Fairmont San Francisco

Built at the turn of the last century and opened in 1907, the Fairmont is one of the oldest hotels in the city. The similarly grand Palace and Westin St. Francis are the only two hotels older than the Fairmont in the city. A lot has happened since 1907, of course, and the Fairmont now caters largely to business travelers. Conventioneers often fill the hallways and lobby day and night. For leisure travelers, that adds up to some trade-offs. On the one hand, you get the quality and consistency of a luxury chain property; on the other, it's a less-than-leisurely atmosphere in a large (591 rooms), impersonal setting.

One thing that never changes, however, is location, and the Fairmont's still reigns supreme. The massive original building, neoclassical columns and all, holds court over ritzy Nob Hill -- and thus the rest of San Francisco -- like a castle atop a mountain. Stepping outside the stately entrance onto Mason Street, you can almost feel those poor saps at the Ritz gaze up in envy from two blocks down the hill. The perch provides more than a feeling of superiority. The views from the Crown Meeting Room on the 24th floor are among the best in the city. And if you book a room in the tower, you don't even have to leave your room -- views from these rooms are stunning.

The Fairmont's interior, meanwhile, virtually screams early 1900s. Even if you don't book a room, it's worth a trip up the hill to see the lobby's enormous marble Corinthian columns, vaulted ceilings, velvet chairs, and wraparound staircase. Then there's the hotel's nods to everything that's happened since those early-1900s. Photos of the Fairmont's distinguished guests crowd the hallway walls. Known as the "White House of the West" (at least to the Fairmont's PR staff), the hotel has hosted every U.S. president since William Taft. Truman came here in 1945. Kennedy stayed here nearly two decades later, Clinton three decades after that. Movies filmed here include Vertigo, Dirty Harry, and The Rock.

All told, the Fairmont's present and future look as promising as its past. The hotel has undergone massive renovations to combine its old-world grandeur with a modern appeal. The result is a hotel that can compete with the best of 'em, including the city's few truly elite properties (the St. Regis, Loews Regency, and Ritz) -- at rates that are often less.

Unlike a few of the city's five-pearl hotels (the St. Regis and Loews Regency come to mind), the Fairmont doesn't offer over-the-top bonuses like 24-hour butlers or free limos. Still, the staff provides plenty, and they do it with class and efficiency.

• 24-hour room service
• Concierge on duty from early morning to late night
• Turndown ("Evening Refresh Service") upon request
• Express checkout

The Fairmont sits perched atop Nob Hill -- both the hill and the neighborhood -- overlooking the city like a king surveying his kingdom. The upside for guests: awesome views and a temporarily overblown sense of self-worth. Even the views from street-level are stunning. The downside? What goes down, must come up. If you're walking, the hike back to the Fairmont is positively thigh-burning, no matter what direction you're coming from (heavy are the quads that support the head that wears the crown...).

The area, Nob Hill, is jokingly -- okay, half-jokingly -- referred to by locals as "Snob Hill," and that tells you quite a bit about the neighborhood. It's primarily residential with a few luxury hotels mixed in (the Intercontinental Mark Hopkins, the Ritz, and the Scarlet Huntington are among its distinguished neighbors). Locals don't really hang out here, however; you'll need to head downhill to North Beach or the Marina, or over to Russian Hill or Pacific Heights, to find the best local restaurants, bars, and shops.

• Fisherman's Wharf is down the hill, less than a mile away (take the cable car back up!).
• The famous curvy block of Lombard Street is less than half a mile away.
• The city's famous Chinatown is right down the street.
• Far from the Presidio, the Golden Gate Bridge, Golden Gate Park, and Haight-Ashbury but then, so are the other neighborhoods with major hotels
• Cable car stop right behind hotel
• 30-minute taxi from San Francisco International Airport (SFO)
• Safe neighborhood (though vagrancy and panhandling are common, as throughout the city)

The Fairmont's rooms aren't quite up there with the best in the city -- notably at the St. Regis and the Loews Regency  -- but they surpass those at the Mark Hopkins, and even compare favorably with those at the Ritz, which tends to be far more expensive. A partial inventory: sleek beds with large headboards and high-quality linens; modern, black furniture; top technology; and first-class bathrooms with separate walk-in showers and deep tubs. In short, classy all the way, from the big stuff (beds, bathrooms) to the little (artwork, bath products).

