Where should I book my hotel for my first-ever trip to the Bay Area? (San Francisco: car rental, best neighborhoods)

[Jericho-79]

I'm traveling to the Bay Area for the first time in June of next year. I'll be in the area for the U2 concert at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum. I also want to do some sightseeing in San Francisco on the day after the concert.

I've never been to the Bay Area before. And Oakland has the reputation of NOT being one of the best neighborhoods- especially around the Coliseum. So I was hoping if any Bay Area residents could give me some input.

I'm thinking that I have two options:

1) I could fly into Oakland, rent a car, and stay at one of the hotels near the airport/Coliseum. This way I could walk/drive to/from the stadium on the day of the concert. (However, I don't know how safe that part of Oakland is.) The next day, I could drive into San Francisco proper, spend the day sightseeing, and stay at a hotel near the Wharf, Union Square or Embarcadero.

2) I could fly into SFO, take the BART into San Francisco proper, and stay at a hotel near the Union Square or Embarcadero for the entire duration of my Bay Area trip. This way I could take the BART to/from the Coliseum on the day of the concert.

So should I book a hotel in Oakland or in San Francisco proper? Which option would be the most convenient (and least expensive) for me?

And if anyone can think of any other options, please let me know.

[18Montclair]

Well, if your a first time tourist to the Bay Area than I would stay in SF-there is more to see and do.

You can actually catch BART from Downtown SF directly to the Oakland Coliseum-its very convenient.

[mayorhaggar]

Is the concert pretty late? BART stops running a bit after midnight so if the concert gets out late you'd have to take a cab to SF which could be expensive. If the concert gets out before that then BART is definitely pretty easy.

Most of Oakland is better than its reputation but it just doesn't have that many hotels in nice areas compared with San Francisco. If you can I would stay in SF, it has a lot more hotels and most of them are in the Union Square area which is always very busy and full of people and near BART, it is a pretty safe area though if you go a few blocsk west of Powell you get into the Tenderloin which is a pretty crummy area.

The Coliseum area definitely has a dicey reputation, especially if you go east from there, the area west of it isn't as bad but you probably wouldn't want to be wandering around in an unfamiliar area after midnight.

Maybe check out the hotels listed in this article, the Waterfront Hotel sounds neat:

The Weekend Escape Plan -- Oakland -- New York Magazine

[Jericho-79]

Originally Posted by mayorhaggar

Is the concert pretty late? BART stops running a bit after midnight so if the concert gets out late you'd have to take a cab to SF which could be expensive. If the concert gets out before that then BART is definitely pretty easy.

The U2 concert will probably last to around quarter after 11 P.M. I know that BART services last until 12:30 A.M. or so. My only concern is the post-concert rush to the Oakland/Coliseum BART station. I might miss the last train!

Also, I'm currently looking into hotels in the Embarcadero area. I want a hotel near the water.

[mayorhaggar]

You could just rent a car for that one day to make sure you don't have to scramble for the train--you could rent it at like 5pm the day of the concert then turn it in the next morning, shouldn't cost too much and it's not a very far distance to drive. There are a few car rental places in downtown SF where you could pick up and drop off the car.

[slo1318]

Embarcadero would be fine, Union Square is always good, and great for walking/shopping/people watching......Id definitely stay in SF though.

[nmnita]

Book near downtown, we love the Hilton, or try the Wharf area. Yes, rent a car for at least one day.

I would fly into SFO rather than Oakland.

Nita

[Shelacious]

As a first time visitor, I would fly into SFO, stay in the city, and catch BART to the Coliseum.

However, the easier way and cheaper way is the opposite--I would fly into OAK, take a cab to the Marriott in downtown Oakland (or some other hotel fairly close to BART or a quick bus to BART). I would BART to/from the Coliseum and then BART to SF the next day and stay there the next day. Then BART back to OAK to leave. I just don't recommend driving around SF if you don't have a lot of time--walking or public transit or some tour is the best way to see the City unless you want to see a bunch of spots in all corners of the City. OAK tends to be cheaper to fly in and out of than SFO.

[Jericho-79]

Hey again everyone. I'm at a bit of a loss as to what I should do.

I've found A TON of downtown SF hotels stretching from Embarcadero to Union Square. Most of them are found north of Market Street, where the BART stations are located.

However, I'm having a hard time finding any hotels that are under $150 per night. It seems like all the hotels in downtown cost an arm and a leg. I need to stay in SF for three nights while on a budget.

Do you guys know of any hotels in the Emarcadero/Union Square area that are more affordable?

Are there any other alternatives?

[mdwstrnkid]

You might try the Handlery Union Square Hotel. I think that it usually runs around $150/night, so you might be able to find a promotional rate that is better.

Downtown San Francisco Hotels - Handlery Union Square Hotel – Hotels Downtown in San Francisco, CA