Last minute trip

We (myself, DH, and teenage son) have the opportunity to visit SF for the first time from Aug13-17. Trip was not really in the budget, but it looks like I can mostly use miles, so saving some money flying there, but we are needing a bit of a splurge regardless. I got on a waitlist for a timeshare there (used to be the Hotel Julianna) but odds are not good that we will get it. So I need to book a hotel for the 3 of us for 4 nights that would be cancellable up to the last minute.

IMHO, the research and planning is at least half the fun of any trip, but this is last minute and with current work responsibilities I have little time to research or plan. We would like to do some of the standard tourist things like Fisherman%26#39;s Wharf and Chinatown, but have no definite agenda. Apparently cars and SF do not go together, so I suppose we will shuttle in from the airport and use public transit/cabs while there, although renting a car for a day trip would be fine. If the kind people on this forum could help, I need recommendations for:

1. Hotel 3-4 stars from $150-$250 a night (less is always good if it is clean and the location is near the general sights) A kitchenette would be really good, but at least needs 2 beds or a bed and a pull-out couch. Comfortable beds being the most important criteria. A pool is nice for my son, but not a requirement.

2. Really good seafood restaurant. The food is more important than the ambience, but ocean views would be awesome. Would like some place where dinner and wine would not exceed $150 and where attire can be casual (cruise casual not shorts casual if you know what I mean.)

3. Best place to eat in Chinatown and what to see there.

4. Where else to spend our time in SF for first time visitors who are not big on shopping have spent significant time in retail management ;-)

Really appreciate any help,

Laurie

Last minute trip

Hotel: It looks like many of the 4 star boutique hotels are already booked, but you might want to check out the Hotel Adagio. They have a Superior Queen room (2 queen beds) available for $209. It%26#39;s located in Union Square, which is a great central location for travellers. Another option, if you really want the pool, is Hotel Nikko. It%26#39;s a nice hotel, also centrally located just South of Market St. and it looks like it%26#39;ll cost an avg. of $260 per night (according to the Orbitz website).

Good seafood: People seem to really like Scoma%26#39;s, but I%26#39;m not a seafood person so I%26#39;ll just let others make recommendations.

Chinese food: Chef Jia%26#39;s seems to be a forum favorite, but again I%26#39;ll let others direct you on this one.

Other destination within SF to visit: Check out the renovated Ferry Building along the Embarcadero (good eats to be had there). Explore Golden Gate Park and the Haight Ashbury neighborhood (your teenage son might really enjoy this part). There is so much more, and I%26#39;ll let others chime in.

Last minute trip

Forgot to mention. You get a better rate on Hotel Adagio at its own website. Go to www.jdvhotels.com and then click on Hotel Adagio.

laurienut «Really good seafood restaurant.»

Put ';Bahia'; in the Search box above.

«Best place to eat in Chinatown»

krslong mentioned «Chef Jia%26#39;s'; and I enthusiastically concur. Don%26#39;t make the mistake of getting in line for the place next door. It%26#39;s not as good and is more expensive.

«Where else to spend our time in SF»

The ';Don%26#39;t-miss SIGHTS in San Francisco'; page geocities.com/touringsfo/Articles/Sights.html has enough to keep you busy for nine 12.7-hour days. It includes links to your best sources of advice on WHERE TO EAT and, according to the Department of Health, WHERE TO NOT EAT here, the UseNet Group ba.food, and the quite-good sfSurvey and the comprehensive Yelp. It also has a WEATHER CHART with a link to current conditions.

The FLAG/MAPS page geocities.com/touringsfo/…FlagMaps.html has links to the best on-line MAP of San Francisco, the outstanding WALKER/BICYCLIST map that shows the steepness of our streets. The new version of the formerly superb map created for the San Francisco Municipal Railway has removed many streets%26#39; names making it less useful. It%26#39;s cluttered with our many bus, cable car, street car, and bus routes. There is also a map of our CABLE CAR ROUTES, our 49-mile SCENIC DRIVE, and a superb map of GOLDEN GATE PARK.

