Lodging

Personality Hotels is offering a special "Cougar Package" featuring a stay at Hotel Diva.

Cougars. The country is lousy with them. From “cougar parties” in major cities to  a primetime television show featuring Courtney Cox in the lead role (as the resident “cougar”), this country has embraced the idea of women over 40 dating significantly younger men.

OK, so the French broke this taboo decades ago, but, hey, they’re French. As the idea becomes mainstreamed here across the pond, more women are owning their “cougar” status and Personality Hotels would like to celebrate these ladies with a special package designed just for them.

The Cougars with Personality package includes:

• A one-night stay at Hotel Diva
• Two animal print thongs
• Two lemon drop cocktails
• Two $25 gift certificates at Epi Med Spa
• Professional bra fittings for two women at Nordstrom
• A list of San Francisco’s hottest cougar bars

Enter to win the package by telling Personality Hotels, in 150 words or less,  why you belong in their “cougar den.” Send your essay and your best cougar photo to cougar@personalityhotels.com from now through October 9.

Hotel Diva is a hip, stylish boutique hotel near Union Square in San Francisco that has recently undergone a “facelift” with new sumptuous linens, bold furnishings, and (very important for cougars) recessed mood lighting.

We can’t all look like Courtney, but there just might be some young cubs lurking around the city who want to learn a thing or two from a woman who has a bit more life, and, er, other experience.

Photo courtesy of Personality Hotels

The Powell Hotel in the middle of the action.

It doesn’t get any closer to the pulse of San Francisco than the Powell Hotel.

The one-hundred thirty-seven rooms sit right above the Powell and Market cable car turnaround smack in the middle of downtown, which depending on what kind of person you are, may or may not be a good thing.

If you like being in the thick of the action, this hotel, built in 1908 and recently renovated, puts you in the heart of it. The street below is heavily trafficked with commuters, tourists, shoppers, vendors, street performers, lunatics, and vagrants offering a real slice of the city’s character. Light sleepers beware — “view” rooms are noisy with the cacophony down below

Standard rooms are  small but affordable starting at $119. Deluxe rooms, suites, and the “Presidential” suite offer more room and work well for families.

The location is particularly good for those taking public transportation to and from the airport, a BART station is yards away from the front door. The Powell is three blocks south of Union Square and right across from Westfield Shopping Centre, which though I’m not a fan of malls, I must say, this one which houses Nordstrom and Bloomingdale’s is quite impressive. Take the vintage escalator all the way up and check out the dome on top. There is also a United Artists move theater there.

The cable car turnaround is below the Powell.

A cute cafe occupies part of the lobby selling good quality pastries, excellent coffee, and a choice of soups. I sometimes stop there on my way to work and can recommend the tortilla soup.

There is just about any type of cuisine you can dream up within a few blocks and one of the city’s best dives, the Gold Dust Saloon is right up the block.

Currently the Powell is offering an SF Giants Baseball Package that includes viewbox tickets over third base, and one- or two-room suites.

Don’t forget to stop in between 5 and 8 p.m. and partake of the Hospitality social and throw back a complimentary cocktail, beer, or glass of wine.

A double room at the Hotel Powell.

The Powell Hotel
28 Cyril Magnin Street
San Francisco, CA 94102
(415) 398-3200

Top photo by Lisa Dion; middle and lower courtesy of the Powell Hotel.

The Chancellor Hotel was built in 1914.

My eyes rested on the dusty, fake flowers as I waited for my tour of the Chancellor Hotel. A landmark building, it was built in 1914 for the Pan-Pacific Exposition and these flowers look like they could have been original. My first impression of the busy lobby — tired, bland, worn.

Mary Orsorno, who handles PR for the family-owned hotel, came to show me around to some of the 137 rooms. While small by today’s standards, the rooms were impeccably clean and newly renovated in with coats of fresh emerald green paint and new carpeting.

