Sometimes you can tell a lot about a hotel just by its name. Take San Francisco’s Hotel Diva. The Diva Sidewalk of Fame in from of the hotel is just one of many subtle hints to come during your stay, its concrete blocks sectioned off with the foot and handprints of past celebrity guests who’ve stayed here. It’s a little slice of Hollywood Boulevard. You half expect Norma Desmond to appear from one of the blue neon lit elevators and sweep toward the suspended flat screen T.V. in the lobby to watch a scene from The Rocky Horror Picture Show that’s playing. What else? And the diva drama doesn’t end there; in fact, Frank N. Furter is just the tip of the iceberg of a theme that is playfully woven all throughout the hotel.
Yes, we’re talking about divas, you know, those idiosyncratic personalities that we sometimes love and often hate. But either/or, there’s never a dull moment and that is especially true of the Diva Hotel’s personality in fact, because it’s the trendy boutique property of San Francisco’s Personality Hotels. Suffice it to say, it needs to speak loudly. No wallflowers here folks, no way. It’s an easy inspiration to grasp because the hotel is located directly across the street from The Curran and ACT Theaters. So, get ready to exercise your inner diva at this fabulous hotel just up the street from Union Square, but a world away (and I mean that in a good way). When you enter, you leave the world behind and that’s the way I like to feel in a hotel. Away, and yet still connected.
Connectivity is our lifeline today, after all, and who can stand a hotel stay without a perfect internet connection? The Diva’s got it covered and offers complimentary high speed Wi-Fi along with a host of amenities like full concierge service, a fantastic 24 hour fitness center, and a nightly sake hour. Most important is the Starbuck’s located right next to the lobby just in case you’ve downed too many or have tied one on the night before. Let’s not forget that you’ll be having fun here in San Francisco, after all.
Guest accommodations are sleek and sexy, fitted out in shades of silvery grey and gunmetal with charcoal and white accents in the customized designer furnishings. Personality Hotels’ founder Yvonne Detert commissioned designer Olle Lundberg, whose specialty is steel, to design the interiors. He created floor to ceiling built-in steel headboards with curved corners and attached wooden side tables. Coordinating stainless steel sconces and spot lamps complete the au natural statement. But the bigger statement comes from each room’s custom window shades screen printed with the alternating sexy shapes of women’s legs and torsos (in corsets). Talk about carrying through a theme, those shades will beguile you. A huge flat screen T.V., one of a kind black-framed prints over a mod white vinyl sofa (in the Deluxe suite) and a giant free standing mirror will tempt you to…Well, we all know what big mirrors can do to inhibitions.
At the end of a long work day you can doze on a plush Serta five-star mattress while gazing at the lovely cove ceilings courtesy of the building’s 1915 origins, fix yourself a quick espresso at the in-room coffee maker or adjourn to one of the artist designed diva lounges, like the Perrier Lounge on the 6th floor, which sports a swinging bubble chair, sheer bubble curtains, and silver Perrier bottles set against antique furnishings. Or just grab something refreshing from the tidy mini bar while you ponder the next day’s adventures. Shopping at Saks or Neiman Marcus down the street? Or maybe just a long morning on the Powell-Hyde cable car? However you choose to spend your time in San Fran you’ll be continually amused and delighted that you holed up at Hotel Diva, a European hotel experience with a captivating look that takes full advantage of the neighborhood vibe and a little bit of drama, too. Ladies take note: be sure to pack your 5-inch heels and sexy lingerie.
*The Personality Hotels portfolio consists of the Hotel Union Square, the Diva, the Kensington Park Hotel and the Steinhart. Hotel Diva completed a $2 million renovation in winter 2011 by San Francisco based firm Edmonds & Lee Architects.