Parking the truck in San Francisco

I think much of the advice missed the point that you have a long bed crew cab truck. Most all the parking garages around the tourist areas can barely handle normal size cars, much less a huge truck. You may luck out and find someplace to squeeze in, but I doubt. Since you're coming from Petaluma, I'd go to Larkspur and take the ferry boat in. I'm not sure if there is a ferry from there to Pier 39 or not, but if not you can go to the Ferry Building and walk most anyplace from there. It's less than a mile down to Pier 39.

+1 for BART and arrive like a local.

A few years ago, we parked our CC short bed right near the busiest part of the Wharf, at 8 A.M. We folded the mirrors in and all was well. The problem was getting out of the lot in the afternoon.
It was worth it, got the shirt, been there-done that.

Parking will be a monster.

If you Uber or Lyft - you will have less stress, very likely be at/near the prices of parking and have infinitely more convenience.

Ferry would be the easiest and probably most entertaining for the youngster. Cable cars and just walking San Francisco is an adventure.

I agree with WackAway and 2gypsies, Larkspur ferry is the best way to go. It will take you to the Ferry terminal along the waterfront and you can take trollies or the cable car to see sites not right in that area. Your grandson will love the Exporatorium, 10 is the perfect age!

WackAway wrote:
Parking in the City can be touchy with anything bigger than a compact car. My suggestion is to park your truck over at Larkspur Landing Ferry Terminal and ride the Ferry over to SF Waterfront. You can walk to Pier 39 from there and take Trolleys, Cabs or Ubers and get to anything else in the City.

The Ferry ride is gorgeous as you get to see the City, Golden Gate Bridge, Oakland Bay Bridge, Angel Island and Alcatraz Island from the water. Much better views.

Ferry Terminal - Golden Gate Ferry, 101 Sir Francis Drake Blvd, Larkspur, CA 94939

For trying to see a large city you can waste a lot of time reading up on what you want to do, planning the day, getting various transportation, etc. We find it best to take an overview tour and if you want to do another day you can re-visit places. With a tour you can get the layout of the city better.

Taking the Larkspur Ferry would be the easiest for you and the most relaxing for everyone. Your grandchild will love it, as you will, also. Make arrangements with this small van touring company for a very enjoyable day seeing all the highlights including driving across the Golden Gate and having lunch in Sausalito. Our daughter who lives there was very impressed with the 5-hour (I think) tour.

When you get off the ferry the van tour will be waiting for you at the Ferry Building. When the tour is finished it'll drop you off at the same place for another ferry ride to your vehicle.

https://www.sanfranshuttletours.com/

Pier 39 not a problem for us two years ago.Parked our dually there two different days.I was able to find a spot on the end and took what i needed.

We'll probably take him to the usual spots like the Wharf or Pier 39 and I'd appreciate any helpful suggestions.

Since you did not say much more than Pier 39, not sure what else you want to see but if it is the submarine and liberty ship you might well acquaint yourself with the bus schedule and routes to get you around. Once you park in SF, if you drive in and park, you likely will not be all that excited about moving the truck a mile or so every time you want to see something else. As to available parking at BART, I have never seen Concord Martinez full. Even for crew long bed duallys there has always been plenty of room. Some BART stations fill fast, on weekends it is usually much less busy.

NMDriver wrote:
MacArthur Bart station in Emeryville, east bay between Oakland and Berkley. You can pay at the MacArthur parking garage or like I do park in the Home Depot lot and walk a few blocks or take the "Emery go round" free bus to the Bart station. You can also park in the Emeryville Toys-R-US lot. Where kids really want to go with grandparents.:) Generally it is faster to take the bart from Emeryville than it is to drive over the Bay Bridge and park.

There is a large vehicle parking lot near Pier 39/Fishermans Warf on North Point St, but it is expensive.

This is exactly what I do. You might have an easier time parking further out in Walnut Creek. Either way, grab a San Francisco bound train and get off at Embarcadero Station. That puts you in front of the Ferry Building. Fishermans Wharf is an easy walk.