I was there at Bermuda for the quarterfinal races and I was in San Fran for the same races. They were both great experiences and the set-up in Bermuda was really cool even w/o being in the stands. We could watch the whole pre-race and race on two very large screens and then run about 100' over to the sea wall to watch the finish directly very nearby. I went via cruise ship and we watched the last 1/4 final race from the stern of the boat on deck 10 - a great view! For just $2K per person for 7 nights with room and board (very good board) it was a great way to visit Bermuda and watch the races.
In San Fran you could see more parts of the course from shore but not during one race - it stretched miles along the shore so you had to scout out a viewing area and stay with it during any given race or you would miss too much. We tried three different places (AC Village, the yacht club (which had bleachers out front at the first turning mark-very exciting) and a couple places mid course along the shore. The village was larger but no more useful to the spectators than in Bermuda. All of the businesses we visited were VERY happy with the AC. They had several options for the land made for the AC so I don't know how they will lose any money over that part. The press the island got had to be worth millions as well. The biggest surprise was the slap-your-face good rum cake we brought home!