Hi,
Need some info on a short calif
trip out of Orlando. I've about
4 days total and was planning to
fly into SF or San Jose?
1. Are there any good, suite hotels
for under $100/night?
2. How far is Yosemite from San Jose and
are there shuttles or bus tours to there?
3. How far are the tall Redwoods from here
and are there tours?
4. Any other absolute musts?
5. is there a motorcoach company that
does 3-4 day guided tours through SF,
and the parks?

Thanksk!!

Sorry, but I don't think you'll find much of anything for under $100 a night except the usual chains. Yosemite is approximately 4-5 hours driving from San Jose or SF, doesn't really matter too much where you start. There are bus tours, but they take so long to get there and then to get back that it makes much more sense to rent a car, if only for the day. That way you can start out very early and get there ahead of the buses. The closest Redwood forest to SJ is Big Basin State Park which is indeed lovely up Rt. 9 from Saratoga (near SJ) and then over a short way on Skyline Blvd. It was the original redwood preservation in California. Beautiful and not too many tourists. Much more touristy is Muir Woods which is over the GG Bridge in Marin about an hour's drive from SF. There are bus tours that go fromt the city to Muir Woods, but I always find it so crowded with tourists that we rarely go except when we have houseguests and are on the way to the Sonoma coast. As to the last two questions, I really don't know. Try a search on SFgate.com. Four days is not enough to see everything. You need to chose. Also, you might consider flying to Oakland if you are definitely going to Yosemite.

As Kam says, you're really pushing it to see the city, Yosemite, and the redwoods in four days. But...I agree with her recommendations; if you can rent a car for a couple of days, it will make seeing Yosemite and the redwoods easier. If not, you can find bus tours. Try www.nps.gov/yose or www.yosemitepark.com, or use a search engine. If you are in San Jose and wish to go to Big Basin state park in the Santa Cruz mountains, which is extremely nice and, as Kam said, much less crowded than Muir Woods, you can do it via public transit. There is a bus from the SJ airport to downtown Santa Cruz (about 1 hour); from adjacent to the bus station, you can take a Santa Cruz County Metropolitan Transit bus all the way up to Big Basin and Back (it will be the route up Highway 9 that includes Boulder Creek). For under $100, you can expect motel-type accommodations or perhaps a small hotel with shared bath in SF.

I am from New York but I travel to SF and San Jose a lot. First, in my extensive experience flying from the east coast to the BAY area, if you fly into SanJose Airport instead of San Francisco, you will save about $150-200.
I don't know whether this is true for Orlando. As far as hotels are concerned, both San Jose and SF hotel rates are ridiculously high. I can't really help you with the hotels. As far as where to go, I would recommend that you stay in the city (SF)since you only have 4 days. San Francisco, in my opinion and probably to many othere, is the most beautiful city in America. The view of the Golden Gate Bridge is just breathtaking. I am a very fast paced traveler so I managed to see the Yosemite in one day but I wouldn't recommend doing this for most travelers.
I believe it was a 4-5hour drive from San Jose. I have also been to the Muir Woods but I didn't think much of it.If you want to take a day trip from the city, try driving to Monterey/ Carmel area. It is beautiful there. Also, my favorite place is Sausalito in Marin County. There are motor coach tours and I believe it's Gray Lines.

Wow! I can only advise you that Mike is indeed a fast traveler because even though I live here, I wouldn't be happy doing all he can do in a short period of time. To see Yosemite in one day for me is impossible. Maybe I move at a snail's pace, but I couldn't be happy with a couple hours in Yosemite. To also go down to Carmel/Monterey is a whole other day, at least, for me! Please consider choosing whether you want to fly to SFO and spend your days in the city and a possible trip over to Muir Woods, or whether you want to fly to SJC and see Big Basin and Yosemite. There's not a lot going on in San Jose--mostly corporate headquarters and accountants for the Silicon Valley, but the airport is a thousand times more user friendly than SFO and the city is clean and easy. The one thing to see in SJ is the High Tech Museum which is great fun (we also love the old San Joseph Cathedral, but that's probably a local thing). It really depends on what you want to see....4 days is enough for one or the other, but not both! BTW, if cost is a factor, Yosemite and San Jose will be a bit less expensive than San Francisco which is every bit as expensive as New York. You choose.