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Let’s Glow SF 2025: A Festive Night Out in San Francisco
- Alyssa
- 2 days ago
- 5 min read
Let’s Glow SF has become a new holiday tradition in San Francisco, with this year marking its fifth year in the city. Eight iconic buildings across downtown light up with animated projections, turning the area into a festive outdoor art walk. We’ve loved the energy it brings to the city over the years, and this time we wanted to make a full night out of it, walking between installations and stopping at nearby holiday-themed bars along the way. By mapping out the projection locations and a few festive stops, we created a fun, walkable route that made the night feel extra special.
Stop One - Ferry Building:
We chose to start at the Ferry Building, it is easy to get to on most transit, there's plenty of parking nearby, and they have a bunch of restaurants inside! If you get to the Ferry Building before the projections start at 5:30 PM you can grab a quick bite to eat, or get some caffeine for an energy boost. We have a full guide about our favorite bites in the Ferry Building here!
Stop Two - 101 California Street:
From the Ferry Building it is a short ten minute walk to the next stop, 101 California Street. This stop has the cutest giant ornament display, which makes for a perfect photo op and has plenty of outdoor seating to watch the projection show.
Stop Three - Transamerica Pyramid
The Transamerica Redwood Park at the base of the Transamerica Pyramid has a cozy outdoor viewing area and bar set up for the projection, with outdoor lounge chairs, a bar serving alcoholic and non alcoholic beverages, and warm glowing lanterns. The projection show at this location was one of our absolute favorites, with a beautifully animated story of the building's history.
Stop Four - Blitzen’s Holiday Pop Up Bar at Monte’s
This bar is seriously so cute, and decorated from floor to ceiling with holiday decor! Located at Monte’s Bar in the lobby of the Omni hotel, this place was packed every time we checked to see if they had a table! Unfortunately, we didn't get to try their drinks, but they were definitely in the Holiday spirit!
Stop Five: The Vault Garden:
Across the street from Blitzen’s is The Vault Garden’s outdoor Holiday pop up. They have a cozy decorated outdoor patio overlooking a giant Christmas tree, outdoor heaters, and open lounge seating. They have a holiday menu with movie themed drinks, think the Grinch, Home Alone, and the drink we ordered based off of the movie Krampus. They have food as well, which was on the pricey side at about $40 a plate. They did also have some light bites, and we opted to share a plate of the pistachio beignets which were pretty tasty. For one themed cocktail and an order of beignets we paid about $45 with gratuity.
Stop Six - 301 Pine Street:
301 Pine Street is the old Pacific Coast Stock Exchange building, and has very unique and interesting architecture, which is highlighted by the amazing projection show! The street is blocked off in sections so you can get a closer view, and is definitely a location you don't want to skip!
Stop Seven - 488 Market Street:
488 Market street is slightly different from the other Lets Glow SF projections, it's a collection of statues that do a light show. This is a quick stop, and there is honestly not much to see here! One highlight is that you can see the salesforce tower projection show from here as well!
Optional Stop - Union Square:
San Francisco’s Union Square is an iconic spot, with some of the best Holiday decorations in the city! From the massive Macy’s tree, to the Macy’s storefront with dozens of lit wreaths, and the ice skating rink, this is such a fun spot to walk through on the way to 828 market street! They even have a trail of giant, painted ornaments that line the path! If you have the time, it's definitely worth the pit stop!
Stop Eight: Nightingales The Merriest Bar Pop Up:
The Nightingales Bar is hosting a Holiday pop up called the Merriest Bar, and completely transformed their place into the jolliest joint on the block. With wall to wall tinsel, thousands of colorful lights, and a drink menu that's bound to get you feeling merry and bright, this bar is a must visit on your night out! We ordered two of their egg nog cocktails (Tobbogin nog) and paid about $38 total.
Stop Nine - 828 Market Street:
The projection show at 828 market street brings the Hobart building to life with beautiful animations. This location does not have any seating, and the show turned off promptly at 10 pm! We only caught the tail end of it because we lost track of time at the Merriest Bar!
Final Stop of the Night - Sippin' Santa at Kona’s:
Kona’s is a tiki style bar with pinball machines and a pool table, but is currently serving up Holiday cocktails and mocktails with their Sippin' Santa pop up! From a giant Shirtless surfing Santa when you walk in, to the wrapping paper covered walls and tables, this place is definitely in the Christmas spirit! We ordered one cocktail, and one mocktail, and paid $53 with gratuity. Our big complaint is that a mocktail with no alcohol was $18, and a cocktail was $20! Crazy expensive for some juice and seltzer water! So if you're designated driver, stick to water here!
Let’s Glow SF 2025 Event Details
Event Name: Let’s Glow SF
Location: Downtown San Francisco (multiple buildings near Market Street, the Ferry Building, and Union Square)
Dates: December 5-14
Time: Projections begin at 5:30 PM and run until 10 PM
Cost: Free to attend
Best Way to Experience: Walking between installations
Good to Know: Projection sites shut off promptly at 10 PM
Overall Experience
Let’s Glow SF makes downtown San Francisco feel lively and festive during the holiday season, and turning the event into a full night out made it even more enjoyable for us! Walking between the projection sites, stopping for drinks along the way, and taking in the artwork at our own pace created a relaxed but celebratory atmosphere.
While this isn’t something we’d do multiple times in one season, it’s a fun way to experience the city at night and break up the walk between installations. If you’re looking for a holiday outing that blends art, city views, and seasonal energy, this Let’s Glow SF bar crawl males for a festive night out in San Francisco!