If you are going to the San Francisco area, take a look at staying with Virginia.
The room is on the back of the house but has all the privacy that you will need. Your door opens up to a beautiful backyard with an amazing view. The room itself is very spacious, has plenty of storage, and a very nice sized bathroom.
Virginia is about 4 miles from a BART station so you can get into Oakland or San Francisco very easily and on the cheap since parking is expensive. If you do rent a car, you are only a hour from the Redwood Forest, Point Reyes Beach, Napa Valley, and the Jelly Belly factory (my favorite).
Virginia and Todd are very friendly so stop and say hello when you get a minute as they can share points to see that might not show up on TripAdvisor.