SF tours and shuttle info needed

We (2 adults + 2 children) will be in SF in August. I am looking for
some suggestions
1. How does the Union Sq Hilton look? The online reviews look decent.
2. Are city tours available nearby? I am looking for tours around the
city and surrounding areas. Any particular tour companies?
3. Information about airport shuttle service. Is SuperShuttle
reliable?
Thanks
Mark Sabatini

"Shawn Hirn" wrote in message
...
In article
,
wrote:

We (2 adults + 2 children) will be in SF in August. I am looking for
some suggestions
1. How does the Union Sq Hilton look? The online reviews look decent.
2. Are city tours available nearby? I am looking for tours around the
city and surrounding areas. Any particular tour companies?

I think it was Grey Line I took. I got on down by the water ( Fishermen's
Square) - several bus lines there - no waiting. The big ones will stop
right IN Union Sq, such as:
http://www.grayline.com/Grayline/des...484&sid= 540&
My bus driver actually wrote a tour book - he knew everything about the
city. Very good.

Search here for " San Francisco" not SF or San Fran and you'll find LOTS of
others have asked often.
Check the Hilton's website - they'll show all amenities.





3. Information about airport shuttle service. Is SuperShuttle
reliable?
Thanks
Mark Sabatini

1. I haven't stayed there, but the area is nice. I would be surprised if
you can't find reviews on tripadvisor.com of that hotel.

2. San Fran is a wonderful city to just wonder around. Get a map or a
tour guide book and make up your own tour, based on what interests you.

3. Your best bet is to take the train. Details are at
http://www.flysfo.com/web/page/index.jsp

wrote:
We (2 adults + 2 children) will be in SF in August. I am looking for
some suggestions
1. How does the Union Sq Hilton look? The online reviews look decent.

It's fine.

2. Are city tours available nearby? I am looking for tours around the
city and surrounding areas. Any particular tour companies?

Lots of tours. Do a city tour one day and surrounding areas (i.e. Muir
Woods) on another day.

San Francisco Ducks looks interesting. "http://www.bayquackers.com/".

For a ride on the bay, forget about the ridiculously priced bay tours,
and go down to the ferry building and take the Larkspur ferry. When you
get to Larkspur, go eat at the Marin Brewing Company (across the
pedestrian bridge from the ferry terminal). Then go back. Much more
enjoyable than the tourist traps in Sausalito or Tiburon.

Depending on the ages of the kids, you may want to do the classic Golden
Gate Bridge bicycle ride. There's a gazillion bike rental places, and
kids bikes, tag-alongs, tandems, and trailers are available.

3. Information about airport shuttle service. Is SuperShuttle
reliable?

No. Use BART to Powell Street. Actually for four people, depending on
the ages of the children and the fare they'd pay on BART, you can take a
taxi for only about $10 more than BART charges, and for less than Super
Shuttle charges. If you have a lot of luggage you may not want to take BART.

2. Are city tours available nearby?

Many tours are available. I took the Grayline tour many years ago and
enjoyed it.

San Francisco has a great public transit system and it's fairly easy
to get around on your own, but a tour is a good way to get oriented
and see a lot in a hurry.


3. Is SuperShuttle reliable?

It'll get you there, and it's inexpensive, but it can be slow
sometimes as you may have to wait for a shuttle, and then you wait for
it to fill up, and then it'll be stopping at many other hotels along
the way.

Check with your hotel to see if they offer their own shuttle service.
If they don't, I'd suggest spending a few more bucks and taking a
taxi. Much less hassle and much faster.

Do a city tour one day and surrounding areas
(i.e. Muir Woods) on another day.

Yes, if time permits there's lots to see outside the city. To the
north is Muir Woods and Napa Valley. To the south are beautiful
coastal areas like Monterey, The 17-Mile Drive (a scenic road with
dramatic ocean views), Carmel-by-the-Sea, etc.

James

On Jul 28, 12:24*pm, wrote:
We (2 adults + 2 children) will be in SF in August. I am looking for
some suggestions
1. How does the Union Sq Hilton look? The online reviews look decent.

Nice hotel. I've was there a few years ago with a younger relative
who was there with a school group.

2. Are city tours available nearby? I am looking for tours around the
city and surrounding areas. Any particular tour companies?

Gray Line is the big operator in town. They also have airport
transfers.

http://www.grayline.com/Grayline/des...anfrancisco.go

Mr Toad's Tours looks interesting (I've seen their vehicles around San
Francisco) although they operate out of Fishermans Wharf.

