With 2025 just around the corner, it’s never too soon to start planning the next year. Luckily, January in the Bay Area is packed with great things to do (despite the chilly weather). Whether you’re looking for the best places to enjoy a relaxing sauna or you want to explore exciting museum exhibitions, we’ve got plenty of things to do this January 2025 in San Francisco.
1. Catch the last of the Bay Area’s best holiday light displays
Bay Area light displays are on another level when it comes to their creativity, charm, and photo potential. You’d better start planning if you want to see them all before they’re gone!
Garden of D’Lights
This gorgeous garden in Walnut Creek will be decked out with lights, lasers, and special effects.
📅 Dates: Open through Jan. 11, 2025
📍 Location: 1552 Bancroft Rd, Walnut Creek, CA 94598
Holidays at Filoli
One of the Bay Area’s most beautiful and lesser-known light displays takes place at Filoli Estate & Gardens in Woodside.
📅 Dates: Open through Jan. 12, 2025
📍 Location: 86 Cañada Rd, Woodside, CA 94062
GLOW: Discover the Art of Light
SF’s Exploratorium has brought back its popular light art exhibition, which you can see displayed throughout the galleries.
📅 Dates: Open through Jan. 26, 2025
📍 Location: Pier 15 Embarcadero at, Green St, San Francisco, CA 94111
Glowfari
A mile-long display of hand-painted animal lanterns is up at Oakland Zoo, with new displays for the 2024-25 season.
📅 Dates: Open through Jan. 26, 2025
📍 Location: 9777 Golf Links Rd, Oakland, CA 94605
2. See Kathryn Hahn and Billy Murray at SF SketchFest
SF Sketchfest brings an exciting schedule packed with comedy performances. You can see sketch comedy, talks, standup, and much more at the major festival. This year, we’re lucky to have some major celebrities on the schedule, including Kathryn Hahn and Bill Murray.
3. Start 2025 right with a Polar Plunge
If you want to start the new year fresh, there’s no better way than a polar plunge. Every New Year’s Day, a group of brave San Franciscans start the year by taking a cold plunge at Ocean Beach. Then, the beachgoers typically head to a festive after-party at a local bar to warm up.
4. Escape to a magical winter wonderland
If you’re looking for an even more immersive holiday experience in the Bay, these winter wonderland escapes will make your heart grow three sizes (no roast beast required).
Merry Meritage
The beautiful Meritage Resort & Spa in Napa is hosting an absolutely spectacular winter village for just a bit longer. Enjoy an ice rink, fire pits and s’mores, and VIP igloos.
📅 Dates: Open through Jan. 5, 2025
📍 Location: 875 Bordeaux Way, Napa, CA 94558
Après Village
The Four Seasons in Palo Alto has created a gorgeous pop-up winter wonderland called Après Village, which is the ultimate holiday escape. Whether you’re looking for awesome photo ops, a festive party, amazing food, or fireside movies, this is definitely worth putting on your list!
📅 Dates: Open through Jan. 7, 2025
📍 Location: 2050 University Ave, East Palo Alto, CA 94303
5. Candlelight Concerts
The extremely popular concert series known simply as Candlelight is turning heads right now in San Francisco! You’ll enjoy works from Adele, Hans Zimmer, and more played by a talented string quartet in an intimate environment surrounded by hundreds of luminous candles. Below are a few we’re especially excited about, but you can always nab a gift card valid for any show if you’re not sure.
6. Take stock of January free admission days at SF museums
We love San Francisco for its vibrant culture, history, and resources, but it’s no secret that living here costs a pretty penny. Whether you’re a college student on a budget or a bargain hunter wanting to see the sights, this list of free museum days in SF will certainly help you get started.
7. Check out these museum exhibitions before they close
As we enter a new month in San Francisco, many local museums are refreshing and replacing their temporary exhibitions. Now’s a great time to take stock and plan ahead to see some of these wonderful displays before they’re gone.
