San Francisco is a small city land mass wise so staying at the beach isn't like you are so far away from everything, plus it's one of the few areas where you can still find a parking space at the end of the day. We found everything as advertised and really enjoyed our stay at Brian's Beach House. There were 4 of us and we never felt cramped or crowded and it's a great jumping off place to getting to Marin, which we did one day. There were great restaurants nearby (Chinese, Russian, Italian, Indian, you name it!) and good coffee and it was very quiet at night. Also, loved the art on the walls!