What area of SF should we stay in....
Apr 15, 2011, 8:00 am
#31
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: IAD
Programs: united, american, alaska
Posts: 1,782
I strongly agree -- the Financial District is a great choice for visitors. It's safe and within reasonable walking distance of Union Square, the Ferry Building, Chinatown, SoMa, and North Beach. It also has the best access to BART, Muni Metro, the cable cars and the F-line.
It's become our usual place unless the Hyatt Embarcadero (which I like less for reasons primarily related to ambient noise) has an especially good promotion.
Apr 15, 2011, 4:08 pm
#32
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: San Francisco
Programs: All-Around Kettle
Posts: 3,289
The Galleria Park Hotel (a Kimpton property) is a good chocie in this area. Easy walk to lots of decent restaurants and most tourist attractions, plus decently quiet and good service. Plus a weekday wine reception in the early evening.
It's become our usual place unless the Hyatt Embarcadero (which I like less for reasons primarily related to ambient noise) has an especially good promotion.
It's become our usual place unless the Hyatt Embarcadero (which I like less for reasons primarily related to ambient noise) has an especially good promotion.
Apr 15, 2011, 5:00 pm
#33
Moderator: GLBT Travelers & Hyatt Gold Passport
Join Date: Jan 2000
Location: CVG
Posts: 15,300
I'll throw in my 2 cents:
Westin St Francis - I've never stayed but if you go with this property do book a room that you'll be comfortable in - since I don't think you have SPG status, if you book the cheapest room, you're likely to end up in the 200 sf broom closet that faces a brick wall.
Campton Place - never stayed in either - but gets good reviews.
Grand Hyatt - stay there pretty often - big convention oriented hotel - views can be great from upper floor rooms - but the property is undergoing renovation (extensive right now) and they're doing the rooms bottom up (probably up to about 20th floor right now).
That's the hotels right at Union Sq.
for Market St (area just off Union Sq) hotels:
Four Seasons - never stayed but a "contemporary" decorated property but reviews don't quite put it on top of FS standards.
St Regis - have stayed here a couple of times - nice property - for a while I thought about making it my "regular" property in SF - but the games they play with Platinum upgrades have ruled this out.
Intercontinental SF - gets really great reviews from the people who are IC RAs - location isn't that great though.
Financial District - can be a bit quiet at night / weekends - but less than 10 min walk to Union Sq and convenient to Ferry Building (basically an upscale food hall these days).
Omni - as mentioned - I've never stayed here - but it does get good reviews - was "gut renovated" about 10 years ago.
Le Meridien - was my favorite property when it was the Park Hyatt - and probably still is my favorite property in SF.
Madarin Oriental - on the upper floors of an office building - I've never stayed there and reviews are somewhat mixed but I'm sure the views cannot be beat.
Westin St Francis - I've never stayed but if you go with this property do book a room that you'll be comfortable in - since I don't think you have SPG status, if you book the cheapest room, you're likely to end up in the 200 sf broom closet that faces a brick wall.
Campton Place - never stayed in either - but gets good reviews.
Grand Hyatt - stay there pretty often - big convention oriented hotel - views can be great from upper floor rooms - but the property is undergoing renovation (extensive right now) and they're doing the rooms bottom up (probably up to about 20th floor right now).
That's the hotels right at Union Sq.
for Market St (area just off Union Sq) hotels:
Four Seasons - never stayed but a "contemporary" decorated property but reviews don't quite put it on top of FS standards.
St Regis - have stayed here a couple of times - nice property - for a while I thought about making it my "regular" property in SF - but the games they play with Platinum upgrades have ruled this out.
Intercontinental SF - gets really great reviews from the people who are IC RAs - location isn't that great though.
Financial District - can be a bit quiet at night / weekends - but less than 10 min walk to Union Sq and convenient to Ferry Building (basically an upscale food hall these days).
Omni - as mentioned - I've never stayed here - but it does get good reviews - was "gut renovated" about 10 years ago.
Le Meridien - was my favorite property when it was the Park Hyatt - and probably still is my favorite property in SF.
Madarin Oriental - on the upper floors of an office building - I've never stayed there and reviews are somewhat mixed but I'm sure the views cannot be beat.
Apr 15, 2011, 6:10 pm
#34
Moderator: Luxury Hotels and FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Sep 2002
Location: Palo Alto, California,USA
Posts: 17,856
Actually, Peter, the views at the MO can be beat. Apparently only a small subset of the total room stock has a decent view. The one time I stayed there the room was both tiny and viewless. Not a fan.
Apr 15, 2011, 6:59 pm
#35
Original Poster
Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: PBI
Programs: DL FO
Posts: 388
That's clearly news to many people who ended up in brick wall faced 200 sq.ft rooms there as described in hotel master thread:
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/starw...thread-10.html
It's an old old hotel where if you are lucky you can get a very decent room and if not it may be a broom closet/dungeon with westin bed. Either way service is consistently inconsistent. Aside from location I would be very hesitant to go there.
Perhaps this thread from luxury hotels can be of some help to OP.
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/luxur...francisco.html
Among hotels I stayed at (hyatt, westin, hiltons, marriott, both ICs) I personally would pick new IC. Unfortunately 4S and MO are usually outside my price range so can't comment.
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/starw...thread-10.html
It's an old old hotel where if you are lucky you can get a very decent room and if not it may be a broom closet/dungeon with westin bed. Either way service is consistently inconsistent. Aside from location I would be very hesitant to go there.
Perhaps this thread from luxury hotels can be of some help to OP.
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/luxur...francisco.html
Among hotels I stayed at (hyatt, westin, hiltons, marriott, both ICs) I personally would pick new IC. Unfortunately 4S and MO are usually outside my price range so can't comment.
