Where to stay in the Bay Area

Has anyone got any recommendations for places to stay in the Bay Area? It doesn't have to be in San Francisco, but would need easy access to the BART.

I have stayed twice in the Holiday inn fishermans wharf. great location close to piers, cable cars. great Hotel

SFO area hotels are often a good bet, price wise too, and most have shuttles to the airport and the Bart of course ...

I recommend the Adagio - 2 blocks from Union Sqare and then a short walk down to the Market St Bart stop. Part of the Joie de Vivre boutique chain. Lots of freebies (including wifi) if you join their loyalty scheme.

Fishermans Wharf is not in all honesty that near to any Bart station.

[Darren Wheeler]

If you don't want to stay in San Francisco itself, look at somewhere like Milbrae. There's a good selection of hotels to suit all pockets along with shops and restaurants nearby. The BART terminates there too and you have CalTrain if you want to head elsewhere.

I recommend the Intercontinental on Howard St if you like somewhere modern. Great club lounge too.

I really enjoyed the Westin on Union Square and also a small boutique hotel.

Executive Hotel Vintage Court on Bush Street - try Tripadvisor.

Enjoy - I love SF, make sure you bike the bridge if you have the time, the downhill trip to Sausalito (?) is awesome....and then a ferry ride back to the bay.

Can't go far wrong with the Mandarin Oriental on Sansome Street and California. Great service, location, and probably the best views your ever likely to get in the city.

It is closed for a refurb at the moment, but reopens in about three weeks.

[preiffer]

To be honest, the question's a bit of a challenge as it really, really, really depends on what you want to be doing when there.
Do you have a car? Where are you thinking of spending most of your time? South Bay? East Bay? Napa/Marin? The city itself? If you want BART, I'm guessing no car - and bear in mind staying out at the airport means a 45-50 minute total journey to get into town using that method of transport.

If it's a city centre trip, I'd echo places like the InterContinental / MO but also look at the Mark Hopkins, the W on 3rd street, the hotel Vitale (very cool and nice location) - the world's your oyster.

Of course, the one question that does also need answering: what's the budget...?!

I've stayed at the Hampton Inn in Daly City a few times with work. It's 10-15 minute walk to either Colma or Daly City BART stations, and then around 15-17 minutes into Powell St. BART station.

If you do have a car,there is parking at Daly City BART station (5 min drive),$2.00 a day.

The hotel itself is simple but offers free parking.

Thanks for the thoughts so far. The visit to SF will be the last leg of our road trip around California so the key considerations are going to have to include parking options and while the idea of MO or W is appealing, both are going to be beyond my budget which is about £150 per night.

I've been able to find the right balance between cost & quality for our earlier stopping points of LA, SD, LV & Napa but am struggling with SF.

I am staying next month at the Argonaunt on Jefferson St. Never been but it gets very good reviews on trip advisor

[preiffer]

rdm - I've PM'd you a 3-for-2 or 25% off code for the W

rdm - I've PM'd you a 3-for-2 or 25% off code for the W

Any chance of PM me the code too as I'm going in June staying for 4 nights?

Paul's coupon sounds like a winner to me. Some things to consider ... if this is your final leg, and you're leaving from SFO, dump the car. Parking it is going to add cost you don't want to incur. To the extent that you want to do stuff outside of SF, do it before you stay in the city (like, drive through Marin from Napa into SF and stop on the way for views), then get around here by bus, tram or bike the bridge

In the few threads we've had on the forum on this particular subject, the above mentioned hotels recur, and are all good choices; I usually pipe in an mention that there are some good options outside of the Union Square/central area, and mention that public transport is good, if at times colorful

You can get a shuttle to the airport for two of you for as little as 25 bucks, or a cab for 45/50 bucks; in general parking will incur a charge in any central hotel, and the cost of keeping and servicing the car with gas must be added; that's going to be far higher than the 20 bucks a day you may spend in bus fares, and will add a little bit to your hotel budget (maybe 20 quid a day, though I'd think it would be a little more). With 250 dollars a day, your options start to look decent.

Paul's W coupon is still likely your best bet, as it's a good hotel in a good location, I'd still dump your car and save a bunch more that way, you'll want the spending money in the city for dinner at Cupola.

Good luck!

that's going to be far higher than the 20 bucks a day you may spend in bus fares,

No need to spend $20 a day when you can get a 7 day muni pass for $27 and that includes use of the cable cars. A 3 day pass is $21.

The BART is extra but for most journeys in SF you don't need the BART

that's going to be far higher than the 20 bucks a day you may spend in bus fares,

No need to spend $20 a day when you can get a 7 day muni pass for $27 and that includes use of the cable cars. A 3 day pass is $21.

The BART is extra but for most journeys in SF you don't need the BART

Fair point, I almost only use transport to go to the airport

We'll be there in July for three nights.

On previous trips we've stayed @ SFO & Harbor Court

Now looking for something in the heart of where it all happens.

Any tips from the regulars appreciated - budget up to £250 per night - no car

Thanks
Rich

Argonaut Hotel is a good bet, or Fairmont Ghiardelli is nice too. Both close to the cable car turn and some great bay views.