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=> GENERAL DISCUSSION => Topic started by: vansmack on August 16, 2006, 02:55:00 pm
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Many of you have asked about visiting SF, and while I've tried to be helpful, the NY Times has an article today about visiting SF "Frugal Style" I thought would be more helpful then me. Enjoy.
http://travel2.nytimes.com/2006/08/16/travel/16frugaltraveler.html (http://travel2.nytimes.com/2006/08/16/travel/16frugaltraveler.html)
And because the Times is registration based and some of you are paranoid:
August 16, 2006
The Frugal Traveler
In San Francisco and Almost Home
By MATT GROSS
??Do you have any alcohol pads?? asked the woman on Market Street one crisp, sunny San Francisco afternoon last Wednesday. ??I just got stabbed.? She opened her puffy black jacket to show the bloodstain on her white T-shirt, and looked expectantly at me. I shrugged my shoulders; I hadn??t packed any alcohol pads.
??Well then,? she added, ??could you spare some change??
I didn??t have any, at least not yet ?? just a few foreign coins jangling in my pocket ?? and as I crossed the street, smiling at the clever pitch, I could hear her creaky voice ask the next passerby: ??Do you have any alcohol pads? I just got stabbed ...?
So began the Frugal Traveler??s reintegration into American society. Ninety-one days after I took off from Newark Airport, seeking low-budget, high adventure on a trip that took me through 3 continents, 17 languages and approximately 900 varieties of dumplings, I had returned home. Well, not quite home; I was in San Francisco for five final days of affordable fun.
Which did not, on the face of it, promise to be easy. San Francisco is the third most expensive city in the country, where a single restaurant entrée could devour my entire daily food budget. And hotel rooms, when they aren??t sold out, rarely dip below $100 a night. A former girlfriend did invite me to crash at her place, but I wisely declined. For part of this final leg, I was to have a special companion: Jean, the woman who has spent the summer planning our wedding.
For putting up with my extended absence, Jean deserved something better than a flophouse, a youth hostel or a cardboard box on the brick sidewalk (a disturbingly common sight). And after spending hours in dingy Beijing cybercafes, I finally found a suitable hotel on SFTravel.com, a city guide: the Hayes Valley Inn (417 Gough Street; hayesvalleyinn.com), a tidy-looking Victorian with weekday rates as low as $69 (weekends are $84). Sure, it had shared bathrooms, but the inn said this was ??European-style? ?? a codeword, I would tell Jean, for chic.
But no deception was necessary. The Hayes Valley Inn turned out to be as clean, bright, and friendly as I??d hoped, with wrought-iron beds, Wi-Fi and free afternoon tea. Better yet, its mini-neighborhood, Hayes Valley, was a cheerful, happening mix of new and old apartments, restaurants and boutiques, yoga studios and bookstores. Compared to horseback riding through the mountains of Kyrgyzstan, it was as exotic as a highway truck stop. Still, I spent my first morning just relishing the surroundings, trying to hold onto a trip that was nearing its end.
Discombobulated, or maybe just jetlagged, I did what I always do my first day in a new city: I gathered up every local paper, map and pamphlet and found a place to read them, the homey Arlequin cafe. Over a cup of coffee and a buttery Breton cookie, I watched people walk their dogs, chat with neighbors and tell stories that, in their mundane wildness, blew my mind. One woman, done up in a black-and-white houndstooth minidress, lacy black heels and white sunglasses, chirped into her cellphone, ??I??ve gotta remember that I??m not a dude and that I can??t drink that much tequila.? I began to wonder how often I??d missed overhearing such comments in Galicia, Greece or Georgia.
The next day, I visited the Asian Art Museum and SFMoMA (taking advantage of the $49 CityPass, which includes museum tickets as well as a weeklong Muni pass), then wandered the Mission District, where I took in the Spanish-colonial architecture and defunct movie theaters, browsed the cutesy notebooks at Little Otsu (a bookstore on Valencia Street) and recovered from three months of Mexican-food withdrawal (Taqueria San Jose, at 2830 Mission Street, was my savior). In the evening, I walked back up to Union Square for a free jazz concert and ordered a strong martini at the Hotel Monaco??s Grand Cafe ($7.50).
After a second drink, I moseyed out of the Grand Cafe and into a city alive with people and lights. All traces of jet lag and discombobulation suddenly vanished, evaporating from my mind like the morning fog off the hills. I was discovering what one reader meant when he wrote, ??It??s embarrassingly easy to have a good time here.?
It got even easier when Jean arrived. I showed her my favorite new spots in the Mission, then we progressed to the Castro, up through the aptly named Buena Vista Park, and down through the Haight, whose vintage-clothing boutiques captured Jean??s attention. After three months essentially on my own, I wanted to buy her the whole store.
Alas, the Frugal Traveler is on a budget, so I diverted her attention from shopping the next day by bundling her onto a bus to the Alemany Farmers?? Market, a nest of concrete stalls enlivened with bright murals, where we drooled over the luscious Early Girl tomatoes and polymorphous squash. I teased Jean with some of the recipes I had picked up: Turkish bean stews, Georgian cucumber-walnut salads and pulpo a la gallega.
From there we hiked up dusty Bernal Hill for what one reader called ??the greatest panoramic view of the city.? She was right. As we ate juicy peaches from the market and gazed out on the bridges, parks, pastel houses and glistening skyscrapers of San Francisco, I silently thanked my readers for their good advice.
