jfawp

Has anyone ever stayed at "Nob Hill Hotel". Their website looks wonderful. Also, things to do in SF in Dec./New Year's Eve, especially things I shouldn't miss? Is this hotel in a good location or is Fisherman's Wharf better? Weather in Dec. Help with iternary, planning on staying there 4 nights then move on. Suggestions - what's Nappa Valley like early Jan? How far is redwood forest? Feasible to see it in Jan, or weather to bad? Other suggestions. Thanks a bunch

jfawp

P.S. Also good places to eat?

Underhill

The hotel, which looks VERY old San Francisco from its web site, is close to the theater district and Union Square--thus a good location. A nearby excellent Italian restaurant is La Scale, by the Sir Francis Drake hotel. If seafood appeals to you, the upscale Farallon is not far, and for some of the best in French food there's the Fleur de Lys.

In early January the Napa Valley will be fairly quiet. Muir Woods, where the redwood grove is, is about a half-hour drive from San Francisco and can be seen any time of the year.

bill_boy

More rain than any time of year in SF/Napa area during January.

acwsf

Just in case you look up the restaurant mentioned by Underhill, it is called Scala's Bistro (www.scalasbistro.com)and I second it as a good place to eat in the area.

Expect weather in December to be rainy, however, there are weird years where it doesn't rain at all (go figure). Nevertheless, wear comfortable shoes and bring an umbrella.

I tend to suggest that people stay in the Union Square area vs. Fisherman's wharf. The reasons have been well-articulated by StuDudley in various other posts about this topic. Union Square is centrally located and it is easier to get to the outlying neighborhoods on public transportation from there.

J_Correa

I agree with the recommendations to stay around Union Square rather than Fisherman's Wharf - definitely more convinient.

In addition to Muir Woods, there are redwood groves all over the Santa Cruz mountains. So, depending on how much time you want to spend and what else you will be doing, you might consider Big Basin or Henry Cowel state parks. I think that coastal redwood forests are at their best in the winter because of all the rain fall. If the weather is really nasty, it isn't fun, but in between storms they are great.

suze

^^^

cabovacation

There is a good chance of rain, but don't let that stop you. There is so much to do in SF - a good guidebook will be most helpful. This is a city of wonderful food! And it runs the gamut - from Fleur de Lys to Delfina, Town Hall, Foreign Cinema, my favorite - Zuni Cafe....all the way to almost every Ethnic possibility - Moroccan, Indian, Asian, African - it's all there.

You can always find a delicious, fun restaurant in any price category. However, if you desire the hip, trendy and expensive - it is a good idea to reserve ahead. You can do your research and then go to opentable.com and make reservations, as you probably already know.

The museums are wonderful.

Winter is a good time to hang out in a cozy Napa, Sonoma or Carmel B&B or hotel!

Have fun planning!

StuDudley

>>>The museums are wonderful.<<

The new DeYoung is opening up this week.

Stu Dudley

FainaAgain

Isn't Nob Hill Hotel a residential place or time share? It's not a regular hotel. The area is safe and quiet - the elderly housing next door.

Location-wise... well... bus stops are a couple of blocks away. There are some restaurants in that area, but who knows how good (or bad) they are! Nobody goes there, how do they manage to stay in business? By trapping unsuspecting visitors

Yes, Union square is within walking distance. Safe to walk up Sutter street.

bwhewitt

Just back from San Francisco. Great trip! Note to self--you need to train for walking in SF more than for ski trips! If you like to walk when traveling that is, as we do. The hills are killers, and I did note that Nob Hill is one of the biggest. Depending on where your hotel is, you may have very steep hills no matter which direction you walk in! Union Square is definitely more convenient, and flatter! I would not stay in FW area--very touristy, traffic, etc.

Underhill

The Nob Hill Hotel web site seems to indicate that it's a regular hotel, and it's not on Nob Hill--I think the one up there IS a time-share place. I remember years ago getting an invitation to try it out, which we didn't.

SAB

Hey Stu , I went to a members preview on Sunday and the new de Young is a great space. Wasn't too thrilled with the concept of a copper clad building at first, but I must admit I really like the exterior. The interior is very well done, some really great gallery spaces. The collections are OK--the de Young never had a fabulous collection IMHO-the New Guinea collection is very good and the galleries for it are extremely well done. It really is worth a trip--will be even better when construction of the New Academy is done.

girlonthego

We stayed on Nob Hill at the Stanford Court hotel(marriott brand). It was a very nice hotel with a trolley stop right outside our door. It was very safe and quiet. We walked down the hill to Chinatown and took the trolley everywhere else. There are some very nice hotels on Nob Hill. My parents liked the Huntington for it's charm. I don't know the one you mentioned.

LoveItaly

Hello jfawp, I am not familar with the NobHill Hotel. I checked it out on Google, suggest you do the same if you haven't. It is on Hyde St. between Bush and Geary. Not especially an area I would want to stay in.

Have you gone onto TripAdivsors to see what reviews are there?
Best wishes to you.

lmhornet

Fisherman's wharf is a dreadful tourist trap. It's one of those things that you have to see as a tourist, but you wouldn't want to stay anywhere around there - unless you like overpriced tourist junk and overpriced lousy seafood.

More good advice. Forget Napa and go to Sonoma instead. Napa has become highly commercialized. You have to pay for every little sip and weekends are one big line of traffic, although winter should be better. Sonoma and Russian River are a bit further but much more pleasant these days.

jfawp

Thanks for the help. As I know nothing at all about San Francisco, I need MUCH help. Will probably cancel my reservations at Nob Hill Hotel. Any other suggestions regarding motels. I did check out Huntington (which is to expensive for my budget, and the Stanford Court, which I liked the looks of and price of. Someone had told me to stay on Nob Hill because of the views of the city, does the Stanford have such views?

acwsf

Other Nob Hill hotels are the Mark Hopkins, the Ritz, and the Fairmont. Smaller boutique hotels include The Orchard hotel.

One side note about staying on Nob Hill. It's a bit obvious, but any of those hotels are on or at the top of the hill. When planning your time, you may say, "Oh, no problem." But I got married at the Mark Hopkins and about 60 or so of our guests stayed there. I can't tell you how many of them couldn't handle the hills and ended up taking cabs three/four blocks up the hill from Union Square throughout their entire stay. It had never occurred to me b/c I grew up in SF and am used to the hills, but I can see after a day of walking all around the city, walking four blocks up-hill to get to your hotel can get kind of old. Going up and down the hills is exacerbated by the fact that there are few amenities on Nob Hill. The hotels have restaurants, but other than that there isn't an abundance of neighborhood places to eat or shops (the restaurants and shopping tend to be near Union Square). After seeing what my guests went through, I'd recommend staying closer to Union Square, if possible (it can still be on Nob Hill, but down the hill a bit). Just my 2 cents.

FainaAgain

Underhill, the Nob Hill hotel is not on the top of the hill in the California/Mason/Powell area, it's at the base of it, on Hyde between Sutter and Bush. Rather flat area if you don't climb the hill.

girlonthego

We did not have a view from our room at the Stanford Court. We were on the second floor (I think) We had an interior courtyard view. I requested the quietest area since I don't always sleep well and the outside rooms you can hear trolleys pretty late in the evening. We enjoyed our stay and it was a lovely hotel in a nice area. We had no problem getting around on the trolleys and in cabs and downhill on foot. Uphill is rather difficult. We walked up two blocks and that was enough for me. The Tonga room was across the street at the Fairmont and we went there for appetizers and cocktails one evening. A fun and unique place. Like I said before, Chinatown is a couple of blocks down the hill.