The renovation included comfortable, pillow-top mattresses and 380-thread count sheets. A “pillow menu” offers 12 types of hypoallergenic pillows to choose — a charming and unique amenity I’ve not come across before. Rooms include 32-inch flat screen televisions, irons and ironing boards, personal safes, umbrellas, ceiling fans and hair dryers. Free Wi-Fi is available throughout the hotel and a small business area is near the front desk.

The bathrooms feature deep-set tubs, Lord & Mayfair bath salts and products, and rubber duckies, another sweet touch.

137 rooms tower over Union Square.

The rooms were surprisingly quiet (double-paned windows, thank you very much) especially considering the location in the heart of busy Union Square with cable cars whizzing by out front. Windows actually open for fresh air, again something not found most places, and guests can order breakfast in bed from Lucque’s the restaurant on the premises, open from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. daily. Room service is available till 9:30 p.m.

Oh, checkout is at a most civilized hour — noon.

Prices range from $125 to $225; two two-room suites are available for families and larger groups.  I did however see prices as low as $89 on the Internet. The hotel is currently offering some promos – a romance package, a summer dining package, and a Giants special that includes tickets to a baseball game. Rooms have either queen beds or two twin beds.

The location is unbeatable if you are looking for a traditional San Francisco tourist experience. Union Square shopping is legendary, the cable car is at the doorstep, the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art is a few blocks away and there are tons of great restaurants and bars within walking distance.

The clientele tends to be older — my parents stayed here a few years ago and adored it.

So there you have it — the Chancellor is proof that you can’t always judge a hotel by it’s lobby.

The lobby is tired but the rooms look fresh.

The Algonquin-inspired Hotel Rex.

The literati have a place to call home in San Francisco.

Hotel Rex, a handsome boutique hotel near Union Square, honors literary legends and their legacies in much the same manner as the famed Algonquin in New York.

OK, without the hundred-year history or the wit of Ms. Dorothy Parker.

But here, you might stumble upon a poetry reading or an author event in the clubby book-lined lobby when checking in, or enjoy live jazz on Fridays at the plush library bar.

At the very least, you can relax with a free glass of wine offered from 5 to 6 p.m. while browsing the titles of the collection.

I was pretty harried when I arrived for my overnight stay at the Rex a few years ago. I’d left my purse filled with cash (from my bartending gig at the Fillmore) at a cable car stop in Chinatown. When I realized it, (on the cable car several stops later), I jumped off, flagged a cab and rushed back. It was there, untouched, my tips in tact.

I needed a drink. The front desk generously sent my husband and I a shaker full of chilled cosmopolitans to our room shortly after we arrived.

Despite the impressive desk that took up a good portion of it, our room wasn’t much to write home about. It was small, dark and sans view but decorated with cool artwork and a hand-painted lampshade. The bed with pillow top mattress was exceedingly comfortable. It was also incredibly quiet.

The sumptuous book-lined lobby and bar at the Hotel Rex in San Francisco.

Downstairs among the antiquarian books are computer stations in a study decorated with vintage typewriters should you want to emerge from the era of the roundtable salon and attend to your modern-day business. There is free wi-fi in the rooms as well.

There are 92 rooms and two suites that start at $139 for a week night.

Hotel Rex is named for San Francisco poet and essayist, Kenneth Rexroth, who among other accomplishments, introduced Allen Ginsberg to Gary Snyder, two major players in the San Francisco Beat scene.

Hotel Rex’s aptly-chosen “philanthropic partner” is 826 Valencia, a program dedicated to supporting students with writing skills workshops, classes, field trips, and tutoring founded by San Francisco author/memoirist Dave Eggers.

This incredible offer of a dollar room rate at the Orchard Garden Hotel in downtown San Francisco caught my eye since I was just at its Roots restaurant for a fun travel blogger “meet-up” last week.

Guestroom with terrace at Orchard Garden Hotel.

Indeed, on April 1 (and this is no April Fool’s Day joke!) one room per night throughout the month of April will be rented for $1 at the Orchard Garden Hotel and sister property the Orchard Hotel. That means just 60 allotted rooms are available at that rate for the month.

Rooftop terrace at Orchard Garden Hotel.

