| Enter a luxury cruise liner . . . in a major | | | | hotel. Plus one more - The Hotel Monaco has |
| metropolitan area? | | | | teamed up with Yoga Magazine to give you a |
| | | | little workout in your room. Just ring up the |
| When you check in at the Hotel Monaco in San | | | | front desk, and they will bring you a |
| Francisco, it's like boarding an intimate | | | | complimentary yoga package with a yoga mat, |
| cruise ship of the early 1900s and stepping | | | | strap, block, and instructions. You do the |
| back to the heady days of Hemingway and | | | | workout with an instructor on the TV. |
| Christie. Get a good look at the registration | | | | |
| desk - it's built to look like an ocean | | | | PETS ARE WELCOME |
| steamer trunk. | | | | |
| | | | Although we left our pets at home, the Hotel |
| Then take a quick stroll to the right, past | | | | Monaco can take care of your four-legged |
| the elevators into the elegant sitting room. | | | | friends in style, taking the term |
| Fanciful furnishings, high-backed sofas, and | | | | pet-friendly to a new level. The Bone-A-Petit |
| a crackling fire all make for intimate spaces | | | | package features bottled water, a dog bowl, |
| for private conversations. Join your fellow | | | | Good Dog towels, top quality chew toys, |
| guests in the other sitting room just past | | | | gourmet dog cookies, Hotel Monaco's temporary |
| the old marble grand staircase for wine and | | | | dog tags, and clean up bags. You can also |
| cheese in the afternoons. There you can have | | | | request Lassie, Babe, and Dr. Doolittle |
| your tarot cards read and get a neck and back | | | | videos from their front desk. We didn't get a |
| massage. The decorations evoke the days of | | | | chance to see if they offered doggie yoga. |
| elegant travel. The art deco flavor and high | | | | |
| ceilings made us feel like we were giant | | | | Additionally, the hotel offers Guppy Love, a |
| pieces in a grand Monopoly game. | | | | complimentary goldfish along with fish toys |
| | | | to keep you company during your stay. The |
| We loved the décor of our room - French, | | | | housekeeping staff feeds and takes care of |
| fun, and boy-oh-boy were the fabrics | | | | the goldfish - all you need to do is enjoy. |
| expensive and fine. So nice, in fact, that if | | | | |
| you smoke in your room, the hotel charges an | | | | HEART OF THE THEATER DISTRICT |
| extra $250 cleaning charge. Like all San | | | | |
| Francisco hotels built at this time, the | | | | The Hotel Monaco sits in the heart of the |
| Hotel Monaco has smaller rooms than you might | | | | theater district on Geary Street, just off |
| expect from a modern luxury hotel. But don't | | | | the famous Union Square. From the hotel, you |
| be fooled; this room makes the most of the | | | | can walk in just minutes to all of San |
| space - a period armoir holds the TV and | | | | Francisco's most famous theaters: Orpheum |
| mini-bar, and a huge circular mirror gives | | | | Theater (which is currently showing The Lion |
| the room lots of light. | | | | King, the American Conservatory Theater, |
| | | | Curran Theater (where Phatom of the Opera |
| The foundation of any hotel's success is in | | | | played to packed houses for years), Post |
| their beds . . . really! If you don't get a | | | | Street Theatre, Theatre on the Square, and |
| good night's sleep, how great can a hotel be? | | | | Yerba Buena Center for the Arts. |
| You'll find the Hotel Monaco's sheets and | | | | |
| bedding an inviting way to recover from a day | | | | DINING IN PLEASURE |
| of walking through what locals call The City. | | | | |
| Dreamy pillow top covers, down pillows and | | | | When we told a friend, who is a wine |
| romantic canopies may make you want to stay | | | | collector and hedonist extraordinaire, that |
| in. Luckily, the Grande Café, attached to | | | | we were staying at the Hotel Monaco, he asked |
| the hotel has mouth-watering room service. Be | | | | excitedly, "You're eating at the Grand |
| sure to order the "omelet and wine," which | | | | Café then, right? I'll join you." The |
| comes with a small green salad, perfect for | | | | restaurant is connected to the hotel by a |
| the lighter appetite. | | | | large, ornate doorway, but the businesses are |
| | | | two different entities. The Grande Café |
| The bathroom more than met our needs with | | | | bills itself as "a French-California |
| Aveda products and Frette bathrobes. There is | | | | brasserie featuring contemporary French |
| also complimentary high-speed Internet | | | | cuisine influenced by earthy seasonal flavors |
| access, coffee service, newspaper, and all | | | | and wonderful local ingredients. |
| the other goodies you expect from a luxury | | | | |