Three ways to enjoy your trip to San Francisco

Budget

Get there: Frontier Airlines offers one-way rates to Oakland, across the San Francisco Bay, for about $125 during most of the year; 14-day advance purchase required. Take the AirBART shuttle bus to the BART Coliseum station in Oakland ($2), and from there take a train into downtown San Francisco (about $4), BART.gov

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George Apostolidis

San Francisco’s Coit Tower at Telegraph Hill is visable in center with Alcatraz Island behind.

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George Apostolidis

Rooms at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel come with views of the bay and other San Francisco sights.

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San Remo Hotel

The San Remo in North Beach offers tiny Victorian rooms starting at $75 a night for a double.

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Tim Griffith

The $500 million California Academy of Sciences features a rain forest, planetarium and a living roof.

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Stay: The San Remo, in a quiet and historic North Beach neighborhood, offers tiny Victorian rooms starting at $75 a night for a double; $4 higher on weekends. Pretend you’re in Europe as all guests share bath facilities. It’s a three-minute walk to the Powell Street Cable Car line. 2237 Mason St., 415-776-8688, sanremohotel.com

Eat: Skip touristy Fisherman’s Wharf for a late lunch at the Swan Oyster Depot, a casual diner (more like a fish market with stools) serving the freshest seafood for nearly 100 years. $7-$15, no credit cards. 1517 Polk St., 415-673-1101.

Experience: San Francisco City Guides operates dozens of free and themed 90-minute and two-hour walking tours. Areas visited include Pacific Heights, historic Market Street and Haight-Ashbury. Donations appreciated. sfcityguides.org Catch top city views from Twin Peaks or from the top of Coit Tower on Telegraph Hill.

Moderate

Get there: One-way rates of $204 on AirTran or Delta require a 21-day advance purchase. From the airport to downtown take the BART train from the Departures level of the International Terminal (via free airport shuttle bus). The 25-minute ride is about $6 one-way.

Stay: The Italian-inspired Villa Florence (a half-block from Union Square) is better than ever after a recent remodeling. Romantic rooms have high ceilings and windows that open. Take at least one meal at Kuleto’s Restaurant, adjacent to the hotel. Double rates from $209; $239 with breakfast. 225 Powell St., 415-397-7700, villaflorence.com

Eat: Vietnamese street food meets Chinese with a French flair at the Slanted Door. Meat, game and poultry come from eco-farms around the Bay area. Entrees $10-$30. At the Embarcadero, 415-861-8032, slanteddoor.com

Experience: On a rainy day, visit the California Academy of Sciences, a new attraction (it took 10 years and $500 million to build) with a rain forest, aquarium, planetarium and natural history museum under a four-story living roof. $24.95 adults. Golden Gate Park, calacademy.org. Walk along the most historic city spots on the 3.8-mile Barbary Coast Trail. Bronze sidewalk plaques lead the way through Chinatown temples to where the gold rush thrived. barbarycoasttrail.org

Splurge

Get there: One-way Business Class rates are $518 on AirTran or Delta.

Stay: The nearly 600-square-foot Asian-inspired Golden Gate room at the Mandarin Oriental, on the 40th floor, has full views of the bay, the bridge and the Transamerica pyramid. Gaze across the city from your raised bed or from the bathtub. $605 double. 222 Sansome St., 415-276 9888, mandarinoriental.com

Eat: Awarded its sixth Five Star Mobil rating (and a Relaix & Chateaux designation), the 75-seat Restaurant Gary Danko serves impeccable contemporary cuisine. Three- to five-course fixed-price seasonal menus up to $98. 800 N. Point St., 415-749-2060, garydanko.com

Experience: Board a Seaplane in Sausalito for a 40-minute Champagne Flight over the Golden Gate Bridge, Alcatraz Island, the Pacific coastline, the San Francisco skyline, downtown San Francisco, Fisherman’s Wharf, the Bay Bridge, Angel Island, Sausalito, Muir Woods and more. $189 per person, based on two-person minimum. seaplane.com