Need advice on San Fran hotels

[Anonymous]

We are flying to Australia and will be stopping over in SF on the way home. I am going solo with 2 small kids and decided we should stay in a hotel in SF for 24 hrs to break the journey and get some sleep before we come back to DC.
I have booked in some hotel airport (Marriott San Mateo) that is 4-star but turns out to be 20 minutes from the airport and 30 minutes from the city.

I am looking to change the reservation and stay in a diff hotel.

1) a 4 or 5 star hotel that is right at the airport
OR
2) a 4 or 5 star hotel in SF itself. We do have a long layover so maybe we should just go into the city?

Any advice on either? We are willing to splurge on this because i know it will be a miserable flight for mama!!

Thanks

[Anonymous]

The Mark Hopkins is probably 5-star, in SF itself. It's been years since I've stayed there, however.

[Anonymous]

The Mark Hopkins is still nice and a landmark, but the standard rooms aren't huge -- and it isn't as luxurious as other hotels on Nob School. The Fairmont is wonderful (right across the street from the Mark). The Stanford Hotel is also on Nob Hill and our room there was huge.

I'd definitely stay on Nob Hill if you can afford it. Great views. Just step outside your hotel and onto the cable cars. Your kids will love it.

[Anonymous]

I wouldn't even bother going into SF. It just doesn't seem worth it for only a few hours, particularly when you're going to be jet lagged and with kids. The airport's like an hour away from the city - would you take a cab, rent a car, take the BART? At the very least, I wouldn't want to schlep my stuff into the city for just a night. You could stay at/near the airport and if everyone is feeling up to it then go into the city after dropping the luggage and freshening up.

And Nob Hill while lovely (I've stayed at the Fairmont) would be my absolute last choice. It is a big hill but with nothing much to do or eat at the top aside from the hotels. That means walking up and down the Hill (which is a bitch). I wouldn't want to do it with 2 jet lagged little kids. And while yes the cable cars run up the hill, they are also very popular and can have lengthy lines to get on at the bottom of the hill, when you desperately want to use them.

[Anonymous]

PP: but we arrive in the morning and leave the next night (red eye). You still think it's not worth it? You may be right. Could just amuse them in the hotel grounds, i guess....

[Anonymous]

19:53 PP here -

I'd get a hotel by the airport and play it by ear. If I stayed in the city, I'd feel a little sad if I didn't actually see anything while there. But with the jet lag and the time constraints how much do you think you'd actually get around to doing, and if you did go out could that be more tiring?

If I was staying out at the airport, however, I would take the opportunity to actually relax, which it seemed was the point of the stop-over in the first place.

Another question is why SF? Did you pick it specifically or was that just where the airline stopped? If you really want to see the city then go for it. But I'd still stay away from Nob Hill. Choose a hotel close to the #1 attraction on your list.

[Anonymous]

I'm a former Bay Area resident and have traveled there on numerous occasions with our kids. There's tons to do in th city with kids, but in your situation I would just want to chill for 24 hours. So, my recommendation is to stay at the Claremont in Oakland. This is an old-fashioned resort with pools and spa -- and, most important, they are fabulous with kids. You can book a sitter for the kids and a massage for yourself, hang out at the pool, and get some rest.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm a former Bay Area resident and have traveled there on numerous occasions with our kids. There's tons to do in th city with kids, but in your situation I would just want to chill for 24 hours. So, my recommendation is to stay at the Claremont in Oakland. This is an old-fashioned resort with pools and spa -- and, most important, they are fabulous with kids. You can book a sitter for the kids and a massage for yourself, hang out at the pool, and get some rest.

How far is Oakland to SFO?