San Francisco

[CaptainPajamaShark]

I'm thinking of making out a trip out to SF in August. Can any of you recommend some decent, cheapish hotels, good places to eat and all that other touristy shizzle dizzle?

[Jook Sing Vegas]

I'll be in SF in 2 weeks, gonna catch some baseball games. Got a decent looking room near Union Sq for about 80 a night from Hotwire.

[slackerbot]

i've always had good experiences with Holiday Inn Express.

[Margin Walker]

Originally Posted by CaptainPajamaShark

I'm thinking of making out a trip out to SF in August. Can any of you recommend some decent, cheapish hotels, good places to eat and all that other touristy shizzle dizzle?

I visited a couple of years ago when I was on vacation from Los Angeles. San Francisco is expensive as hell. That's why most of the people in the area actually live in the East Bay (Oakland, Berkeley, Alameda, etc.) or South of San Francisco (Daly City, San Jose, etc.). It really depends on the season. When I went (late December), it was chilly and windy, not exactly tourism weather. I booked a motel in the Marina District for something like $50 a night. Here's my advice:

1. Buy a copy of "Not For Tourists: San Francisco": http://www.notfortourists.com/sanfrancisco.aspx . The city is only 7 miles by 7 miles square. Which also explains why the book is pocket-sized and priced about $20. Trust me, it's a $20 well spent.
2. Learn the bus/Muni/BART lines from the aforementioned book. The geography of Los Angeles is very easy. Are you South of the San Fernando Mountains? Guess what, that's North. Do you live in the San Fernando Valley? Guess what? The mountains are to your South. San Francisco has none of these landmarks other than steep hills and the locals (while usually friendly) aren't always eager to help a noob.
3. Do not rent a bicycle. I rented a bicycle thinking that I could negate public transportation or a cab ride in favor of just cycling about the city (It's just 7 miles by 7 miles, right?). Know this: the inclines of San Francisco streets are insane. I'm talking 60-70 Degree Inclines (and Declines). I used the Bike for only 1 Day and my calves were killing me for the remainder of my stay. Save your money and just ride either public transportation or take a cab.

[yamchild]

Originally Posted by Margin Walker

Do not rent a bicycle.

Ahahahaha. SF is small enough that it probably would have been far less exhausting to walk everywhere rather than attempt to ride a bike for those who are really hard on cash.

What sort of things are you interested in, CPS? What is a cheapish hotel? I stayed at Cornell Hotel before, which was 120-ish when I stayed there. What I liked about it was that it was blocks from Union Square, so it's easy to walk about if you're interested in touristy stuff. Also the French restaurant at the basement of the hotel (Jeanne d'Arc) is actually pretty good. I've also stayed in motels in Berkeley since that's a bit cheaper.

My favorite things in the Bay Area:
- Pier 24, this is a giant gallery that hosts very nice free photo exhibits. Appointments required, but it's worth it because you get to share the entire space with just a few people. You can stop by the Embarcadero on the way there.
- Emeryville Marina, you'll have to cross to the East Bay for this. Quiet park at the end of the Marina where you can get a great view of three of the bridges that connect to the Bay Area. Nice dim sum place there, too.
- Green Apple bookstore, this is near the Golden Gate Park, so you can walk around in the park afterwards.
- Castro Theater (in the Castro, natch) and Paramount Theater (Oakland), really fabulous movie palaces from ye olden times. If you want to watch a movie or a show while you are in SF, might as well do it in style.
- Zachary's, really good Chicago style pizza. I used to live in Chicago, I actually think this is better than most Chicago style pizzas I had in Chicago.

[CaptainPajamaShark]

Originally Posted by yamchild

What sort of things are you interested in, CPS? What is a cheapish hotel? I stayed at Cornell Hotel before, which was 120-ish when I stayed there. What I liked about it was that it was blocks from Union Square, so it's easy to walk about if you're interested in touristy stuff. Also the French restaurant at the basement of the hotel (Jeanne d'Arc) is actually pretty good. I've also stayed in motels in Berkeley since that's a bit cheaper.

My favorite things in the Bay Area:
- Pier 24, this is a giant gallery that hosts very nice free photo exhibits. Appointments required, but it's worth it because you get to share the entire space with just a few people. You can stop by the Embarcadero on the way there.
- Emeryville Marina, you'll have to cross to the East Bay for this. Quiet park at the end of the Marina where you can get a great view of three of the bridges that connect to the Bay Area. Nice dim sum place there, too.
- Green Apple bookstore, this is near the Golden Gate Park, so you can walk around in the park afterwards.
- Castro Theater (in the Castro, natch) and Paramount Theater (Oakland), really fabulous movie palaces from ye olden times. If you want to watch a movie or a show while you are in SF, might as well do it in style.
- Zachary's, really good Chicago style pizza. I used to live in Chicago, I actually think this is better than most Chicago style pizzas I had in Chicago.

I haven't narrowed anything down quite yet. my wife has a conference in Oakland for 2 days, so I was thinking of booking a flight/hotel for a couple of days in SF and then stay with the wife in Oakland. I'd likely be interested in some cool shops around the Bay area, as in clothing shops. I think some decent restaurants would also be on the to-do list. I'd like to plan a trip to the Alden shoe store and see about getting a pair of new balmoral cap toe dress shoes if time permits.

are China Town and Japan Town worth visiting? How hard is it to get to the Golden Gate bridge?

As for cheap hotels, I don't know what qualifies as 'cheap' in SF, but I don't wanna stay in a rat hole either. something close to everything would be ideal

[Jook Sing Vegas]

7 day Muni Pass well worth the money $28
you can use for the Cable cars,Light Rail and Buses.
Walked alot the first day and the other 4 learned to use the Muni to get around saving your legs from the hills.

[Denstradamus]

Originally Posted by CaptainPajamaShark

are China Town and Japan Town worth visiting? l

Japantown is just a mall, man. I guess Chinatown is cool if you don't have a big one back home.