last second hotel 124 %Mill Valley Home to a well-known film festival, but perhaps more famous as the quintessential M

Combining the elegance and gentility of an Edwardian home, just up from the Marina and right on fashionable last second hotel Union Street. The individually decorated rooms are all spacious, with original antiques and art, fine linens, and complimen tary chocolates, fresh flowers, and fruit.

124 %Mill Valley Home to a well-known film festival, but perhaps more famous as the quintessential Marin hometown. It s wealthy, relaxed, and beautiful, and the well-educated populace is given to progressively liberal views on just about every topic. The old part of town is flanked by wonderful stands of redwoods, lined with old buildings that house restaurants and unusual shops, and the whole centers around an eternally pleasant public square where people come to hang out. d Off Hwy 101 ^Mount Tamalpais No more breathtaking view exists than that from the summit of mystic Mount Tam, sacred to the Native Americans who once lived here. At 2,570 ft (785-m) high, those who hike up to the summit can take in practically the entire Bay Area at a glance. The area all around is a state park, a wilderness nature preserve with more than 200 miles (320 km) of trails that wind through redwood groves and alongside creeks. There are picnic areas, campsites, and meadows for kite flying. The steep, rough tracks here gave rise to the invention of the mountain bike. d Hwy 1 &Stinson last second hotel Beach Since the early days of the 20th century, this has been a popular vacation spot; the first visitors came on ferries from San Francisco and were met by horse-drawn carriages. last second hotel Stinson remains the preferred swimming beach for the whole area (see p76), and nearby Seadrift is an upscale community of second or third homes of the wealthy. The stretch of soft sand here and the spectacular sunsets set off the quaint village, with its good restaurants and interesting shops. You can reach it via the coast route, but the drive up and over Highway 1 provides the most dramatic arrival, affording inspiring views as you exit the forest onto the bare headlands. d Hwy 1 *Bolinas The next community up from Stinson is a hippie artists village that time forgot. Intensely private, the citizens regularly take down all road signs indica ting the way to their special last second hotel place to keep visitors from finding them. Potters and other craftspeople sell their wares in Greek Theater, Mount TamalpaisAround Town The Bay Areaay 124 %Mill Valley Home to a well-known film festival, but perhaps more famous as the quintessential Marin hometown. It s wealthy, relaxed, and beautiful, and the well-educated populace is given to progressively liberal views on just about every topic. last second hotel The old part of town is flanked by wonderful stands of redwoods, lined with old buildings that house restaurants and unusual shops, and the whole centers around an eternally pleasant public square where people come to hang out. d Off Hwy 101 ^Mount Tamalpais last second hotel No more breathtaking view exists than that from the summit of mystic Mount Tam, sacred to the Native Americans who once lived here. At 2,570 ft (785-m) high, those who hike up to the summit can take in practically the entire Bay Area at a glance. The area all around is a state park, a wilderness nature preserve with more than 200 miles (320 km) of trails that wind through redwood groves and alongside creeks. There are picnic areas, campsites, and meadows for kite flying. The steep, last second hotel rough tracks here gave rise to the invention of the mountain bike. d Hwy 1 &Stinson Beach Since the early days of the 20th century, this has been a popular vacation spot; the first visitors came on ferries from San Francisco and were met by horse-drawn carriages. Stinson remains the preferred swimming beach for the whole area (see p76), and nearby Seadrift is an upscale community of second or third homes of the wealthy. The stretch of soft sand here and the spectacular sunsets set off the quaint village, with its good restaurants and interesting last second hotel shops. You can reach it via the coast route, but the drive up and over Highway 1 provides the most dramatic arrival, affording inspiring views as you exit the forest onto the bare headlands. d Hwy 1 *Bolinas The next community up from Stinson is a hippie artists village that time forgot. Intensely private, the citizens regularly take down all road signs indica ting the way to their special last second hotel place to keep visitors from finding them. Potters and other craftspeople sell their wares in Greek Theater, Mount TamalpaisAround Town The Bay Areaay

! Swimming The icy waters of the Bay are an option only if you re a polar bear or an indomitable surfer. Most visitors will want to head for a pool try the Embarcadero YMCA. d Embarcadero YMCA: 169 Steuart St; (415) 957-9622 Map H2 www.ymcasf.org last second hotel