San Francisco: Scenic Surrey Ride Through Golden Gate Park

The map provided DID NOT adequately illustrate where to diverge from JFK Blvd to the Blue Heron pathway. None of the letter markers on the map have keys or info as to landmarks. In addition, it did not show exactly where not to “go past” in terms of the recommended route. This resulted in us getting way off course, having to push the Surrey back up the hill & getting stuck in traffic and having to cross a busy street. AND we were not alone! Advised another surrey to turn around! I had to use Google Maps to get us back!!! All of this resulted in a 23 minute late return (and very tired legs!) which the company charged another $35. The person on site Kevin had a positive attitude and “warned” not to go past 19th street BUT THERE WAS NOT A SINGLE SIGN and he did not have any recourse. The emergency number goes to a different company and it takes a while 1 minute of recording before it even names the Parkwide Company that rents the surreys. I called them upon returning and received crappy customer service. I gave them the opportunity to credit back the “second” hour overcharged and they refused. It was a good workout but that was not the plan. They had the opportunity to acknowledge the issues and refused.

We had a great experience today! Kevin was super helpful in getting us set up with the Surrey bike rental and giving us tips on where to go and what hills we might encounter along the way. The surrey bike was perfect for our family of 3. My husband and I biked while our 5 year old sat in front and enjoyed the view. It was great riding through Golden Gate Park and having the ability to stop to play and admire the views. I highly recommend renting the surrey bike from Parkwide.

I checked the site online before renting as I saw noted that the surrey rental wasn't open on certain days. When I rented on the site, it allowed me to select the location I wanted to pick up at. They weren't there when I arrived with me group of 11. There were city workers there who told me this was a very common occurence and they often don't show up. No notice, no one available at the number listed to call. We ended up walking the park but I do not recommend this company at all.

There wasn’t a question I asked that these guys didn’t answer about the route through the park.also loved biking the great highway! Amazing. The crew their set us up with comfortable bikes and even showed us the 10% discount on their website. Bikes have maps on them so it’s hard to get lost. A beautiful, family friendly day out as my extended family join us for a birthday, a wedding & Pride! We will be back!

The busy road we were directed to take had NO protected bike lane and was full of buses dropping off large groups of people at the museum, and in the process blocking the bike lane. Double decker buses, school buses, huge tour buses! I had my 85 year old father in the 2 person surrey bike. I had assumed there was a bike path around golden gate park. Instead, I walked up to talk to a bus that was blocking the bike lane and -- guess what -- got honked at by another bus that was trying to pass me! Totally, and completely unsafe for a two person, side-by-side surrey bike. Our rental was at 10:00am on a Friday morning. Unless you are comfortable with huge buses 2 and 3 deep I would skip it.

I want a refund! The bike rentals wasn’t even there so why was the option to rent even available?!?!?

Surrey rentals aren't just for tourists! I have lived in San Francisco for 23 years, and this was the first time that I ever tried these funny-looking contraptions. I'm so glad that I did! We had a BLAST. I went with a friend, and we each brought our 11-year-old kid. We let the kids drive on the roads that were closed to car traffic and they were thrilled. The surreys are pretty easy to steer, they have an effective brake (albeit a squeaky one in our case), and if you get tired going up a hill, just have someone jump out and push from the back (to give their pedaling muscles a break). Worth every penny!

One might think that this surrey ride would be a pleasant way to tour Golden Gate Park but, sadly, that is not the case. There is only one gear and that means traveling uphill by pedaling is a difficult chore. If you are in excellent physical condition, with very strong legs and a lot of experience on a one-speed bicycle, you might find the experience enjoyable. If not, you will be better off walking.

This is a fun way to explore Golden Gate Park. The rental was available when we arrived and the customer service was good. There are a few things to consider: 1) the rental is only for one hour and you don't get to see as much as you'd like, 2) physical fitness is required for the best outcome. We had three adults peddling and we did ok but only because we're all reasonably fit. If we weren't, we wouldn't have been able to propel the surrey because it's pretty heavy - add to that the weight of a few adults and it's a workout! Also, beware of other surrey drivers because they're not all competent. We almost got hit by a surrey full of teens who were still figuring out how to steer.

It was fun! They have a trail for you to go which was pretty convenient. It was a good activity to bond with your friends and family.

Last minute, pre-mother's day, post vaccination, got to get out of the house, fun filled, healthy exercising, Surrey bike bonanza!!!!!! Peddled hard, moved slowly, and will cherish this sweet excursion topped off with yummy unique food truck delicacies from Cochinita...

Such nice employees! There were professional, funny, helpful, and informative. They even found my lost credit card that fell out of my pocket as we rode away and kept it safe for me. So honest! We had a blast. The surrey was perfect. The streets of GGP were pretty crowded but that surrey was able to steer easily and braked well:) highly recommend! Even our littlest (5 years old) enjoyed even though he couldn’t reach the pedals.

