The hotel features an Italian-style design and a large lobby where guests mingle in front of the mammoth fireplace with biscotti and fine coffees in the mornings and with Napa Valley wines and Italian beer at evening receptions. Trompe l'oeil wall paintings of windows provide "views" of the Italian countryside and an imaginary Roman holiday. Guests can surf the 'Net via wireless access in the lobby or in a kiosk and receive discounts to a 24-hour fitness facility across the street. For dining, the hotel's nautically themed Café Pescatore serves seafood and Italian fare in indoor or outdoor seating.

The Tuscan's guestrooms are festooned with brocade window treatments, floral- patterned fabrics, antique-style furnishings, landscape and floral-art prints, and striped earth-tone wallpaper. They include video-game consoles, minibars and complimentary first-run movie channels.

Capitalizing on Best Western's national reputation, the Tuscan Inn appeals mainly to vacationers who appreciate convenience to all major attractions, especially the two-mile stroll from Fisherman's Wharf. If guests find Chris the Crab, a bright red toy that serves as the Tuscan Inn's crustacean mascot, in their rooms, they win cruise tickets, carousel rides, parking passes and more goodies.