I originally didn't notice this was the Concours weekend. <B>HUGE</B> problem! (fabulous event - terrible for accommodations)

Can you rearrange your trip so you do the 4 day Monterey/Carmel bits first and finish up in SF?

You will probably find much cheaper rooms.

This is where we stayed when we went to visit family in the SB area in June. http://www.sandyland.com/
Definatly not fancy but it does have a pool.
I think it was about $60/night.

OP wasn't planning on being in Monterey area during the Concours d'Elegance, but just after it ended, per what is in first post. The concours was mention up thread as a reason why rooms are expensive in Monterey. I added my 2 cents, but it really wasn't relevant to the OP. Sorry.

OK (I am sooooo confused :) ) -- the Concours is NOT the problem after all and don't change your dates. If you did you'd be right in the middle of the Concours crowd.



I haven't been to the Pebble Beach Concours in about 7 years - used to have a FREE place to stay but no more :(

Problem resolved - and rather elegantly too.

Given the mind boggling prices in the area for those 2 nights, I thought I’d try the old fashioned thing before changing bookings to a lesser establishment that was going to charge me an arm and a leg and then promptly expect me to write glowing reviews on Tripadvisor (honestly – I’ve had people actually requesting that for the past few years!).

So, I called up the Intercontinental in Monterey – explained to them my failing of champagne tastes on a beer budget (also let it slip in that one of those nights is my birthday – and it is, didn’t make that up). Was put through to Nick, the supervisor who turned out to be one of those wonderful human beings who seem to make it their purpose in life to make other people happy. He offered me a 12% discount on the $420/night rate for those 2 nights – I said thanks but that’s still too much for me. So he goes, now in slightly lower decibels, that I seem to have a fair number of points, why not put them to some use? He suggested that I call their 1-800 reservation #, book with points, get the cheapest room for 2 – they will only guarantee a standard for 2 people. Then to call him back and he’ll arrange it so that we continue in the same room for 4 for all the 4 nights, because my membership status guarantees an upgrade anyway. Bingo. Had to work through the happy clappy 1-800 people, then called back Nick – who did his magic. Must bring a gift for Nick.

So we now have our 7 nights in at the Intercontinental in SF and 4 at the one in Monterey – I couldn’t be happier. The Monterey Intercon was the one I really wanted to stay in (we’ll be one of, or at least among, the beautiful people. Yippy!)

So – now, all you wonderful, helpful people can go right back to doing what you do best: help me make this a memorable trip for my wife and kids.

Our travelling style is to keep it easy paced, and not to convert a holiday into a military campaign where we are ticking things off a list. We will, naturally, have a list of places we want to go to, but preferably in an unhurried manner. I suppose San Francisco is very appropriate to that style of travel.

So far, the plan is to take one of those Segway tours of SF on day 1 – these seems to be for about 2-3 hours, and I expect will give us a nice idea of the lay of the land to some extent (and a whole lot of fun, but also enable us to decide where we want to go back to on foot/public transport – I’m only thinking of the city tour). Then there’s probably a couple of visits to Fisherman’s Wharf, and the Golden Gate Park (I’m thinking of renting bikes and going across the bridge). I’d like to take in Muir as well. A trip to Alcatraz as well. Mostly, we’re more likely to walk around the city for those 8 days. From what I’ve read so far, 8 days is barely scratching the surface and this is a bit ambitious (in terms of what we like to do), but that’s what we’ve got – plus there’s really nothing stopping us from coming back to SF too. My daughter and I really want to spend the better part of one day at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art – and we all want to catch a baseball game if possible.

For the south trip – it’s really about driving around the Pacific highway, 17-mile drive, Carmel beach (I’d love to squeeze in surfing lessons for the wife and kids in Santa Cruz – while I take pictures and read my book). And I really, really want to see big trees.

So – over to you wonderful, helpful people. Thank you so much for your suggestions. i earnestly look forward to more.

Book Alcatraz right now! It may already be too late.

http://www.alcatrazcruises.com/

The only Giants game while you are in the city is the Monday (Aug 23) before you head south so you'll want to book that right away.