So, if you’re interested, you’ve got to act fast. You can book the promotional rate beginning at 10 a.m. (PST) at the Orchard Hotels website on April 1, and you must use the code ‘Fool!’ Additional nights are available for $159; the “Fool” package includes complimentary morning newspaper and Wi-Fi.

I was impressed with the eco-friendly Orchard Garden Hotel, which was the state’s first property to receive LEED new construction certification from the U.S. Green Building Council. Indeed, the rooms are light and airy, with nice amenities such as an iPod docking station and organic bath products. The on-site Roots restaurant serves breakfast, lunch and dinner featuring locally grown and raised products.

You can’t beat the Orchard Garden Hotel’s convenient location — literally steps away from Chinatown and Union Square. The Orchard Hotel is on the same street, just a couple blocks away. And the rooftop terrace is a great place to relax with a glass of wine and enjoy the view.

Photos courtesy Orchard Garden Hotel.

A cable car glides by the front of Hotel Union Square in San Francisco.

What exactly is a “kids’ suite?” I wondered.

I decided to find out.

I met my husband and our children, ages four and one, after work last week at the Hotel Union Square in San Francisco. Even though I arrived just 20 minutes after they checked in, when I opened the door it looked like a cyclone had hit the handsome, spacious room.

The kids were having a blast.

Roman had found a little play kitchen and was mixing, blending and cooking.

Parker had dumped out pile of wooden blocks, but had since moved on to a toy keyboard upon which she was writing an original composition.

I stepped over a football and Chinese checkers to hand Dan a glass of complimentary Cabernet from downstairs in the posh lobby.

Dropping my backpack on the bed at the other end of the suite I had my “aha” moment.

Kids’ suite. So, this is what they mean….

Built in 1913 for the Pan Pacific International Exhibit, the historic hotel has great bones and sturdy walls that could tell many stories. During Prohibition, San Franciscans thumbed their noses at authority and sneaked down into to the Golden Bubble, a 10,000 square-foot speakeasy beneath the lobby. And Dashiell Hammett, author of The Maltese Falcon and The Thin Man booked his fiance a suite here the night before their wedding.

The Hotel Union Square underwent a $5 million renovation last spring. The result is sophisticated and sleek — gray pinstriped carpets, exposed brick walls, sumptuous Serta mattresses and comfortable conversation areas throughout. Though the design is minimalist and contemporary, beautiful art works from Egyptian-style mosaics to jazz era paintings and metal sculpture are sprinkled throughout.

There is even the Dashiell Hammett suite, an homage to the San Francisco scribe with vintage photos and period ephemera including a Royal typewriter.

Party time in the kids suite at the Hotel Union Square in San Francisco.

But, back to the Kids’ Suite. The oversized room looks out onto Powell Street, above the cable car line. Two passes for the cable car are included with the room. The front desk offered a portable crib for my little guy, but the kids were very comfortable in the trundle bed.

After an early dinner at Lori’s Diner across the street, we came back to try out the Wii. At storytime we tapped into the book collection that covered many reading levels and subjects from Humpty Dumpty to Hannah Montana.

The Union Square location is good for families — a Walgreens is across the street and I counted at least five affordable restaurants on the block — from Blondie’s Pizza and Subway to Thai and Indian cuisines, and a steak house.

Teenagers will like the proximity to Urban Outfitters, Rasputin Records, Forever 21 and the Gap.

Drawbacks?

It’s noisy. If you or your kids are unaccustomed to urban noise, it might be too much. The night we were there was trash/recycling night which notched up the volume considerably. Despite that, we all slept well.

No fridge. This was particularly inconvenient since they don’t serve Continental breakfast and I had stopped to pick up milk and fruit for the morning but had no place to store it.

Some sharp corners and a nonbaby-friendly bathroom. Not a huge deal, but since my little man can open doors, I was constantly retrieving him from inside the plexiglass shower and off the slippery tiled floor.

Would I book another kids’ suite? Absolutely. I totally get it, and I appreciate the attention to needs of children when traveling. It was so nice not having to pack a boatload of toys to keep them busy and to have a space large enough for them to play while my husband and I relaxed and sipped wine across the room. Now that’s almost a vacation!

