My husband and I will be visiting San Francisco in September for our 20th anniversary. (first visit there!)

These seem interesting and the prices are all okay. (Must have smoking room for husband, so several other choices have been eliminated.)

I have gotten some info here already but would like some more recent feedback.

1. Hotel Adagio (large rooms at approx 400 sf)
2. Villa Florence (read lots of nice things about it!)
3. Hotel York (includes continental breakfast--but is it too close to Tenderloin?)
4. Harbor Court (can book a nice bay view, but room size seems teeny @165 sf!! I've been on cruiseships with larger rooms!!)

Thanks!

Cannot help you on these as I live in SF area. One tip: Go online or buy a SF Chronicle. The local paper runs hotel specials for local people to come into the city and stay. Only place they run them are in local papers. You can sometimes find a deal in a Hilton, etc that is very good. Just an idea.

I stayed at Villa Florence two years ago and enjoyed it very much. It's older, very small - but I found it charming. If noise bothers you, you might want to ask for a room in back (away from cable cars!). We asked for this and they were very happy to comply, even giving us a suite, as that was all they had left (for the standard rate.).

Also, SF is very chilly! We went in late June, and were freezing most of the time. Be sure to take a jacket/sweater that you can wear with everything, as you'll probably need it every day!

Have fun!

Thanks for the replies.

Anyone stayed at these spots in the last six months? Thanks!!

I live in SF also so have not stayed at any of your hotels. I have walked past the Villa Florence. Location is definitely nearby Union Square shopping and it's on Powell St. so the cable cars run in front of the hotel. Therefore, the street is very busy and noisy and not too scenic. But the Union Square area is pretty nice.
I believe Harbor Court is across from The Embarcadero and I think it was formerly a YMCA so maybe that's the reason for the tiny rooms. I heard it's pretty good otherwise. Location is close to Embarcadero Center shops but not much selection as Union Square shops.

None of these are wonderful hotels, but obviously budget is the deciding factor. I'd go for the Florence over any of the others.

I like the Harbor Court and Villa Florence. If you want the city experience right in the middle of everything, it' the VF..if you want a nice view of the bay, walking distance to everything, it's the HC. We live here also, but enjoy staying in the city when a good deal arises, and we would stay at either of these.

My uncle and sister in law both from Florence really enjoyed staying at Villa Florence a few years back.. They said there was a fun disco type place on the top.

Disco at the top of the Villa FLorence? Is that new as I never saw one...

Of the 4 listed, I would go with Villa FLorence as location is the best..Ask for a Jr Suite facing the courtyard ( not a real courtyard--just all rooms are interior rooms)..and the Jr Suites are larger rooms..

Breakfast at Kuletos ( in the Villa Florence) is GREAT...

You might also want to check into the MONACO hotel or see if the MARRIOTT in Union Sq is having any specials...

Teepe54, I'd recommend that you go to www.tripadvisor.com where you will find a number of recent user reviews on all four of these hotels. In each case, some reviewers loved the hotel, a smaller number hated it, and the largest number were in between. So I'd read the reviews so you can get an idea of the upsides and downsides of each and assess them in terms of what's most important to you. The site ranks hotels based on the reviews, and out of 300 hotels (in all price ranges) ranked, the Harbor Court is ranked 46th, the Villa Florence 93rd, the York 99th and the Adagio 103rd. Since there are a number of hotels in this price range rated higher than any of these, maybe you will find a new place to stay entirely.

I was an SF resident until fairly recently and have never stayed at any of these hotels, but know where they are. In the case of the Adagio, all I really know is the location since this is a just completed makeover of the hotel which used to be there. I have been by the other three many times, have eaten at the excellent restaurant (Kuleto's) in the Florence, and been to the jazz club at the York which often books really first-rate talent.

Poster Francophile is correct in his/her description of the locations of the Florence and the Harbor Court, and is also correct that the Harbor Court was made over from a YMCA, hence the really tiny rooms.

