First and foremost THANK YOU to all the people who responded to my many queries about a trip to San Fran. We returned last night after 4 nites and 5 action packed days. We had a blast.

We stayed at The Castle Inn at 1585 Broadway and LOVED it. It is the perfect place for budget minded travelers. Varsa, the manager was beyond helpful. The rooms were VERY clean and the area was an easy walk to Ghiradelli Square, the cable cars and bus routes. When we return we will certainly stay at The Castle Inn.

We did the cable cars from Ghiradelli area to Union Square. Lots of fun, but glad we did it early in the day before the lines built. We also bought 3 day MUNI passes which were a godsend. By the end of our trip we were really understanding the bus system and it got us everywhere we wanted to go. Varsa gave us a tip about buying our senior pass for my Mom. The seniors get a 30 day pass cheaper than the 3 days passes. They don't advertise this so for those seniors please remember.

We also visited Golden Gate Park - gorgeous area. We took Tower Tours to Muir Woods and Sausalito. Loved Muir Woods. We also like Sausalito and chose to spend extra time there and take the ferry back to FW.

We are so very thankful to all of those who said not to stay in FW. It is touristy beyond belief and we are so much happier that we stayed in a neighborhood and got a good feel for the city. If I were to stay in the Wharf area I think I'd opt for The Argonaut at Ghiradelli. It's in the "calmer" area.

Union Square was ok, but again we weren't there to shop. I can see why people who love to shop stay there but we have a lot of the same stores where we live.

We also did Haight Ashbury and The Painted Laides. Haight was fun though we didn't stay in that area all that long.

We ate at some good places right near our hotel. I'd recommend the following on Polk Street: Yabbie's (seafood), Lemongrass (Thai), Polker's (beer/burgers). Street and Tablespoon also looked good. On the other end of Polk we tried Union Oyster or something like that. Hole in the wall but fresh crab, prawns and shrimp. By far our best meal was at Ristorante Milano which was off Polk (Pacific I think). AWESOME meal and small, romantic, quanint restaurant.

The people in SF were very friendly and any time we got lost someone was always willing to help.

Again, many thanks to all of those who gave me pointers in this forum. By far the best tip was about the FW area. Ok to walk thru but once was enough for us.

Hi dwsjas, I sure enjoyed reading your report! Sounds like you had a beautiful trip. Isn't SF fun?

Do you mind if I ask you what The Castle Inn cost you and also did you have an ensuite bathroom? Thanks.

Honestly I'm not sure of the exact price because we bundled the whole thing thru Orbitz, but believe it was around $100 night. We had a room w/2 queens and a roll-away. We requested a "larger" room (not sure how many styles they have) to accomodate the roll-away. The shower/tub/toilet were separate from the bathroom sink area which was bonus as it allowed us to do things in tandem.

I would have absolutely no qualms staying here again. As a matter of fact I will definetely stay here again.

Hi dwsjas, thank you for the information. I will pass it on to my daughter and sil as it sounds like it would be perfect for them and not as expensive as they usually end of paying. In fact I may stay there the next time, just for a change. I tend to get stuck in a rut sometimes and keep returning to the same places. Take care! And come back to SF.

TTT for peg