In fact, it was thanks to the exhaustive list of cheap eats that readers posted that we were to able make out like bandits: the grilled pork at Mi Lindo Yucatán was one standout, as was Brothers, a Korean barbecue restaurant where the portions of marinated beef were enormous (bring friends; otherwise you??re paying for leftovers). The local free papers, meanwhile, were great nightlife guides: One postage-stamp ad in the San Francisco Bay Guardian led us to the ??Three Kinds of Stupid? party at Rickshaw Stop back in Hayes Valley (155 Fell Street; 415-861-2011; rickshawstop.com). The cover charge was $8, but well worth the evening of dancing our pants off to French hip-hop, mashed-up Michael Jackson and indie rock at a club so utterly free of pretensions that it had a foosball table on its mezzanine.
As we ate, drank and made merry, however, I was struck with a strange case of reverse culture shock. Everything I saw reminded me of somewhere else I??d recently been. The pastel Victorian houses evoked the gaily painted apartment complexes of Tirana, Albania. The guitarist strumming outside the 24th Street BART station late one night brought back memories of that busker crooning folk tunes in Zadar, Croatia. And Sunday, when we rented a car from Budget ($43.19), drove up to the Russian River Valley to sample wines, and returned along the Pacific Coast Highway, it recalled all those dramatic, sketchy cliffside roads I??d traversed by bus, and I gained a newfound respect for the underpaid, overstressed drivers who, again and again, managed to deliver me to my destinations alive.
But I wondered, as Jules Verne??s narrator asked of Phileas T. Fogg at the end of ??Around the World in 80 Days,? what had I really gained by all this trouble? What had I brought back from this long and weary journey? Blisters? Felt slippers from Kyrgyzstan? A $10 lithograph from Venice?
It??s probably far too early ?? and too ambitious ?? to expect end-of-the-road wisdom from a trip that, at least for me, doesn??t end until I??m sleeping in my own bed. All I know is this: that I??m physically, mentally and emotionally exhausted. But I also don??t want this trip to end ?? ever. (Sorry, Jean!) I??m no longer thinking of New York City as home; to me, it's just another layover.
Next stop: ??Home.????
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No offense to Vansmack and others who choose to live there, because once you get the hang of life somewhere you can always find your fun just about anywhere...but to me, San Francisco is one of the most overrated places to visit that I've ever been to. Anybody else find that to be their case?
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Originally posted by Weird Little Self Loathing Man:
No offense to Vansmack and others who choose to live there, because once you get the hang of life somewhere you can always find your fun just about anywhere...but to me, San Francisco is one of the most overrated places to visit that I've ever been to. Anybody else find that to be their case?
No offense taken. You wouldn't live up to your name (self loathing man) if you didn't talk about how something that you did was so awful.
And right now, with the Dollar getting crushed by the Pound, I would say that anywhere in Enlgand is exceptionally overrated right now. Whatever it is you want to see, it will still be there when the currencies even out. It's just not worth it right now.
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San Franscisco ain't no Disney World that's for sure.
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If SF is overrated, I am sure that NYC is overrated as well. Although I am living in NYC at the moment, I'd gladly go back to SF in a heartbeat. The people of SF make up the city, and for me they are some of the friendliest people around. At a concert knowing no one, I ended up having the time of my life with complete strangers who were so open, warm and lovely. Cant say I've had the same experiences in NY and DC.
Must be the water! :)
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I'd much rather visit NYC than San Francisco, or London for that matter. I just love the NYC vibe, though I wouldn't want it on a daily basis. Three times in SF and two times in London (including living there for a summer) are enough for me.
That being said, if I were from somewhere else, I would never, ever bother to visit DC, and would go to SF at least once....though I'm happy enough living here.
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everywhere and everything is vastly overrated
except reston. totally UNDERrated
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and I'll take a visit to NYC, Montreal, Toronto, or Seattle over SF anyday.
Originally posted by Weird Little Self Loathing Man:
I'd much rather visit NYC than San Francisco, or London for that matter. I just love the NYC vibe, though I wouldn't want it on a daily basis. Three times in SF and two times in London (including living there for a summer) are enough for me.
That being said, if I were from somewhere else, I would never, ever bother to visit DC, and would go to SF at least once....though I'm happy enough living here.
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the fact that rhett dislikes sf makes me want to visit. is there a place that i can enjoy a newcastle/wigan match while indulging in bangers and breakfast beers in your fair city?
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Go right ahead. Just remember to hold your nose to avoid the everywhere smell of piss, remember to step over all of the homeless people they seem to have imported from NYC (I heard other cities put their homeless people on Greyhounds headed for SF), and remember to bring your brass knuckles to fend off the world's most aggressive panhandlers. Of course, if you're looking to hang out with some really groovy people, you could always head over to Golden Gate Park.
The night before we arrived, someone managed to break into the hotel room of another guest of the hotel we stayed at and stab the poor old guy multiple time.
Originally posted by god's shoeshine:
the fact that rhett dislikes sf makes me want to visit. is there a place that i can enjoy a newcastle/wigan match while indulging in bangers and breakfast beers in your fair city?
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Originally posted by Weird Little Self Loathing Man:
The night before we arrived, someone managed to break into the hotel room of another guest of the hotel we stayed at and stab the poor old guy multiple time.
