Checking into the Four Seasons San Francisco is a little perplexing. Like the Columbia Tower in Seattle, the elevators don’t go all the way to the top, so you switch elevators after you reach the lobby, front desk, and concierge. There’s a second set of elevators for the rooms, so you can tell who just arrived because they’re slightly lost. Once you figure out the space, there’s also a restaurant and a business space with its own stationery, but the front desk dominates your attention.
Map confusion aside, I want to say that the staff who worked with me were stellar. During check-in, I mentioned I was tired, and that I was frustrated because I lost my wedding band in the airport. They sent up a pot of chamomile tea with honey and lemon slices, and Alex called the airport for me, left a message, and then left a message on my room line asking for my number in case the airport called back after I had checked out. (Another team member the next day also checked in to see if I had heard the message and if he could help out.) Everyone was polite, and was honestly in a good mood. I wished I could be in as good a mood, but I was distracted by my aching back.
I was upgraded to a corner room, so I stayed in my first hotel room with its own entryway. With a desk with wall-to-wall window views, a pillow-covered king sized bed, and a comfy chair with a nightstand, it felt like the best place I had seen to relax in in ages.
Well, I was wrong – I hadn’t seen the bathroom yet. Let me be brutally honest: my bathroom at the Four Seasons was larger than my bedroom at home. The bathroom has fluffy spa robes and slippers for two, and all the bath products were L’Occitane en Provence. There’s a shower and a very, very inviting tub, and I found myself wondering if they ever just rented out the bathrooms to exhausted people who wanted a quiet hour of peace and a foot soak.
I left my room to visit the Press Club and came back to find they had brought me a light dinner and a bottle of sparkling water, along with some chocolates. I called to thank them, and to let them know it had been sitting there for a while. Their response? They sent up a new tray for me to try for breakfast.
And it was delicious. The light bite tray represented the city – spring rolls, dressed in sriracha, for Chinatown; guacamole, salsa, and tortilla chips for the Mission District; salami and olives, and squares of Ghirardelli chocolate. It was a lot of food for one, but I know sharing this with my spouse, looking out of that view of the city, would have been a blast.
So, if you want to really get everything out of the Four Seasons, I think you should tell the staff how you’re feeling. They have the skill and attentiveness to turn even a rough day into something lovely and full of pillows, and they’re amazing at what they do. Starting at $585/night, it’s also not a cheap stay, but you will be incredibly hard pressed to find something more luxurious that also works well for business in that section of San Francisco and still makes you feel like you’re their most important guest.
This, people, is some new kind of gold standard.
Four Seasons San Francisco
757 Market Street
San Francisco, CA 94103
(415) 633-3000