Photos by Dan Dion

Golden Gate Bridge

For over-the-top spa indulgence there’s nothing like The Ritz.

Get a Green Coffee Slenderizing Body Treatment or an Anti-Aging Papaya, Pineapple, and Pomegranate Body Treatment. This is obviously not an ordinary experience, especially when you’re sitting on top of prestigious Nob Hill which is known for its skyline views.

Choose a romance package that includes champagne and strawberries upon arrival, a pre-dinner half-bottle of wine at the Ritz-Carlton bar, breakfast in bed or Sunday Brunch for two at the lovely Terrace Restaurant. And to top it off, a late check-out to allow for true romantic indulgence for your romantic escape.

Each guest room is decorated with multi-cultural influence and original art by local artists featuring local scenes and city landmarks. Sunday brunch on The Terrace is served from 11:00 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. and is a local favorite. The Lobby Lounge has breath-taking views of the city skyline.

Alcatraz

And the location couldn’t be better for a couple in love to experience the wonders of San Francisco. Hop on a cable car to get to Union Square on one end, or Fisherman’s Wharf on the other. Chinatown is just steps away. And for those who enjoy walking, San Francisco is one of the world’s most walkable cities, as long as you don’t mind a few hills.

For the ultimate romantic escape head to the Ritz-Carlton in San Francisco.

Photos courtesy of Mike G.K. (Flickr Break)

The Ritz-Carlton, San Francisco
600 Stockton Street
San Francisco, CA 94108
415-296-7465

View of Union Square, San Francisco and the Westin St. Francis.

“Meet me at the St. Francis.”

I was speaking to my friend Angela while heading downtown with my four-year-old daughter Parker, to get our Christmas on.

An hour later Parker and I were sitting at Caruso’s in the iconic Westin St. Francis Hotel with Ang and her daughter Layne. The girls licked frosting off cupcakes, the adults sipped cocktails. We were waiting till the sun was sufficiently down and the Square ablaze with twinkling holiday lights.

There is something magical about Christmas in the city and I wanted to share it with my daughter, who is old enough to get into it this year. We had already done an excursion to the Hyatt Regency to gawk at the magnificent atrium strung with 300,000 pale blue lights and the charmingly intricate Snow Village below.

But for sheer impact of the holiday season, nothing in San Francisco compares to Union Square. And there is no place better to base oneself than the stately St. Francis, the grande dame of San Francisco hotels.

For starters, it’s directly across from the gynormous Christmas tree and skating rink, and on the Powell cable car line. And Union Square is a retail mecca anchored by biggies like Saks, Macy’s, Neiman Marcus, Tiffany, Williams Sonoma and more recently, Barney’s. The holiday window dressing is divine. And my favorite Santa (an old hippie from Oroville, Ca.) holds court at Macy’s every year.

The hotel offers specials packages this time of year including a Macy’s shopping package and an ice skating package. An elegant holiday tea is held on Fridays and weekends through December — or why not avoid all family drama this year and reserve now for the sumptuous Christmas and New Year’s Eve dinners, ($79 adults; $37 children 12 and under).

One more reason to drop by the St. Francis this month is to view the 12-foot rotating holiday sugar castle created by the hotel’s executive pastry chef. The castle resembles a French chateau, weighs more than 1,200 pounds, has 30 rooms and is completely edible. Sweet.

Photos courtesy of the Westin St. Francis.

From Nancy D. Brown of What a Trip

Macy

With the holiday season ahead, shoppers are pulling out their credit cards, creating their shopping lists and getting ready for a bargain-based shopping extravaganza.

Are you ready for Black Friday holiday shopping?  These shopping centers are known for the best selection, best deals and best name brand shopping in the USA. Of course, we included some of the best hotels with the best shopping deals on our list. Everyone is entitled to a good night sleep.

Check out our Top 10 Hotel List.  Did your hotel make the cut?

