SAN FRANCISCO: Hyatt recommendation (GH, HR, Fisherman's Wharf)
Apr 4, 2017, 8:18 pm
#211
Join Date: Mar 2011
Programs: AA Platinum Pro, Hilton Diamond, Hyatt Exploralist, Marriot Silver
Posts: 2,065
I'd say that the worst view at the HR are worse than the worst view at the GH. Facing Market is boring. At the GH the worst view I've gotten is of the Union Square area, which though not water, has some pretty lights and buildings.
The catch is that the best view at the HR is better than the best view at the GH, though that call is close. You can get a view of the Bay Bridge lights or the bay, which is close enough that you can watch the ferries if you get a balcony room. At the GH, the best view is across town with Coit Tower and Alcatraz. I'm attaching a photo of my favorite HR room view from a balcony.
I've stayed at the Centric less often, but have never received a room with a view, and generally end up staring at the mall across the street.
For rooms I've vote hands down for the GH since the refresh was more recent and everything is more modern.
Apr 5, 2017, 9:42 am
#212
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Thanks for all this input, folks. Yes, I'm an...Explorist. (Still trying to wrap my head around these status level names.)
Good to know about the lack of desks in the Centric rooms, since I will need to get some work done while in SF. Plus my wife now informs me that staying in the FW area is something she'd rather not do anyway.
Agree that the choices aren't fantastic, but they'll do. Leaning toward the GH because of the better rooms and will settle for the decent possibility of a good view from there as opposed to the lesser chance of a great view from the HR.
More input always welcome, but in the meantime thanks again.
Good to know about the lack of desks in the Centric rooms, since I will need to get some work done while in SF. Plus my wife now informs me that staying in the FW area is something she'd rather not do anyway.
Agree that the choices aren't fantastic, but they'll do. Leaning toward the GH because of the better rooms and will settle for the decent possibility of a good view from there as opposed to the lesser chance of a great view from the HR.
More input always welcome, but in the meantime thanks again.
Apr 5, 2017, 10:10 am
#213
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If you drive to GH, you can park reasonably at Sutter Stockton across the street.
Jan 4, 2019, 9:16 pm
#214
Join Date: Apr 2001
Location: Boston, MA
Programs: Hilton Gold, SPG Gold, CC Gold, UA Silver
Posts: 433
Reviving old thread. Staying in San Fran mid April with family which includes two 11 year olds. I am leaning towards GH for more modern rooms. I am explorists with club access certificate. Any input if HR or GH have better lounge offerings. I will be taking advantage of breakfast and evening service to save some money for family of 4. Plan to be in city for 4 days then off to Monterey. We will actually be in Fisherman’s wharf area twice for a one day tour and Alcatraz and Centric has outdoor pool (? Too cold for pool in April?) but I figured staying more central and free breakfast/snacks give GH the edge. All 3 properties have double beds. Was hoping for 2 queens or 1 king and sofa bed but out of luck. Any property better for upgrades explorists? Any input appreciated.
Jan 4, 2019, 10:52 pm
#215
Join Date: Aug 2002
Location: Houston,Texas,USA
Programs: Starwood Gold, HH Diamond,Hyatt Diamond
Posts: 962
Reviving old thread. Staying in San Fran mid April with family which includes two 11 year olds. I am leaning towards GH for more modern rooms. I am explorists with club access certificate. Any input if HR or GH have better lounge offerings. I will be taking advantage of breakfast and evening service to save some money for family of 4. Plan to be in city for 4 days then off to Monterey. We will actually be in Fisherman’s wharf area twice for a one day tour and Alcatraz and Centric has outdoor pool (? Too cold for pool in April?) but I figured staying more central and free breakfast/snacks give GH the edge. All 3 properties have double beds. Was hoping for 2 queens or 1 king and sofa bed but out of luck. Any property better for upgrades explorists? Any input appreciated.
The club was excellent with good breakfast and evening offerings that could serve as dinner. The club used to be a 5* restaurant and has excellent views of the Bay
View from club
Club offerings
Jan 4, 2019, 11:17 pm
#216
Join Date: Jul 1999
Location: Sacramento, CA
Programs: AA Exec Plat, Hyatt,Marriott,BA,AS
Posts: 4,425
just stayed at the GH in November. Location was excellent right in front of the Ferry Terminsl. Also very close to the BART station for easy airport access.