That's what you get for staying at the Ramada on Market.
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Originally posted by god's shoeshine:
is there a place that i can enjoy a newcastle/wigan match while indulging in bangers and breakfast beers in your fair city?
Besides my apartment?
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I've been to San Francisco about a dozen times, and I adore that city. Great people, great walking city (a rare find in CA), great arts & music. And lots within a drive's range to take advantage of -- the coast, mountains, wine country.
Being on the West Coast it's a tad too far from my family and friends for me to want to move there. Plus it's so insanely expensive to live. But, as a city, I think it's absolutely top rate. Very reminiscent of Sydney and Cape Town (though those cities have beaches, which do add a hell of a lot to the possibilities, but also have great day trips for wine country, mountains, coastland).
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Do you have any better hotel location recommendations for under $100/night?
Originally posted by vansmack:
Originally posted by Weird Little Self Loathing Man:
The night before we arrived, someone managed to break into the hotel room of another guest of the hotel we stayed at and stab the poor old guy multiple time.
That's what you get for staying at the Ramada on Market. [/b]
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Originally posted by Weird Little Self Loathing Man:
Do you have any better hotel location recommendations for under $100/night?
It's a major metropolitan city. Any hotel recommendations under $100/night in DC, Chicago or NYC? Every once in a while you can get a room at Jury's on Dupont for $119 -- internet special. But those are rarer and rarer these days...
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Originally posted by Weird Little Self Loathing Man:
Do you have any better hotel location recommendations for under $100/night?
i take it you didn't read the article vansmack so kindly posted.
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Originally posted by Venerable Bede:
Originally posted by Weird Little Self Loathing Man:
Do you have any better hotel location recommendations for under $100/night?
i take it you didn't read the article vansmack so kindly posted. [/b]
Nope, didn't....emailed it to myself to read later....too long. Then color me surprised, and Rhett's point going nowhere on two fronts...
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I typed in the random dates of 10/12-10/16 into hotwire.com, and you can get a 3 star in Dupont for $97 per night or a 4 star in Dupont for $104 per night.
Originally posted by Bags:
Originally posted by Weird Little Self Loathing Man:
Do you have any better hotel location recommendations for under $100/night?
It's a major metropolitan city. Any hotel recommendations under $100/night in DC, Chicago or NYC? Every once in a while you can get a room at Jury's on Dupont for $119 -- internet special. But those are rarer and rarer these days... [/b]
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Originally posted by Weird Little Self Loathing Man:
Do you have any better hotel location recommendations for under $100/night?
For $30 more a night, you can get a hotel closer to Union Square without any nightly stabbings, but, hey, what's $30 when it comes your wife's safety?
But in your price range, for $100 a night you can stay down by the Wharf or the Embarcadero and avoid said stabbings.
Check for yourself:
www.hotels.com (http://www.hotels.com)
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Originally posted by Weird Little Self Loathing Man:
The night before we arrived, someone managed to break into the hotel room of another guest of the hotel we stayed at and stab the poor old guy multiple time.
Is this before or after someone was stung by a scorpion?
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Originally posted by Weird Little Self Loathing Man:
Go right ahead. Just remember to hold your nose to avoid the everywhere smell of piss, remember to step over all of the homeless people they seem to have imported from NYC, and remember to bring your brass knuckles to fend off the world's most aggressive panhandlers.
You could experience this in DC...or even -- certain suburbs of VA. :eek:
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Originally posted by The Cooler:
Originally posted by Weird Little Self Loathing Man:
Go right ahead. Just remember to hold your nose to avoid the everywhere smell of piss, remember to step over all of the homeless people they seem to have imported from NYC, and remember to bring your brass knuckles to fend off the world's most aggressive panhandlers.
You could experience this in DC...or even -- certain suburbs of VA. :eek: [/b]
Throw Baltimore on that list, along with your random nightly stabbings and a few other 'charms' all for a cool $100+/- per night.
Being an ex-travel agent, personally, unless I absolutely knew from 1st hand experience or a very trusted source, I wouldn't begin to trust any accommodation in a destination as pricey as SFO for under $100/night. Those lead in properties are often mighty sleazy and/or in very bad locations. You generally end up paying the difference one way or the other be it with the extra transportation involved once there or some kind of inconvenience which might even involve your life or possessions.
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So what is the one restaurant I should not miss when I'm in SF this fall?
Chez Panisse?
La Folie?
Jardiniere?
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Originally posted by ggw?:
So what is the one restaurant I should not miss when I'm in SF this fall?
Chez Panisse?
La Folie?
Jardiniere?
well. . .of those 3, probably chez panisse, which is in berkeley.
no luck getting into french laundry?
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Originally posted by Venerable Bede:
no luck getting into french laundry?
Too far away.
Other than the three I listed, what would you recommend in SF proper?
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Originally posted by ggw?:
Originally posted by Venerable Bede:
no luck getting into french laundry?
Too far away.
Other than the three I listed, what would you recommend in SF proper? [/b]
jardinere is good. . .there's also gary danko, fleur de lys, ame, slanted door (although, that can be hit or miss). and that doesn't even include the taqueria's, sushi and dim sum places.
missing out on not going to napa. . .
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Went to Gary Danko last time. It was great.
Is French Laundry really worth driving 60 miles each way?
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Originally posted by ggw?:
Went to Gary Danko last time. It was great.
