers in downtown San Francisco. Stop by for a quick cup of Masala Chai and a cherry oat scone or enjoy a cultural tea service: Japanese, Russian, English or Moorish platters and sweets paired with teas from those cultures. The menu also offers salads, sandwiches and other specialties such as "roll-your-own" maki and tea noodles with broiled lobster tail.

Terzo,
3011 Steiner St.,
415-441-3200,
www.terzosf.com:
The Italian word for third is behind the concept of this casual, yet sophisticated, neighborhood restaurant in San Francisco's Cow Hollow (Union Street) neighborhood, opened in April 2006. A sibling of the group that includes Rose Pistola and Rose's Café, Terzo's Pan-Mediterranean menu is influenced by the peripatetic travels of Terzo's owners and almost 50 percent of the items are vegetarian. The current menu combines the flavors of Portugal, Spain, Morocco, Provençal France and coastal Italy with the best of Northern California ingredients.

Coastal Conservancy Releases New A Wheelchair Rider's Guide: San Francisco Bay and the Nearby Coast to Encourage Access to Natural Areas: Those in need of a fairly level and firm traveling surface (everyone from wheelchair riders to parents pushing strollers) should get the new guide, A Wheelchair Rider's Guide: San Francisco Bay and the Nearby Coast, produced as part of the Coastal Conservancy''s San Francisco Bay Area Conservancy and access programs. The 194-page book by Bonnie Lewkowicz covers more than 100 sites from the Point Reyes National Seashore to San Francisco's vibrant waterfront. Regional maps provide a general sense of various site locations. The free guide is available by calling 510-286-1015 or at www.scc.ca.gov, the Web site of the Coastal Conservancy. Media contact: Eileen Ecklund, 510-286-4091, calcoast@scc.ca.gov.

For information on hotel packages and reservations, events, activities and transportation in San Francisco, visit www.sfvisitor.org. For lodging reservations by phone, call (888) 782-9673 toll free within North America or (415) 283-0155 elsewhere.