More on hotels and lodging

So we actually went and checked out some of the hotels last weekend, along with my parents. Carolyn and I stayed in the Rodeway Inn. While convenient in location, the hotel was a bit loud. The rooms were clean, although there was an odor that Carolyn thought was ladies perfume. There was free breakfast. Overall, it wasn't bad, but it wasn't that nice either. If you can get another hotel from our list for a comparable price, you'll probably be better off.

On the other hand, my parents Ed and Pat stayed at the Doubletree at the Marina. This is a big hotel that has somewhat bad reviews. However, their room was very nice and the Marina is a beautiful setting. There is a fog chime that goes off to ward away boats, but it wasn't particularly loud. The hallways are kinda grungy, but it seemed like a pretty nice deal with its pool and the very walkable park right next door. It isn't close to much, but there is transit to the Marina and the hotel shuttle will drop you off anywhere within 3 miles, which should get you to transit. We'd recommend this hotel if you can get a decent price on the rooms. My parents were saying rooms were available on the weekend of the wedding for $99, so get them while you can!

Hotels and lodging

Berkeley and the surrounding cities of Oakland, Emeryville, Albany, El Cerrito, and even San Francisco all have a plethora of hotel options. We haven't stayed in many of them ourselves, but will be testing a couple of them prior to the wedding and will be passing along any positive or negative reviews. Expect to pay around $100 a night for relatively cheap motels and $250+ a night for very nice resort hotels. We have links to the options that are close to the Brazilian room listed on the right side of the blog.

Location wise, the Berkeley, Albany, Emeryville, El Cerrito, and North Oakland areas are your best bet for the quickest access to the wedding location. We plan on providing a 50 seat wedding bus with a pick-up and drop-off location near one of the local BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) stations. The BART is relatively quick at getting to any of the nearby areas and can take you across the bay to San Francisco if you prefer to stay there. Most hotels will be a short cab ride or walk from a BART station. We'll be posting further details here so that people can get too and from the wedding with a minimum of fuss and problems.