Kimpton Sir Francis Drake Hotel
450 Powell Street, San Francisco Bay Area, USA
Union Square
416 Rooms
Traditional Elegance & Lively
If you’ve been to San Francisco at any time in the last 90 or so years you’ve noticed the Sir Francis Drake Hotel — or at least you’ve noticed its doormen, dressed in their distinctive red Beefeater uniforms, presiding over Powell Street just above Union Square. It’d be just about worth listing on Tablet solely for the Starlight Room, the penthouse bar with the 180° views of the skyline. But when you find out that Kimpton, purveyors of friendly boutique charm all across America, are also behind the Sir Francis Drake, you begin to suspect there’s much more than novelty value at play here.
You’re right, of course. (You’ve got a discerning eye for this sort of thing, if you don’t mind our saying so.) Behind the nostalgia of the doormen and the well-preserved public spaces, this is a high-functioning and not at all unstylish hotel — more classic luxury, less boutique funkiness, perhaps, than the Kimpton norm, as befits its grand dame status. The style is a mélange of Art Deco and Victorian, with noticeable modern and contemporary accents, and while the spaces aren’t over-large they’re much more than comfortable enough. The Starlight Room is enough to keep you in-house, as is Scala’s Bistro, a local Italian favorite, and Bar Drake, a classic (and less vertiginous) cocktail bar. And this being more or less the heart of San Francisco, you’re surrounded by the city’s greatest density of bars and restaurants, to say nothing of shops — though the Powell Street cable car passes right by the front door, you might well get through an entire stay here without venturing outside of walking distance.
You’re right, of course. (You’ve got a discerning eye for this sort of thing, if you don’t mind our saying so.) Behind the nostalgia of the doormen and the well-preserved public spaces, this is a high-functioning and not at all unstylish hotel — more classic luxury, less boutique funkiness, perhaps, than the Kimpton norm, as befits its grand dame status. The style is a mélange of Art Deco and Victorian, with noticeable modern and contemporary accents, and while the spaces aren’t over-large they’re much more than comfortable enough. The Starlight Room is enough to keep you in-house, as is Scala’s Bistro, a local Italian favorite, and Bar Drake, a classic (and less vertiginous) cocktail bar. And this being more or less the heart of San Francisco, you’re surrounded by the city’s greatest density of bars and restaurants, to say nothing of shops — though the Powell Street cable car passes right by the front door, you might well get through an entire stay here without venturing outside of walking distance.
Location
Kimpton Sir Francis Drake Hotel
450 Powell Street, San Francisco Bay Area, USA
Union Square
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Rates in GBP for 1 night, 1 guest
Rates in GBP for 1 night, 1 guest
Stay dates
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Check-in
Oct 6
Check-out
Oct 15
Rates shown in USD based on single occupancy.
