I travel alot with my job and stay primarily at Marriott properties, so I'm using points. Don't really know the areas.
My choices are:
-Marriott Fishermans Wharf (in Fishermans Wharf)
-The Stanford Court Renaissance Hotel (Nob Hill)
-JW Marriott San Francisco Union Square (Union Square)

are you traveling for business or pleasure? have you been to SF before?

just saw your other thread..

if its only you and the g/f, stay at the JW or Stanford Ct.

I would do an organized city tour (3-4 hours). they will take you around, maybe make 1-2 stops. You will get to see most of the city. You can then go back to the places that interest you most, like Chinatown, Wharf, etc. You dont need a rental, unless you head up to wine country. Parking is expensive, $40-60 nights, so keep that in mind.

As far was wine country, I prefer Sonoma. Less tourist, smaller wineries, most family run and tastings are usually cheaper or free. However, if this is your first trip, Napa might be worth checking out. You can either drive yourself or hire a driver. I would stay away from tours and just research yourself which wineries to go to. If you are limited on time, pick a particular varietal (Cab, Chard,etc) that you like most and research those. I would only go on one Tour, as they are pretty much the same. After that, hit the tasting rooms. If you plan it out, you can hit 4-5 in a day. Also research what time the places close. I usually end at Chandon in Napa, as they stay open the latest and are closer to SF.

Just some thoughts. If you have any questions, let me know! i lived there for 5 years and went to Napa about once a month.

Thanks for the input. I've heard great things about the Wharf, didn't know if it's worth staying out there though. The JW and Stanford look to be in a great spot as well (JW has a rental place for wine country). The only problem is one of us can't really drink all that much if driving to the winery's. I'm looking into if any of the hotels have tours that leave from them. I've also considered staying a night in wine country as well.

The gf wants to also go the Monterey Bay...that will most likely be a day trip down and back.

Monterey/Carmel is great as well. Some good wineries there. Check our Bernardus.

Stanford Court

avoid staying in the wharf area. Just full of tourists and bad restaurants.

After further review with the gf, sounds as if it's between 'The Stanford' or the 'JW'. It appears they are both close enough to Union Square and Knob Hill, so that's not so much a concern.

Suggestions?

keep in mind that while the views from Nob Hill are great, they're a b1tch to walk up/down. yes, you can take the cable cars, but those get expensive and depending on time of year, can be very crowded.

and for great shopping, dont forget about the boutiques in the Marina and Filmore areas.

Just got back from SF Friday. We stayed at the Omni on California Street...took a recommendation from a traveler here on texags. It's not in the middle of a touristy area, but close enough to most things by foot, or of course the cable cars. The cable cars and trolleys run from 8AM-1AM and there's also the BART (subway) and taxis. We actually had a rent car that didn't get out of the garage and walked everywhere. The weather was great and we enjoyed the walking. Those hills are something else, though!

The Omni was a little pricey (for this budget traveler but it was nice and the front desk staff was very helpful.

Currently at the Hilton Garden Inn near the airport, heading out to ChinaTown for dinner and flying back to S.A. in the morning.

I love coming out here.

What about the airport/Daly City areas? Any reason NOT to stay there? Does city transportation (of any kind) come down there?

DART does go down in that direction, but you would have to connect to buses, etc to get to your hotel. IMHO, not worth the extra time to save a few bucks. There are a ton of choices in the city, even near Japan Town, Inner Sunset, etc.

if you want to check out the Omni, shoot me an email. Cant promise a great deal all the time, but my replacement still hooks me up best he can.

rmcleroy@omnihotels.com

I ended up picking the JW Marriott. I'm either doing a day trip to NAPA/Sonoma area or stay the night up there...haven't decided.
Any recommended wineries?

Also, would you recommend night or day Alcatraz tour?

[This message has been edited by Silvertaps (edited 12/4/2010 3:00p).]

I did the night. Might as well have an early dinner and hit it up for after-dinner entertainment.

did both trips to The Rock. I liked the night time the best. Make sure you bring a heavy coat (regardless of what time of year)...

Leaving today for San Fran and very excited.
Any suggested restaurants in the area? I've heard great things about Scoma's, so I'm checking that out tomorrow night. Also hitting up Ike's Place.

My wife loves The Stinking Rose when we go out there. The crab special is her favorite. Don't plan on going out afterward without a full body wash. You'll have garlic pouring out of you.

I'm back from San Fran, it was greatness.
I proved it possible to do the Alcatraz tour, Sonoma/Napa day trip (3 winery's), WALK Union Square/Chinatown/North Beach/Fisherman's Wharf, and visit the Monterey Bay Aquarium in 5 days.

Union Square was BUSY due to it being the holidays, but we made our way through the crowds. Great restaurants in that city for sure!
I highly suggest the Alcatraz night tour. Creepy as hell, but very memorable. Did a day tour of Sonoma/Napa and visited Bell Winery, Trefethen Vineyards, and the Rubicon Estates (Coppola's flagship wines). Beautiful country out that way for sure. You HAVE to see the Rubicon Estate, it's unreal!

Thanks for all the suggestions, they made for a great December vacation!