Golden Gateway Garage

Um hello, $ 3 parking in Embarcadero on the weekend?! What’s to complain about that.
Make sure you actually get the stamp by taking the shuttle to Chinatown, or at a booth by Ferry Building if there’s a special event.

Great place to park! For your money $ 8 flat on Sat. Rude folks in person and over the phone but try ignoring that and you’ll have yourself a good parking place.

SF is known for getting your wallets when you least expect it, and this would be one of those situations. This parking structure is at a great location in the Financial District, and really close to the Embarcadero. However, if you don’t get your ticket validated, it’s $ 7 smackers an hours. You heard me right, $ 7.
Head to the Portsmouth parking structure which is only a few blocks away for the $ 3 buck parking. Much better. Staff here is also quite rude as when we tried to leave, the dude at the little bucket area seemed quite annoyed with us for wanting to leave. Give us a break buddy.
Will avoid this complex like the plague from this moment on.

I found this garage thanks to Unilocal and I still cannot believe that it really cost only $ 3 to park here pretty much all day on Saturday! We arrived around 9:25am and there were plenty of free parking spots everywhere around us. When we got out of the garage, the 9:30am shuttle bus for just pulling in. We hopped on and since it was our first time in Chinatown, we asked the driver if he could help us find a place where we could get our parking ticket validated. When he pointed out a grocery store right in front of Broadway & Stockton, we got off, walked into the store, got the ticket stamped, and off we were! Here is a link to the detailed map of the shuttle bus
. You can also find there a list of all the merchants who can validate your ticket. The website says $ 3 minimum purchase for validation but I don’t think this is strictly enforced because we did not need to purchase anything. So if you ask me, paying $ 3 for a full day of parking in SF and getting a free ride through Chinatown as a bonus is an amazing deal!

You are in a maze of twisty little passages, all alike. Beware, would-​be parker. Abandon all hope ye who enter here. Any one of these slogans would make a great addition to the vast, confusing array of signage present in this garage. You’re welcome, Golden Gateway Garage management. But seriously, Kafka-​esque doesn’t begin to describe the experience of parking here. Most of the exits appear to be one-​way, the stairs seem to be designed by M.C. Escher, getting to the cashier exit involves going down to the basement and then back up, solving Fermat’s last theorem and defeating a cave troll. Also, there’s an elevator that’s only accessible via stairs apparently? Great place to keep a Minotaur, though. Two stars.

This garage is located in a great centralized location.
Financial District: Great for those who work or just come for a visit the Financial District. This includes people who are visiting the Farmer’s Market at the Ferry Building. (one of many place to get your ticket validated at).
North Beach: very conveniently located to many restaurants and shops in North Beach. Also a great spot to park during the very packed annual North Beach Festival.
Chinatown: They provide a free shuttle to Chinatown, which runs every 15 minutes. An easy way to go buy your weekly fruits, vegetables, and meats.
They are open 7 days a week, and everyday they close at 10:00pm. Weekdays they open at 4:00am (which is great for those who have to be at work really early), and on the weekends they are open at 7:00am on Saturday and 8:00am on Sunday.
Lastly they offer an Early Bird Special. If you enter the garage before 8:30am, it is only $ 22.00 to park for the entire day!

there is 2 cone blocking the garage entrance today around 1pm, and the garage looks half empty, so i went around to the exit and ask the cashier if the garage is closed today. He responded: what does it say? I told him there are cones blocking entrance and no sign. He didn’t even lookup and said: then its full.
Wtf? Its half empty, I can see there are tons of space available though the window.
Horrible management and cocky staff.

This place gets two stars for the parking rate on Saturday & Sunday ($ 3 w/​validation). They are lacking professionalism and are often times inconvenient.
One time I had $ 2 in ones, and $ 1 in quarters to pay. Apparently, coins no longer count as money. When I tried to pay, the attendant says: «You don’t have another dollar? I can’t take the coins» My response: «This is money.». He says «They don’t like coins, you can use credit card if you want». Who’s «they»?? I understand coins are a hassle sometimes, but really, 4 quarters? It’s not like I have a bunch of dimes and nickels.
The service is often slow while exiting. I’m not sure if their system is slow, or if it really takes that long to count $ 3.