Hallyu! The Korean Wave
Dive into the contemporary wave of Korean pop culture, from Squid Game to K-Pop.
📅 Dates: Open through Jan. 6, 2025
📍 Location: Asian Art Museum – 200 Larkin St, San Francisco, CA 94102
Art and War in the Renaissance: The Battle of Pavia Tapestries
Description
📅 Dates: Open through Jan. 12, 2025
📍 Location: de Young Museum – 50 Hagiwara Tea Garden Dr, Golden Gate Park, San Francisco
Mary Cassatt at Work
See painter Mary Cassatt’s revolutionary presentation of “women’s work” alongside the French Impressionists.
📅 Dates: Open through Jan. 26, 2025
📍 Location: Legion of Honor – 100 34th Ave, San Francisco, CA 94121
Get in the Game: Sports, Art, Culture
Examine the effect of sports on our culture and psyches at this popular SFMOMA exhibition, which features multiple interactive games.
📅 Dates: Open through Feb. 18, 2025
📍 Location: SFMOMA – 151 3rd St, San Francisco, CA 94103
8. Explore the FOG Design and Art Fair at Fort Mason
This vibrant art fair is returning to Fort Mason Center for another year of exciting creative displays. The fair typically features installations, activations, talks, and more.
📅 Dates: Jan. 23-26, 2025
9. Check out a unique picnic experience
This self-guided adventure is perfect for a unique date in SF. The experience guides you through clues to discover delicious picnic treats and helps you find the best scenic spots for your picnic in the Mission and Haight Ashbury neighborhoods. The picnics are available Tuesdays through Sundays.
10. Kick off Lunar New Year celebrations with these SF events
SF’s Lunar New Year celebrations are ongoing between January and February, with the world-famous parade taking place on Feb. 15th. But in January there are also plenty of fun events to enjoy in SF. Make sure you put these on your calendar:
- Jan. 25-26, 2025 – Flower Market Fair in Chinatown
- Jan. 29, 2025 – Chinese New Year’s Day Opening Ceremony
- Jan. 30, 2025 – “Lunar Underground” NightLife at the Academy of Sciences
- Jan. 11, 2025 – Oshogatsu Matsuri in Japantown
- See the full list of Lunar New Year events here.
11. Take a spin on these Bay Area ice skating rinks before they close
Is it really wintertime without a day of ice skating at a charming local rink? See how much skill you’ve retained since last year by zooming (or hobbling) around one of the Bay Area’s most popular ice rinks. Read our full roundup for locations and closing dates.
12. Visit the elephant seals around California
January is the beginning of elephant seal breeding season on the coast of California, an exciting natural phenomenon that’s iconic to our state. Northern elephant seals inhabit the waters from Baja California, Mexico to the Gulf of Alaska and the Aleutian Islands. They generally breed from December to March at Point Reyes, Año Nuevo, the Channel Islands, and Piedras Blancas. Read more in our article about elephant seal season in California.
13. Catch the magnolia bloom at SF Botanical Garden
Every year, the San Francisco Botanical Garden explodes into a beautiful spectrum of deep magentas and bright pinks. The “Magnificent Magnolias” event occurs in late January through March, so be sure to find a day soon to see these spectacular blossoms at their best.
14. Keep an eye out for gray whales migrating along the California coast
California’s coastline is the perfect spot to catch several whale migration seasons, and we can expect gray whales to appear between January and April. Even from land, you’re likely to see them spouting, slapping their tails (known as “lobtailing”) or even breaching. Read our guide for the best places to see them around the Bay Area.
15. Walk beneath a waterfall at SF’s inspiring Martin Luther King, Jr. memorial
Martin Luther King Jr. Day is on Monday, January 20, 2025. Consider honoring Dr. King with a visit to San Francisco’s magnificent waterfall memorial, which is the second-largest such memorial in the country. The 50-foot memorial features an enormous reflecting pool and a granite walkway behind the waterfall where visitors can contemplate inscribed quotations from Dr. King’s speeches.
