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Tags: Fairmont Hotels / Eco-Friendly Hotels / Hotel Packages / Luxury / San Francisco Hotels / Green Hotels / Washington D.C. Hotels / → All Tags
The Fairmont SF and DC Deliver Luxury and a Lexus Hybrid
Luxury is synonymous with excess, which in the car world usually suggests the use of high smog-emitting vehicles. Bigger is not always better for Mother Earth, with all that carbon monoxide contributing to her degradation.
A depressing reality, to be sure, but with environmental awareness being so very haute these days, tastemakers and luxury providers are striving to make the good life the green life, too. It's no coincidence that you hear blatant plugs for hybrid cars as stars arrive on the Oscars red carpet, you know. Plush comforts and planet-friendly alternatives can coexist, as LuxuryLink, Lexus, and The Fairmont San Francisco and Washington DC are attempting to prove with special Eco-Chic packages.
Included in the three-night deal for two in San Francisco are accommodations in a special Lexus Hybrid Living Suite decked out in all organic or sustainable materials, use of the 2009 Lexus LS 600H Hybrid sedan, organic wine, and passes to three local green wineries in Napa. In DC, you get a two-night stay for four, including Living Suite digs, use of the same sedan, organic wine upon arrival, $150 in hotel dining credits, and a $100 donation to the National Geographic Society.
Tags: Hotel Video Tours / Intercontinental Hotels / San Francisco Hotels / Convention Center Hotels / → All Tags
Inside the Intercontinental San Francisco
Last week, we told you about the Michelin-starred grub at Luce, the restaurant at the Intercontinental San Francisco, but today, we’re going to take you on a video walkthrough of a standard guestroom there so you can get a feel for the entire hotel experience.
Our favorite features of the room? Enormous windows (though not such awesome views), a cozy work desk-sitting area, a huge flat-screen TV on which to watch Anderson Cooper spout off on CNN, an iPod docking station, huge marble bathrooms (though the sliding doors were kind of unwieldy and didn’t lock!), neutral-toned patterns and fabrics, and well stocked minibars.
Tags: Hotel Restaurants / Intercontinental Hotels / San Francisco Hotels / → All Tags
What The Michelin-Starred Grub is Like at The Intercontinental San Fran
Though Michelin decided to skip rating Los Angeles restaurants this year, we caught word of their just-released 2010 San Francisco rankings and noticed that Luce at the Intercontinental San Francisco just got its first star under the direction of recent Iron Chef competitor, Dominique Crenn.
After our meal there this past weekend, we totally understand why.
The meal begins with an unassuming amuse bouche of panna cotta-textured celery root mousse with citrus foam to get your palate ready for the unexpected flavor combinations still to come. Appetizers on the menu, which is small but still impressive and diverse, run the gamut from a warm and hearty autumn vegetable medley, to a streamlined Kona kampachi tartare served with pickled apples and shaved cauliflower with bright green celery sorbet, to a combination of both styles in the modern dressing up of an erstwhile working-class comfort food: roasted bone marrow (served in-bone lest you have any doubts) with garlic confit, fried capers gremolata and grilled bread.
Smear it all together and you’re transported back to a 19th century farmer’s table.
Tags: Hotel Openings / San Francisco Hotels / Gregory Peck / → All Tags
The Crescent Hotel San Francisco is Open But Rooms Are Sold Out
The Crescent San Francisco Hotel is opening today but when we went to check on reservations, dates were unavailable until October 28th. Rates were available then for a low, low rate of $105 a night but we wondered what was up with the supposed delay?
We checked in with hotelier Greg Peck who told us that hotel is indeed opening today. The reason why you can't make reservations until the 28th is actually quite simple: the hotel is sold out. Peck also added that he would be onsite all day today working with staffers to get the hotel ready for its first guests.
