Centrally located but without the common touristy texture is the Hotel Triton (342 Grant Avenue, CA 94108, +14153940500, www.hoteltriton.com, $149-299) with lots of amenities and high style at reasonable rates. Hotel Metropolis (25 Mason Street, CA 94102, +14157754600, www.hotelmetropolis.com, $89-$149) is also central, albeit in a slightly seamier area, but offers great rates and a chic Zen atmosphere. The newly opened Argonaut Hotel (495 Jefferson Street, CA 94109, +14155630800, www.argonauthotel.com, $169-$229) at Fisherman’s Wharf provides a stylish oasis in a desert of tackiness.

Those whose tastes run to the more refined will fit in at the W Hotel (181 Third, CA 94117, +14157775300, www.whotels.com, $199-$449) in the burgeoning South of Market area, or the Four Seasons (757 Market Street, CA 94103, +14156633000, www.fourseasons.com, $469-$600), which takes luxury to new heights.

For the budget conscious, the Grant Plaza Hotel (465 Grant Avenue, CA 94108, +14154343883, www.grantplaza.com) remains one of the best deals in town, offering clean rooms in an ideal location for about $55-$104 per night. Hostelling International Downtown (312 Mason, CA 94102, +18009094776) is a safe, private and affordable way to go for young travelers.

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