How to find the best hotels to stay in San Francisco
Finding the perfect accommodation in San Francisco isn't going to be an easy task, as it's one of the most expensive cities to stay in the United States (along with New York). Moreover, something that happens all over the country, is that the accommodations doesn't have a great value for money.
For these reasons we recommend you to follow these tips when looking for a hotel in San Francisco:
- Focus on the areas we recommend below and avoid staying in the ones we tell you NOT to stay..
- Try to book hotels whose rating is above 7.5.
- Always read the guest reviews and sort them by the most recent ones to see the real pros and cons of each hotel. On Booking.com, which is the platform we always use, you can filter by language or even use the option to translate the review.
- Unless the hotel includes breakfast in the price, don't add it. They're usually overpriced and for sure you're going to find cheaper options for breakfast on the street.
- Confirm that taxes are included in your reservation to avoid surprises. Booking.com always indicates this at the beginning of the reservation as well as at the end. The accommodations in San Francisco have the following taxes:
- Transient Occupacy Tax: 14%
- California Tourism Fee: 0,2%
- Tourist Improvement District Tax: 2% for hotels in zone 2 and 2.25% for hotels in zone 1
- Moscone Expansion District Tax: 0.3125% for hotels in zone 2 and 1.25% for hotels in zone 1
- Some hotels may include the Resort Fee, an additional tax for the use of their facilities, the amount of which is chosen by the hotel itself.
- The great majority of hotels in San Francisco (and in the USA in general) keep a deposit of variable amount that they return to you once you have left the room without damages. Keep this in mind to have enough money on your credit card.
Best neighborhoods to stay in San Francisco
If you're looking for the best area to stay in San Francisco, you should know there're several. In our opinion, 5 are the best and the ones you should focus on to find your accommodation.
Here you'll find a clear summary of advantages/disadvantages, nearby points of interest and best hotels of each one:
1. Union Square, the most central area to stay in San Francisco
- Advantages: central area, well connected and safe. BART stops nearby.
- Disadvantages: high prices, the area can be noisy, proximity to neighborhoods that should be avoided and paid parking.
- Nearby points of interest: Chinatown, Grace Cathedral and Yerba Buena Gardens.
- Recommended accommodations: all hotels in Union Square here.
- Grant Hotel (offers a small breakfast)
- Chancellor Hotel
- Hotel 32One
- Palihotel San Francisco
If you want to be in the most central area of the city, that would be Union Square. This is the shopping district par excellence and where you can find popular stores such as Macy's. It has many restaurants and has both day and night life. In addition, the BART (the train that connects to the San Francisco's airport) has 2 stops in Union Square.
Of course, you should focus on a specific area when looking for accommodation in Union Square. This area is surrounded by some of the neighborhoods where we don't recommend staying (we will talk about them later).
In case you're visiting San Francisco with a car, this wouldn't be the ideal area to stay, as all is paid parking (minimum $40 per day) and hotels don't usually offer parking options.
2. Marina District, the best views of the Golden Gate Bridge
- Advantages: residential and safe area, views of the Golden Gate Bridge, accommodations with free parking and less expensive area.
- Disadvantages: the neighborhood itself lacks tourist spots and few public transportation options.
- Nearby points of interest: Lombard Street, Fisherman's Warf and Presidio.
- Recommended accommodations: all hotels in the Marina District here.
- Travelodge by Wyndham Presidio (breakfast included and free parking)
- Cow Hollow Inn and Suites (free parking)
- Signature Inn (free parking)
- Chelsea Inn (free parking)
It's true that Marina District isn't so charming from a tourist point of view, as it's a rather residential area. However, is one of the safest areas to stay in San Francisco, quiet and has lots of restaurants, bars and supermarkets. Moreover, it's one of the cheapest places in the center! We've stayed here and we don't regret it.
In addition, it is the neighborhood that offers the best views of the Golden Gate Bridge, especially from the waterfront areas, and you can walk to points like Lombard Street and Fisherman's Wharf. It's also next to Presidio, the huge park full of scenic spots.
This is an ideal area if you're visiting San Francisco with a car and are looking for hotels in San Francisco with parking, as many of the accommodations offer free parking. You have to take into account that the public transportation options are scarce, for example, the streetcar doesn't get here.
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3. Fisherman's Wharf, the most vibrant area of San Francisco
- Advantages: safe, lively and picturesque area. Many restaurants.
- Disadvantages: somewhat noisy at night, high priced accommodations.
- Nearby points of interest: Pier 39, Cable Car stop, USS Pampanito and starting point for tours to Alcatraz.