Wow, thanks for that link. Websites can be deceiving. I appreciate all of the help and suggestions.
May 15, 2011, 10:09 pm
#37
Join Date: Feb 2004
Location: SEA
Programs: DL Diamond, UA Silver, IHG Platinum, One Man Street Fair in my spare time
Posts: 605
I give it a very good. My tech consultants all stay there when they are at the bank I work at downtown, so have heard a lot about it. Great Union Square location - and it was not originally a Marriott - it started its life as a Pan Pacific Hotel. I definitely prefer the JW over the Marriott on 4th Street though - the one on 4th is truly unexceptional.
May 17, 2011, 12:23 pm
#38
Join Date: Aug 2009
Posts: 254
Ebayj,
Thanks so much for the report on the JW Marriot. We have made our reservatons on points for our stay and are looking forward to our visit. Do you have any recommendations on places for dinner that would be close by. We are not getting a rental car until the day before we leave to go to Napa Valley. Thanks so much!!
Barbara
Thanks so much for the report on the JW Marriot. We have made our reservatons on points for our stay and are looking forward to our visit. Do you have any recommendations on places for dinner that would be close by. We are not getting a rental car until the day before we leave to go to Napa Valley. Thanks so much!!
Barbara
May 18, 2011, 12:09 am
#39
Join Date: Jan 2011
Location: San Francisco
Programs: AS MVP Gold, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 700
i would also recommend the union square or SOMA area. some good choices in those areas are the four seasons, westin, st. regis, and W hotel as have been mentioned.
if you want to be somewhat out of the union square/touristy area, the ritz in nob hill or the le meridien in financial district are also good choices.
if you want to be somewhat out of the union square/touristy area, the ritz in nob hill or the le meridien in financial district are also good choices.
May 18, 2011, 12:37 am
#40
Join Date: Feb 2007
Location: MSP, SFO, YHZ, JFK
Programs: DL PM, Starwood platinum, Hertz PC
Posts: 48
If price is not an issue, stay in the Presidio/GGNRA and take cabs. The Hotel Tomo in Japantown is quite interesting. There are a number of small, eccentric, high-end boutique hotels in Pacific Heights. Move around interesting areas of the city. If the weather is good, go to Half Moon Bay for a day or two. If you stay in SOMA/the CBD/Union Square/Fin Dist you will be guaranteed to meet many more native Midwesterners than native Californians. Tourists are great, but San Francisco residents are by far more interesting.
May 21, 2011, 10:20 am
#41
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Nov 2007
Location: Denver • DEN-APA
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If price is not an issue, stay in the Presidio/GGNRA and take cabs. The Hotel Tomo in Japantown is quite interesting. There are a number of small, eccentric, high-end boutique hotels in Pacific Heights. Move around interesting areas of the city. If the weather is good, go to Half Moon Bay for a day or two. If you stay in SOMA/the CBD/Union Square/Fin Dist you will be guaranteed to meet many more native Midwesterners than native Californians. Tourists are great, but San Francisco residents are by far more interesting.
Would you stay in The Bronx if it was your first trip to NYC?
May 21, 2011, 5:51 pm
#42
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Sep 2002
Location: Portland
Posts: 11,571
If price is not an issue, stay in the Presidio/GGNRA and take cabs. The Hotel Tomo in Japantown is quite interesting. There are a number of small, eccentric, high-end boutique hotels in Pacific Heights. Move around interesting areas of the city. If the weather is good, go to Half Moon Bay for a day or two. If you stay in SOMA/the CBD/Union Square/Fin Dist you will be guaranteed to meet many more native Midwesterners than native Californians. Tourists are great, but San Francisco residents are by far more interesting.
That said, if you are willing to spend more, sign up for Uber and just use that. So far, Uber has been extremely reliable for me - it's made living in San Francisco much more tolerable. It just costs about twice what a taxi does.
May 22, 2011, 10:58 pm
#43
Join Date: Apr 2003
Location: San Francisco
Programs: Four Seasons Aviara (owner), Starwood, Marriott, Hyatt, Hertz President's Circle, United MP 30+ yrs
Posts: 1,252
I hope the OP has been disabused of any notion of staying in Fisherman's Wharf by now. Unless you like T-shirt shops this is a bad choice.
Lots of good info on this thread but as one who has lived in the city 26 years and who lives right in the center, if it were my first trip I would stay either Embarcadero area (Hyatt, the Joie d'Vivie property nearby whose name I am forgetting), etc. or Union Square. Everything is there and what isn't is a decent cab or public transit ride away. Get to to know the city and get more adventurous if you want on the next trip. You will not go wrong downtown.
Lots of good info on this thread but as one who has lived in the city 26 years and who lives right in the center, if it were my first trip I would stay either Embarcadero area (Hyatt, the Joie d'Vivie property nearby whose name I am forgetting), etc. or Union Square. Everything is there and what isn't is a decent cab or public transit ride away. Get to to know the city and get more adventurous if you want on the next trip. You will not go wrong downtown.
May 25, 2011, 10:34 pm
#44
Join Date: Feb 2004
Location: SEA
Programs: DL Diamond, UA Silver, IHG Platinum, One Man Street Fair in my spare time
Posts: 605
Ebayj,
Thanks so much for the report on the JW Marriot. We have made our reservatons on points for our stay and are looking forward to our visit. Do you have any recommendations on places for dinner that would be close by. We are not getting a rental car until the day before we leave to go to Napa Valley. Thanks so much!!
Barbara
Thanks so much for the report on the JW Marriot. We have made our reservatons on points for our stay and are looking forward to our visit. Do you have any recommendations on places for dinner that would be close by. We are not getting a rental car until the day before we leave to go to Napa Valley. Thanks so much!!
Barbara