I am looking at going to San Francisco later next month. A question for the members is that I have never been to the mint. Do they do tours, how long are they, and what do they have in the gift shop? I'm trying to plan on how much time I will need to go there. Also are their any good shops around down town?
I don't know about the sf mint, but I know I have been to denver and there was a tour. I'm not sure how long because I was really little, but I would say for a collector probably 3-4 hours? My friend went to the philadelphia mint and got me a proof set so that would be nice to be able to get some of that kind of stuff minus the shipping charges.
According to the US MINT web page, "Today, the United States Mint at San Francisco does not accommodate visitors, as all space is needed for personnel and machinery." These US Mint facilities offer Tours SF love to know says, "San Francisco Mint tours ended in the early 1970s, but you can still enjoy the beauty of the building's exterior..." This is also a nice page on the SF Mint history, The Mint Project
The Mint's facilities in Philadelphia and Denver can be visited; San Francisco and West Point are not open to the public. In a few years you can visit the Old Mint in San Francisco which is being turned into a city museum of the city and area. http://www.themintproject.org/ But that won't be open until 2012 or so ... Christian
I live 3 blocks from the SF Mint and see it as I drive to the grocery store. Its closed to visitors as mentioned already. But theres much more to see in SF other then that blocky, dug-in building!
