West coast hotel help needed

[ali-s]

Well it looks like our Aug08 west coast trip may be back on. I had intended to book the flights with Virgin, then sort out the hotels myself, but pricing it up it seems to be a few hundred cheaper to book the accommodation along with the flights, but I don't have so many hotels to choose from, so far these are the ones I've picked, any comments or advice would be gratefully received - baring in mind we won't have a car, so will want to be within walking distance of shops/ restaurants/ trolley stops etc
San Francisco - holiday inn express, fishermans' wharf

** Carmel *** I had wanted Monterey- but Virgin don't have any hotels available there, so it's the Mission inn at Carmel - how easy would it be to get the aquarium at Monterey ?

L.A universal Sheraton - we want somewhere walking distance to universal and this says it is.

San Diego Handlery hotel - again, not first choice, but not much else to choose from

Anaheim Sheraton Park

So what do you think, would we be ok with these? or should I pay a bit more to book my own choice seperately ? Also, looking at my own choices, many sites are saying they are unavailable for the dates I want - would they really be fully booked now? - or is it just too early for them to show availability ? :confused2

[lausan]

we did our own tours thru Greyhound bus

[ju_itfc]

They look pretty good choices to me, I have never had anything other than excellent service at a Sheraton hotel.

Never been to San Diego so can't comment on that one, but the Holiday Inn Exp in San Francisco is a solid choice. Great location.

[Meeko1970]

We stayed at the Holiday Inn Express in San Francisco as well. It really was a great hotel, great location.

Have you telephoned Virgin sometimes they can get rooms at other hotels but just don't have room to put them all in the brochure. We went with Virgin some years back now and stayed in Monterey. I think it was the Embassy Suites which were gorgeous.

[ali-s]

Thanks for the tip Jules, I'll phone virgin tomorrow, as Carmel is the one I'm really not sure about.

[Mazzy]

Ali -I will try to help. :D

San Francisco - Holiday Inn Express - we stayed there in August and it's a great location, you don't need a car. There is a Walgreens just round the corner, also a couple of trolley stops, and also the tram stop is there too, very good location. You can walk to the attractions at Fishermans Wharf as well. There is a Denny's Restaurant opposite Walgreens, and two supermarkets a 10 min walk away, you will get a fridge in your room and that's very handy. :thumbs-up

Carmel - well, we stayed at Monterey and could walk to the aquarium, but there are buses you can get from Carmel, or a taxi, it's only about 10 mins away so wouldn't cost a lot. Carmel is a beautiful place, lots of lovely shops, and also Carmel Beach looked fantastic, shame we didn't have time to spend there.

LA - Universal Sheraton doesn't get very good reviews on Trip Advisor last time I looked. We stayed at www.renaissancehollywood.com - I'm sure that's in the Virgin brochure, it was a wonderful hotel, and we got a taxi to Universal, but you can also take the subway, it's only one stop away. Staying at the Renaissance, you're right there in Hollywood, the Stars on the pavement, Disney Soda Fountain, all just outside the hotel, also the hotel is joined onto the Hollywood and Highland Shopping Centre, so all in all a great location.

San Diego - we didn't go to, sorry.

Anaheim, we stayed at the Disney Hotel, but I'm pretty sure the Sheraton is close by, check it out at trip advisor, see if it's walking distance to Disneyland.

Yes, you will find it's too early to book some of the hotels for next August. I booked all of ours independently, as I so wanted to stay at the www.montereybayinn.com It all comes down what matters to you most, choice of hotels, or saving $$, whether you book the package or book independently.

Hope that helps - any questions just ask away. :d:

[ali-s]

Thanks for that Mazzy - I think ! :D I've now gone from being almost ready to book back to square one deciding on hotels ! :D I hadn't checked the sheratons' reviews on trip advisor - but I do like the look of the renaissance ! and I like the look of the monterey bay inn, so Carmel may be scrapped.
I did check trip advisor for reviews of the Handlery in San Diego - and they all disagree with the brochures' hype, so has anyone stayed there who can advise me ? also, the Dana would be my first choice if I booked independently - would that be suitable for a no car family ?

[Mazzy]

:pgig: Sorry Ali, but I'm sure it will all be worth it when you finally get it booked, and are happy with all your choices. By the way, if you have AAA membership, both Monterey Bay Inn and the Renaissance have AAA Rates available. :D Oh, and so does the Holiday Inn Express in San Francisco! :d:

[Pedro]

Hi Ali

We did the West Coast in August. Started in San Francisco, stayed at the Radisson, Fisherman's Wharf and it was great. Perfect location.

Like Mazzy, we adored Monterey and stayed at the Hotel Pacific. The rest of the trip was different to yours but you can check out the link in my sig for details if it helps.

Regarding booking of hotels, we didn't firm up on ours until February.

Best of luck,
Peter