• Rooms start at 325 square feet, about average for a luxury hotel in San Francisco.
• Rooms in the tower, which is what I had, run 370 square feet.
• Ask for a room as high up in the 24-story tower as possible for the best view.
• Beds feature Stearns & Foster Plush Pillowtop mattresses and 100 percent Egyptian cotton Frette 300-thread-count linens and duvet.
• First-class bathrooms featuring separate walk-in showers and deep tubs, plush bathrobes, and Le Labo toiletries
• Great tech: iPod docks and 37-inch LG flat-screen TVs with 70 channels
• Keurig coffeemakers and tea kettles
• Minibars with snacks
• Free Internet if you're a member of the President's Club (no strings to join -- see Features, below); a fast, reliable connection.

The most important thing you need to know about the Fairmont's amenities is that Wi-Fi (charged per day) and the gym (also charged per day) both cost extra unless you join the Fairmont's President's Club, but there's no reason not to join. It's free, and the only strings attached are the inevitable follow-up spam about Fairmont's deals and promotions. The other thing you should know is that most of the Fairmont's features cater to the largely corporate clientele: an enormous ballroom, perfect for key-note addresses; tens of thousands of square feet of meeting space; and a well-equipped 24-hour business center.

• Fitness center boasts modern, high-end equipment: several strength-training machines, a set of free weights, fitness orbs, yoga mats, and a dozen or so cardio machines, each with personal TV screens.
• Typical range of spa and salon services, at reasonable rates as spas go. 
• Lots of high-end boutique shopping on-site
• 24-hour business center with fax machine, color copier, and multiple PCs; attendant available during the day from Monday to Saturday.

Because of its grand-old-dame atmosphere and large number of corporate guests, the Fairmont isn't ideal for families with young children. Still, there's no reason in particular not to take the kids.

• Cribs are free, and fit in any size room, but rollaway beds are charged per night, and fit only in exterior rooms.
• Some connecting rooms, but be sure to ask when you book
• Babysitting outsourced to Bay Area Childcare Agency, a well-known babysitting company in San Francisco
• The Tonga Room is the family-friendlier of the two main restaurants, but the Laurel Court also has kids' options.
• Safe neighborhood (though vagrancy and panhandling are common, as throughout San Francisco)
• Be forewarned: The Fairmont is at the tippy-top of the hill; it's downhill -- and steep -- in every direction. So if you're a walking family, and your kids are too young to trudge back up -- and you're not keen to push them up in a stroller -- you might prefer a hotel closer to sea level.
• A better, if pricier, option is the Fairmont's sister, the Fairmont Heritage Place, Ghirardelli Square. 

The Fairmont's main restaurant, off the lobby, is a good notch or two above your typical hotel restaurant, and there's also a coffee shop, Caffe Cento, that serves snacks. But all conversation must begin with the iconic Tonga Room, the Polynesian-themed restaurant and bar that attracts locals and hotel guests alike. (As one local said, "You haven't reviewed the Fairmont until you've been to the Tonga Room.") Dating from the 1945 and popularized in the 1960s, when America became obsessed with anything and everything Hawaiian (an episode of Mad Men has Don Draper drinking at a tiki bar), the Tonga Room features faux straw huts, a floating band, and what it claims is the best mai tai in the city (served in a fake coconut, natch). Where it presumably took itself seriously 45 years ago, the Tonga Room now revels in its kitschyness, and has become city institution despite -- or maybe because of -- its anachronistic placement within the Fairmont. Unfortunately, cult status and profits don't often align, and the Fairmont has talked about closing the struggling restaurant in the past. But hundreds of locals rally in support of the place, so it doesn't look like it will be leaving any time soon.

• The main restaurant, Laurel Court resembles a typical grand-old-dame-hotel eatery with large open space, white tablecloths, well-heeled fellow diners, but meals are better than ordinary. Lunch is a bit pricey, but delicious. A typical breakfast, including coffee and OJ, is also offered. Afternoon tea is served daily. Dinner offers an elevated lunch menu, with great regional fare like butternut squash risotto and chorizo-crusted Monterey cod.
• The Tonga Room & Hurricane Bar specializes in Polynesian food, but there's something on the menu for pretty much everyone.
• In June 2010, the hotel installed honey beehives in the hotel's garden to help sustain the bee population and, of course, to cultivate its own honey, which is used at both restaurants.
• No restaurants in the immediate area (Nob Hill is quite residential), but if you can find plenty if you head downhill -- south to Union Square, east to Chinatown, or north to North Beach.