Destination hotels in San Fransisco?

April 8, 2008 7:23 PM

I'm going on a trip to San Fransisco with my partner. I want to stay in a fascinating hotel.

The hotel would stand out as a bit of a destination in and of itself.

Is it haunted? Super-stylish and modern? Very old? Used to be a brothel? Fruit-themed? Popular amongst S&Mers? Etc.

It should also lend itself to romantic wanderings about the city/on public transportation. We would rather not be too removed from the center of things. We're New Yorkers, so we're not scared of city life, but no borderline-shady "cool" areas.

Any other suggestions or ideas for activities in San Fransisco would be welcomed.

Thank you!

posted by sondrialiac to travel & transportation (14 comments total)

York Hotel. Former speakeasy, and one of the primary sets for Hitchcock's Vertigo.
posted by mudpuppie at 7:32 PM on April 8

Hotel des Arts. Stay in rooms painted by local artists.
posted by MsMolly at 7:35 PM on April 8

Also: St. Francis Hotel. Survived the earthquake, and was the epicenter for the Fatty Arbuckle scandal in the '20s. (Interesting if you're a film buff.)
posted by mudpuppie at 7:37 PM on April 8

For amazingly ornate walls, ceilings, floors, try Hotel Monaco. Cute European-styled pension is San Remo, in North Beach.
posted by ClaudiaCenter at 8:13 PM on April 8

Just a note on the Hotel des Arts: I reserved the David DeRosa room, which they tout as a "Deluxe Queen" room. There was absolutely nothing deluxe about it. The rooms are tiny (teeny tiny, in fact), and the bathrooms are something of a literal water closet, with a single, uncovered light bulb on the ceiling. I have no idea how they managed to make the room look so spacious in that photograph (because it certainly wasn't when I was there!). I was so eager to stay there (the website is so sleek! so shiny!), but when I arrived, I was appalled to find muddy tread marks and blood stains on the comforter cover. Not romantic.

In addition to this, the window was near a very loud generator on an adjacent roof, and the room window only opened only slightly- enough to let in the exhaust from the loud Bush St. traffic below, at least. If you're planning on going during the summer (like I did), it's additionally problematic as none of the rooms have air conditioning (I can only imagine how muggy the room would become after using the shower). To add insult to injury, the offered "nearby" 24 hour parking = $$$$$$. But it really was the cleanliness that was the ultimate deal-breaker. My date and I promptly returned to the desk, returned the key, and found accommodations elsewhere. Just food for thought.
posted by numinous at 8:25 PM on April 8

It's not San Francisco specific, but you may want to take a look at Tablet Hotels, a booking site for interesting boutique hotels in major urban centers. They have a number of listings for SF, almost all of which are in the City Center and near SF's unique tangle of public transportation options.
posted by eschatfische at 8:45 PM on April 8

For the slightly bizarre, colorful, artsy look, Hotel Triton is a good choice and it's professionally managed by a large boutique hotel and restaurant group (Kimpton Hotels). It's just half a block from downtown Union Square and is right next to Chinatown.
posted by junesix at 10:09 PM on April 8

I've stayed at the Saint Francis a number of times. If you can score a tower room with a view you'll love it. The last time I was there I could see the bay, Coit Tower, the entire skyline and the Pacific from my room. It was awesome.

I wouldn't consider it a "destination", but it's certainly a nice enough hotel. It's also only a few blocks from the Powell Street BART/Muni station which is a huge bonus.
posted by 26.2 at 10:22 PM on April 8

The Phoenix Hotel is where the rock stars stay. Please refrain from throwing your TV into the pool.
posted by toxic at 10:34 PM on April 8

The Mark Hopkins has some verrrry haunted hallways on the upper floors.
posted by Scram at 10:39 PM on April 8

The Serrano Hotel is part of the Kimpton group, which also runs the Triton and Monaco, as well as many other interesting hotels in SF. Compared to the other Kipton hotels, the Serrano is a bit more traditional, but it's still quirky and fun.

But possibly the coolest hotel in SF is the Clift, run by the Morgans group. These are the same folks who run Mondrian in LA, the Royalton in NYC, and the Delano in Miami. All the Morgan hotels feature high design with genuinely weird touches.

I second Tablet Hotels as a great place to find cool spots.
posted by bruceo at 1:00 AM on April 9

Seconding the Triton Hotel, we enjoyed our stay there. We found the Westin St Francis too old and creaky, shades of the Shining on the long corridors.
posted by arcticseal at 2:26 AM on April 9

If you make it to Haight-Ashbury, try the Piedmont Boutique for flamboyant accessories.
posted by thebellafonte at 10:20 AM on April 9

Great suggestions--I do have to run them by my partner and see what works for us both.

In the meantime, I LOVE Tablet Hotels, hence the best answers. They're a lot more than just an expedia-type site. Thank you everyone!
posted by sondrialiac at 4:04 PM on April 9