The club was excellent with good breakfast and evening offerings that could serve as dinner. The club used to be a 5* restaurant and has excellent views of the Bay
You have the hotels mixed up. Your photos and description are of the HR, not the GH. I have stayed at both many times over the years and prefer the GH, but it has it's downsides. The GH Club is quite small whereas the HR has a large Club. The GH Club tends to be very crowded most of the time and I think, with kids, you will be happier at the HR. The GH certainly has nicer rooms and those on high floors have great views. Both have good locations for sightseeing, but for getting to Fisherman's Wharf the HR is a better location. Walk across the street and get the F historical streetcar and it will drop you right there. Much easier and cheaper than driving there, plus there's the fun of riding on a historic streetcar. And yes, I can say with some certainty, that it will be too cold for an outdoor pool in April, but weather is changing so you never know. If you want to be really cold, visit during the summer. As Mark Twain said "The coldest winter I ever spent was summer in San Francisco"
Last edited by JIMCHI; Jan 4, 2019 at 11:27 pm
Jan 4, 2019, 11:20 pm
#217
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Reviving old thread. Staying in San Fran mid April with family which includes two 11 year olds. I am leaning towards GH for more modern rooms. I am explorists with club access certificate. Any input if HR or GH have better lounge offerings. I will be taking advantage of breakfast and evening service to save some money for family of 4. Plan to be in city for 4 days then off to Monterey. We will actually be in Fisherman’s wharf area twice for a one day tour and Alcatraz and Centric has outdoor pool (? Too cold for pool in April?) but I figured staying more central and free breakfast/snacks give GH the edge. All 3 properties have double beds. Was hoping for 2 queens or 1 king and sofa bed but out of luck. Any property better for upgrades explorists? Any input appreciated.
2. More "central" depends on how you define that. All are well located in different ways. HR, closest to BART, is in many ways most convenient.
3. Too cold for pool all year around.
4. Don't count on an upgrade anywhere.
lol, that's the Hyatt Regency.
Jan 5, 2019, 6:20 am
#218
Join Date: Jul 2009
Location: IAH
Programs: UA 2MM, Hyatt Diamond, SPG Gold
Posts: 2,161
Both the HR and the GH have fun ways to get to Fisherman's Wharf. The historic street car that runs along the Embarcadero was mentioned a few posts back. The GH is a block away from the cable car line, and that too is a great way to get to Fisherman's Wharf. When I'm in San Francisco for business, I prefer to stay at the Centric and "commute" to Union Square or the Moscone via cable car.
Jan 5, 2019, 9:09 am
#219
Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: SF Bay Area
Programs: Hilton Gold, Hyatt Diamond
Posts: 104
Reviving old thread. Staying in San Fran mid April with family which includes two 11 year olds. I am leaning towards GH for more modern rooms. I am explorists with club access certificate. Any input if HR or GH have better lounge offerings. I will be taking advantage of breakfast and evening service to save some money for family of 4. Plan to be in city for 4 days then off to Monterey. We will actually be in Fisherman’s wharf area twice for a one day tour and Alcatraz and Centric has outdoor pool (? Too cold for pool in April?) but I figured staying more central and free breakfast/snacks give GH the edge. All 3 properties have double beds. Was hoping for 2 queens or 1 king and sofa bed but out of luck. Any property better for upgrades explorists? Any input appreciated.
The pool at the Centric is heated and fine for swimming (big deal for kids), but the only time I would stay at there is during Fleet Week (very cool at that time to see the pilots and flight crews in the lobby on a regular basis).
Jan 5, 2019, 2:21 pm
#220
Join Date: Jul 2001
Programs: Marriott LT Tit; Hyatt Explorist; Hilton CC Gold; IHG CC Plt; Hertz (MR) 5 star
Posts: 5,536
I don't recall staying at the GH, but have stayed at both the HR and Centric. HR is nicer and has a great Regency Club.
I will be staying at the Centric in a couple of weeks with my wife because it's the only hotel where I can burn Cat 1-4 free night certs (GH and HR are cat 5) and I was able to use points on a second night, getting ~4 cents/pt value. It's a weekend and all 3 properties are priced $500+/night.
With the Centric, you won't have any good views and the rooms are just OK but it's conveniently located near Fisherman's Wharf. In a nutshell, it's fine to sleep at night but I wouldn't spend a ton of time in the room or hotel.
I will be staying at the Centric in a couple of weeks with my wife because it's the only hotel where I can burn Cat 1-4 free night certs (GH and HR are cat 5) and I was able to use points on a second night, getting ~4 cents/pt value. It's a weekend and all 3 properties are priced $500+/night.
With the Centric, you won't have any good views and the rooms are just OK but it's conveniently located near Fisherman's Wharf. In a nutshell, it's fine to sleep at night but I wouldn't spend a ton of time in the room or hotel.
