monaco Hotel in san francisco
 

we just booked 2 nights there. does anyone have any opinion on it

it is awesome.....a flagship kimpton hotel, well located with reportedly a great restaurant.

It's been a few years since we were there, but I still regard it as probably the nicest hotel experience we ever head: Wonderful, unique decor and style; great location; friendly staff; daily free wine tasting.

Depends on whether you have small children or not.

The Monaco is in the Tenderloin and I, for one, would hesitate to have small children witness the poverty, drugs, etc. on the Tenderloin streets.

I had never thought of the Monaco as in the Tenderloin; it is on the outskirts of it if it is. I think of it as in the general Union Square area.... it is only a few blocks away.

ncounty: the SF Tenderloin is generally defined as being bounded by Post on the north, Mason on the east, Mission on the south and Van Ness on the west. The Monaco is definitely within the Tenderloin.

Since the theater district is also in the Tenderloin, there are a number of older hotels like the Monaco which have been revamped and cater mostly to the theater crowd. There are also a number of good restaurants in this area, which is ethnically the most diverse in San Francisco.

The Tenderloin is also frequented by prostitutes, drug addicts and dealers, and some of the usual loopy street people of San Francisco.

It's OK for adults as long as they stay on their toes and don't go blithely along thinking this is an ultra-safe neighborhood.

Like I've said, personally I'd think twice about staying in the Tenderloin if there were young children in my group. Others may not care. It's a personal thing, but, IMHO, people should know which area of San Francisco they're in when choosing their hotel and what the neighborhood is like.

Gosh - I have to disagree. This is 3 or 4 blocks from Union Square. I have stayed three times, love it and never feel a bit unsafe. There are so many hotels in the area and a major theater right next door, so it is busy and well populated with "decent folk"!

Interesting. I've stayed at the Monaco a couple of times, most recently last May (and I liked it a lot and wouldn't hesitate to recommend it). During my stay, I saw more street people/panhandlers on Powell right on Union Square than on Geary walking to and from the Monaco from Union Square (in fact I don't remember seeing any on Geary; the rather aggressive panhandlers on Powell are what I remember). For better or worse, it's part and parcel of most cities, but I wouldn't single out the street the Monaco is on as "bad" in that sense--it's no worse than places right on Union Square in my experience (which I don't really think of as "bad" either FWIW).

Hello clifbob, since you two won't have little ones with you the comment about the Monaco not being in a "good" area for children is moot.

Most people that stay at the Monaco return time and time again. And most people also love the Grand Cafe at the Monaco. Have a beautiful time in San Francisco!

I'm sorry, ET, but I also disagree. I've lived and worked in San Francisco for 36 years, and I consider NEITHER the theaters NOR the Monaco to be in the Tenderloin. They are definitely more "Union Square" than "Tenderloin". I would have absolutely no hesitation staying at the Monaco with kids, and it's a wonderful hotel.

Didn't realize the OP wouldn't have kids with them, but it doesn't change my reply. I know many couples (from New York and elsewhere) who have stayed at the Monaco and loved it. I've never heard about a single problem with the location (I'm not suggesting you head too far west from the hotel....the neighborhood does get seedier just to the west, but the immediate vicinity of the hotel, and anywhere east (TOWARD Union Square itself) is simply not a problem, and for my money, it's where I would want to stay in San Francisco).

I am not sure which smartie above put Monaco in unsafe area, it's the first block of Geary between Kearney and Sutter, 1.5 blocks EAST of Union square, it's the perfectly safe location, kids or no kids.

To educate out-of-towners: it's not Tenderloin, it's Theater area.

ClifBob, the only opinion I have: 2 nights may be not enough ;)

Wait a moment, are there 2 Monacos in San Francisco? I am getting 2 addresses on Google: 50 Geary and 501 Geary.

Which one?

<<<ClifBob, the only opinion I have: 2 nights may be not enough>>>

:-)

(However, the Monaco is not east of Union Square -- it's 1.5 blocks west of Union Square)

I guess Google threw me off :))

Yes, it's 501 Geary, rated # 13 of 248 in San Francisco. The area is safe if you walk east on Geary to Union Square and don't want to go through unpleasant part of the city.

Hey Dayenu,

can you recommend some great..not to pricey places to dine

I stayed at the Monaco last year when we were going to a concert at the Warfield, so we walked down Taylor to Market. I agree that the vibe changes about this point.

You can see the Monaco on Google street view, and the area looks quite nice.

We were very happy with brunch at the Grand Café in the Monaco. The food was delicious, and beautifully presented. I recall a generous carafe of fresh squeezed orange juice to refill our glasses (but was I dreaming?) Because the restaurant is so spacious, it seemed more quiet and calm than a lot of popular breakfast places. Service was good, but overly chatty in that uncomfortable way that we possibly brought on ourselves.

Something about the Monaco is a little affected to me, but it is a top place to stay when the price is right. I guess I wanted a goldfish, but was too shy to ask, and all the bold stripes of the decor are not my favorite style.

Compared to other cities, I prefer to be accompanied by another person when I walk from the theater or restaurant at night, although aura is more depressing than aggressive in my experience.

From Wikipedia:

<i>"It [the Tenderloin] encompasses about fifty square blocks and a conservative description has it bounded on the North by <b>Post</b> Street, on the East by <b>Mason</b> Street, on the South by <b>Mission</b> Street and on the West by <b>Van Ness and Ninth</b> Streets.",</i>

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tenderl...co,_California

<i>"There are many different ways to define its boundaries; the official and original three corners (making a Tenderloin shape) may be delineated by Market St and Larkin St to the south, Geary St and Larkin St to the northwest, and Market St by Geary St to the northeast. Today the area would be more better defined between <b>Polk</b> St, <b>Sutter</b> St, <b>Mason St</b>, <b>Market</b> St, and <b>Golden Gate</b> Ave."</i>

http://iguide.travel/San_Francisco/C...iew/Tenderloin

<i>"First of all, the rough boundaries of the Tenderloin are <b>Van Ness</b> Avenue to the west, <b>Post</b> Street to the north, <b>Market</b> Street to the south and <b>Mason</b> to the east."</i>

http://www.associatedcontent.com/art...in.html?cat=16

and on and on. By the majority, if not all, definitions of the boundaries of the Tenderloin, the Monaco falls within its boundaries.

The Monaco may be the best hotel in San Francisco, but it's still within the Tenderloin.

I've not said that clifbob shouldn't stay at the Monaco, only that he should know what neighborhood he has selected for a "romantic" weekend, so i don't really understand the urgent need to place the Monaco outside of the Tenderloin. I have friends who visit from Europe and who want to be in one of those "theater" hotels because they want a less expensive hotel and they want to catch a few shows at night.

There may be other neighborhoods which would offer a more "romantic" atmosphere?

clifbob, I repeat (and echo the comments of everyone above other than easytraveler), you will have a lovely weekend at the Monaco!

Unless you live a very sheltered life, walking through that area of Tenderloin is unremarkable. We walked through more of it than that, many times during our visits to SF and had no problem with the population there, just put on your city face and you will be fine.

We walked everywhere and had no issues. We walked to the Orpheum to see wicked, we walked to Zuni Restaurant from Orpheum, we took bus back from Anchor Steamworks tour and had to walk through Tenderloin.

If you got a good rate, nice room - just do it.

Deb