Is French Laundry really worth driving 60 miles each way?
well, it's consistently ranked either 1 or 2 in the world, trading places with el bulli. however, have you been to per se in nyc?
also about 60 miles away, but to the south is manresa.
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we ate great the whole weekend, and never stepped foot in any of the fancy-pants foodie places ... favorite meals were in north beach: citizen thai and the monkey, with ristorante ideale coming in a close second
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Hey, those of you still in SF, go to The Independant tonight at 8pm sharp. You'll see an awesome act...promise.
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Wow, Mountain Goats at 6 at Amoeba.
Irvine Welsh book signing at 7, also in the Haight.
There's a small chance we can make the Independent by 8, but it's up to the birthday boy.
Which reminds me, Happy Birthday Venerable.
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Originally posted by you be betty:
Hey, those of you still in SF, go to The Independant tonight at 8pm sharp. You'll see an awesome act...promise.
says the person that loves l.a.
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Go. Seriously. You won't regret it. And there's nothing plastic or pornographic about them.
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Originally posted by you be betty:
And there's nothing plastic or pornographic about them.
I'm out.
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yeah really...they don't even need makeup, the two singers are fucking gorgeous and adorable. eat your heart out.
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Originally posted by Weird Little Self Loathing Man:
No offense to Vansmack and others who choose to live there, because once you get the hang of life somewhere you can always find your fun just about anywhere...but to me, San Francisco is one of the most overrated places to visit that I've ever been to. Anybody else find that to be their case?
I just got back and LOVED it. The city was great and if you drive half hour in any direction the whole climate/landscape changes. I thought it was beautiful.
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This one's for you Fico!
From the forthcoming October 15 Weekend edition of the NYT
Affordable San Francisco
By GREGORY DICUM
AS befits a city that is both a major tourist and business destination, and one that draws lots of families in for a visit ?? 65 percent of its population was born outside California ?? San Francisco??s range of hotels is at once profuse and varied. The city has more than 32,000 hotel rooms, ranging from $12,500-dollar-a-night suites that are more like mansions to bedbug-infested S.R.O.??s that have always held a certain Bukowskian charm better read about than experienced.
While it??s easy to come here and spend $60 for a cellblock out by the airport, it??s also totally unnecessary: with a little planning, you can find a hotel that is affordable yet also embodies the eclectic charm that has always been San Francisco??s appeal.
The sweet spot is just under $200 a night. In that price range, you can expect a habitable room with distinctive character, friendly, attentive but hands-off service and an occasional funkiness that is best thought of as a reminder of what a deal you??re getting.
You can expect general cleanliness that is not a given further down the scale, plus amenities ?? private bathrooms, bar refrigerators and Wi-Fi ?? that, depending on your perspective, can be either nice touches or absolutely critical features.
You would be hard pressed to find truly bad service in this price range, and labor troubles that have affected San Francisco??s hotels over the past two years have been resolved. Union hotel workers have new contracts, so you don??t have to confront the possibility of crossing a picket line to get to your pillow.
In all, I found 13 hotels that I can confidently recommend for the cash-strapped tourist who is looking for something a little grander than a youth hostel. Following are my top three picks, ranging from an artists?? enclave near Union Square to an urban pied-a-terre for business travelers. (Capsule reviews of the 10 other hotels that made the cut can be found on the facing page.)
Hotel des Arts
The best of the lot is the Hotel des Arts, an unassuming little hotel in a great location, near Union Square and across the street from the gateway to Chinatown. Since 2004, the hotel has been making up for its cramped space by showing bold art curated by the START SOMA gallery. Most of the rooms have been decorated by emerging artists who have brought the bold colors and aggressive graphics of skate and street art to the walls you??ll be sleeping under.
If your aesthetic sensibilities encompass things like a giant squirting pink toe scrawled with a salty epithet, as appears above the bed in the room painted by the Los Angeles graffiti muralist Buff Monster, going to sleep with and waking up to big art is a whole new way to appreciate it.
I stayed in the room by the San Francisco artist Anthony Skirvin, perhaps the most inventive hotel room in the city. If at first the cluster of bulging United States Mint dime bags hanging menacingly over the bed commanded the most attention, it was quickly overshadowed. Next to a photo-mural of a woodsy cabin, a rough-hewn plywood desk and shelves groan with the sort of carefully jumbled bric-a-brac ?? old photos, books, busted electronics, a cutaway model of a kidney ?? you??d find in a dorm room or, more ominously, a recluse??s hideout.
It??s fascinating stuff that invites exploration, and the kind of installation that richly rewards hours spent with it. For me, it included listening to Bob Dylan??s ??Nashville Skyline? album as it was meant to be heard ?? as an actual record, popping and warbling through the single speaker of the room??s vintage record player?? while flipping through World War II-era Life magazines. I rummaged in drawers filled with doll parts and fiddled with the combination on a tantalizingly heavy briefcase before considering mason jars of frightening brown liquid. Mr. Skirvin??s name appears in the phonebook in the room, but when I called, the line had been disconnected.
All this immersive art effectively hides the fact that these are tiny rooms, not much bigger than the comfortable queen beds, and lacking any other furniture. The guests, mostly young couples from all over the world, don??t seem to mind. Breakfast, included with the room, is an affair of passable coffee and bready bagels eaten off paper plates while perched on preschool-like Ikea stools, but the vibe is cheerful.
