I have read reviews for the three Hilton hotels in the city and chose th one in the financial district after reading bout it. Question: Several Trip Advisor reviews referred to the Holiday Inn Selcct. Was this hotel a Holiday Inn? Has it been upgraded to the standards of the Hilton hotels? Has anyone stayed there? Is it the best of the three? (Whoops, did I say One Question??) I would appreciate any info. (Of course I have Hilton points, thus the limited choices.)

Sorry, me again. Where can we park during our stay there that isn't $42.00 (their rate) We will be parking for 5 days.

Not sure about whether it was a Holiday Inn--but I stayed there a year ago for my 30th anniversary. The rooms has recently been re-done and we had a very nice view of both Coit Tower and the bay. It's on the edge of Chinatown (which we enjoyed). We went to a Giants game at PacBell Park (sorry--AT&T) and enjoyed drinks and appetizers at several restaurants along the Embarcadero. When the game was over, we took a cab from the Hyatt Regency as this neighborhood is rather deserted after dark on a weekday. Do you really need the car? It's quite easy to get to the airport on BART if you're flying. If you are driving, there are lots of garages nearby--can't help you with much more on parking.

Yes, it used to be a Holiday Inn for years and years and only recently changed to a Hilton. Haven't stayed there, so can't say anything about upgrades or not.

As for parking, this Hilton is just across Kearney from Portsmouth Square. You can park underneath (public parking lot) for $26.00 a day and it's open 24/7.

If you can at all do without a car for at least several days, I'd suggest doing without. Public transportation is quite good and you don't have a parking problem at whatever destination you will have in the City. Get a transportation map ($5/$6).

As for whether this Hilton is the "best" of the three, again, can't say.

The one on Fisherman's Wharf is a standard, three/four story building. Nothing fancy.

The one on O'Farrell is a very close to Union Square, but it's also close to the Tenderloin, a relatively sketchy part of town.

EasyTraveler has it right about the parking. I live in the East Bay and just took BART in. We walked from the BART station--but would take a cab next time (or take wheeled luggage). I forgot to say that this Hilton has a beautiful spa on premises in addition to a cozy bar and restaurant (breakfast was delicious but pricey).

I can't believe that I just happened to check the US forum tonight! I just returned to Memphis from a 9-day trip to Yosemite, Kings Canyon/Sequoia National Parks and San Francisco. I and my wife stayed at the Hilton Financial District from last Wednesday through Memorial Day. As others have said, this property was upgraded from Holiday Inn. We were impressed with the thoughtful layout and modern decor in our king room, which was on the 11th floor and had a nice view of the Bank of America Building and Nob Hill. We had friends who had a room on the 19th floor with gorgeous bay views including a fantastic view of Telegraph Hill and Coit Tower. We had a local rental car and did not mind paying the daily valet fee, which is fairly standard for a city-center hotel in a major metropolitan area. The valet drop off site at the main entrance was easy to negotiate from Kearny. We would usually take Clay one-way to intersect with Kearny and then enter the hotel. The hotel is in a great location in Chinatown at the edge of both the Financial District and North Beach. A locals' favorite Oriental restaurant Nanking is just down the street, and all the wonderful cafes and coffeehouses of North Beach are within an easy walk. You can easily walk along a flat route down Kearny to hit the fine shops along Sutter and Post and into Union Square. We've stayed at many hotels around SF over the past several years (Harbor Court, Kensington Park, Renaissance Stanford Court, Mark Hopkins, Westin St. Francis), and this Hilton property compares favorably to all of them. We were delighted by the warmth of the concierge staff, especially Joel Stevens. Last Friday afternoon a string orchestra played in the lobby. The hotel staff seems determined to present a welcoming, inviting atmosphere. The day spa Tru receives high praise, but neither myself nor my wife used any of their services. I spent one afternoon at SF Bay Club (Greenwich at Sansone), which I have visited in the past. We did have lunch at the in-house restaurant (Seven Fifty) one day, and we enjoyed that very much. We had a nice experience at this hotel.

Hi Ediemay:

We will also be staying at the Hilton Financial in June. We plan on taking BART from SFO.

We have stayed at the Hilton Union Square before-it is really big and crowded, as it is a covention hotel. The lobbly is nice but huge-feels like you walk a couple of miles to your room. The room was okay-a little worn around the edges. The neighborhood is okay in the daytime and deserted at night, especially on Sunday.

From everthing I've read about the Hilton Financial, it seems much better.

Katie

Thanks everyone for your responses. We do have to have our car with us, so that is not a choice,as my husband will be using it during the day. Maybe we will just bite the bullet and valet park. Oddly enough valet rate is the same as self-park?? Go figure!

Do look at the parking at the Portsmouth Square Garage, as suggested by easytraveler.

Yes, the Hilton on O'Farrell is a convention hotel and not as nice as the Hilton Financial District. (They used to have a pool when they were a Holiday Inn. Don't know if that is still true.)

Returned from SF last week. Had a great time. The Hilton financial district was awesome for the view. Be sure to get a waterview room. Our room was on the 25th floor and one wall was totally windows with a desk counter top all the way across, except for the wide=screen TV in the corner. I sat there at different times of the day to see how the scene changed. Sunrise, sunset, nightview, huge freighters, tugboats, etc. I took a ton of pics. You will really love it.