The Clift Royal Sonesta Hotel

Last updated
The Clift Royal Sonesta Hotel
The sophisticated Redwood Room bar in the Clift Hotel, San Francisco, California LCCN2011631777.tif
The hotel's Redwood Room bar
Location map San Francisco County.png
Red pog.svg
The Clift Royal Sonesta Hotel
Location within San Francisco County
USA California location map.svg
Red pog.svg
The Clift Royal Sonesta Hotel
The Clift Royal Sonesta Hotel (California)
Usa edcp location map.svg
Red pog.svg
The Clift Royal Sonesta Hotel
The Clift Royal Sonesta Hotel (the United States)
General information
LocationUnited States
Address495 Geary Street
San Francisco, California
Coordinates 37°47′12″N122°24′40″W / 37.7867°N 122.4111°W / 37.7867; -122.4111
OpeningFebruary 1, 1915
OwnerService Properties Trust [1]
ManagementSonesta Hotels
Height64 m (210 ft)
Technical details
Floor count17
Design and construction
Architect(s) MacDonald & Applegarth
Schultze & Weaver
Other information
Number of rooms372
Number of restaurantsRedwood Room
Velvet Room
Website
http://www.sonesta.com/theclift

The Clift Royal Sonesta Hotel is a historic hotel located two blocks from Union Square at the intersection of Geary Street and Taylor Street, San Francisco, California.

Contents

History

In 1913, Frederick C. Clift, an attorney from a large family in the Sierra foothills, commissioned a 300-room hotel on a lot the family had inherited. The architect, a former student of Ecole de Beaux Arts, was George Applegarth and Kenneth A. MacDonald Jr. of MacDonald and Applegarth, the former of whom also designed the Palace of the Legion of Honor. [2] The hotel opened on February 1, 1915, [3] to serve crowds attending the Panama–Pacific International Exposition. Advertised as the first hotel in San Francisco to be fire and earthquake proof, with its 1924 addition of 3 floors, it became the largest hotel in the state. The hotel's Art Deco Redwood Room bar was added in 1933, paneled with wood from a single redwood tree.

1928 advertisement CliftHotelAdvertisement1928.png
1928 advertisement

Canadian Four Seasons Hotels acquired an interest in the hotel in 1976, and began managing it as their first US property. [4] Two years later, in 1978, they renamed it the Four Seasons Clift Hotel. [5] On February 21, 1995, Four Seasons sold their interest in the property and it became The Clift, a Grand Heritage Hotel. [6] Ian Schrager Hotels took over management in 1997, and the hotel became simply Clift. Schrager bought the hotel outright in 1999, for $80 million. [7] Soon after, he oversaw a $50 million complete renovation, which involved the restoration of the Redwood Room, and the gutting and redesign of much of the rest of the hotel, by designer Philippe Starck. [8] The hotel reopened on August 3, 2001. [3] Starck's lobby featured his furniture collection, including chairs from Ray and Charles Eames, furniture by Salvador Dalí, and a stool by Roberto Matta (inspired by René Margritte). Sonesta Hotels assumed management of the hotel in May 2018 and it was renamed The Clift Royal Sonesta Hotel. [9] The hotel closed from September 2019 to January 2020 for major renovations to the guest rooms, lobby and the Redwood Room. [10]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Transamerica Pyramid</span> Skyscraper in San Francisco

The Transamerica Pyramid is a pyramid-shaped 48-story modernist skyscraper in San Francisco, California, United States, and the second tallest building in the San Francisco skyline. Located at 600 Montgomery Street between Clay and Washington Streets in the city's Financial District, it was the tallest building in San Francisco from its completion in 1972 until 2018 when the newly-constructed Salesforce Tower surpassed its height. The building no longer houses the headquarters of the Transamerica Corporation, which moved its U.S. headquarters to Baltimore, Maryland. The building is still associated with the company by being depicted on the company's logo. Designed by architect William Pereira and built by Hathaway Dinwiddie Construction Company, the building stands at 853 feet (260 m). On completion in 1972 it was the eighth-tallest building in the world. It is also a popular tourist site. In 2020, the building was sold to NYC investor Michael Shvo, who in 2022 hired Norman Foster to redesign the interiors and renovate the building.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ian Schrager</span> American hotelier (born 1946)