The Hotel Metropolis
The Metropolis is a hotel for people used to staying in hotels. Guests are a mix of experienced world travelers, people in the city on monthlong work assignments and regulars who use the place as an urban pied-a-terre. Perched at the edge of the gritty Tenderloin neighborhood, the Metropolis??s calm lobby is an oasis from the dingy street outside. A soothing waterfall runs down the wall behind the reception desk, and in a small library on the bright mezzanine, afternoon wine and morning coffee are offered (but no breakfast is served).
I stayed in a room on the 10th (and top) floor, which offered a rare treat: an outdoor deck. From there the view, while not iconically San Franciscan, was impressive enough: it began on Market Street below and extended to the mountains to the south of the city.
That was by far the best feature of the room. The rest was serviceable, decorated in subdued whites and grays, and while clean, was slightly frayed. The hotel has a number of touches that come off as a combination of whimsy and baffling randomness. The magazines in the room ?? current issues of Esquire and other titles ?? were a nice touch, but the flier left on the toilet detailing how different colors are used in marketing was mystifying. More memorable, alas, was the fact that the bathroom ventilation system supplied the scents of other bathrooms in the building, starting with puffs of cigarette smoke and going downhill from there.
If you can take the neighborhood, which includes delights like being panhandled on your walk to breakfast ?? a reminder both annoying and depressing of San Francisco??s most vexing social challenge ?? then this is a great place to be. There are easy transportation connections to the entire city (a cable car turntable is a block away at Powell and Market), and bars, restaurants and shopping are in every direction. The new Westfield San Francisco shopping center is steps away, hopping nightclubs like Crash, Ruby Skye and Mezzanine and underground clubs like Infinite Kaos and the Porn Palace ?? which holds events in a well-appointed dungeon ?? are all within a few blocks.
The hotel also features a small meditation room, and on the ground floor, the new soul food restaurant Farmer Brown has been gaining a solid reputation. If you??re staying here, you??re virtually obligated to stop by at happy hour for one of its mint juleps.
The Queen Anne
Housed in a big wooden Victorian building, freshly painted in pink and cream, the Queen Anne is a quintessentially, almost stereotypically, San Francisco setting. The interior is of warm wood with ornate furniture and richly colored fabrics. The effect is like being in a stage set, which gave me the feeling of being a little under-dressed without a velvet cape. Certainly, the guests ?? mostly American families on vacation wearing the traditional Alcatraz sweat shirts ?? took on the appearance of stagehands as they gathered for late afternoon sherry in the sunlit Victorian parlor.
As one ascends the huge wooden staircase, the hotel??s décor slips subtly from painted lady to drag queen. My spacious room on the fourth, top floor (said to be haunted by the owner of a finishing school that was once in this building) was a gaudy mish-mash of faux Art Deco and tragic craft store goth. The furniture was carved in a cream-and-gold wheat sheaf theme, and a theatrical half-awning loomed over a bed heaped with brocade pillows. A deep red rug set off thick drapes and clusters of plastic grapes and plastic golden cherubs. A table in the bay window would have been the perfect place to write mournful poetry with a quill pen, if only it had been foggy outside.
The hotel is on a rise near Japantown, placing it outside the usual visitor districts, but nonetheless in an interesting neighborhood within easy reach of virtually all the city. From here, you can actually use the cable cars as a mode of transportation, not just a must-do visitor thrill. Skip the unremarkable breakfast buffet included with the room and instead take a four-block walk to Fillmore Street for some of the best cafes and breakfast spots in the city.
The most charming touch at the Queen Anne comes after breakfast: guests can take a free limo ride to any destination within the city. Henry, the affable, talkative chauffeur, has five decades of experience driving these streets, and is quick to tell you that his careful driving has put almost half a million miles on the ancient Lincoln. Rolling at a snail??s pace in the big black car, the windows open on a perfect morning, with Henry up front going on about his days in the Navy ?? this is the San Francisco you came looking for.
VISITOR INFORMATION
As elsewhere, hotel rates in San Francisco vary wildly, sometimes for the same room. Rooms may double in price during peak times. The flip side is that it??s always worth checking in with hotels you might think are out of your range, just to see if your dates are magically off-peak. While there are a few unavoidable spikes, like the summer tourist and the fall convention seasons, different hotels cater to different crowds and may have space even while others nearby are fully booked.
As befits a wired city like San Francisco, going online is a sure way to find a deal. Every hotel worth staying at has its own Web site, many with Web-only offers. If you??re a little more flexible, aggregators like Hotels.com or Kayak.com (or if you??re feeling lucky, Priceline.com) can often lead you to great rates.
But there??s no substitute for a phone call. For the most part, these are boutique hotels, either independent or owned by small, local management companies. In most cases, they occupy buildings that require a bit of spatial creativity. So it pays to quiz the staff members about the relative merits of specific rooms before booking.
All the rates here are the lowest available for double occupancy queen rooms with private baths, and don??t include San Francisco??s 14 percent hotel tax.
Hotel des Arts, 447 Bush Street, (800) 956-4322; www.sfhoteldesarts.com. (http://www.sfhoteldesarts.com.) Rooms start at $125. However, $294 gets you a week in a room with a shared bath ?? possibly the best hotel deal in the city: you could stay there for more than 10 months for the price of a single night in the penthouse at the nearby Fairmont.