BEST DEAL FOR PARKING on the weekend in SF!!! I was very pleased to have found this little gem. Only $ 3 for all day parking on Sat & Sun till 10PM and only 4 blocks from Chinatown. All you have to do is get your ticket validated at a participating shop in Chinatown and your good to go! Nice big lot and very safe and quiet. There is a Starbucks right when you get outside on the next corner too so thats nice if your in the car awhile and need a clean restroom as soon as you get there. Big Win and thanks to my Unilocal friends for sharing this place so I was able to get cheap parking in San Francisco too!

How is it that a San Francisco city and county own parking garage run so poorly? Some staff are not friendly and are probably under paid. I have heard that the employees don’t get a discount for using the garage as well. How is this so? That’s completely unacceptable from a city and county run parking garage. Why raise minimum wage when the city can’t even treat their own employees right?
You have a 5 minute grace period. Imagine people who have children. It takes more than 5 minutes to even get set up. We got in, and walked up to the front staff, who initially ignored us when we had questions regarding the park and ride specialty. By the time we got the information and realize that it’s not offered on weekdays, we were penalized. We are extremely frustrated with their stringent regulations. It was obvious that we did NOT even leave the garage. We were charged $ 3.50 for the misunderstanding.
As we scramble for change, the staff was just as frustrated and paid our charge. He then said, «even we don’t get a break for parking even though we work here.» This was a nice gesture from the staff (hence the 1 star). Even private garages have better service and benefits for their employees.

I come here EVERY time I go to Chinatown. It’s the BEST deal for parking, just $ 3 ALL DAY LONG on the weekends, if you get the ticket validated. My favorite place to get it validated it Tutti Fruti, delicious boba tea with all the toppings you want, free of charge! The garage is large and pretty safe. You just pay as you leave the garage, show them the validated ticket and $ 3 you pay. I always find parking here. I’m surprised it’s not packed every time. The area is pretty safe.

Valet damaged my car.
Dropped off my car on the 2^nd floor valet. Returned a few hours later to pick up my car on the first floor. As I approached my car, I noticed an 18″ dent along the side of my door.
I complained to the garage supervisor. She quickly looked at the damage and immediately determined it was not their fault. She didn’t explain how she came to this conclusion, but she was adamant that it must have already there! I asked to see my parking stubs and none of the valets had marked any damage on the ticket (they usually circle or mark an X on the picture of the car on the parking ticket to show existing damage).
Then about half a dozen valets swarmed around me and my car and started yelling at me that the damage was already there.
Bullshit. This is an older classic car and I do all my own work and take great care of it; I know every inch of this car. Not to mention I’m super anal and inspect for door dings every time I get into my car. After wasting 30 mins arguing with the garage supervisor, I decided to leave and just deal with it through my insurance. What a pain in the ass.
Avoid the valet service and this garage!

Good price for the weekends ($ 3 weekend with validation, as others mentioned).
Only thing: As I exited the garage I could smell something bad. Opened the door. «Shit!» I exclaimed. Shit was smeared all over the ground at the exit. It was smelly.
But still, «I’m a fan» because of the price.

For $ 3 Saturday parking till 10 pm with validation from the Farmer’s Market or any participating shop in China Town, why would you park anywhere else? Unlike other garages in the city, this had enough space to maneuver our Honda Odyssey. We even back parked.
Here are my tips in using this garage:
— Get here early. We arrived around 9 am and got a good spot. I noticed as we went back to the car to drop off stuff that the lot got full really quick at around 11 am — noon.
— The entrance for the lot is right on Clay St — you may accidentally pass it since there’s only a scrolling LED sign to tell you that it’s called «Golden Gateway Garage» — also study the picture someone so graciously posted of the entrance. If you see those signs, you’re in the right place
— The Farmer’s market is a 5 minute walk from here, and it’s very hard to miss. It’s open from 9 am to 2 pm. Look for the information booth to get your ticket validated: it will be the booth with a black tent. I would do this as soon as you get out of the garage so you don’t forget!
— The Embarcadero Center is nearby if you need a shopping fix or café fix. Though I think eating at the Farmer’s Market is a better deal.
— If you’re not up for walking, take the F-​line bus to get to Fisherman’s Wharf or Union Square. There’s a bus stop in front of every ferry terminal, so it’s hard to miss. It’s a better deal than those street cable cars and you won’t have to deal with the horrible lines trying to get back (you will have to deal with some crowded buses coming from Fisherman’s Wharf).
— THIS LOT CLOSES AT 10 PM. They have a lot of signs about it, so don’t be that person who gets locked in.
I can’t believe I’m writing a review for a parking lot, but for this rate in this city, that’s fantastic. Also none of my stuff was stolen, or any of the other horrors I’ve heard about parking in San Francisco (well the wall we parked next to smelled like pee, but that was expected for SF).

