Frommer's San Francisco 2012 - Matthew Poole [65]
• When you check in, if your room isn’t up to snuff, politely inform the front desk of your dissatisfaction and ask for another. If the hotel can accommodate you, they almost always will—and sometimes will even upgrade you!
Getting the Best Deal
Many hotels offer rooms at rates above and below the price category that applies to most of the units. If you like the sound of a place that’s a bit over your budget, it never hurts to call and ask a few questions. Also note that we do not list single rates. Some hotels, particularly more affordable choices, do charge lower rates for singles, so inquire about them if you are traveling alone.
San Francisco is a popular destination year-round, so although there are bargains available, rooms here will still seem expensive compared to those in many other U.S. destinations. Still, you should always ask about weekend discounts, corporate rates, and family plans. Most larger hotels, and many smaller ones, offer them, but many reservations agents don’t mention them unless you ask about them specifically.
You’ll find nonsmoking rooms available in all larger hotels and many smaller hotels; reviews indicate establishments that are entirely nonsmoking. Nowadays, the best advice for smokers is to confirm a smoking-permitted room in advance, and if there’s a special cleaning charge per night.
Although you’ll find that most accommodations have an abundance of amenities (including phones, unless otherwise noted), don’t be alarmed by the lack of air-conditioned guest rooms. San Francisco’s weather is so mild, you’ll hardly ever need it.
Most larger hotels can accommodate guests who use wheelchairs and those who have other special needs. Ask when you make a reservation to ensure that your hotel can accommodate your needs, especially if you are interested in a bed-and-breakfast.
When booking a room in a chain hotel, call the hotel’s local line and the toll-free number and see where you get the best deal. A hotel makes nothing on a room that stays empty. The clerk who runs the place is more likely to know about vacancies than someone from the toll-free number and will often grant deep discounts in order to fill up rooms.
Reservation Services
Having reservations about your reservations? Leave it up to the pros: San Francisco Reservations ( 800/677-1570; www.hotelres.com) arranges reservations for more than 150 of San Francisco’s hotels and often offers discounted rates. Their website allows Internet users to make reservations online. Another great local source for discounted rates is LocalGetaways.com.
The San Francisco Convention & Visitors Bureau also provides an online source for booking hotels, tickets, and packages at www.onlyinsanfrancisco.com.
Alternative Accommodations
An alternative to booking a room at a hotel is to swap homes or apartments. House/apartment-swapping is becoming a more popular and viable means of travel; you stay in their place, they stay in yours, and you both get an authentic and personal view of the area, the opposite of the escapist retreat that many hotels offer. It’s usually done by online classified ads at such sites as HomeExchange.com, HomeLink (Homelink.org), and Craigslist.org (www.sfbay.craigslist.org/sfc/swp).
Hostels
Though you sometimes get what you pay for at a hostel, at their best they can be homey places where you meet nice people, get great information, and get a free or very inexpensive breakfast.
If you haven’t stayed at a hostel, here’s what you can expect: most offer shared rooms (either same sex or mixed; HI hostels have only single-sex dorm rooms) with shared bathrooms, usually for less than (sometimes a lot less than) $50 a night; prices can vary by season. Some hostels offer private rooms for one, two, or three people, or en-suite bathrooms, with the price going up accordingly; though top end for private rooms is still usually well under $100.
HI hostels offer free breakfast; the Green Tortoise ( 415/834-1000; www.greentortoise.com) offers free breakfast and free dinner 3 nights a week. Most hostels have a communal kitchen/dining