Ian Schrager is an American entrepreneur, hotelier and real estate developer, credited for co-creating the "boutique hotel" category of accommodation. Originally, he gained fame as co-owner and co-founder of Studio 54.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Palace Hotel, San Francisco</span> Hotel in California, United States

The Palace Hotel is a landmark historic hotel in San Francisco, California, located at the southwest corner of Market and New Montgomery streets. The hotel is also referred to as the New Palace Hotel to distinguish it from the original 1875 Palace Hotel, which had been demolished after being gutted by the fire caused by the 1906 San Francisco earthquake.

Loews Hotels is an American luxury hospitality company that owns or operates 26 hotels in the United States and Canada. Loews' hotels and resorts are located in major North American city centers and resort destinations.

Morgans Hotel Group was a global, publicly-traded hospitality company founded by Ian Schrager and specialized in the boutique hotel category. Its foundations were laid in 1984 with the opening of the namesake Morgans Hotel in New York City. MHG was listed on the NASDAQ exchange for over a decade.

Morgans Hotel was the world's first boutique hotel, located at 237 Madison Avenue in New York City. Founded by Studio 54 cofounder Ian Schrager as the first property in the Morgans Hotel Group, it opened in 1984.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paramount Hotel</span> Hotel in Manhattan, New York

The Paramount Hotel is a hotel in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City, United States. Designed by architect Thomas W. Lamb, the hotel is at 235 West 46th Street, between Eighth Avenue and Broadway. The Paramount Hotel is owned by RFR Realty and contains 597 rooms. The hotel building, designed in a Renaissance style, is a New York City designated landmark.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Roosevelt New Orleans</span>

The Roosevelt New Orleans in New Orleans, Louisiana, is a 504-room hotel owned by AVR Realty Company and Dimension Development and managed by Waldorf Astoria Hotels & Resorts. The hotel was originally built by Louis Grunewald, a German immigrant, and opened in 1893 as "The Hotel Grunewald."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gramercy Park Hotel</span> Hotel in Manhattan, New York

Gramercy Park Hotel was a luxury hotel located at 2 Lexington Avenue, in the Gramercy Park neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City, adjacent to the park of the same name. It was known for its rich history. Originally opened in 1925, the hotel ceased operations in 2020 and was purchased by MCR Hotels in 2023 with plans to re-open in 2025.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hilton San Francisco Union Square</span> Hotel in San Francisco

The Hilton San Francisco Union Square is a skyscraper hotel located several blocks south-west of Union Square in San Francisco, California. Opened in 1964, the 18-story, 1200-room original building was known as a "motel within a hotel", allowing guests to park directly next to their upper-story rooms. Filling an entire city block, it remains one of the tallest structures representing Brutalist architecture, though it has been extensively altered since its construction. A second 46-story tower was added in 1971, while a third smaller 23-story connecting tower was completed in 1987. Renovated in 2017, it is the largest hotel on the West Coast, with 1,921 rooms.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Royalton Hotel</span> Hotel in Manhattan, New York

The Royalton Hotel is a hotel at 44 West 44th Street in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, United States. The hotel, opened in 1898, was designed by architecture firm Rossiter & Wright and developed by civil engineer Edward G. Bailey. The 13-story building is made of brick, stone, terracotta, and iron. The hotel's lobby, which connects 43rd and 44th Streets, contains a bar and restaurant. The upper stories originally featured 90 apartments, but these were replaced with 205 guestrooms when Philippe Starck and Gruzen Samton Steinglass Architects converted the Royalton to a boutique hotel in the 1980s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Les Cours Mont-Royal</span> Shopping mall

