Carmel & San Francisco
 

Still trying to wrap up a few things for our CA trip. We are staying 4 nights in LA and then stopping 1 night on our way up to Napa for 3 nights then we'll have 1 night in San Francisco since we are flying out of that airport. I need to book a hotel for San Francisco and Carmel. Carmel seemed like a good place to stop. We would like to stay in the village so we can walk to shops and dinner. In SF, we will only have time to walk around a bit and then go to dinner. Any suggestions on where we should stay for under $250? We have a very early flight out.
Thanks.

If you are skipping the drive up Highway 1 through Big Sur I think that would be a mistake.

We were planning on driving up Highway 1 and then stopping in carmel.

Hi,

I don't know your style of hotel but if you like boutique hotels, the Kimpton Hotel group has some nice hotels in SF, but my favorite is the W Hotel. When I go up to SF for a overnight, that is the first hotel I check. Just make sure and stay away from the Tenderloin where some of the hotels are. If you like modern hotels, Ian Shrager of NY hotels rennovated a historic SF hotel in the middle of the theatre district called the Clift Hotel. Enjoy your stay.

In Carmel, try the Vagabond's House (my favorite), the La Playa hotel, or Lobos Lodge. In San Francisco, the Argonaut or the Best Western Tuscan Inn for a Ghirardelli Square/Fisherman's Wharf location (touristy, bay views), the Chancellor or the Orchard for a Union Square location (heart of town.)

In Carmel, we like the Carriage House Inn and the BW Carmel Bay View Inn. The Normandy Inn is also very nice.

Santa Monica to Carmel on Highway 1 is a very long drive. When we drive Highway 1 between San Francisco and LA, we spend a night in Cambria.

Great suggestion! I'm spending a night there in a few days myself! Where do you stay? Is the Pelican Suites really nice? ***kim***

Hi Kim, We've never stayed at the Pelican Suites, but we have stayed at several other places in Cambria. We are never completely satisfied with rooms there because when we are at the ocean we want a view of the ocean, which few rooms in Cambria have.

Have you ever stayed at Olallieberry Inn?

when you say the trip from santa monica to carmel via hwy 1 is very long...approx. how long? I knew it would be a long drive but I wanted to confirm if I've underestimated the full day's drive.

No, it seems a bit out of the way for my liking. We stayed at the Cypress Cove Inn and our room had a full oceanview that was very nice.

We will probably try the Fogcatcher, with a full oceanview. They also serve a nice, hot breakfast in the am, which the Cypress does not have. We'll see! ***kim***

Santa Monica to Cambria is about 230 miles on Highway 1 and Cambria to San Francisco is about 240 miles via Half Moon Bay. This is one of the most scenic drives in the world.

Since you have an early flight out of SFO, I would advise staying at one of the airport hotels. The website below has information on the airport hotels.

http://www.san-francisco-sfo.com/hotels.html