San Francisco: Union Square Hotel Guide

Business travelers have long known of the convenience and comfort of hotels in the Union Square area, where it’s only a quick walk to the financial district or the Moscone Convention Center. Leisure travelers in search of a broader experience of San Francisco than can be found staying near increasingly tacky Fisherman’s Wharf, however, should also head to the heart of San Francisco, Union Square, for their accommodations.

Although the actual square itself is nothing special, with its grand proximity to great theaters, the city’s finest shopping, and colorful Chinatown, it’s hard to beat. San Francisco’s parking shortage is notorious and impossible to exaggerate; if you’re staying at Union Square, you’re likely to find a car an expensive impediment for in-city travel. You can hop a cable car along Powell Street to Fisherman’s Wharf, Muni trolleys and buses to most of the rest of the city, and BART to many locations within and outside the city, including East Bay destinations such as Berkeley and Oakland.

A survey of ten hotels within three blocks of Union Square found an astoundingly wide range of prices-–-,800 per night--for an equally astounding range of decent to marvelous rooms. Here are capsule descriptions of these hotels, roughly in ascending order of price:

• Dakota Hotel: Funky, friendly, old-style charm in a budget traveler’s paradise
• Hotel des Arts: European-style budget boutique hotel with a modern art emphasis
• Executive Hotel Mark Twain: "Affordable alternative" in a traditional hotel
• King George Hotel: Gorgeous, elegant gem, small and personal at modest cost
• Handlery Union Square Hotel: Big family-owned hotel run with a personal touch
• Warwick Regis Hotel: Old-world formality and elegance at theaters’ doorstep
• Crowne Plaza Hotel: Clubby, posh and professional
• Hotel Nikko: Modern, arty, sleek, with Japanese influence
• Pan Pacific Hotel: Luxury pampering in an international high-rise
• Campton Place Hotel: Plush luxury boutique hotel

Quick Tips:

San Francisco is the most militantly anti-smoking city in the world; it is even illegal to smoke in bars. Hotels set aside the vast majority of their rooms for non-smokers.

Hotels may be willing to include breakfast in your room rate. The more luxurious hotels often offer deep discounts when business travel is down: on weekends, in August, and over holidays. Be sure to check the internet and ask about deals when you reserve!

The Visitor’s Bureau is conveniently located at Hallidie Plaza, just outside the Powell Street BART station (to your left as you exit BART). Stop by to get a transit map and tourist information.

If you don’t have a transit pass, make sure you have a selection of small bills and coins, as ticket machines and drivers do not make change.

Best Way To Get Around:

Parking in downtown San Francisco is obscenely expensive; hotel rates run - per day, plus 14% city tax. Any location in the city that draws tourists or business travelers will have a shortage of parking, often at any price. Bridges have steep inbound tolls: for the Bay Bridge, for the Golden Gate. Roads are steep and narrow, one-way streets abound, and routes are confusing. I cannot emphasize enough how preferable it is to get around by public transport!

Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART), San Francisco’s "metro" system, now goes from SFO airport to downtown (.95). Union Square is equidistant from the Powell and Montgomery stops; I’ve indicated which is best for each hotel. Ticket prices are based on distance traveled, .25-.00.

Muni trolleys and buses cost .25 per trip and permit free transfers or reverse trips for two hours – save your ticket. The historic cable cars cost . Passes good for all these are a great value: for one day, for three days, for seven days. A family may find taxis cheaper for short trips.

Avoid traveling during rush hour, when public transport is packed with locals.

Parking: $20 per day in nearby garage
BART: Powell station (six blocks)

Could this be true? A hotel with a fun and funky soul located just two blocks from Union Square, with rates way under $100? Indeed it is. Your first clue is the etched wooden sign, complete with lucky horseshoe, hung over the entrance to the Dakota Hotel: "Kick off your boots and stay awhile." At rates as low as $50 per night, nearly anyone can afford to do just that.

Here are some things the Dakota is not: plush, depressing, sleek, grim, formal. Here are some things you won’t find at the Dakota: a weight room, a concierge, uniformed personnel, a bellman, a stuffy attitude. What you will find is a young and cheerful staff, a clean and comfy place to lay your head in one of 40 basic rooms, and a short, short walk to your sightseeing destination or the public transportation to get you there.