- Recommended accommodations: all hotels in Fisherman's Wharf here.
- Holiday Inn Express (breakfast included)
- The Suites (apartments)
- Kimpton Alton
- Travelodge by Wyndham
Located next to the Marina District, Fisherman's Wharf is the most lively and touristic area of San Francisco. This means that here you'll find everything: bars, restaurants, supermarkets, vibrant atmosphere and some of the most emblematic tourist attractions of the city. Here begins the Cable Car line and is where the boats depart to Alcatraz, so you can make lots of plans on foot.
This in turn makes it an expensive area to stay in, with prices very similar to Union Square, besides can be noisy at night depending on where you choose your hotel.
If you're passionate about gastronomy, in Fisherman's Wharf you can eat the best seafood in town and one of the most popular dishes: the Clam Chowder inside a bun.
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4. North Beach, the best area to eat in San Francisco
- Advantages: safe and central area, many gastronomic options.
- Disadvantages: parking is generally paid.
- Puntos de interés cercanos: St Peter and Paul Church, Little Italy, Washington Square, Chinatown y Fisherman's Wharf.
- Recommended accommodations: all hotels in North Beach here.
- Columbus Inn (free parking)
- San Remo Hotel
- Hotel Boheme
- SW Hotel (next to Chinatown)
North Beach is the district between Fisherman's Warf and Chinatown and one of the best locations to stay in San Francisco. It's home to Little Italy, the city's Italian neighborhood, and is a relatively quiet yet centrally located area with a variety of dining options - the best pizza and coffee in San Francisco is in North Beach!
From here you can visit lots of places on foot and you have streetcar stops very close by, which will make it easier to get around San Francisco.
On the downside, it wouldn't be the ideal option if you're visiting San Francisco by car, as the hotels don't usually offer parking or if they do it's paid (just like on the street). In our recommendations we've left you an option with free parking!
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5. Nob Hill, the exclusive neighborhood of San Francisco
- Advantages: safe and central area, well connected by public transport. It offers good views and high quality hotels.
- Disadvantages: area with many slopes.
- Nearbypoints of interest: Union Square, Grace Cathedral and Chinatown.
- Recommended accommodations: all hotels in Nob Hill here.
- Stanford Court
- University Club (breakfast included)
- Nob Hill Motor Inn (free parking)
Nob Hill is an elegant and quite exclusive neighborhood of San Francisco located next to Union Square. It's located on a hill, so it has those slopes so typical of San Francisco. This, although it may not seem like it, is also an advantage since several streetcar lines pass through here.
Here live mostly wealthy families and you can find some of the best hotels in San Francisco, such as the Fairmont San Francisco, but you can also find more economical options (like the ones we show you in our recommendations).
Where not to stay in San Francisco: areas to avoid
And now we go to the ugliest part of the city: the areas to avoid in San Francisco to stay. It's no secret that San Francisco (actually several cities in the United States) has a very serious problem of people living on the streets. Not only homeless as such, but also drug addicts (we've seen people getting high on the streets) and people with very serious mental problems. Some even look like zombies crawling on the streets.
In fact, there're an estimated 8,300 homeless people in San Francisco (half of them living directly on the street or in their cars) and this number has increased by 7% since 2022. In other words, it's not getting any better.
Our opinion after having visited both San Francisco and other cities in the country and Canada (where there is the same problem), is that homeless people aren't dangerous for tourists. They don't try to rob you nor do they pose a security problem as such for you, but it's true that it's a very unpleasant environment to see (and smell) and it creates a feeling of insecurity that nobody wants to live during their vacations.
💡Recommended: 3-Day San Francisco Itinerary
So, to make your stay in the city as good as possible, here are the areas you should avoid in San Francisco to stay. Take into account that anywhere in the city you can find some homeless, but in these areas is where most of them are concentrated:
- Tenderloin: it's located next to Union Square, so it's easy to cross here while walking downtown.
- Civic Center: here are some of San Francisco's tourist sites, such as the City Hall and the Public Library. We went and, although we saw quite a few homeless people, the atmosphere didn't seem too bad (but this may have changed).
- SoMa: mainly on Market Street, between 5th and 10th (known as Mid Market).
- Mission District and Potrero Hill: especially around the BART stations between 18th and 24th streets is where the most trouble is concentrated. Mission has some interesting tourist spots, so you can decide for yourself if you feel like checking them out depending on the atmosphere you see.
San Francisco Accommodation Map
In this map you can see marked by colors all the zones and the hotels we recommend. The areas in black are the ones you should avoid to stay in:
We hope this article has been helpful to you in choosing your accommodation in San Francisco!