Jan 5, 2019, 3:26 pm
#221
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Jan 5, 2019, 3:35 pm
#222
Join Date: Apr 2001
Location: Boston, MA
Programs: Hilton Gold, SPG Gold, CC Gold, UA Silver
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Thanks for everyone’s input. I think based on everyone
s suggestion, Hyatt Regency may be first choice. Sounds like larger club room with decent food and views will be nice. I have stayed at union square at Westin a few years ago and I remember union square had lots of high end shopping but not much else. Embarcadero area may be better for family and I like how cable car is out front. I remember walking to the wharf also and it was flat so easy walk.
s suggestion, Hyatt Regency may be first choice. Sounds like larger club room with decent food and views will be nice. I have stayed at union square at Westin a few years ago and I remember union square had lots of high end shopping but not much else. Embarcadero area may be better for family and I like how cable car is out front. I remember walking to the wharf also and it was flat so easy walk.
Jan 5, 2019, 3:51 pm
#223
Join Date: Jul 1999
Location: Sacramento, CA
Programs: AA Exec Plat, Hyatt,Marriott,BA,AS
Posts: 4,425
Keep in mind that the cable car in front of the hotel runs until 11:30 p.m. It can be quite noisy. Ask for a room away from that side of the building. There also used to be some guy playing a saxaphone or some instrument right there as well that could be heard in the rooms. Don't know if he's still there. FYI- the cable car line that's out in front of the hotel won't take you to anyplace interesting. The line that goes to the Wharf leaves from the corner of Powell and Market streets.
Last edited by JIMCHI; Jan 5, 2019 at 3:58 pm
Jan 6, 2019, 10:57 am
#224
Join Date: Aug 2002
Location: Houston,Texas,USA
Programs: Starwood Gold, HH Diamond,Hyatt Diamond
Posts: 962
just stayed at the GH in November. Location was excellent right in front of the Ferry Terminsl. Also very close to the BART station for easy airport access.
The club was excellent with good breakfast and evening offerings that could serve as dinner. The club used to be a 5* restaurant and has excellent views of the Bay
View from club
Club offerings
You have the hotels mixed up. Your photos and description are of the HR, not the GH. I have stayed at both many times over the years and prefer the GH, but it has it's downsides. The GH Club is quite small whereas the HR has a large Club. The GH Club tends to be very crowded most of the time and I think, with kids, you will be happier at the HR. The GH certainly has nicer rooms and those on high floors have great views. Both have good locations for sightseeing, but for getting to Fisherman's Wharf the HR is a better location. Walk across the street and get the F historical streetcar and it will drop you right there. Much easier and cheaper than driving there, plus there's the fun of riding on a historic streetcar. And yes, I can say with some certainty, that it will be too cold for an outdoor pool in April, but weather is changing so you never know. If you want to be really cold, visit during the summer. As Mark Twain said "The coldest winter I ever spent was summer in San Francisco"
Jan 6, 2019, 12:14 pm
#225
Join Date: Jul 2001
Programs: Marriott LT Tit; Hyatt Explorist; Hilton CC Gold; IHG CC Plt; Hertz (MR) 5 star
Posts: 5,536
My bad; you may have me mixed up with a broke college student. I'm frugal , but am happy to splurge on a good meal. And there are plenty of great restaurants in San Fran. Even the Wharf 'tourist traps' are pretty decent.If you've got any great SF restaurants that you recommend, I'll take a look at them.
Last time I went with my wife, we ate at Koi Palace (dim sum in Daly City on Gellert) but she determined that she's not a huge fan of dim sum.
We also ate at the Great Eastern Restaurant (on Jackson), whose claim to fame is that Obama ate there. Very disappointing.
We had a few other great meals there, but I don't remember the restaurants at this time. One was a fantastic sushi restaurant.
Edit: Sorry about the split quote; I don't know why it did that (perhaps the italicizing) and don't know how to fix it.
Thanks for everyone’s input. I think based on everyone
s suggestion, Hyatt Regency may be first choice. Sounds like larger club room with decent food and views will be nice. I have stayed at union square at Westin a few years ago and I remember union square had lots of high end shopping but not much else. Embarcadero area may be better for family and I like how cable car is out front. I remember walking to the wharf also and it was flat so easy walk.
s suggestion, Hyatt Regency may be first choice. Sounds like larger club room with decent food and views will be nice. I have stayed at union square at Westin a few years ago and I remember union square had lots of high end shopping but not much else. Embarcadero area may be better for family and I like how cable car is out front. I remember walking to the wharf also and it was flat so easy walk.
I ruled it out for later this month because I have a Cat 1-4 cert to burn and the only hotel of the 3 mentioned in this thread that is cat 4 is the Centric. I'd prefer the HR over the Centric but not enough to let my cert go unused.