The A's (across the Bay in Oakland) are at home while you are there. They have become a fun team - but their stadium is nothing like the amazing experience of a Giants game.

So I'd definitely try to book Giants tickets ASAP and only book the A's if you can't get in for the Giants.

Oh -meant to add . . . That is brilliant that you worked out the monterey hotel. The manager sounds like a gem . . .

"Golden Gate Park (I'm thinking of renting bikes and going across the bridge)

Just a note - Golden Gate Park and the Golden Gate Bridge are not really near each other at all.

We just were in SF for a few days two weeks ago and took the City Guides Chinatown tour. Really great. We loved it, and I highly recommend it.

Thanks. Will check out baseball tickets and Alcatraz today.

One question: is it a good idea to rent a convertible for the Monterey trip? I really want to, but weather wise I thought I'd ask. I'm getting a decent deal at Hotwire, but haven't booked yet. Any suggestions would be great.

Sure, spring for the convertible. It may be foggy/cool especially in the mornings but there is bound to be some beautiful weather too.

On the car rental: my plan was to to take the BART into SFO on the 24th, pick up the car and drive down to Monterey and on the way back drop it off at the airport and catch my flight. I thought this might be easier since I'd avoid the city driving and I have to get to the airport anyway.

I know the airport locations are a bit more pricey - but this certainly seems convenient.

Is this a good plan or should I be considering alternatives?

Pick up a car from Dollar on O'Farrell St, (Union Sq) and drive out of the city. It is easy to do and they don't have one way drop off fee. They also "may" have city specials. BART for 4 will run you $'s that you can better use for gas!

Thank you all for your suggestions – I’ve got a bit more done (including Giants tickets [got some nice seats from stubhub] for the 23rd and Alcatraz for the 20th), now need some specific suggestions for the days marked for walking/biking in the city. Also, restaurants (casual dining for the most part) suggestions would be highly appreciated.

This is how it is looking so far:

August 17:
Arrive at SFO at 4:00 PM. BART into town, possibly take the night Segway tour at 7:30 (still debating this one – we may be a bit tired for this and might take it the next morning).

August 18:
Walk/bike/explore the city.

August 19:
Bike across the bridge, spend the afternoon in Sausalito – ferry back.

August 20:
Alcatraz tour

August 21:
Walk/bike/explore the city.

August 22:
Walk/bike/explore the city.

August 23:
Walk/bike/explore the city. Giants game in the evening

August 24:
BART to SFO, pick rental car and drive to Monterey – might stop en-route for some outlet mall damage by the girls for a few hours.
(Will cover the Monterey aquarium during one of these 3.5 days)

August 25:
Santa Cruz – strolling, possibly surfing lessons for the kids, trip to the redwood forest.

August 26:
Drive to San Simeon – evening back in Monterey. August 27:

August 27:
Carmel beach, 17 mile drive, Monterey

August 28:
Drive back to SFO, drop rental car and fly back.

Would be grateful for your suggestions of how this is looking and what else to include.

8/24 Are you paying more to rent the car from SFO compared to renting downtown?
Most of the downtown car rental places will let you drop at the airport without a drop off fee.
It is not hard to get out of town going south in a car.

Agree with Tom - rent the car in town and drive south. 4 BART fares to SFO = $32+

I explored that quite a bit. Issue was that I wanted to rent a convertible and the best rate I was getting was from Thrifty at SFO (scoured hotwire and had a couple of failed priceline bids too). If I pick a convertible (other cars are cheaper) from the city and dropped at SFO, it was about $410 (including taxes etc.) compared to $286 at SFO, so ended up doing that. Booking can be cancelled, so I will be keeping an eye out for a better deal out of the city, but doesn't look like it so far.

At least you've done your homework!

One location question: We'll be staying at the Intercontinental on Howard Street. While this hotel is overall very well reviewed, I did catch a few negative comments about the neighborhood at night – but no specifics as to why. Can someone please add color to this?