Metropolis Hotel, 25 Mason Street, (800) 553-1900; www.hotelmetropolis.com. (http://www.hotelmetropolis.com.) From $99. There is a suite for children, and packages for dogs, and ??Girls Gone Wild,? which includes Champagne, skin care products and calling cards.
Queen Anne Hotel, 1590 Sutter Street, (800)227-3970; www.queenanne.com. (http://www.queenanne.com.) From $99. Rooms available with fireplaces and hot tubs.
Cornell Hotel, 715 Bush Street, (800) 232-9698; www.cornellhotel.com. (http://www.cornellhotel.com.) From $85 with shared bath; from $110 with private bath. A cozy spot operated by the same family for 40 years; rates include a full breakfast.
Hotel Boheme, 444 Columbus Avenue, (415) 433-9111; www.hotelboheme.com. (http://www.hotelboheme.com.) Starting at $159. This North Beach hotel trades on its Beat pedigree: Allen Ginsberg often stayed here.
Hotel California, 580 Geary Street, (800) 227-4223; www.thesavoyhotel.com. (http://www.thesavoyhotel.com.) Starting at $139. Accessible location near Union Square, plus a frosted tequila shot at check-in.
Hotel Diva, 440 Geary Street, (800) 553-1900; www.hoteldiva.com. (http://www.hoteldiva.com.) Starting at $129. Coolly slick, with an urbane knowingness: a condom inside the in-room safes.
Hotel Majestic, 1500 Sutter Street, (800) 869-8966; www.thehotelmajestic.com. (http://www.thehotelmajestic.com.) Starting at $125. A peaceful Victorian hotel on the shoulder of Pacific Heights.
Hotel Palomar, 12 Fourth Street, (866) 373-4941; www.hotelpalomar.com. (http://www.hotelpalomar.com.) Starting at $200, this is a notch above the others here, with a central downtown location by Market Street, slick décor and doggie wellness packages.
Hotel Triton, 342 Grant Avenue, 800-800-1299; www.hoteltriton.com. (http://www.hoteltriton.com.) Rooms start at $159, and if they??re available at that price you should snap them up for amenities like a goldfish as a roommate, in-room stereos with iPod docks and a well-appointed fitness room, all in a vibrant newly renovated building. Near Union Square and Chinatown.
Phoenix Hotel, 601 Eddy Street, (800) 248-9466; www.thephoenixhotel.com. (http://www.thephoenixhotel.com.) From $139. The ??rock ??n?? roll? hotel near the Civic Center that is a San Francisco take on Los Angeles style; it holds afternoon pool parties on weekends.
San Remo, 2237 Mason Street, (800) 352-7366; www.sanremohotel.com. (http://www.sanremohotel.com.) Rooms from $55, but the real gem at this historic North Beach hotel is the penthouse suite, starting at only $175. It??s usually booked three months in advance.
York Hotel, 940 Sutter Street, (800) 808-9675; www.yorkhotel.com. (http://www.yorkhotel.com.) This hotel, on Nob Hill, was a setting for Alfred Hitchcock??s ??Vertigo.? Stay in the room Kim Novak lived in during the shooting, starting at $109. Otherwise, rooms start at $89.
GREGORY DICUM is the author of ??Window Seat Europe,? about reading the landscape from 35,000 feet in the air, to be published this month by Chronicle Books.
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vansmack, I visited the bay area last week and saw 8 shows. Did you ever make it to Download Festival? MUSE were amazing...also saw Man Man @ Independent, Sonic Youth @ Fillmore, and Elvis Costello's free show at Golden Gate Park.....
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Originally posted by Joe M.:
vansmack, I visited the bay area last week and saw 8 shows. Did you ever make it to Download Festival? MUSE were amazing...also saw Man Man @ Independent, Sonic Youth @ Fillmore, and Elvis Costello's free show at Golden Gate Park.....
I did make the Download Festival and I'm trying to finish a review, which I've been dragging my feet on. I too thought Muse were the highlight, and I enjoyed The Like as well. I felt badly for the Shins (sounds was terrible) and TV on the Radio (brilliance was lost as they were met with general fan indifference in a venue that large).
I caught Band of Horses last week, listened to a few songs at the Bluegrass Festival from my roof as I watched the Air Show, but avoided the stinky hippies in the park as I promised. They invaded my neighborhood bar too, which, for once made me feel like the youngest person in the bar. I forgot you were coming, otherwise I would have grabbed a pint with you. Maybe next time.
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vansmack, got any SF recommendations for this weekend?
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Originally posted by SalParadise:
vansmack, got any SF recommendations for this weekend?
There are a lot of bands in town this weekend:
Friday: The Dresden Dolls, Kasabian/Mew, Architechture in Helsinki/Clap Your Hands, Louis XIV
Saturday: The Elected, Method Man
Sunday: Citizen Cope
And Bob Dylan on Monday.
That being said, I'm heading to Napa for some wine tasting.
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Originally posted by vansmack:
Originally posted by SalParadise:
vansmack, got any SF recommendations for this weekend?
There are a lot of bands in town this weekend:
Friday: The Dresden Dolls, Kasabian/Mew, Architechture in Helsinki/Clap Your Hands, Louis XIV
Saturday: The Elected, Method Man
Sunday: Citizen Cope
And Bob Dylan on Monday.
