Celebrating Our Anniversary at Hotel Union Square, SF: Wine, Music, and the Cable Car Penthouse

It was our 18th wedding anniversary and well,  we wanted to celebrate big!  We took a drive over to San Francisco and found our way to one of my favorite areas in the city, Union Square!  There’s hustle and bustle, great food around every corner, the shopping scene is abundant, and the trolley’s roll by on the tracks ringing their bells often, it’s so San Francisco!  Our digs for the night?  The Cable Car Penthouse Suite at Hotel Union Square!

Celebrating 100 years, Hotel Union Square est. 1913 Hotel Union Square, San Francisco’s first boutique hotel, offers the authentic San Francisco experience. The sounds of ringing cable car bells recall the nostalgic old San Francisco days. Built in 1913 for the 1915 Pan Pacific Exposition, Hotel Union Square is a visually stimulating fusion of art deco and classic San Francisco style. Beautiful brick walls, original 1915 Egyptian-motif mosaic murals, and sleek furnishings from San Francisco based EQ3, are all complemented by a rich color palate of crimson, shades of grey and earthy taupe.

Situated in the heart of San Francisco’s shopping district and one block from the historic Cable Car Turnaround, Hotel Union Square is neighbors with some of the finest department stores and designer shops around. Aside from the art deco aesthetic, and rich history, this hotel has some of the most unique suites in the city. Paying tribute to literary aficionados, The Dashiell Hammett Suite is stylized to reflect the era and history of the early 1900’s, while The Kids Suite is the perfect escape for your children and includes child friendly amenities such as a computer, books and games.

We’ve enjoyed the Hotel Union Square on a prior visit with the family.  Their Kid’s Suite is amazing for all age groups and my youngest one still talks about it! We are huge fans of the Personality Hotels group as they cater to families, girlfriends, and couples alike!

Something new and innovative the hotel chain offers now is the Mobile Key option. If you have a smartphone, the Personality Hotels Mobile Key app is available for iPhone, Android, Blackberry, and Windows devices and is a handy alternate to carrying a key card or when that card falls to the bottom of your purse.  I generally have my phone in my hand all the time, so it’s just a bonus that I can use it for my time at the hotel.  It’s simple to use when at the door, the new readers sit above the door lock and you press the device earpiece to the button on the reader to unlock your door.  It did take a few tries, but I got it down.

It was a particularly warm day in the city, something you don’t say often enough, so we immediately notices the portable fan and air conditioner running.  When you’re on the 6th floor, up a flight of stairs, and on the roof it can get pretty warm, so we were thankful for the amenity!  Just outside a glass paneled door we found champagne and a gift of chocolate, the way to my heart obviously!  Ghirardelli chocolates with a coupon for a sundae (the Ghirardelli shop is a two minute walk, the infamous Ghirardelli Square just an 8 mile drive) and add a Nespresso coffee tasting card (Nespresso Boutique Bar just a 6 minute walk from the hotel) had us hooked up to some deliciousness for sure!

The white, grey, and black decor was clean and the pop of color in the bathroom and shower tile and in the artwork was nice.  I automatically commented on the rainfall shower head and already penciled in a long shower into our schedule.  A nice long chaise was comfy for one or two and the additional chair made for great space to enjoy a drink or the television.  The bed was heavenly with a most comfortable duvet that had us sprawled out on a cloud when we did a running jump onto it (yes, we’re children)!

Out on the balcony, the sun warmed the enclosed area and we sat and enjoyed the city skyline proposed at toast to 18 years and forever to go!

Something I love in a hotel is a complimentary wine hour.  Heck if it had a small fee, I think I’d still participate!  Head down to the lobby at 5pm nightly and you’ll find red and white wine available to guests and 5 days a week a musician entertains for the crowd!  The guitarist played and sang classic rock hits with those of the Beatles being our favorites.  My husband even requested “In My Life” for me since he knows it’s one of my favorites!  Wine hour is relaxing and a huge commitment to customer happiness from the hotel group, it was even great to see the concierge get into the action and sing along!

After dinner and a walk around the city, we were chilled and ready to settle in for the night, the lights out on the balcony were a lovely sight and the pillows on the bed called our names!As did the chocolates!

We slept like babies, no neighbor noise or elevator dings to make even a peep!  Another clear, beautiful day.

The shower was as relaxing as I’d hoped (with plenty of room for two)!  A window in the shower let in the cool bay air.  We snuggled right into the waffle-patterned robes made available to us and relaxed with coffee and tea made in-room from a handy Keurig!

Our stay was nothing but wonderful, the staff is fabulous and friendly, and the amenities will bring us back again and again to any of Personality’s San Francisco locations!   The penthouse is more than enough room for two and completely worth the splurge to enjoy the city from on high. To learn more about Hotel Union Square, the Kid’s Suite, the cool Giant’s baseball themed Dugout Suite, or the two Penthouse suites, visit http://www.hotelunionsquare.com/rooms/ and make your special occasion one worth bragging about!

Our stay was hosted, all opinions 100% our own.