The lobby is clean and simple. A large map of the world pinned to the wall testifies to the international character of the budget travelers who find their way here. The hotel shows its age in the most delightful ways: thick ridged mahogany moldings, 1920s light fixtures, and best of all, a gen-yoo-wine birdcage elevator, the kind with a sliding glass-paned door and then an inner folding metal gate, letting you watch the floors slide by as you ascend to the thrum and whine of the motor. True, as a method of transport it’s pretty slow, not so much once you’re in it, but when you’re waiting for it. The Dakota advises how to handle this on little signs affixed to the wall by the elevator on each floor: "EXERCISE. Use the stairs when possible. It’s good for you." The Dakota is what it is, with an insouciant shrug and a smile.

Don’t let the hallways, painted a startling shade of salmon pink, put you off. The rooms are a standard off-white and simply furnished, with firm and bouncy mattresses. The amenities are limited to a TV with remote control and a small fridge and microwave, to make those longer stays even more affordable. The bathroom is small and 1920s cute, with a small sink tucked into a corner of the room and a clawfoot tub. As the single-pane windows front on busy Post Street, be prepared for some traffic noise – light sleepers may want to bring earplugs.

Rates run between $50 and $99, depending on season and availability--expect to pay about $65.

Hotel des Arts website
Parking: $20 per day in nearby garage
BART: Montgomery station (four blocks)

As tony as the Union Square area is, it’s still possible to find a distinctive hotel at a very affordable price. The recently renovated Hotel des Arts (formerly the Alisa Hotel) is in transition to a European-style boutique budget hotel with a modern-art flair. Situated just across the street from the Chinatown Gate a mere three blocks from Union Square and looking deceptively small; it actually houses 51 rooms.

The lobby, located on the second floor up a steep narrow spiral staircase or reached by elevator, gives a taste of where this hotel is headed. It’s graced by several colorful modern paintings which give it both a polished and a spirited air. While the rooms have bare walls right now, as the remodel is completed each room will be outfitted with artwork. Rooms are already outfitted in boutique-hotel style, with gold and cream walls, new mattresses, and sleek, plump white bedding. While the furniture is modern-spartan, once the artwork is in, these will be quite inviting and hip rooms. Rooms in the front of the hotel have views of the Chinatown Gate.

If economy is paramount in your priorities, Hotel des Arts offers some rooms with shared bath down the hall for a positively paltry rate. While this is an unusual option in America, in Europe such hotels are quite common. It’s not much to give up if you want to stay in a somewhat upscale hotel but your budget won’t stretch that far. If you prefer to pay for your privacy, rooms with private bath will run you an additional $30 or so.

Complimentary tea, coffee, and continental breakfast is provided, and Le Central, a French brasserie, is located on the first floor. As might be expected of such a small hotel, the only other amenities are what you’ll find in your room. However, with Union Square and Chinatown close at hand, whatever you need is sure to be close at hand.

Depending on season and availability, double rooms are $49-$69 with shared bath, $79-$99 with private bath, and rooms with two double beds are $99-$119. Parking will set you back $20 per day in a nearby garage.

Note: This is a no-smoking hotel.

Executive Hotel Mark Twain website
Parking: $28 per day, $38 for oversized vehicles
BART: Powell station (four blocks)

Located three blocks from Union Square, the Mark Twain bills itself as the "affordable alternative" in an area which can be quite pricy. Of the hotels I visited, this was indeed the most reasonably priced of the more "standard" variety of accommodations and a good choice for families.

The Mark Twain, built in 1948, looks like a fairly conventional hotel, with its small, comfortable but not particularly elegant lobby, but it has a notorious history. In 1949, the police broke down the door of Room 203 to arrest Billie Holiday, the renowned jazz singer, as she attempted to flush $50 worth of heroin down the toilet. A plaque by the door commemorates the infamous incident. Its namesake, however, is the plainspoken American writer who lived in the city during the heady Gold Rush days.

At the moment, the Mark Twain is somewhat dated, still bearing the marks of its previous Ramada Inn membership, with rust-colored floral quilted bedspreads set off by butter-yellow walls with white trim. It will soon be beginning a three-phase renovation which will transform it into a boutique hotel emphasizing the Mark Twain connection by painting quotations of the author along the top of the walls and adding Mark Twain books and pictures to the décor. The quilts will be replaced with white down comforters and boutique-style linens.

Rooms were quiet and spacious and closets were very roomy; the king room I saw had an enormous closet. Window coverings are wide-slatted white shutters. Bathrooms were also good-sized and, if not luxurious, with their yellow-and-red checkered tile floors at least had some character. All rooms are outfitted with Nintendo, internet access, safes, and irons and ironing boards.