Not much more than to say how awesome of a deal it is to park here on the weekends. Only $ 3 with validation.
The only tricky thing is finding somewhere that validates. The concept is still foreign to a lot of the establishments, even if they’re listed. The places I go to have to dig for the stamp cause they rarely ever use it.
The parking lot can be VERY confusing and I had my fair share of heart attacks thinking my car go stolen. It’s split down the middle with the stairs, and both sides have the letter/​numbering system. So if you can’t find your car on one side, it’s most likely on the other.
The lots closes at TEN!!!
Not a good place if you’re gonna be out late or even for dinner…
I’ve read so many horror stories about people getting locked out. Don’t be viictim to this. The site has been really good about posting this warning EVERYWHERE! So no excuses.
It’s also a pretty good walk from Chinatown. Park at Portsmouth if you think you’re gonna be buying lots of groceries and items.

I“m not sure why there are so many complaints here. Well, like anythign else you’d do… you should read and make sure what exactly are the restrictions wouldn’t you before you do it? It happened to me once in which i parked in Embarcadero during their special holiday season but i misunderstand it to be all day and it was after a certain time. i ended up having to pay hourly for a few hours but it was my fault for me not reading & getting all the facts completely.
Golden Gate Parking lot is subsidized on weekends by the City and costs $ 3 if you get a stamp from a participating vendor. You can just print out the list & put it in your car for the future. Otherwise it would be $ 7 all day parking on weekends. Parking on weekdays would of course be a premium. i’ve parked countless times during weekends and got my car out before 10pm. If you need to watch a show and dont want to pay more for the after hours parking scout around for another lot or consider taking public transportation.

I saw a sign in front of the Farmers Market saying that it was $ 3 flat rate all day on the weekends. This price is good until 10pm and only if you get it validated at the actual Farmers Market on Saturday at the information booth. The market closes at 2pm so you have to get it validated before they shut down. You cannot get the validation sticker inside the Ferry Building (ie the supermarket) because that validation is for the ferry building parking lot. This garage is about a 5 minute walk which is totally doable but it does not accept the sticker validation unfortunately. You can either get the ink stamp on your card at the Farmers Market on Saturday until 2pm or specified shops in Chinatown where there is a minimum purchase. I didnt do either of those so I had to pay the flat rate of $ 7 which I guess is still not bad for SF and potentially staying until 10pm.
**TIPS**
1) Validation for $ 3 parking on the weekend can be found at the Farmers Market booth or specified Chinatown shops.
2) Enjoy!

Great garage to park on a Saturday if you’re headed to the Ferry Building. It’s $ 3 all day with validation and you don’t need to purchase anything.
Spaces are pretty compact, but that’s like most garages.

Probably the best parking deal in the city if you’re visiting on a Saturday. It’s $ 3 all day parking from 7am-​10pm on Saturdays with validation at the Ferry Building Farmers Market. No purchase necessary at the Farmers Market (open till 2pm), just go to the info tent and get your ticket stamped. Though you might want to pick up a Porchetta Sandwich at Roli Roti while you’re over there. YUUUUUUM!

Well, I need the address for SFMTA to make a complaint. We arrived to go to a 9:30 show at the Punchline, which is right above the garage, and we pulled in around 9PM. Big sign says parking from 7PM until midnight is $ 1.50 per hour. Under the big sign is very tiny, insignificant sign, that you have no chance of reading from your car, that says the garage closes at 10PM. I arrived in a car with five people — multiple ages and college degrees, and that sign wasn’t visible to anyone, but we knew what the parking rate was from the big sign. This is a major scam, and I can’t believe that no action has been taken against this business yet. I’m sure the three people that came after us felt the same way — this is clearly a nightly thing, yet they do nothing to make signage that actually informs people about the trap they are about to drive into.
Signs say there is a $ 50 charge to get your car after 10PM, but the attendant (who was available in 30 seconds) added $ 60 on top of the parking charge — when we pointed it out to him, he said he couldn’t fix it, and I would have to get a refund from the owners. I can tell from the other reviews here that’s going to be screwed up. Almost have to feel sorry for the attendant — I’m sure people must have taken swings at him in the past, this is a pretty bad situation.