The frequently-updated SPECIAL EVENTS page has irregularly-scheduled music and dances as well as links to seven calendars of regularly-scheduled dances, a composite of five of them, and one of dance cruises and events around the world: http://geocities.com/dancefest/Specials.html The MUSIC section at the bottom of the page focuses on the best of jazz.

Wyndham has a deal going right now if you agree to a 90 minute presentation you can get a 3 night 4 day stay at one of their resorts in SF for $239 and you will also get some dinner dinner certificates as well. The link if you are interested is at: fairfieldgetaways.com/Offers/Specific.asp…

I have done their tours and stayed at their resorts and they are very nice.

One of the attractions that you might want to consider doing is a ferry out to Alcatraz to get a good view of the skyline and the golden gate bridge. If you want to go out in the water a bay cruise is always nice and then there is the comical-crooked Lombard Street.

Great help from each of you, thanks! Hotel Adagio seems just right for us and I would not have found that on my own, especially with the time I have. Booked it on line and got it for just $194 so I am happy. Chef Jia%26#39;s seems a great suggestion as well and I will check back again this week to see if anyone else turns up. I am going to look into the bay cruise idea as well.

I%26#39;ll weigh in on the seafood restaurant, since you have booked your hotel. Views and really good seafood are not usually together in SF. When people want to eat at Fisherman%26#39;s Wharf, the consensus is usually Scoma%26#39;s.

On the other hand, most of us don%26#39;t go to Scoma%26#39;s unless we are taking out-of-town guests. For regular life, when choosing a ';really good seafood restaurant, I think Aqua is excellent seafood, though on the pricey side. Dress for most restaurants is fairly casual, but this one is not flip-flops casual. Swingcha%26#39;s recommendation is out of the tourist neighborhoods, but some travelers have ventured out, and come back loving it. I%26#39;ve never gone, so cannot personally say anything.

As for Chinatown, if you like Cantonese cuisine, I recommend the R%26amp;G Lounge. Just depends on your palate. If you%26#39;re just walking around Chinatown, not on a tour, I suggest going during the day, and having dim sum (and thus skipping R%26amp;G Lounge and Chef Jia%26#39;s). You can duck your head into the fortune cookie factory and walk along Stockton Street to see the live markets. You can also go down to Portsmouth Square and just see how people use the park. The Chinese Historical Society always has interesting exhibits: www.chsa.org

For dim sum, which is a brunch-time meal, I%26#39;d recommend Oriental Pearl, or City View. If you%26#39;re really adventurous and don%26#39;t mind the full-on, economical Chinatown carts experience, try Y Ben. Dim sum must be tackled before 11 a.m. on weekends (or else you%26#39;ll spend 45 minutes waiting for a table)

If you do want to do a tour of Chinatown, I like Wok Wiz. It is a fair amount of money, though, and includes lunch. Shirley Fong Torres does the ordering and tells you about the dishes, so that part may be interesting or worth it.

As for bay cruises, you know you can practically get a budget cruise if you just take a ferry to Sausalito or Tiburon or Angel Island and back. Of course, the ferry doesn%26#39;t go all around the bay, but it%26#39;ll go right by Alcatraz, and you can see the Golden Gate Bridge (not go under it). Sausalito and Tiburon are villages (Sausalito is pretty touristy, but quite pleasant). Angel Island is a state park and has hiking and biking.

There are two ferry services.

Golden Gate Transit departs from the Ferry Building at the foot of Market Street.

www.goldengateferry.org

Blue %26amp; Gold Fleet, which also does bay cruises, has ferry service to Sausalito and Tiburon, departing from the Fisherman%26#39;s Wharf area :

www.blueandgoldfleet.com

Click on ';ferry'; for schedule and rates. You can also see its tours and prices by clicking on ';sightseeing tours';

laurienut,

The restaurant at the Adagio, Cortez, is one we like. They do ';small plates'; so that you can order several different dishes and share. The wait staff is young and hip.