The hotel has a fitness center and a bar and offers concierge, laundry, and dry-cleaning services. The attached Sultan Restaurant serves excellent Indian food in the evening; an American breakfast is served in the morning. Breakfast may be included with your room; ask when you reserve.

Rooms cost $95-$125.

King George Hotel website
Parking: Self-parking $22 per day, valet $27 per day
BART: Powell station (five blocks)

This elegant gem of a hotel, built in 1914 and last renovated in 2002, seems smaller than it is, and that’s a good thing. A little slice of quasi-England just a block off Union Square, the tall green building houses 153 charming and comfortable rooms on nine floors in a variety of configurations: double, queen, king, twin, and double-double, in an environment that feels simultaneously cozy, personal and graceful.

The lobby is a revelation of Georgian grace, with beveled glass panes in the tall windows, yellow and gold walls, and long, long maroon drapes reaching to the green-and-gold carpeted floor. There’s a life-size portrait of a uniformed King George (it’s George IV, not George III against whom the Revolutionary War was fought). Classical music wafts through the airy, high-ceilinged room, making you long to linger. An incredibly narrow marble staircase spirals up beside the elevator, which is probably how you’ll choose to go up and down.

Rooms continue the elegant green-and-gold color scheme, with yellow walls and green-striped bed coverings set off by dark cherry-wood furniture. Bathrooms were on the small side but nicely outfitted with green and gold striped shower curtains. Only first floor rooms have air conditioning (take note if you are coming in summer), but all rooms have ceiling fans, and additional table fans are available upon request. All rooms have radios, TVs, Nintendo, safes, irons, hairdryers, and free DSL service. Kings and doubles also have coffee makers. Concierge, laundry, and dry-cleaning services are offered, and 24-hour room service is available through Lori’s Diner next door – very tasty 50s-style food.

There is a fairly rudimentary business center offering computer and internet access for $5 for 20 minutes, $10 for an hour. Offsite access to a fitness club is available for an extra charge. Breakfast (daily) and high tea (weekends only) is served in the wicker-furnished Windsor Café. A continental-style breakfast will set you back about $6, while you can have your tea a la carte or with the full panoply of sandwiches, salad and sweets for $18 per person. Winston’s Wine, Beer and Champagne Lounge is open nightly, with a curved marble-topped bar and a glass window of colored diamonds – you half expect to find a dartboard. On Thursday and Friday evenings, a jazz band plays in the bar.

Rooms range in cost from $89-$155, a lot of charm for a moderate cost.

Handlery Union Square Hotel website
Parking: $27 per day
BART: Powell station (four blocks)

If you like the amenities and class of a large hotel, but you also long for the personal touch of a small hotel, then the family-owned and family-run Handlery Union Square Hotel is an excellent choice. Located only half a block from Union Square, this 377-room hotel has been in the Handlery family for three generations, and the fourth generation is currently in training. Jon Handlery, the hotel’s affable general manager (and also the newly installed Chairman of the San Francisco Convention and Visitors Bureau), is on site most days and can often be found roaming the halls or greeting guests in the lobby. Mr. Handlery believes "guests should leave feeling they got more than they paid for," and to that end, the recently renovated hotel offers rooms for both families and business travelers with a wide range of amenities and service by an enthusiastic and attentive staff.

The hotel has a rare (for San Francisco) heated outdoor pool, located in an attractive enclosed courtyard which blocks out the San Francisco winds. There is also a sauna, fitness center, gift shop, and barbershop (men only), and laundry, dry cleaning, babysitting, and room service are also available. A substantial percentage of the hotel’s clientele are international leisure travelers. To accommodate those traveling from abroad, the hotel has a multilingual staff and currency exchange service. The Daily Grill Bar and Restaurant on the first floor offers a good assortment of American-style meals, with breakfasts running about $8-$12 and lunches $9-$15. For dinner the menu broadens; pasta selections start at around $10, meal salads run about $14.50, and grilled entrees top out at $26 – quite reasonable in this neighborhood. As I passed through the restaurant, I saw folks happily tucking into generous, attractively presented portions.

The Historic Section, geared more to the leisure traveler, has somewhat smaller rooms with slighty dated decor. The Club Section, which is tailored for the business traveler, has the look of a boutique hotel. All rooms are well equipped with the usual range of high-class amenities, including wireless internet, bathrobes, and Nintendo. In addition, Club Section rooms come with the daily newspaper, two telephones, and an amusing electric shoe polisher, and most of these rooms have balconies with city views or overlooking the pool. Rooms are pleasingly outfitted in cream and beige, tending toward the formal but still cozy. In the Historic Section, room sizes can vary and some rooms have only a shower; if you want a tub or a more spacious room, be sure to mention this when you make your reservation.

