The Search for Shelter - Part 1

Just as we had started to enjoy the smug confidence of having booked two $900 Amtrak roomettes for less than $500 total, reality put us in our place, like a heavy bag of carrots upside the head.

We spent precious weeks relaxing, confident that there were "so many" hotels in the Bay Area that it would be "no problem" to find one that offered everything we were looking for, at a reasonable rate, in a great location.   I am an esteemed member of Marriott Rewards, Kimpton InTouch, Starwood Preferred Guest, and Wyndham Rewards. Not to mention the Delta Sky Miles, Chase Freedom and Amtrak Guest Rewards programs, which offer affiliate deals.  Surely among all these, there would be some insider fast track to the perfect hotel.

Hello, over 47,000 Salesforce.com users!  Nice to fight over hotels with meet you. 

Silly me.  When I finally felt like maybe I should start casually looking, I wasn't prepared for the premium price commanded by a downtown San Francisco hotel, even with my not-so-great guest memberships.  You want $300 per night at the W Hotel?  With a no-refunds cancellation policy?  And no free wifi or continental breakfast?  Ouch.   After looking through pretty much every travel aggregator site, we made the decision to book at the Extended Stay America in Oakland/Emeryville for $99/night, including free parking, free breakfast and free wifi.  It's one mile from the train station, close to the BART and it's on the free Emery Go-Round shuttle line that runs from the BART to the Amtrak, as well as IKEA and some nearby restaurants.  Yes, IKEA is part of our trip itinerary.

It's not what we'd initially planned, but we're happy with it.  We only booked our first two nights there, since we still held out hope for a fancier room on some other nights.  But at least when we get to California we'll have a place to stay!  We slid back into relaxation mode, where we remained... until next time.