Romantic honeymoon hotel

Hi there. I will be travelling to San Francisco next June to begin my honeymoon and will be staying in the city for 2/3 nights before heading off to Napa Valley, Big Sur, Yosemite, Grand Canyon and Hawaii.

Trying to narrow down the choice for SF hotel and have come to these 3, and would really appreciate some inside tips from you guys on which would suit (or alternatives):

Hotel Vitale - great location and TA posters seem to rave about it, but photos look like it might be a bit clinical/business trip-esque?

Hotel Drisco - cosy, boutique hotel but might be too far away to easily wander into the city for sight-seeing, restaurants etc?

Hotel Omni - good location, but is it too chain hotely? rooms tired?

If I need to spend more to get a great romantic hotel then so be it (im think madarin oriental) but would be great if there was something in the $250 range that fits the bill?

Romantic honeymoon hotel

The Omni (and the Mandarin for that matter) are more Financial District hotels. The neighborhood gets pretty dead and dreary after the commuters leave. Both are nice hotels (the Omni is relatively new -- newer than the Mandarin -- the old building was gutted to build it). As a result of their location they%26#39;re more business traveler hotels.

The Vitale and the Drisco are part of the same hotel group. The Vitale is new, the Drisco is in a lovely old building in Pacific Heights. As you point out, the Drisco isn%26#39;t right in the middle of town. Although I think it%26#39;s probably the more ';romantic'; of the two.

So it depends what%26#39;s important to you and the kind of neighborhood you want to be in. If you like a quieter environment, walking to neighborhood restaurants and through the Presidio I%26#39;d go with the Drisco. If you%26#39;d rather be closer to the center of things then the Vitale would be better.

If I had to make a parallel with London, I%26#39;d say it%26#39;s the difference between Kensington and Maida Vale.

Sounds like a great trip!

Romantic honeymoon hotel

I think that for a romantic hotel from the three you have selected the Drisco wins easily.

It has a great neighbourhood feel with very pleasant surroundings and it%26#39;s not really that far to walk to good restaurants in the Union St. / Fillmore Street area as well as Chestnut St. in the Marina District.

To be surrounded by restaurants and more central etc you need to be in Union Square but for your honeymoon and only 2 or 3 nights I do not think you will miss much sightseeing and the like by staying at the Drisco.

Thanks for your replies. I think I agree that the Drisco is probably the best of these 3, but talking it through with my fiancee we thought it might be better to stay centrally as we won%26#39;t be in the hotel much and the walk from the Drisco might get annoying.

So..how about the Palace or Sir Francis? - the Palace looks grander but the Sir Francis better located? My heart is with the Palace at the moment, but is there any concerns I should have?

thanks again (there are just too many hotels in SF!)

I think there are more intimate hotels in the Union Square area than the Palace or Sir Francis Drake (actually the Palace is on Market St.). The Garden Court at the Palace is lovely but after that it%26#39;s pretty much just another Sheraton.

One hotel that gets consistently good marks on TA and whose GM is a frequent contibutor here is the Chancellor. (It%26#39;s about across the street from the Sir Francis Drake.) It gets excellent reviews for being a 3* boutique hotel that prides itself on the personal touch.

JW Mariott is also very nice.

The Rex or Petite Auberge are other JDV hotels that fall in the ';romantic';. One is at Union Sq the other on Nob Hill.

I guess I%26#39;m a little confused as to what you%26#39;re looking for if you went from the Drisco to the Sir Francis Drake based on location ... ? There%26#39;s really not much similar between those two!

Sorry, it must seem a bit confusing with the change from Drisco to Palace!

A reason behind it was that we thought that as we were going to be travelling to several destinations over our 3 week honeymoon, that it might be nice to stay at a hotel that represented each particular area. So in SF, it might be nice to stay in one of the original grand old hotels - ie Palace (Westin %26amp; Fairmont a bit pricey).

The Petite Auberge, Chancellor and Rex look very nice and have great location and are exactly what we normally look to stay in, but perhaps don%26#39;t embody SF??

OK I see where you%26#39;re coming from. A ';signature'; place? Actually, I think the Chancellor is one as much as the Palace but not as well known. The building dates back to 1911 (and since the %26#39;06 earthquake wiped out almost everything east of Van Ness Ave that%26#39;s about as old as anything gets).

At this point the Palace and the St. Francis are owned by large chains and not as personal as hotels that have stayed local.

IMO I%26#39;d stay at the Chancellor and have tea at the Garden Court. The other benefit to the Chancellor is its location -- it%26#39;s 1/2 block up from Union Square and right on the cable car line while the Palace is on Market St at New Montgomery. It%26#39;s not as ';in the thick of it.';

(Oh dear, where is Puter to weigh in here when we need her?)

No matter which you choose I%26#39;m sure you%26#39;ll have a great time. Be sure to bring warm clothes for SF. As Mark Twain famously said ';the coldest winter I ever spent was a summer in San Francisco.'; Chances are that daytime temps will barely hight 70F (17-18C). And evenings will be in the 50sF.

Try searching this forum for others who%26#39;ve been looking for something special and see how other conversations on this topic have progressed. (Enter ';hotel honeymoon'; or something similar.)

Best wishes on your wedding!

Oh, one last point:

I can%26#39;t think of anything more romantic or ';signature SF'; than tucking into bed and hearing the clatter and bells of the cable car! That just SINGS San Francisco.

Definitely the Palace over the Sir Francis Drake.

We have stayed at both and enjoyed them both but the Palace is by far our favorite, It%26#39;s a big step up from the Drake.

We stayed there on our wedding night and they gave us a free upgrade. Let them know it%26#39;s your honeymoon.

Hello! We recently stayed at the Nikko for our 10th anniversary and had a great time! For a large hotel the service was very personable (like we were the only ones there)directions, recommendations, they made reservations for shows and restaurants, it was great. We told them it was our anniversary when we booked and the first night when we got back from dinner there was a bottle of champagne and a card signed by the staff waiting for us.

They have a great sound system in each room; that night we sat in front of the window, listened to jazz and enjoyed our champagne. We had a perfect of downtown and the Bay bridge in the back drop. The rooms were cozy with all the modern conveniences. They even have a lcd tv in the mirror of the restroom, 2 safes, stocked fridge and they will bring up an empty mini fridge at your request!

We had considered the Palace, but wanted to be higher up to really take in the view of the city and it is close to everything. We booked on Expedia and got a great price. Happy Anniversary and enjoy your trip!

I%26#39;m with Ramblin Sal.

You cannot get anything more San Francisco than the Chancellor.

We love to hear the Cable Car bells while staying in a genuine historic San Francisco original.I%26#39;m sure you have read the TA reviews.

Let them know it%26#39;s your honeymoon and I%26#39;m sure they will do a little extra .

The staff and management of the hotel will all help to make your stay a memorable one______believe me, you will not regret it.