W H E R E   T O   S T A Y

San Francisco is the number one travel destination in the United States and there is every kind of place to stay here. We have done a little research for you and have come up with a few suggestions.

We live in an area of the city called The Castro, which is a very eclectic, very gay, cosmopolitan neighborhood. It’s loaded with little shops and cafes, restaurants and bars – but no hotels.

Please note, to get the group rate for the hotels, you must call them directly rather than making your reservations online.

Near Us

If you’d like to be in The Castro, we suggest staying at the Parker Guest House. It’s a huge inn – 21 rooms – right in The Castro, on a quiet side street near everything. We live about 5 blocks away, up the hill. The rooms are really nice and very clean and breakfast is included. The lowest rate with private bath is $149 per room / night and they have a four night minimum stay in the summer.

The Parker Guest House, 520 Church Street at 17th, San Francisco CA 94114; Call toll free 888.520.7275 or direct 415.621.3222, www.parkerguesthouse.com

Downtown (it’s easy to get to the Castro from downtown)

A real gem and a great bargain is the Kensington Park Hotel. It has a proper lobby and staff but does not have a restaurant (tea, coffee and sherry are served though). The rooms are very nice and very clean and it is steps away from Union Square, the heart of the city. Major stores and public transportation are right there. We secured a group rate of $109 per room / night here – a real steal in San Francisco. If you’d like, you can upgrade to the “Royal Court” floor where the rooms are larger and newly renovated, and the amenities are a little better (bathrobes and slippers for example). The rooms on the Royal Court Floor are $135 per room / night. Again, some rooms have one king sized bed or two doubles, so you need to ask if you want two beds.

The Kensington Park Hotel, 450 Post Street @ Powell, San Francisco CA 94102; call toll free 800.553.1900 or direct 415.788.6400, www.kensingtonparkhotel.com

If you want a real San Francisco experience, we can recommend the Westin St. Francis. It is also just across from Union Square in the heart of the city. Like the Kensington Park Hotel, cable cars go by the hotel, and it is steps away from all the major stores. It is a full service hotel with restaurants, bars and shops and all the amenities you would find in a major hotel in a major city. There are two parts to the hotel – the Tower, which is newer and nicer, and the historic section which is nearer to Union Square and has an old style charm. We secured a great rate for this hotel of $199 per room / night for a “traditional” room in the Tower section. You can upgrade to a “grand view” room for $239 per room / night. It is slightly bigger and you (allegedly) get a view of the city. Some of these rooms have one king sized bed or two double beds – if you need two beds make sure you ask. A little known secret about this hotel is that if you want a very inexpensive room, you can go online (www.travelocity.com) and book one for $139 per room / night (as of 2/05). We asked to see one of these rooms – they are in the older part of the hotel, have no view and are really small. But, hey, if you want to stay in an okay room in a great hotel at a great location, this could be a great option for you.

The Westin St. Francis, 335 Powell Street, San Francisco CA 94102; call toll free 800. WESTIN 1, or direct 415.397.7000; www.westinstfrancis.com

These are places we have checked out personally for location, cleanliness, and price. You are welcome to go online and book somewhere else, of course. We HIGHLY suggest, though, that you stay either in The Castro or near Union Square, especially if you don’t have a car or don’t know your way around. San Francisco is not a particularly large city, but it is not easy to get around (and boy do we have some hills). Union Square and The Castro are public transportation hubs, with subway, bus and streetcar connections. They are also safer areas to walk around and there is a lot to see and do.