While this weekend is out for a stay at the Crescent, if you need Halloween accommodations in San Fran, the hotel is still going for $105 for both Friday and Saturday nights for a Crescent Junior room. It's a tiny room, about 185-sq.ft. but if you want to pay extra for a larger Crescent Suite (300 to 400-sq.ft.), that's only $147 a night.
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Get Tickled Pink By W's Generous 'Share Your Heart' Package
Magenta hues at the W Times Square
We've written about green hotel packages, but pink? The "Share Your Heart" promotion from New York's family of W Hotels proves that philanthropy and pleasure-seeking aren't mutually exclusive, and they've set out to give back to guests who want to do the same.
October, as you may well know, is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Perhaps you've already pitched in by collecting and sending in pink yogurt tops or attended a fundraising event, but you can also contribute by booking the "Share Your Heart" package at an NYC W location. Being uber femme-themed, it's perfect for girlfriends looking for a brief New York getaway in the fantasy-Manhattan vein of Sex and the City. We also see that the W San Francisco and W Hoboken have joined in on the charitable efforts, and we're tickled you-know-what color by their generosity.
Tags: Reader Reviews / Renaissance Hotels / San Francisco Hotels / → All Tags
Inside The New Renaissance Stanford Court
Every so often we feature a hotel review from one of our readers that we feel should be shared with the rest of you dear hotel guests. These reviews are highlighted because they are timely, about cool hotels in cool places and are relatively level-headed. Think you can submit one just like this? Send it in.
Named after and on the site of the former mansion of Leland Stanford, a San Francisco railroad baron, The Renaissance Stanford Court shares Nob Hill with the Mark Hopkins InterContinental (next door), The Fairmont (across the street), The Huntington (a block uphill), and The Ritz-Carlton (a few doors downhill).
While Union Square is only a few blocks away, the short climb to Nob Hill is steep. Really steep. It had been a while since my last time in SF, and even though I stayed at the Mark Hopkins at the time, I do not remember it being that steep. For most people, it should not be a major issue, but if you are less able to walk or traveling with someone that is, then keep this in mind.
Tags: Deal or No Deal / San Francisco Hotels / Hotel Deals / Hotel Packages / → All Tags
$850 'Bargain' Package at The Huntington Hotel San Francisco
Socialites, smoking jackets, and stiff cocktails all come to mind when we think of San Francisco's Huntington Hotel. When we say it's old school, we mean it: Think jacket required, heavy wood accents, and decor that's world's away from what you might find at hyper-modern hotels like The Clift and W. Here it's a decidedly older crowd that reigns supreme, but that doesn't make it any less of a novelty experience for young travelers.
The Huntington is celebrating its 85th anniversary this year, and in it for guests who give a defiant finger to the recession is a package that's all over-the-top frills. It's only available through December 30th of this year, so you'll need to whip out your credit card soon if you want to take advantage of their one-night $850 "deal." That's right, $850 qualifies as a bargain basement rate according to The Huntington.
Tags: Halloween Hotels / San Francisco Hotels / Hilton Hotels / Hotel Contests / → All Tags
Showing Up in Your Halloween Costume Could Get You a Free Hotel Stay
Who says you're too old to dress up and go trick or treating this Halloween? Of course, we aren't talking about putting on a Care Bears costume and using your Care Bears pillowcase as a candy bucket as you skip from house to house. No, there's a much more adult to way to trick or treat this year at the Hilton San Francisco Financial District.
Over Halloween weekend, guests can choose from "treats" such as Hilton HHonors points, food and beverage coupons, museum tickets and Halloween candy. But if you arrive in costume you will be entered in the hotel's costume contest where the winner will get one free night on the hotel's 13th floor. Awesome! Wait, is it? Most hotels don't have a 13th floor. Nevermind, the Hilton promises to give you a free stay on an actual floor that exists.
Just checking in for the weekend? Room rates start at $169 a night. But beware of the black cat crossing your path. That's Clarence, the hotel's supposedly good-natured house cat.
