San Francisco on the Cheap (Not!!)

Several months ago we were planning to fly to the East Coast on Delta using reward points from my Visa. Long story short: we cancelled that flight after multiple and often humorous changes by the airline and flew United instead. The result was flight vouchers in our name at a travel agency in California which we hoped to redeem at a later date.

Fast Forward: the Mr. needs 1300 miles with United to reach Frequent Flyer Premiere status for this year. We put our noggins together and decided to venture off to San Francisco for a weekend. We have both been there on business, but never together. The Mr. hasn’t even seen the Golden Gate Bridge, though he’s been to the city 4 or 5 times. The first weekend in December seemed the only weekend we weren’t otherwise committed, and it lands sufficiently distant from Thanksgiving or Christmas so we are hoping for crowd-free travel.

To maximize the value, we are flying out very early on Friday morning and returning late Sunday evening. We will have almost 3 full days of sightseeing with only 2 nights in a hotel. Lodging in San Francisco is quite pricey. I found what I hope is a good deal with Expedia: Sheraton Fisherman’s Wharf for a measly $179 per night. I’m still choking on that, but after my research this actually seemed reasonable for San Francisco. It might have been cheaper to stay out by the airport but we really wanted the whole city experience. We are also planning to take only one day off work, though now I’m thinking I may take Monday off to recover.

We are not renting a car, but plan to use the varied mass transit options. I mapped out the route from airport to hotel using BART and the bus/trolley system, but then I found an airport shuttle service that will eliminate the hassle of trying to negotiate mass transit in a new city with luggage. $28 per person round trip seems like a good value for the convenience. We plan to purchase a 3-Day Muni-Pass for $18, which will give us access to bus, light rail, trolley and cable cars.

I received the visitor’s pack from the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce which included several 5-day tour plans based on areas of interest. I’ve been studying them and I have a plan of attack that allows us to maximize the sites in the limited time. We plan to do a Harbor Cruise, but otherwise won’t venture too far beyond the heart of the city. We will save the Wine Country, Muir Woods, and Monterey for another time.

The thing I am most looking forward to is the food. Several people have mentioned Scoma’s on Fisherman’s Wharf. We plan to get our names on the list early Friday evening since they don’t take reservations. For Saturday evening I have reservations at an Italian place just a couple of blocks from our hotel, Albona Istriana. It comes highly recommended on TripAdvisor and other websites. I also have reservations at Top of the Mark for Sunday Brunch. I expect each of these meals to top $100.
I admit I’m a frugalist. (I just made that word up - I don’t think it will work on Scrabble!) I like to feel like I’m getting the biggest bang for my hard-earned buck, especially in this economy! Technically, we didn’t pay for the airline tickets, but the rest of the package comes with a price tag. I’ll be pleasantly surprised if we can keep the cost of this little weekend adventure in San Francisco under $1000.