Originally Posted By RidgebackLuver Kar2oonman, it's not that he WON'T go, he just is miserable when we do because he hates it so much, which in turn ruins my good time. He's a GREAT husband and most of the time complies if I want something, but he's a country type of guy and hates big cities. Being in the Moms with young kids age group, most of my friends don't have time to go galavanting off to the city and our husbands don't want us going alone for safety reasons so I am kinda stuck for a while!
Originally Posted By Kar2oonMan I was just yanking your chain a little, Ridgeback. I just can't relate because there are so many cool things to do and see in San Francisco. I also find it to be pretty safe in most areas -- my son and daughter (ages 15 and 19) go there on their own regularly. Of course, that's my own bias. I know cities aren't everyone's cup of tea, and the world would be dull if everyone liked the same things. I love SF, love showing it off to visitors, and hate to see people miss out on the fun things to do and see there. Especially locals!
Originally Posted By RidgebackLuver I know We plan on taking the kids to see GG bridge and the Exploratoriam, etc. He just doesn't like to go far into the city. After the 900th time someone asks him for some spare change, he's about finished LOL! But I do miss eating at my fav SF restaurant...The Stinking Rose! Maybe for Mother's Day....
Originally Posted By LuLu Well phooey. Before bidding (which I need to get busy on!), I went to check my AAA Tour Book for attractions in SF, and I had ripped out the pages last time! So I need some ideas. So far I have Golden Gate Park, WDFM and Chinatown on the agenda. Last time we did Alcatraz, Coit Tower, Tonga Room, Botanical Garden at GGP... we were at Fisherman's Wharf for lunch, hot cocoa at Ghirardelli's, and the boat to Alcatraz but maybe we missed something exciting there? We like gardens, animals and modern architecture. Circle Gallery is on the list again, if convenient.
Originally Posted By Lisann22 Go to Conservatory of Flowers in GGP. The Palace of Legion Honor is a great museum and the views of the GGB are awesome from there. Cable Car Barn Musuem If you like Modern Architecture I'm not sure if your art follows suit but SFMOMA is awesome and its near the Mission District which is always interesting. You can also go to the Yerba Buena Gardens which is beautiful with interesting art, statues, the Sony Metreon and the MLK memorial - beautiful too. The Asian Art Museum is outstanding as well. You can look them all up on line for more info.
Originally Posted By LuLu I just found my torn-out pages! I was looking at both the Palace and the Asian Museum. I haven't been to MoMA in many years and that's also an option. I'll look into the boat ride. We need to balance our museum time with outdoors time! Saw the Conservatory last time - it was awesome enough to do again! We also did the Cable Car museum - very cool - and the Japanese Tea Garden in GGP. I'll have to check into the Yerba Buena. Thanks for the suggestions!
Originally Posted By LuLu And back to the discussion of where to stay - I did a lot of reading on biddingfortravel.com last night, and was very disappointed to hear all the negative reviews of the 4-stars in Union Square. Apparently they have strict policies to give the oldest, smallest (125 sq ft!), smelliest rooms to Priceline customers. The 3-stars in Fisherman's Wharf were getting better reviews. I didn't intend to stay there, but it is closer to most of our destinations (notwithstanding MUNI routes, which I haven't yet checked). SOMA and Embarcadero had better rooms too, but are somewhat removed from the action. Or I can book the Powell, recommended by JiM, directly, for only $79 for 1 queen bed. (We'd prefer 2 beds, but sounds like that ain't gonna happen w/o paying a hefty upgrade fee.) Any thoughts on this are welcome too
Originally Posted By Autopia Deb We have found that having separate blankets helps when we have to share a bed in hotels. In fact it is the only way we can share without fighting the middle of the night blanket war (which my son fights very effectively without even waking up).
Originally Posted By LuLu Great idea Deb! I discovered that the Powell also has 2-twin rooms, AND that the $79 reservation is cancellable. So I reserved as my back-up plan. And I may just stick with it. I could probably save around $100 and get a "better" hotel (more stars), but it's an unknown, and people were saying that the rooms at the Westin St Francis even, were barely 2-star quality. Nice hotel tho!
Originally Posted By Lisann22 <a href="http://www.theorchardhotel.com" target="_blank">http://www.theorchardhotel.com</a> My fav.
Originally Posted By Lisann22 Also if you want to be outside LuLu then I suggest walking Crissy Fields starting at the Visitors Center. You can explore the land (great views) and then walk through the Marina District to Fort Mason.
Originally Posted By LuLu Your hotel looks awesome! A bit more than I want to spend. Still considering Priceline, esp. Fisherman's Wharf, for convenience (tho riding the cable car every day can't be too bad!) The Powell had several bad reviews towards the end of last year for bed bugs (EEK!). It appears that has been resolved now, but that would really ruin a vacation. Of course it could happen anywhere. Looking into Crissy Fields!
Originally Posted By skinnerbox Orchard Hotel has the location advantage of being two blocks south of the Fairmont, which is home to the Tonga Room. No Tiki fan should ever miss the Tonga Room. Best weekday Happy Hour in the Bay Area.
Originally Posted By Schmitty Good Vibes Ack!!! I'm a huge Tiki fan, and I could hardly stand the Tonga Room. I guess it was mostly because of the cheesy band. The decor was so so, the service was terrible and the drinks were good, but not worth the wait. Go to Emeryville and Trader Vicks. Again the decor is not The Enchanted Tiki Room (which all Tiki bars should be, you know), but everything else is A+. The drinks are expensive, but more than worth every penny. Just my opinion.
Originally Posted By Schmitty Good Vibes LuLu, Ever taken a walk across the Golden Gate Bridge? (I'll beback withmore ideas later)
Originally Posted By LuLu SGV is back! Yahoo!!! I liked the Tonga Room - but no band when we were there. The Happy Hour buffet was a deal, but not very healthy and I doubt DD would eat a thing off it these days. Trader Vic's sounds like quite an expedition - as does walking the GG bridge! Definitely up for Crissy Fields tho - sounds great!
Originally Posted By LuLu 10 days to go and I'm still trying to figure out what we'll see. I've pretty much settled on Friday for the Legion of Honor and de Young, as 1 ticket gets you in both, and the de Young has special events on Friday evening. Sounds good. Saturday is probably WDFM and...? Need input on: Academy of Sciences? SGV gave this a thumbs down. Angel Island? Anyone been? It's been that and Sausalito, I'm leaning towards Sausalito tho.