I personally recommend visiting Point Reyes National Seashore. Rent a
car for a day if you have to.

http://www.nps.gov/pore

3. Information about airport shuttle service. Is SuperShuttle
reliable?

BART was recommended, but it can be a bit tricky if you have lots of
luggage. Around rush hour and you will have a lot of angry people if
they can't get around your luggage. It works great for people with
maybe one or two bags.

In article
,
msabatini2001 wrote:

We (2 adults + 2 children) will be in SF in August. I am looking for
some suggestions
1. How does the Union Sq Hilton look? The online reviews look decent.

Big hotel, clean-looking lobby when I was last there (didn't stay), good
restaurant on the top floor with panoramic views. Consider also the
Grand Hyatt (depending on price, of course) - clean, family-friendly,
another good top-floor restaurant, and right by Union Square.

2. Are city tours available nearby? I am looking for tours around the
city and surrounding areas. Any particular tour companies?

Tour minibuses will pick you up at your hotel. In addition to Gray Line,
consider Great Pacific: http://www.greatpacifictour.com/index2.htm . I
do *not* recommend Pacific Excursions.

3. Information about airport shuttle service. Is SuperShuttle
reliable?

Yes, but for 4 people it'll cost you more than a taxi, which in addition
will be much faster as you'll go straight to your own hotel.

It's a great city. Have fun!

Geoff

--
Actually, I do have spots.

wrote:
We (2 adults + 2 children) will be in SF in August. I am looking for
some suggestions
1. How does the Union Sq Hilton look? The online reviews look decent.

Be sure to check "http://quikbook.com" and "http://venere.com" for
hotels. I used them in NYC and D.C. respectively, and was able to get
much lower rates than the hotels' own web sites. For most hotels they
don't require pre-payment.

Consider some of the boutique hotels as well.

Also the Grant Plaza in Chinatown. Definitely not a Hilton in terms of
decor or amenities, but a great location at a low price for a rather
small room.

On Thu, 30 Jul 2009 03:51:05 GMT, (Geoff Rait) wrote:

In article
,
msabatini2001 wrote:

3. Information about airport shuttle service. Is SuperShuttle
reliable?

Yes, but for 4 people it'll cost you more than a taxi, which in addition
will be much faster as you'll go straight to your own hotel.


My wife and I will be going to SF in October, and have a similar
question about how to get from the airport to our hotel near Union
Square (Vintage Court). About how much would a taxi cost? How much
would the two rides on the SuperShuttle cost? Where would it drop us
off? Is there any other shuttle service we should consider?

If the taxi isn't too much more expensive than two shuttle rides, we'd
prefer the taxi.

--
Ken Blake
Please Reply to the Newsgroup

On Thu, 30 Jul 2009 07:46:58 -0700, SMS
wrote:

wrote:
We (2 adults + 2 children) will be in SF in August. I am looking for
some suggestions
1. How does the Union Sq Hilton look? The online reviews look decent.

Be sure to check "http://quikbook.com" and "http://venere.com" for
hotels. I used them in NYC and D.C. respectively, and was able to get
much lower rates than the hotels' own web sites. For most hotels they
don't require pre-payment.

Consider some of the boutique hotels as well.

Also the Grant Plaza in Chinatown. Definitely not a Hilton in terms of
decor or amenities, but a great location at a low price for a rather
small room.


I recommend using the name your own price feature of Priceline.com.
You can often get very good prices with it.


--
Ken Blake
Please Reply to the Newsgroup

Ken Blake wrote:
On Thu, 30 Jul 2009 07:46:58 -0700, SMS
wrote:

wrote:
We (2 adults + 2 children) will be in SF in August. I am looking for
some suggestions
1. How does the Union Sq Hilton look? The online reviews look decent.
Be sure to check "http://quikbook.com" and "http://venere.com" for
hotels. I used them in NYC and D.C. respectively, and was able to get
much lower rates than the hotels' own web sites. For most hotels they
don't require pre-payment.

Consider some of the boutique hotels as well.

Also the Grant Plaza in Chinatown. Definitely not a Hilton in terms of
decor or amenities, but a great location at a low price for a rather
small room.


I recommend using the name your own price feature of Priceline.com.
You can often get very good prices with it.

The problem with Priceline is that you can't specify that you require
two beds. For families this is an issue.