Iconic views and gorgeous scenery, let’s check out Sausalito

It’s not hard to see why people both local and visiting, super dig Sausalito. Located between the city of Marin, San Rafael and San Francisco, the city is pretty quaint with a population around 7500 people. For people who aren’t familiar with it, it’s located right up by the north end of the Golden Gate Bridge.

Sausalito has its roots as a ship building hub in World War 2. In the 1870’s there was a small gold rush, when manganese was discovered in the hills. Mines were constructed between what’s now Prospect Ave and Sausalito blvd. 

During prohibition, Sausalito was rocking some active, prolific bootleggers who were putting out enough hooch to make a name for themselves. 

In the 1920s it was about as easy to get a drink in Sausalito as it had been before the prohibition. This was largely due to the fact that the entire area had only two active-duty police officers. Even if they were hustling 24/7, they couldn’t hold back the tide of alcohol still being produced and sold. Canada was a major illegal booze producer during that time, and the huge spans of Marin county’s unguarded beaches became the perfect place to funnel product into Sausalito, where people from the city could easily come buy the stuff. 

In the 1960’s, the post Word War 2 shipyards were abandoned. They became a hub for some lively houseboat communities. In the 70s the area experienced a dynamic called houseboat wars. This was a situation where the wealthy hill side homeowners were not into the rambunctious house boat folk mucking up their waterfront views. It involved lots of suing and got gnarly with sabotage and infighting. At its core, the issue was one of growing pains. That was the time period when it started morphing from fishing and artists to a wealthier population. Obviously, it resolved over time, the houseboat communities are still there today. But it was quite a local spat in it’s time!  Now it’s a very picturesque community with a big tourism draw. People loooove to come eat ice cream while being that close to the Golden Gate. 

Avid readers will recognize the authors Isabelle Allende and Amy Tan, they are both residents of Sausalito. Other recognizable names of famous Sausalito folks are the incredible Janis Joplin and Otis Redding. 

It really has those crisp cold mornings, beautiful warm afternoons, boating, hiking and a popping dining out scene. Whereas San Francisco and the Bay experience a lot of fog, the Marin headlands get a lot more sunshine.

In January of 2025 house prices were up 21% from the year before. The current median home price is 1.8 million. So, it ain’t cheap per se. But what you get for your dollar is pretty phenomenal. The beauty and location are unparalleled. You are right there by Muir Woods. The crime is very low, and traffic is really easy to deal with because folks commuting into San Francisco can just take the ferry. There are a bunch of really cool museums to check out. Folks with kids gotta hit the nearby Bay Area Discovery Museum, there are so many hands on interactive displays and some really cool play structures. You can finger paint, build huge bucks and play big wooden musical instruments. 

 The Marine mammal center is really special. With a focus on conservation and rehabilitation they are making huge advances in ocean science and marine biology. You can see ocean critters, check out their world’s largest marine mammal hospital and learn a ton.

The Sausalito boardwalk has all that boutique shopping and upscale dining visitors crave. 

Rodeo beach is pretty darn cool. The grains of sand start tiny, and sand like on one end, but progress to larger pebbles at the other end of the beach. If you walk from one end to the other the grains of sand get progressively larger with every step. It’s pretty rad. 

One more super cool thing, have you guys ever heard of the largest working model of the San Francisco Bay? It is a 1.5 acre working model operated by the Army core of engineers. It simulates the Bays tidal conditions, and it’s definitely worth a visit. 

So Sausalito has a lot to see as a visitor. It also has so so so much to offer people who choose to become residents. If you don’t know it already, do go spend a day. If you’re in the market, check you out some listings. It’s an incredible place and you deserve to go enjoy it!