Mall of America,

Bloomington, Minnesota

The most visited shopping mall in the world, with over 40 million visitors annually, the Mall of America is one of the largest shopping malls in the world. With over 520 shops, restaurants, a park and a church, Mall of America has got it all. TIP: Minnesota doesn’t charge sales tax on apparel or shoes.

LODGING Guests of the Crowne Plaza in Bloomington, Minnesota, have access to free mall shuttle service.

Newbury Street, Photo courtesy of z.about.com

Newbury Street, Boston, Massachusetts

Shopping is one of the top reasons people visit Boston.  High-end Newbury Street, an eight-block stretch of cutting-edge and upper-crust shops, is sure to please.  For budget savvy shoppers, check out Wrentham Village Premium Outlets.

LODGING: The Fairmont Copley Plaza, overlooking Copley Square, is centrally-located one block from Newbury Street.  TIP: The century-old hotel offers a Midnight Madness Shopping package November 27-28, 2008 for Black Friday holiday shoppers.

Chicago, Illinois Magnificent Mile

Chicago, Illinois “Magnificent Mile” stretches along North Michigan Avenue from Oak Street to the Chicago River.  From Armani to Louis Vuitton, you’ll be able to shop-till-you-drop.  TIP: For a quick sugar high, stop by Garrett Popcorn shop, 670 N. Michigan Ave. (312) 944-2630, a 50-year-old landmark famous for its caramel corn.

LODGING: Chicago’s Omni All-suites Hotel is located on the Magnificent Mile and offers a Girlfriends Getaway package.  TIP: Join the free Select Guest reward program and get Wi Fi, express check-in and check-out, complimentary morning beverages and turn-down service.

Westin Galleria Dallas

Galleria Dallas, Texas

From dining with your American Girl to ice skating with friends, Galleria Dallas has over 200 stores to shop.

LODGING: For those who prefer to wake up, roll out of bed and proceed directly to shopping, Westin Galleria Dallas is located within the Galleria shopping center.  TIP: For shoppers wanting a little Mother/Daughter bonding, select the Westin’s American Girl getaway package.

Socialite Sabrina Parisi

Rodeo Drive, Beverly Hills, California

If you want to shop like a rock star, you’ll want to head to Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills, California.  The real estate in Beverly Hills gets a little star studded between Santa Monica Blvd. and Wilshire Blvd.  Considered one of the most exclusive shopping streets in the world, you’ll find French fashion, Italian designer boutiques and plenty of bling to keep you happy.

LODGING: Continue your rock star experience with a stay at Chateau Marmont at 8221 Sunset Blvd. in West Hollywood, California.  Built in 1927, the Hotel of the Stars is the perfect getaway in the center of the city.  TIP: The Beverly Hills Hotel is close to the golden triangle of shopping and is also a celeb spotting location.

Fifth Avenue, New York

Fifth Avenue, New York

Located in the center of the borough of Manhattan, New York’s 5th Avenue is one of the premier shopping streets in the world. The shopping district between 49th and 57th streets is ranked as having the world’s most expensive retail spaces. Fifth Avenue originates at Washington Square Park in Greenwich Village and runs through midtown, along the east side of Central Park and ends at the Harlem River.

LODGING: Kimpton’s The Muse, a boutique hotel located blocks away from 5th Avenue, offers a “Head over Heels” shopping package for the sole. Trump Hotel offers the “Ultimate Shoe Lover” package with Bergdorf Goodman.

Macy's

Union Square, San Francisco, California

I left my heart and my wallet in San Francisco at Union Square. A 2.6 acre plaza, Union Square is bordered by Geary, Powell, Post and Stockton Street. The area is also known for its hotel, dining and theater district.

LODGING: The Westin St. Francis, located on Union Square, offers a Macy’s Shopping Package with accommodations starting at $234 per night.  Hotel Nikko, located at 222 Mason Street, offers a Serenity Package at a nearby day spa for tired shoppers.

Thanks to Frank Lynch for his Flickr photo of Macy’s NY Black Friday. Thanks to Thomas Dyllan for his Flickr photo of Sabrina Parisi. Thanks to MikeO for Lights of 5th Ave.