[Photo: Ivanx]
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The Soon-To-Open Crescent San Fran Now Has Rooms Starting at $105
The countdown to the opening of San Francisco's Crescent Hotel is on, with its official unveiling set for October 21st. Hotelier Gregory Peck staked a claim on prime Union Square real estate (the former Allison hotel), gutting the property and giving it a 'classic San Francisco with a modern twist' look.
If you left your heart in San Francisco, then you'll be happy to hear about site-specific touches that we previously reported on, including iPod playlists crafted by local DJs, a locally-focused wine program to enjoy in room, and library with "West Coast-centric" reading material.
Tags: Hotel Packages / Fairmont Hotels / San Francisco Hotels / Sonoma Hotels / Wine-Tasting Hotels / → All Tags
Fairmont Lures Us In With Chocolate and Pinot Noir
Fairmont Hotels may have opened up three new hotels along the ancient silk road yesterday (Cairo, China, Abu Dhabi) but they still have a special place in their hearts for California with their new “Chocolate at Pinot” Package available at their San Francisco and Sonoma hotels.
Some people get their antioxidants from green tea, and others get them from blueberries. Us? We prefer fight free radicals with red wine and dark chocolate. Hey, it still counts, so don’t judge us. Now thanks to Fairmont, we can indulge our (healthy, we swear!) cravings with this new four-day package.
With it, you can spend the first two days, Willy Wonka-ing it up at the Fairmont Heritage Place, Ghirardelli Square, which is actually in the former world-famous Ghirardelli Chocolate factory facility in the heart of San Francisco. Then take the second two days to relax from the bustle of the big city out at the Fairmont Sonoma Mission Inn and Spa, a grandiose pink resort with a nearly century-long history of gentrified rustication near many of Sonoma’s most famous wineries, and just a couple miles from the town of Sonoma itself.
Tags: Hotel Restaurants / Celebrity Chefs / Intercontinental Hotels / San Francisco Hotels / → All Tags
InterContinental Chef Leaves the Kitchen for 'Next Iron Chef'
Dine at the InterContinental San Francisco's Luce restaurant and you just might get a glimpse of the next Iron Chef. Luce's Chef de cuisine Dominique Crenn will battle for the title in the Food Network's second season of The Next Iron Chef, which will debut Oct. 4.
Crenn and nine other contestants seek join the ranks of Iron Chefs such as Cat Cora, Mario Batali, Bobby Flay, Masaharu Morimoto and first-season winner Michael Symon. Just being on the show can greatly help the French-Moroccan chef's career, as past alumni have gone on to become Food Network stars.
Tags: Killer View / San Francisco Hotels / Le Meridien Hotels / → All Tags
The Le Meridien San Francisco's Pretty But Pricey View
We are suckers for a room with a killer view. We find that we are even more likely to forgive some minor hotel inconveniences if we can stare out the window at something pretty--yeah we are that shallow. Let's help out our fellow hotel mavens by uploading rooms with killer views to the HotelChatter/Flickr photo pool, or by sending the photo along to us. We will feature our favorites in this space from time to time. Remember to tell us the name of the hotel and the room number of the hot view.
A dedicated HotelChatter tipster sent us this drop-dead gorgeous view from a room at the Le Meridien San Francisco on one of the hotel's top floors. He writes:
Attached a picture from Le Meridien San Francisco, one of the top floors (formerly the Park Hyatt), lovely bay view (okay, the office tower in the middle isn't pretty, but still). The Transamerica Pyramid is just out of the picture to the left, the Bay Bridge could be seen when turning to the right. Very enjoyable stay, and excellent value for money.
And may we add that's the Coit Tower in the very back of the photo too. Rooms at the Le Meridien, located on Battery Street in the Embarcadero, don't have a pink color scheme but they do have a modern look with bright red ergonomic desk chairs and swiveling flat-screen TVs. Even better, the hotel is entirely smoke-free. Rooms start next weekend at $349 a night.
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