We chose to stay at the HI Express for a couple of reasons. Most of the Fishermans Wharf hotel were coming in at about the same price, so went with what looked like best value. The HI Express offers a free breakfast every morning, so that sealed the deal for us.

Location can't be faulted, it's right in the middle of the Wharf. You can walk to pretty much anywhere within 5 mintues, including Pier 39 and cable car turnarounds. It is on North Point Street, a fairly quite street from our experience. Our room overlooked the street, and we had absolutely no complaints about road noise, or noise from other rooms for that matter. We were on the 4th (top) floor, right at the end of the corridor, which must have helped keep noise levels down. With only 4 floors, there was never a long wait for the elevator.

The hotel looks very new, everything feels fresh, and everything was spotlessly clean. No complaints whatsoever, and the daily housekeeping did a good job. The bed itself was very comfy, though the room itself wasn't that large. Fine for the two of us, but you couldn't have fitted anyone else in there. Not a problem though, as we weren't there to spend time in the hotel. We found the two internet access PC's in the lobby very handy, and on only a couple of occasions did we have to wait.

Breakfast was very good for a 'free' breakfast. They had the usual selection of cereal, fruit, yoghurts, pastries, muffins, etc, plus a small selection of cooked foods like sausages, bacon, egg, etc. Free coffee, juice and milk as well of course.

The staff at the front desk were very friendly and polite. Both check-in and check-out were efficent. We didn't make use of the parking at the hotel, which at around $42 a day plus tip (it is valet only), we were glad we didn't have a car. The hotel does have an undercover pull in, which is big enough to hold a couple of cars, which was handy for us on checkout day as we collected a car from Avis just around the corner, and brought it back to the hotel to load up. They were happy for us to park in the drop-off area for 15 minutes to load up.

We'd have no hesitation in recommending the hotel to others, and would certainly stay there again. It's not really that cheap (we paid $200 a night at the start of June 2008), but no more expensive that anywhere else in the area, but we were happy with what we got.

We really enjoyed our stay at the Hotel. The entire staff were wonderful, the room was clean and a good size (we had 2 double beds for our family of four) and the hotel's decor was clean and fresh. The front desk staff were helpful, the cleaning staff did an excellent job cleaning our room daily and the breakfast staff did a fine job of replenishing food during an always hectic breakfast. The breakfast was excellent with a number of different choices (both hot and cold food available). One of my daughters' suffers from asthma. Unfortunately we could not book and be guaranteed a non smoking room through Hotwire in advance. However I contacted the Hotel on the morning of our arrival to request a non smoking room and upon our arrival later that day they had met my request and our non smoking room was ready for us(before 3 p.m. check-in) Our only concern would be the room location given to us. The room faced Beach St. and the F Line Streetcar roars by on Beach St. starting around 5:00 a.m. The Hotel's sound insulation was good but we often were still awakened by the sound of the streetcar in the morning. However we most certainly thought we got excellent value! The location in Fisherman's Wharf was excellent with easy access to public transit (both Cable Cars and the streetcar line). We rented a car for 3 of our 7 day stay and were able to find overnight street parking near the hotel every night which allowed us to save about $40 per night had we parked the car in the Hotel garage. My wife and I are both runners and we used the Hotel's fitness facility. As well it was a short run from the Hotel to the waterfront where we could run along the Embarcadero for several miles without worrying about vehicular traffic. We thoroughly enjoyed our stay at the Holiday Inn Express in Fisherman's Wharf. I would HIGHLY recommend this Hotel.

An amazing place. The best hotel of my trip.

Arrived at night at Pier 39 after being bussed from Amtrak across the Bay and being pointed in the right direction I took the short walk to the hotel. I'd worked out the right way in from using Google Streetview which helped me a huge amount in San Francisco but with all the hotels in the area it's not always obvious.

Fast check-in, upstairs and right upstairs in the lift. Lovely big comfy bed, great bathroom, lockable 'safe' in the cupboard which was useful and free internet access which I made good use of.

No view (out into an internal courtyard/gap between rooms) but unless you were on the top floor at the front I don't think you'd get a view.

Ice and drinks machine round the corner, first one I'd seen where you needed your door key to get to it. Talking of keys I locked mine in my room one day and the front desk were very quick at replacing them for me.

Fishermans Wharf is round the corner and there are lots of places to shop and eat. Walgreens is amazing and exceptionally useful being open so late when you desperately need after sun lotion from cycling around all day!
So many attractions nearby in the wharf but also Pier 39 and it's seals and shops. Bit of a gap and a walk until you get to the Ferry Building which is the only 'issue' I had but the city has so much to offer.

I was exceptionally happy with my stay, just wished I could have stayed longer. I'll be back.

Had a four night city break to San Francisco in late June 2008. First time in the city and chose this hotel after looking at reviews on this site. We were not disappointed and found a lot of positive features. The price was good, especially when including the buffet breakfast which was simple but allowed enough choice to set you up for the day. We had two rooms between five and they were both good sized, clean and reasonably furnished. While we didn't have many occasions to require help from the staff, when we did we found them friendly and helpful. The big plus for this hotel is definitely the location, just off Fisherman's Wharf, with lots of attractions within walking distance. There is a MUNI terminus just around the corner and two cable car lines end close to the hotel. There are also plenty of restaurants in the surrounding area.

For anyone looking for an affordable, well located base to explore San Francisco, we strongly recommend considering staying at this hotel.