16. Spend an evening at the California Academy of Sciences
NightLife at the California Academy of Sciences is one of our favorite ongoing events, and we’re thrilled to see more of these awesome themed soirees on the calendar! The popular Thursday night festivities feature live DJs, outdoor bars, ambiance lighting, and more alongside the Academy’s nearly 40,000 animal residents.
17. … or at the Exploratorium
The Exploratorium at Pier 15 in San Francisco is an exciting place for discovery any time of the day, but these 18+ After Dark events are a must for some epic kid-free fun at their exhibits. After Dark happens each Thursday from 6-10 pm with a different theme every week, featuring guest speakers, films, great music, and more.
18. Spend an afternoon at Fort Mason Center
The popular art center hosts numerous exhibitions and events throughout the year, and there are some special ones coming up.
Fort Mason Center Farmers’ Market
The Fort Mason Center For Arts & Culture (FMCAC) Farmer’s Market has over 35 vendors.
📅 Dates: Recurring Sundays, 9:30 am-1:30 pm
19. Indulge in a hot chocolate run through Golden Gate Park
This January, San Francisco will have a uniquely sweet run dedicated to hot chocolate. The race includes a 5K, 10K, and 15K option for runners starting in Golden Gate Park. Participants then can join in on a post-run party with chocolate party favors.
📅 Date: Jan. 12, 2025
20. Go to the Napa Lighted Art Festival
Napa will be illuminated with beautiful lighted artworks this January. This winter festival includes massive sculptures and projections that will light up iconic downtown buildings during the first 9 nights of the festival.
📅 Date: Jan. 18-Feb. 16, 2025
21. Warm up around these cozy fireplaces in SF
A homey, roaring fire is a hot commodity during winter (and basically any other season) in SF’s characteristic foggy weather. We’ve rounded up some of our favorite fireplaces in San Francisco, ranging from outdoor patios to neighborhood bars to fine dining restaurants. See the full list here.
22. Indulge in a piping hot bowl of ramen
A steaming bowl of ramen is perhaps the most comforting and filling food we can think of! San Francisco, with its plethora of delicious and authentic Asian food, is one of the best places to enjoy this amazing dish. See the list here.
23. Sip your way through the best hot chocolate in the city
You don’t have to be a kid to know that hot chocolate is one of the most underrated drinks on any cafe’s menu. As we enjoy the fall and winter seasons, it’s a great time to compile some spots to visit next time you’re craving this delicious drink! See the full list here.
24. Enjoy a delightful snow day near the Bay Area
San Francisco is a magical, beautiful, exciting place, with one caveat – there’s never any snow. Lucky for us, California is home to dozens of different climates, and it’s not so difficult to pack up the car for a drive out to Lake Tahoe or other snowy mountains in the distance. Read our full guide to snowy destinations near the Bay Area here.
25. Warm up at these local saunas and hot tubs
San Francisco is known for its famously chilly weather but is luckily also home to some world-class saunas and spas. From Finland to Mexico, saunas have been used for thousands of years. Beloved for their health and therapeutic benefits, they are especially popular in colder climates. Whether you’re looking for a quiet spa day by yourself or to sweat it out with the whole squad, there’s a sauna for every occasion. Read our full guide here.
26. Go for a memorable day trip around the Bay Area
We love San Francisco for its countless activities to enjoy everywhere you go. But anytime there’s a long weekend or a free day, we’re quite well-located to check out some neighboring California gems. Be sure to put these Bay Area day trips on your to-do list for the next time you want to get out of the City and into nature.
27. Add these natural wonders in NorCal to your 2025 bucket list
California is home to some of the most incredible nature spots in the world, from towering mountain ranges to pristine beaches to ancient redwood trees. Northern California, in particular, is beloved for its dramatic rocky beaches and mountainous terrain, making for some magnificent natural spectacles! This list of essential places to see in NorCal includes both small- and large-scale natural wonders, so there may be a few you haven’t heard of. Read the full list here.
By Jamie Ferrell and Dana Flynn