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Yosamite and San Francisco?

Travel Info
I am considering a holiday to Yosamite and San Francisco. Can anyone recommend places to stay and the best way to do this holiday?

Travel Tips

Stay at Yosemite, cabins are available.
Very comfortable and roomy, great views.
There is a lodge also (beautiful but more expensive than the cabins)
I found two days at Yosemite were enough to see everything.
This is the link for Yosemite's accommodations:
http://www.yosemitepark.com/accommodatio...

As for San Francisco there are thousands of hotels and motels.
Because we are often on a budget we tend to frequent Motel 6 quite a lot.
Motel 6 have 6 locations within 20miles of SF.
The link below gives all addresses, directions, maps and online reservations:
http://www.motel6.com/accormaps/(hn5gyo5...

If you have your own or rental transport it's not a big deal to stay out of the downtown areas (where prices are more expensive).
You just travel into the city and go where you want.
This is a link to an area guide for San Francisco, it includes city sights, attractions, accommodation, shopping etc. (there is much to see and do in 'Frisco):
http://www.sfguide.com/

Yosemite and SF are about 170 miles apart.
That in itself is quite a pleasant drive.
I have done a mapquest search for you, directions and maps are given:
http://www.mapquest.com/directions/main....

Others
Seal Rock Inn in San Francisco -- It's in a residential neighborhood at the end of the #38 Geary Limited Line -- near Cliff House & across from Sutro Park. There is parking. On the city street, always read the sidewalk signs because there are no parking times once a week for streetsweeping.

There are many different ethnic neighborhoods.

The hotel in Yosemite. Pres. Clinton (with Marilyn Monroe?) stayed there.
i have been to yosemite valley before.
a easy way to go is to take the sanjoquin railway. it is scenic and you dont have to drive. there are several lodges in yosemite ,but camping is the most enjoyable. camp grounds have bear boxes, bathrooms, public showers and easy acess to roads. the best time to go is summer and spring. summer is hotter but you lose more calories walking in the heat and the feeling of forfillness is greater. spring is good to but you will need a jacket ans might face rains . half dome rock is spectaculr. glacier point provides a very nice veiw of the entire park. also the water falls are fun places to hike. swimming in the cool rivers will give you a very refreshing feel.
if you have young kids try taking them when there older , when they can remeber and observe the area better. aso olader kids will be less dependent on you and give you some peace of mind.
The hotel in Yosemite runs 350 a night, off season. I am not sure about the cabins, I am not into rustic.

If you are looking for something less expensive the town of Groveland is 30 minutes away. There is a hotel and bunches of homes that are rented. I go there often, it is a great little town. I own a house at Pine Mountain Lake that I rent out time to time. I normally keep a craigslist ad, but don't have one up at the moment. You can email me at dutchshepherds@yahoo.com. You can email me with questions too, I am pretty familier with the area and will help you out.

I am not into the motel 6 thing either. When I stay in SF I book thru priceline. 4 star hotels around Union Square are about 70 a night with priceline. Email me your dates and I can tell you what the lowest bid is that you can use, and some tricks. I seriously doubt the motel 6 is much less then the Hilton (where I usually end up)

Someone recommended a hotel near the Cliff House, this is a very nice area to stay in too. It really depends on what you want to do in SF. I generally shop and attend plays. I spend my evenings in the Starlight room.
The cabins in Yosemite are very nice and really not that Rustic, not 4 star hotel, but not camping.

The Cabins have actual beds and bathrooms. You can also rent without bathroom and nice shared bath facilities within 100 yards.

Tent cabins are cheaper, more rustic but you can still get one that come heated.

I would stongly suggest staying in Yosemite Valley as it is so peaceful and dark with gorgeous views of starry skies!

The Lodge at Yosemite is also less than $350.00. The other answerer was referring to the Luxurious Ahwannee Hotel that does cost $$$.

I agree though that you can get nice SF hotel on Priceline. Look at biddingfortravel.com to see average prices before bidding. 4-star usually less than $100 per night on Priceline.
Live just outside of San Francisco and trust me, you will love it here. If you want to stay within the city I recommend a hotel in the Financial District, as it is close to everything.

The hotel I would most recommend is the Hyatt Regency San Francisco. It is at the intersection of Market Street and The Embarcadero. It is across the street from the historic Ferry Building where you can catch ferries to other parts of the bay. Just outside of the building is the California Street cable car line, a must for a San Francisco trip, and those take you right to Chinatown. Also at the hotels door step is the F-Line street car which will take you to Pier 39 and the Wharf where you can venture to Ghirardelli Square, the Marina District, or hop on a boat to Alcatraz. The other convenience nearby is Embarcadero Station with MUNI and BART so you will have access to the entire bay area. In fact if you fly into SFO you take BART directly to your hotel. Other things I recommend you see: Coit Tower (long climb up stairs through parrots if you want), Golden Gate Bridge (a nice morning walk across it is always nice), the Castro District (take MUNI there if you wanna see the citys gay heart), and Ocean Beach. Twin Peaks is the best vista in the city.

As for Yosemite: There are numerous camp sights, hotels, cabins, motels, and resorts in and around the park. Finding one shouldn't be a problem, if you are more adventurous: climb half dome, I did and had a blast. You hike up behind it and pull yourself up a cable to get to the top. Also make the short hike off the road to Bridalveil Fall, great exploring oppurtunity. Expect great sunsets from Tuolomne Meadows.

You may want to explore a bit outside of the traditional tourist areas as well: Sacramento is California's capitol and an interesting experience. Berkeley is known for its strange mix of people, and a walk down Telegraph is quite eye opening. San Jose is home of the Winchester Mystery House (a must see) and Great America Theme Park. A bit to the south is Santa Cruz with it's Boardwalk and beach, and further to the south is possibly the most beautiful place in California: Monterey: Home of Cannery Row, the world famous aquarium, glass bottom boats, quiet beaches, clear blue water, sea otters, great tide-pooling and world class SCUBA diving for the more adventurous.

I think that just about covers the best sights in Central California. I would recommend Lake Tahoe, but only if you will there in the winter, it is a lot more fun.

Hope this helps.