That being said, I'm heading to Napa for some wine tasting. [/b]
thanks for the info. i think it's looking like either Tortured Soul or Crown City Rockers tomorrow night (i wouldn't mind catching Kasabian though). wave hi if you happen to see a crew of idiot-tourists stumbling around in sonoma (which i'm sure is a rare sight) on saturday..
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Originally posted by SalParadise:
wave hi if you happen to see a crew of idiot-tourists stumbling around in sonoma (which i'm sure is a rare sight) on saturday..
hey, i too will be out and about in napa and sonoma (santa rosa) doing wine tasting on saturday. . .
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Go to Kunde Winery in Kenwood, right next to Santa Rosa and before Sonoma :)
It looks like they will have an Eco Tour this Sunday:
http://www.kunde.com/tasting_room/event.asp?e=68 (http://www.kunde.com/tasting_room/event.asp?e=68)
www.kunde.com (http://www.kunde.com)
Originally posted by Venerable Bede:
Originally posted by SalParadise:
wave hi if you happen to see a crew of idiot-tourists stumbling around in sonoma (which i'm sure is a rare sight) on saturday..
hey, i too will be out and about in napa and sonoma (santa rosa) doing wine tasting on saturday. . . [/b]
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I do enjoy a glass of wine with my dinner, but I though the whole Napa/Sonoma experience was a bit of a disappointment.
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Originally posted by Weird Little Self Loathing Man:
I do enjoy a glass of wine with my dinner, but I though the whole Napa/Sonoma experience was a bit of a disappointment.
Probably didn't have the right guide. I didn't care much for it originally as well (and still dislike the lack of diversity), however with the right group and the right person taking you to particular places, it can be quite fun, I have found.
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I recommend heading up towards Calistoga and hitting Sterling Vineyards. A tram ride takes you up to the vineyard and it has breathtaking views of the Napa valley. and their wine is _really_ good. If any of you guys (im assuming its all guys who were posting) are bringing girlfriends/wives, calistoga has some great spas, and their massages (especially any grapeseed wraps) are heaven!
ive always wanted to go to ravenswood vineyards. i think thats up in santa rosa.
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Originally posted by xneverwherex:
A tram ride takes you up to the vineyard and it has breathtaking views of the Napa valley. and their wine is _really_ good. If any of you guys (im assuming its all guys who were posting) are bringing girlfriends/wives, calistoga has some great spas, and their massages (especially any grapeseed wraps) are heaven!
Sssshhh!!! They might hear you.
We're really only going to drink wine. Don't start putting ideas in their head!
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My friend has a website which lists shows in the Bay Area:
www.theiroldershitwasbetter.com (http://www.theiroldershitwasbetter.com)
You can also check out:
www.playinginfog.com (http://www.playinginfog.com)
Originally posted by SalParadise:
vansmack, got any SF recommendations for this weekend?
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Do they give happy ending?
Originally posted by xneverwherex:
I recommend heading up towards Calistoga and hitting Sterling Vineyards. A tram ride takes you up to the vineyard and it has breathtaking views of the Napa valley. and their wine is _really_ good. If any of you guys (im assuming its all guys who were posting) are bringing girlfriends/wives, calistoga has some great spas, and their massages (especially any grapeseed wraps) are heaven!
ive always wanted to go to ravenswood vineyards. i think thats up in santa rosa.
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Originally posted by xneverwherex:
I recommend heading up towards Calistoga and hitting Sterling Vineyards. A tram ride takes you up to the vineyard and it has breathtaking views of the Napa valley. and their wine is _really_ good. If any of you guys (im assuming its all guys who were posting) are bringing girlfriends/wives, calistoga has some great spas, and their massages (especially any grapeseed wraps) are heaven!
yeah, wife and i did the calistoga spa thing for our anniversary. . .while it wasn't auberge, it was still pretty relaxing.
and yeah, the right group of people can really make all the difference in wine tasting and winery hopping.
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sorry but i cant divulge that information. besides, im a chick... you should ask smackie about that. im sure he can help you out.
Originally posted by Weird Little Self Loathing Man:
Do they give happy ending?
Originally posted by xneverwherex:
I recommend heading up towards Calistoga and hitting Sterling Vineyards. A tram ride takes you up to the vineyard and it has breathtaking views of the Napa valley. and their wine is _really_ good. If any of you guys (im assuming its all guys who were posting) are bringing girlfriends/wives, calistoga has some great spas, and their massages (especially any grapeseed wraps) are heaven!
ive always wanted to go to ravenswood vineyards. i think thats up in santa rosa.
[/b]
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Originally posted by xneverwherex:
sorry but i cant divulge that information. besides, im a chick... you should ask smackie about that. im sure he can help you out.
Originally posted by Weird Little Self Loathing Man:
[qb] Do they give happy ending?
[/b]
I did not have sexual relations with that woman.
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Could we possibly get a more modern visitor's guide? It appears I will be visiting San Fran for the first time in October.
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Could we possibly get a more modern visitor's guide? It appears I will be visiting San Fran for the first time in October.
Do you have dates for your visit yet? That month, the week/weekend that you are their could change everything...
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I will also be visiting your city in october... 27th -31st.
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Could we possibly get a more modern visitor's guide? It appears I will be visiting San Fran for the first time in October.
Do you have dates for your visit yet? That month, the week/weekend that you are their could change everything...
I should know the exact dates within the week. I will PM you.
