Chancellor Hotel on Union Square, San Francisco

We stayed at the Chancellor Hotel by accident! We had hotel vouchers for our visit to San Francisco but the hotel we stayed in on our first night was so awful (and in one of the more dangerous areas of the city - we heard that the street on which it was situated had the highest murder rate in San Francisco!) that we decided to ring San Francisco Reservations, a hotel broker mentioned in our guide book. Hotel brokers basically rent out hotel rooms ...
...Reservations!

The Chancellor Hotel is right on Union Square in the centre of San Francisco and is convenient base for exploring San Francisco.

The only slight disadvantage is that, if you arrive by car, you have to find a place to park at the front of the hotel - this can be difficult as it is a busy area. Once you have parked and unloaded, one of the staff takes your car keys and drives your car away to the hotel parking ... more

We stayed at the Chancellor Hotel by accident! We had hotel vouchers for our visit to San Francisco but the hotel we stayed in on our first night was so awful (and in one of the more dangerous areas of the city - we heard that the street on which it was situated had the highest murder rate in San Francisco!) that we decided to ring San Francisco Reservations, a hotel broker mentioned in our guide book. Hotel brokers basically rent out hotel rooms at short notice at lower than advertised prices. That is how we were able to stay in the Chancellor, which is a 3 star hotel, for $50 per night! According to the hotel's website, special room rates start at $125 per night, so we definitely got a good deal by going through San Francisco Reservations!

The Chancellor Hotel is right on Union Square in the centre of San Francisco and is convenient base for exploring San Francisco.

The only slight disadvantage is that, if you arrive by car, you have to find a place to park at the front of the hotel - this can be difficult as it is a busy area. Once you have parked and unloaded, one of the staff takes your car keys and drives your car away to the hotel parking garage which is elsewhere. This is called valet parking and is a little known concept to us Brits! When you want your car again, you just ask at the reception and, in about 5-10 minutes, it magically appears outside the hotel!

From the beginning, the service at the hotel was excellent. The staff at reception were friendly, helpful and efficient and a porter took our luggage up to our room.

The room itself was fairly large, well decorated and with a very comfortable large bed! A nice touch was a basket of high quality travel-sized toiletries in the en-suite bathroom.

Another thing I liked about the hotel was that there was a constant supply of free tea and coffee in large thermos jugs in the lobby. There was a very nice selection of teas, including fruit and herb teas, as well as traditional black teas. You could just help yourself and either sip a drink in the lobby or take it back to your room. I've stayed in many American hotels and this is the only one I have found that offers something more in the way of refreshment than just a packet of coffee and whitener to go with the coffee machine in the room!

We did not eat in the hotel (we were on a budget!) but we found that there were plenty of nice places nearby to eat. A particular favourite for breakfast was Lori's Diner, a 1950s style diner a few doors away, with delicious omlettes, French toast, hash browns and many more choices at reasonable prices!

Also, if you are a bookworm (as we are), the hotel is a few doors away from a large Borders bookshop that stays open to about 9pm each evening (heaven!).

The hotel is also close to the main shopping area in the centre of San Francisco and, as I am a shopaholic, I spent a very pleasant afternoon exploring these shops and indulging in some retail therapy at prices much lower than in the UK.

You can also get on the trolley bus very near the hotel and go down to Fisherman's Wharf.

All in all, we had an excellent stay at the Chancellor Hotel and I would highly recommend it to all. The hotel brokers are also excellent if you find yourself stuck for somewhere to stay in San Francisco or if you want to take the risk of arriving there without any accommodation booked. You cannot guarantee that you will get a cut-price room at the Chancellor but they will probably be able to offer you a good price at another decent, centrally located hotel. The phone number of San Francisco Reservations is 415 227 1500 or 800 677 1550. Two other hotel brokers are California Reservations (415 252 1107 or 800 576 0003) and Room Finders USA (504 522 9234 or 800 473 7829).
 

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