Two surprising things about the Harbor Court, though, are that currently its immediate neighborhood is the most "happening" of the four; and also, it is the one of the four which is located where many of the rooms will have absolutely stunning views of the Bay and the Bay Bridge. If I was guaranteed a view room, it would be my top choice of the four, as I'm a view freak but not a claustrophobe.

Also, the Harbor Court's in a peerless location for all types of public transportation except the cable car. If you want to take the ferry to Sausalito; the bus to Pier 39, Fisherman's Wharf and Ghirardelli Square, the MUNI to Golden Gate Park, the Castro District, the Ocean, the zoo, or anyplace else in town; or BART to Berkeley, any place in the East Bay, or the Airport--they are all within steps. There are excellent, cutting-edge restaurants immediately nearby too.

The York is actually less near the Tenderloin than the Adagio and Villa Florence. Since it's also a little farther from the extremely busy and well-policed Union Square area than those two are, that doesn't necessarily mean it's safer. It's neighborhood is OK, although one should be cautious anywhere this near the center of a major city. Frankly, of the four hotels, you're probably least likely to encounter distressing looking people in the immediate vacinity of the York, and also least likely to encounter other tourists on the block, which may be a good or bad thing.

The night club in the York (the Plush Room)is very well regarded and attracts people from all over the Bay Area. If you are a movie buff, there's an added attraction to the York--under an earlier name, it played an important role in Hitchcock's Vertigo, as the hotel where Kim Novak is living when James Stewart "rediscovers" her in the latter part of the movie.

The Adagio and the Villa Florence are only a couple of blocks from each other, around the corner of Powell Street (on which the Florence is located) and Geary (on which the Adagio is located.) It is important to know that these are the border streets of the Tenderloin, which is south of Geary and west of Powell, and it can get dangerous and unpleasant very quickly as you venture past those boundaries. Although the denizens of the Tenderloin are known to wander onto Powell and Geary to panhandle and alarm tourists there, these are both extremely busy, well-patrolled streets on which you should feel safe. And it is only a couple of blocks from either hotel to the ultra-upscale shopping of the Union Square district. If shopping (or a stage play at one of the top two legitimate playhouses, the Curran or Geary theaters) is a top priority on your visit, I'd definitely choose one of these two hotels.

The Florence is right on the Cable Car line and very convenient to the turntable where you line up for the cable cars, including the most scenic line, the Hyde and Beach one. However, because the cable cars are very noisy, run very late, and Powell is a noisy street in general 24 hours a day, if you are more susceptible to street noise than the average person, I would definitely avoid the Florence.

Based on the TripAdvisor reviews, the Florence is a much longer established, "proven" hotel which nonetheless has very small rooms and is beginning to look somewhat worn. The Adagio is newer, "hipper" and sleeker, with larger rooms, but seems to still be working out some "kinks" and dealing with some renovations, from the old hotel which occupied the building, which may have been hurried or incomplete.
Of the two, I'd probably go for the Adagio for the larger rooms, recent update, and also because the block it is located on is a little closer to Union Square and a little more upscale than the Florence's. But overall, I'd probably go first for that view room at the Harbor Court--you just don't get those views in other cities.

Bottom line, I'd again urge you to go on TripAdvisor, read all the reviews, and form your own conclusions. I'd be very interested to hear what your choice finally is, and after your trip, how happy you were with your choice and what your impressions of SF on first visit are. I envy you the discoveries you are going to make!

Thanks to all.

John Charles, thanks for your generous reply! I'll keep you informed!

Another thing about Harbor Court is that being next to the Embarcadero it's in a relatively quiet area. The Embarcadero has alot of people during daytime due to the office buildings but gets quiet at night not like Powell Street/Union Square which is quite noisy. I would agree with johncharles and choose Harbor Court over the rest. That's only my choice probably because I live here and wouldn't want to stay on Powell St. What johncharles mentions about panhandlers it's very prevalent around Powell St. especially by the cable car turnaround. I thought we had a new law that banned panhandling and for a few months recently I noticed the panhandlers where I work were gone. But must be the new year or something and the law is repealed because they're back today. Not sure why.