Another beautiful but hot day in “The City by the Bay.” The sun is shining brightly with a temperature in the upper 80s - not a bad way to start the day. After a quick walk to the BART station, we headed out to Union Square, the premiere shopping and dining district in San Francisco. Union Square is always buzzing with activity and is a great place to stay if you’re looking to experience the city life.

We visited two exceptional hotels in the heart of the action: The Donatello and the Westin St. Francis. We were greeted at the The Donatello by an incredibly friendly staff. The hotel is entirely accessible with a beautiful Italian restaurant, Zingari, an outdoor terrace to enjoy 360 degree views of the city, and comfortable and modern rooms. Thanks to Donatello staffers April & Garrett for making us feel very welcome - we know our guests would enjoy a wonderful stay there!

Next we met with John & Ina at the Westin St. Francis. The lobby of this large and regal hotel took our breath away. The décor and attention to detail at the Westin is remarkable, and it’s giant Magenta Grandfather Clock is an attraction in and of itself. With its large and airy rooms, this hotel is first class all the way!

After jumping back on the BART, we returned to the Civic Center to meet with Khaled at The Whitcomb Hotel. Built in 1904, this unique hotel has actually survived the two major city earthquakes. The City Hall, originally located across the street was destroyed in the 1906 earthquake. At that time, the city hall’s operations were moved into the Whitcomb until 1915. During that period, the basement was actually converted into a jail!

Curious guests can arrange a tour of the old jail cells. With its early 20th century charm and an amazing restaurant, the Whitcomb will be a special place to stay. We enjoyed our meal so much that we asked if we could compliment the chef! See Jen pictured with Khaled and Chef Adam.

We’re off to Alcatraz in a couple of hours to enjoy the night tour - check back with us tomorrow for more!

Today was simply amazing! The weather has been perfect. Blue skies and sunshine greeted us as we entered the city. San Francisco is such an eclectic city that is brimming with personality. After arriving at the airport, we hopped on the BART (the local public transportation), which quickly brought us to the Civic Center area of town. Some of the great places to visit in the Civic Center are the Asian Art Museum, Capital Building (featured at the left), Library and UN Center.

We started off our tour with a delicious lunch at local hangout Sol y Luna; there we met with Marilyn Straka, San Francisco native and tour guide extraordinaire. Marilyn specializes in unique and accessible “On The Level” tours, and described at length about the many wonderful sites available for wheelchair users and slow walkers in San Francisco. We look forward to working with Marilyn, pictured here with us at Sol y Luna.

Our next stop was at a lovely hotel run by Holiday Inn in the Civic Center. This hotel had stylish accessible rooms, a fabulous roof-top pool with views of the city and a warm and welcoming staff. We had the opportunity to meet with the General Manager, Gino Lazzara, of the hotel who is from Italy. When he discovered that Loredana was a fellow Italian, he insisted we stay so he could get her advice on how best to design and remodel the pool area! He actually had her looking at tile samples as they had an excited and rapid-paced discussion in Italian over which soccer team from their respective home towns was best! You know the old saying: “You can take the Italians out of Italy…” See Loredana advising on the pool design here.

After Loredana’s adventure with interior design, hotel representative Maria Bernard showed us their additional properties at Fisherman’s Wharf. The local street vendors, shops and restaurants lining the water create a fun and inviting atmosphere - plus, you can see the infamous Alcatraz right across the bay. We’ve always wanted to visit Alcatraz and now we have the chance! Check in with us tomorrow as we share more of our adventures in this wonderful city.