Les Cours Mont-Royal is an upscale shopping mall in the city's downtown core of Montreal, Quebec, Canada, which was converted from the former Mount Royal Hotel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Royal Sonesta Washington DC Dupont Circle</span> Boutique hotel in D.C., United States

The Royal Sonesta Washington DC Dupont Circle is a 335-room, boutique hotel located at 2121 P Street Northwest in the Dupont Circle neighborhood of Washington, D.C.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Four Seasons Hotel San Francisco at Embarcadero</span> Hotel in San Francisco, California

The Four Seasons Hotel San Francisco at Embarcadero is a luxury hotel that occupies the top 11 floors of 48 story office tower of 345 California Center at 222 Sansome Street in the financial district of San Francisco, California. Completed in 1986, the 345 California Center tower is the fifth-tallest in the city, at 211.8 m (695 ft). Initially planned as condominiums, the twin towers of hotel were situated at 45-degree angles relative to the rest of the building, connected to each other by several glass skybridges that offer views of the San Francisco Bay Area.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hotel St. Moritz</span> Hotel in Manhattan, New York

The Hotel St. Moritz was a luxury hotel located at 50 Central Park South, on the east side of Sixth Avenue, in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. The structure was extensively rebuilt from 1999 to 2002, and today it is a hotel/condominium combination known as The Ritz-Carlton New York, Central Park.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Graduate Berkeley</span> Hotel in Berkeley, California

The Graduate by Hilton Berkeley is a historic boutique hotel located in Berkeley, California in the United States. It is located in downtown Berkeley, just off campus of the University of California, Berkeley. The hotel is listed on the Berkeley register of historic places.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Beacon Grand Hotel</span> Hotel in San Francisco, California

The Beacon Grand is a historic 416-room hotel in San Francisco, California, opened in 1928 as the Sir Francis Drake Hotel. It is located at the corner of Sutter and Powell Streets adjacent to Union Square.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kenneth A. MacDonald Jr.</span> American architect

Kenneth A. MacDonald Jr. (1880–1937) was an American architect, known for his residential and commercial work in San Francisco and Los Angeles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Spreckels Mansion (San Francisco)</span> American French Baroque mansion, located in San Francisco, California

Spreckels Mansion is a French Classical mansion located in the Pacific Heights neighborhood at 2080 Washington Street in San Francisco, California, built c. 1912-1913. The three-story mansion is in a French Baroque Chateau-style, designed by George Adrian Applegarth (1876–1972) and Kenneth A. MacDonald Jr., and built by businessman Adolph B. Spreckels. It is listed as city landmark No. 197.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">George Applegarth</span> American architect (1876–1972)

George Adrian Applegarth was an American architect. Applegarth’s career included designing the California Palace of the Legion of Honor, the Clift Hotel, and projects for the town of Clyde, California. He co-founded the architectural firm, MacDonald & Applegarth.

References

  1. "Service Properties Trust - Portfolio - Geographic Diversification".
  2. "Clift Hotel Review - San Francisco California". SF Travel. Archived from the original on 3 September 2002. Retrieved 1 August 2010.
  3. 1 2 "Before & After: The Clift Hotel's Grand Reopening - This Forgotten Day in S.F." 3 August 2015.
  4. "Four Seasons History - 1970 - 1979 - Four Seasons Hotels & Resorts". www.fourseasons.com.
  5. "Four Seasons Hotels Ltd. v. Koury Corp., 776 F. Supp. 240 (E.D.N.C. 1991)".
  6. "Clift Hotel's debt sold". 21 February 1995.
  7. "Schrager buys S.F.'s Clift Hotel: Travel Weekly". www.travelweekly.com.
  8. Viladas, Pilar (16 August 2001). "San Francisco Opens the Gate, and Modern Rushes In". The New York Times.
  9. Resource, Hotel News. "Sonesta International Adds The Clift Royal Sonesta Hotel in San Francisco". www.hotelnewsresource.com.
  10. "Before and after: Historic SF hotel undergoes down-to-the-studs renovation". 22 January 2020.