The Clift Royal Sonesta Hotel: San Francisco Hotel Review

This blog post was
made in collaboration with the Clift and all my opinions are my own.

This past weekend, Karya, Giulia, and I headed to San Francisco for a girls trip. The three of us haven’t been in the same place since Giulia moved from Seattle to the Bay area two years ago. We were excited to eat, explore, and create San Francisco’s Most Instagrammable Places. We also were excited to partner and stay at the Clift Royal Sonesta Hotel in downtown San Francisco.

Who is the Clift
Royal Sonesta Hotel?

The Clift Hotel opened in 1915 and was originally
commissioned by Fredrick Clift in 1913. One of the most famous features of the
hotel is the Redwood Room Bar. It was added to the hotel in 1933 and all the
wood use to build the room came from a single redwood tree.

Today the hotel is managed by the Sonesta Hotels group. Guests
have access to a 24 hour business center, complimentary bicycles, and a 24 hour
fitness center. Guests are also allowed to bring pets.

Where is the Clift Hotel located?

Hotel address: 495 Geary St, San
Francisco, CA 94102

The hotel is walking distance to San Francisco’s Museum of Ice Cream, Union Square, and Chinatown. We also walked to Mr. Holmes Bakeshop from our hotel.

The highlights of our stay at the Clift Royal Sonesta Hotel:

Great restaurant food
from the Redwood
Room Bar

Karya, Giulia, and I stopped by for an early dinner/happy hour at the Redwood Room Bar. We decided to order a bunch of shareable plates. We grabbed the French fries and pimento cheese dip off the happy hour menu. From the regular dinner menu, we also grabbed chips and poke, a messe plate, and a Napa green salad with chicken. We of course had to grab dessert so we opted for the honey cake.

The Redwood Room Bar was pretty busy on a Saturday night. There were people celebrating occasions and coming in for drinks. I’d recommend calling for a reservation ahead of time. It was a great atmosphere and we enjoyed our dinner there.

The lavender hallways and staircase were Instagram-worthy

Lavender staircase in the Clift Royal Sonesta Hotel

After checking in on a Friday afternoon, the Clift took us
on a hotel tour. I was pleasantly surprised when we saw all the hallways and
the staircase painted lavender. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a hotel embrace an
all lavender look.

If you choose to stay at the Clift next time you’re in San Francisco, make sure to take a photo on the staircase!

The rich hotel
history

Personally, I love learning the history of all the places I
visit. During the hotel tour, we learned that the Clift advertise itself as the
first fire proof hotel when it opened in 1913. We also got to visit the
apartment on the top of floor of the hotel. This grand suite was were the owner
of the hotel Frederick C. Clift lived.

The Clift Royal
Sonesta Hotel is centrally located

If you’re taking the BART in and out of San Francisco, the
BART station is only a 10 min walk from the hotel. You can also walk to Union
Square to shop in 6 min, to Chinatown in 15 min, and to San Francisco Museum of
Modern Art in 15 min. I love staying in places that allow me to walk
everywhere!

The Clift is also a ~25 min Lyft/Uber ride to the Golden Gate Bridge Welcome Center.

posing in front of the Golden Gate Bridge

Would I recommend
staying at the Clift?

Yes! From the front desk, to the valet, to the hostess/staff
at the hotel restaurant, all of the hotel staff was welcoming, friendly, and accommodating.