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Oct 2,3 4:
http://www.hardlystrictlybluegrass.com/2015/
Oct 9,10, 11:
http://fleetweeksf.org/
Oct 17-18
Treasure Island Music Festival
www.treasureislandfestival.com
I think twitter also has a dev conference and Apple has their iPhone Conference, though sometimes that is on Cupertino.
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I should know the exact dates within the week. I will PM you.
I will also be visiting your city in october... 27th -31st.
Right on.
I'm getting married on the 3rd, and then will be in Bora Bora through the 18th, but should be around Halloween weekend.
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I should know the exact dates within the week. I will PM you.
I will also be visiting your city in october... 27th -31st.
Right on.
I'm getting married on the 3rd, and then will be in Bora Bora through the 18th, but should be around Halloween weekend.
Congrats on the nuptials. I'm coming to town for a wedding on Halloween, am seeing the Zombies while I am there at the fillmore.
Bora Bora. That will be amazing. I'm jealous.
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Could we possibly get a more modern visitor's guide? It appears I will be visiting San Fran for the first time in October.
I'll expect a full report from your visit to French Laundry.
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I'll expect a full report from your visit to French Laundry.
Michelin Star Restaurants Mapped (http://sf.eater.com/maps/michelin-stars-san-francisco-bay-area-map-2015)
Three Stars in SF:
Benu
Saison
French Laundry & Meadowood are in wine country.
Two Stars:
Acquerello
Atelier Crenn
Coi
Manresa
Quince
Baum & Manresa are in Silicon Valley.
One Star:
All Spice
Ame
Aziza
Boulevard
Campton Place
Gary Danko
Keiko Nob Hill
Kusakabe
La Folie
Luce
Maruya
Michael Mina
Sons & Daughters
SPQR
Spruce
State Bird Provisions
Auberge du Soleil, Bouchon, Chez TJ, Commis, Farmhouse, La Toque, Madera, Madrona Manor, Plumed Horse, Solbar, Terra, Terrapin Creek, Village Pub and Wakuriya area all "Bay Area" and will require a car.
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I had a friend who was interning, for lack of a better term, out in wine country and said French Laundry was absolutely impossible to get a reservation to with a month's head notice. Which was expected, but I'd pretty much have to start trying now.
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The thing about French Laundry is it has to be what you're doing for the day. For example - it's best if you stay overnight near Yountville. Great, so make it a wine country trip out of it - except you really shouldn't go wine tasting all day and then show up at FL. The ideal scenario is that you leave work at noon on Friday and drive to your B&B, Uber to FL and back and the go wine tasting on Saturday. Given that everybody knows this, reso's on Friday are near impossible without about 2 months notice.
That's why I checked it off the lsit and don't plan on going back. There are many convenient one star restaurant's in SF that I'm equally happy to go to.
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Could we possibly get a more modern visitor's guide? It appears I will be visiting San Fran for the first time in October.
I'll expect a full report from your visit to French Laundry.
Nothing like a trip to French Laundry to indulge in the vegetarian menu!
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Could we possibly get a more modern visitor's guide? It appears I will be visiting San Fran for the first time in October.
I'll expect a full report from your visit to French Laundry.
Nothing like a trip to French Laundry to indulge in the vegetarian menu!
In all seriousness, this is why I rarely go to "super trendy foodie prie fixe" restaurants which make up the majority of Michelin star ranked restaurants and other lists. They very, very rarely accomodate vegetarian and vegan diets (and to be fair, I understand why the cook who is putting his name on the food is unwilling to just throw something together).
There are more and more top restaurants that have legitimate vegetarian and vegan menus but you really have to look ahead at websites, etc.
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SPOILER ALERT: This week's Economist is all about San Francisco....
Living in San Francisco today, with its bustle and big ideas, feels like ?living in Florence during the Renaissance,? effuses Sander Daniels, the fresh-faced founder of Thumbtack
Empire of the geeks (http://www.economist.com/news/leaders/21659745-silicon-valley-should-be-celebrated-its-insularity-risks-backlash-empire-geeks)
To fly, to fall, to fly again (http://www.economist.com/news/briefing/21659722-tech-boom-may-get-bumpy-it-will-not-end-repeat-dotcom-crash-fly)
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In all seriousness, this is why I rarely go to "super trendy foodie prie fixe" restaurants which make up the majority of Michelin star ranked restaurants and other lists. They very, very rarely accomodate vegetarian and vegan diets (and to be fair, I understand why the cook who is putting his name on the food is unwilling to just throw something together).
There are more and more top restaurants that have legitimate vegetarian and vegan menus but you really have to look ahead at websites, etc.
Prie fixe's are stupid anyway. But I should have recommended Cotogna for you - it's attached to Quince and is usually recognized as among the best vegetarian places in the city. However, you really can't survive as a restaurant in SF without solid vegetarian/vegan selections. Even Cockscomb, known as the Meatfest in SF serves a roasted portobello dish.
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But I should have recommended Cotogna for you - it's attached to Quince and is usually recognized as among the best vegetarian places in the city.
Just looked up their menu and oh heck yes, I'm doing that while I'm there.
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I had a friend who was interning, for lack of a better term, out in wine country and said French Laundry was absolutely impossible to get a reservation to with a month's head notice. Which was expected, but I'd pretty much have to start trying now.
Just do what I do and call the Centurion concierge.