We went on a Sunday when they close part of the park to cars so there was plenty of space to ride. There was a line when we arrived but we made a reservation on line so we didn't have to wait. The 2 guys working were super nice and the bikes were ready when we arrived. We had a great afternoon.

Very poor directions, lady in the phone was rude as hell. She was very short with answers and had an attitude problem. She would not listen to our questions ultimately we had to ask a park ranger for bike rental location. However the gentleman at the bike rental hut was great and was helpful with what path to ride at the park.

Great Family time with the added benefit of a good workout.. Be prepared to pedal, pedal, pedal! We really enjoyed the park!

The map that was given to us was outdated so it made it difficult to navigate thru the Park. We still had a nice time but it was a bit frustrating to find things that were on the map. If you don't have a lot of time it is a great way to make your way around the park. Just make sure you have an updated map.

Very comfortable, well functioning bikes at good rates. Staff were ok, not overly helpful but friendly enough. We enjoyed our little ride through golden gate park.

I booked a surrey online the day before (you can save money by booking online) and pick up was very easy. They were flexible about the start time that I had originally picked for the online rental. The workers were very kind and gave us a map with clear instructions. They even added a 10-minute cushion on our 1-hour rental to give us a little extra time if we needed it (we were traveling with many kids). We had a really fun time on the surrey, and the route was a great way to see some of the park!

We hired three bikes to cycle across the Golden Gate. Unfortunately one member of the party experienced a puncture as we got to the other side of the bridge at Fort Baker. We phoned the number provided and were assured that a replacement would be provided in 30minutes. 90minutes later and many phone calls, we received the replacement bike. By this time we wanted to just drop the bikes at Sausalito and get the ferry back across to the city. However no sites were available on the Sausalito side to drop the bike. Now under pressure to reach the last ferry from Sausalito lto San Francisco, we rushed to the dock and managed to catch the last ferry, hoping to drop off on the other side at Fishermans Wharf. On reaching San Fransisco pier side, no sites were open and no one answered our phone calls so we were resigned to travelling back to our hotel with them, to return the following morning. The following morning we travelled to their Union Square site at 10am to return the bikes. Their site said they opened here at 8:30am on a weekday, this was not the case. We waited 30mintures and phoned several times to try and reach someone with no success. So we went to their next closest site at Pier 1. Again, here there was no representative or location available at 10:30am. Growing more and more frustrated and wasting precious time on our last day in San Fran, we went on to their “Fisherman’s Wharf” site. This was actually located around 15minutes from the actual FW location. On arriving the the representative apologised for the the lack of service at the previous sites and took our bikes in happily. However, we requested that the $10 additional fee for a different drop off be waived, on the basis that we had spent a further hour of our time and then subsequent Uber to get back to Union Square, where we should have been able to drop off the bikes originally. We were forced to pay the charge and fill out a refund request form, further wasting our time in the city. Overall, I’d advise anyone to avoid this cycle provider. There is another prominent one with many more sites which were open as we passed them. We are still awaiting our refund but will Update this review on the outcome. Poor service, bad resolutions.

We LOVED getting through the park on a surry. Everywhere we went people probably thought we were crazy because we could not stop laughing. It takes no to mild coordination because the pedals already sync up. Really its just too easy and fun to not try when you are in San Francisco. We saw the whole park and some untoward behavior to boot- only in San Francisco!

We had a great time but I thought that the map could have been better explained on where to go. However I booked for four people and I got charged for four bikes, they said I needed to call to get credited for the other three so please if someone can contact me, I would appreciate it 650.833.8978

We wanted to rent a surrey bike on our recent trip to San Francisco. As it turned out, my friend was not tall enough to reach the pedals! I rode around the music area and returned the bike immediately, telling the young man that we could not ride it under the circumstances. We were told we had to fill out a form to get a refund, which we did right then and there. Now I am back on the East Coast and well, it's been almost 3 weeks, 2 phone calls and an email and I have yet to see my money. My advice: be absolutely certain you can operate the bike and use it before you give them your money. Bad customer service.

Please see images of Parkwide LLC attempting to overcharge us $155 (originally they overcharged us $200). The images below are my submission to our credit card company in a THIRD attempt to resolve this dispute. (Today, the dispute was finally resolved in our favor). The owner (whom I would assume is behind this transaction) submitted a FORGED RECEIPT to our credit card company - see attached images. Our bike was very poorly maintained as well. Go and spend your time doing something else - not unless you are prepared to spend hours on the phone and typing up documents to avoid being overcharged. I am writing this to hopefully save someone else this time and distress.