Rooms in the Historic Section run $109-$159, with suites running $169-$235. In the Club Section, rooms range from $149-$189. For both classes of rooms, prices may be higher during high season and other times when demand is high.

Warwick Regis Hotel website
Parking: $29 per day valet
BART: Powell station (five blocks)

Two blocks from Union Square, the ultra-elegant, formal, and sophisticated Warwick Regis is ideally located for culture vultures just across the street from ACT and the Curran Theater, two of the major San Francisco theaters. The classy lobby, in coral, rust, and cream, is intimate and stylish in the best old-world tradition, with antique furnishings and an antique chandelier, while the uniformed staff is personable and professional.

The 74 rooms here are richly stunning and elegantly lit, with dark wood set off by green and maroon satin furnishings and antique armoires. Rooms have either canopied four-poster beds or beds with crown canopies hung from the wall. Junior and executive suites feature balconies over Geary Street, so you can watch the theater-goers in the evening; the four best suites have fireplaces as well. Bathrooms are well-lit and roomy, with black Italian marble surfaces topping bright white cabinetry and fixtures. Rooms are all fitted with minibars, TV, on-demand movies and Nintendo, safes, hairdryers, bathrobes, and umbrellas.

Concierge, laundry, valet, and round-the-clock room service are available. Morning newspapers are provided to all guests on weekdays. The hotel has arranged complimentary use of an off-site fitness center. The attached La Scene Café & Bar, serving American cuisine at breakfast and dinner, is Zagat-rated. If you’re looking for a nice meal before heading over to the theater, there’s a three-course prix fixe for $23. Alternatively, there are meal salads from $7-$14, sandwiches from $10-$17, pizza for $15, and a selection of entrees from $18.50-$22.50. Meals are available until midnight for those wishing to dine after the show

Rooms range from $149-$309. The high end suites are a particularly good deal.

Crowne Plaza Hotel website
Parking: $34 per day (valet), $39 for larger vehicles
BART: Montgomery station (five blocks)

The 403-room Crowne Plaza sits one block above Union Square on the street running along the uphill side. The Powell Street cable car to Fisherman’s Wharf runs along the perpendicular street, so you cannot do better for a location.

While the Crowne Plaza doesn’t offer as distinctive a personality as many of the other hotels listed here, it is a sleek hotel offering most any amenities you might like, the pinstriped staff is exceedingly ingratiating and professional, and the quality of the rooms and the amenities are beyond criticism. The public spaces have a rather dark, clubby feel, perhaps more to a businessman’s taste. Rooms are very nicely appointed in shades of apricot and maroon; many offer views over Union Square, across the city, or of the bay – the higher the floor, the better the view.

The hotel has a gift shop, business center, and fitness room (but no pool). All rooms have high-speed Internet service, and wireless service is available for a fee in all the public areas. Services available include concierge, laundry, and valet, and small pets are permitted with a deposit.

The hotel restaurant, Girasole, emphasizes Italian and Mediterranean cuisine, with a pretty hefty price tag. Breakfast, for example, appeared to run about $17, whether for eggs Benedict or pancakes. Meal salads at dinner time will run $12-$13, with pasta and risotto selections running about $15, but grill selections will likely run you $10 more. Café Fresco was more reasonable, with an excellent selection of baked breakfast goods, salads, panini, and rotisserie chicken and side dishes available. Note: you may be able to get breakfast included in the price of your room; be sure to ask when you make your reservation.

Standard king or double-double rooms run $159, while similar somewhat larger rooms with bay views run $189. There is also a junior suite with a king bed and a pull-out sofa for $225 or a large suite, with a separate bedroom and living room with minibar and Jacuzzi, for $450.

Hotel Nikko website
Parking: $39 per day
BART: Powell station (three blocks)

The sleek, Asian-accented Nikko, located two blocks from Union Square, is one of the premier hotels in San Francisco. It’s simultaneously modern, arty, and faintly Japanese. It’s also the home of renowned Anzu, a destination restaurant. The hotel is so understated from the outside, you could almost miss it, but the inside is most distinctive. The Nikko serves about 60% business clientele and 40% leisure, with 10% Japanese clientele. Despite the address, the main entrance to the hotel is actually on O’Farrell Street. This was the largest hotel I visited, with 532 rooms, including 22 suites.

The lobby is an enormous box lined in white marble, furnished with dark furniture and low beige marble tables, and garnished with an assortment of un