A fan's guide
STAR TREK THINGS TO DO IN THE BAY AREA
Star Trek has deep Bay Area roots — Starfleet Academy itself is canonically headquartered in San Francisco. Here's how to spend a weekend as a Trek fan around the bay, whether you live here or you're visiting.
1. See live Star Trek improv comedy
The only recurring live Star Trek show in San Francisco is an improvised one. Phasers On Stun performs fully improvised, Star Trek-style television episodes: the audience shouts out episode titles, and the crew of the USS Golden Gate makes two of them up on the spot — strange new worlds, dubious alien diplomacy, red-shirt casualties and all.
You don't need to know Star Trek to enjoy it, but if you do, the jokes land twice as hard. Shows run about an hour and tickets are typically under $25.
See upcoming show dates2. Visit the city Starfleet calls home
- The Presidio and Fort Baker. Starfleet Academy sits on the Marin headlands in Trek lore, and the sweeping bay views from Fort Baker are the same ones the franchise keeps recreating in CGI.
- Golden Gate Bridge. Trek's most reused San Francisco landmark, and the namesake of our own ship, the USS Golden Gate.
- Star Trek IV territory. "The Voyage Home" filmed around the city in 1986 — the whale plotline gives you a good excuse to visit the waterfront and the Marina.
3. Sci-fi museums, shops, and conventions
- The Exploratorium. The closest thing the city has to a working science lab you can wander through — very much in the spirit of the franchise.
- Comic and collectible shops. The Mission, Berkeley, and San Jose all have long-running comic shops stocked with Trek books, models, and back issues.
- Conventions. Silicon Valley Comic Con, FanimeCon in San Jose, and touring Creation Entertainment Star Trek events pass through the region most years. Check dates before booking a trip around one.
4. Make a night of it with other fans
The Bay Area has themed trivia nights, board game bars, and geek-friendly pubs running almost every night of the week. Pair one with a Phasers On Stun show and you have a complete Trek-flavored evening: dinner, a fully improvised episode, then arguing about which captain was best over a drink afterward.
More fun things to do in San Francisco at night →Our next beam-in
Phasers on Stun: Junction of the Stars
New to the format? Here's what Star Trek improv actually is. And don't miss the Star Trek 60th anniversary screenings in Bay Area theaters.