San Francisco hotels

OTHER GOOD BETS

Allison Hotel. Functional hotel with tiny rooms. 417 Stockton St.; (415) 986-8737 or (800) 628-6456. 87 rooms from $59 with shared bath, $89 with private bath. Continental breakfast; parking $15.

Amsterdam Hotel. Rooms on the third and fourth floors are renovated with reproduction antiques - but still look a little plain. 749 Taylor St.; (415) 673-3277 or (800) 637-3444. 34 rooms from $79. Continental breakfast; parking $13.

Andrews Hotel. Ride an antique elevator up to tiny but nicely done rooms with minuscule bathrooms. 624 Post; (415) 563-6877 or (800) 926-3739. 48 rooms from $89. Continental breakfast; parking $12.

Beresford Hotel. West-facing rooms on upper floors are lighter; some rooms need paint, and furnishings are getting a little tired. 635 Sutter; (415) 673-9900 or (800) 533-6533. 114 rooms from $99. Continental breakfast; parking $15.

Fitzgerald Hotel. Small and plain; some rooms are dark even at noon. 620 Post; (415) 775-8100 or (800) 334-6835. 40 rooms from $59. Continental breakfast; parking $10.

Golden Gate Hotel. Really a B & B with some garden-view rooms; pets by arrangement. 775 Bush; (415) 392-3702 or (800) 835-1118. 25 rooms from $65 with shared bath, $99 with private bath. Continental breakfast; parking $12.

Grant Plaza Hotel, This Chinatown hotel's small, spare rooms are a deal; request a roomier corner unit or a room on the renovated sixth floor. 465 Grant Ave.; (415) 434-3883 or (800) 472-6899. 72 rooms from $59. Parking $11.50.

Nob Hill Pensione. A hangout for European travelers, who don't balk at lodgings with bathrooms down the hall. 835 Hyde St.; (415) 8852987. 40 rooms from $50 with shared bath, $70 with private bath. Continental breakfast; parking $10.

Stratford Hotel. Bare-bones but done with elan. 242 Powell; (415) 397-7080 or (888) 504-6835. 102 rooms from $45 with shared bath, $65 with private bath. Parking $13.

IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD

* Macy's, Saks, Nordstrom

* Union Square holiday ice skating and decorations

* Grant Avenue, Chinatown

* Powell-Mason cable car line

* Classic meal: Pancakes at Sears' Fine Foods

* North Beach/Fisherman's Wharf

Stretching from topless joints along Columbus Avenue to the waterfront attractions of Fisherman's Wharf and Pier 39, this neighborhood is one of the liveliest in town. The Beat generation's bohemian heart still pulses in North Beach. Angle down to the wharf area and you'll find that it still has the feeling of a carnival midway, and is still the only place in town where you can buy a crab cocktail to go.

Pensione d'Assisi. The saintly name is but one indication that this new European-style pension had an earlier calling. Built in 1908 as a rectory for an adjacent church, the Assisi offers plush rooms, a charming roof garden, and, with Caffe Trieste just across the street, easy access to lattes. 610 Vallejo St.; (800) 5531900. 10 rooms from $90 with shared bath. Continental breakfast; parking $20.

San Remo Hotel. The rooms are a bit small. And the walls a little thin. And the bathrooms shared. But what this 1906 European-style pension has are history and geography (it's within walking distance of Fisherman's Wharf and North Beach). Rooms are homey and clean, and bathrooms - water closets with wood wainscoting and sparkling brass fixtures - have been restored to perfection. The guests are mostly young and European. 2237 Mason St.; (415) 776-8688 or (800) 352-7366. 62 rooms from $50 with shared bath, $100 penthouse. Parking $8.