Palace Hotel endures as one of San Francisco's most alluring havens

From its historic bar to its glamorous dining hall, the city icon revels in its exhilarating blend of style and modernity, Wang Xin reports.

On the wall of the Pied Piper Bar off the gleaming marble lobby at the Palace Hotel in San Francisco hangs the famed painting The Pied Piper of Hamelin.

The painting, about 5 meters long and 2 meters wide, depicts a man playing a flute and leading a group of children traveling from east to west, with two women taking care of the flock.

The artwork, which the hotel commissioned painter Maxfield Parrish to create in 1909, is based on a medieval legend from Hamelin about a piper tasked to drive a horde of rats out of the German town with his magic pipe. Refused payment, he took revenge by luring the town's children away.

The group crossed over rough terrain as the music played in their trek to the west, symbolizing their hope for a promising future, not unlike the zeitgeist of the California Gold Rush during the middle of the 19th century, said a local museum staff member.

As reflected in the Chinese name for the city, "Old Gold Mountain", San Francisco has long been tied to the Gold Rush. These days, however, many around the world equate San Francisco with Silicon Valley and its well-known high-tech firms.

The Palace Hotel is a key witness to the city's changes and an avid participant. Over the past century, it has absorbed many new technologies and modern elements in its renovations.

In 2013, the bar was selected by Heritage, a local nonprofit organization, as one of the city's 25 most legendary eating and drinking establishments.

Originally unveiled in 1875, the Palace Hotel was then the tallest in the West and opened to popular acclaim for its stunning design and innovation by John P. Gaynor, an architect in New York.

After surviving the 1906 earthquake, though suffering serious damage in the ensuing fire, the Palace Hotel reopened in 1909 like a phoenix from the ashes, going on to host a series of historic events, including a banquet to mark the opening session of the United Nations in 1945.

The hotel has since gone through a couple of major renovations. The latest one, which cost $40 million, started in 2014 and was completed in July. The extensive redesign includes a wide range of color as well as furniture, carpets and rugs that add more contemporary elements while respecting history, said Christophe Thomas, general manager of the hotel.

"We are keeping what is fabulous from the past but at the same time bringing in everything that is really making life easier for modern travelers," Thomas said.

A key arbiter of San Francisco style for over a century, the Palace Hotel was once at the center of the US' first Golden Age of Travel, which inspired the interior redesign of the hotel.

The hotel's 556 guestrooms, including 55 suites, features modern sophistication, original design elements, elegant crown moldings framing wrought-iron windows and solid oak doors adorned with brass monogrammed knobs.

Trim lines, stitching and tailored bed frames recall the details of men's suits and speak to the custom-made clothing worn by former guests such as Andrew Carnegie, the self-made steel tycoon in the late 19th century.

Several grand suites have been introduced to the hotel following the renovation, including the State Suite.

The State Suite is designed to feel like an elegant San Francisco apartment with natural light that streams through large windows, contemporary furnishings, hardwood floors, lush custom-made area rugs throughout every room and a spa-like bath.

The city's signature dining hall Garden Court is one of the key areas in the hotel "that you can't miss", Thomas said.

Situated under soaring archways and sky-lit ceilings, the storied meeting place remains the jewel of the hotel.

The 120-seat room is nestled amid gilded columns, a glass dome ceiling and historic Austrian crystal chandeliers complemented by locally sourced cuisine and impeccable service.

A member of the Luxury Collection brand of Starwood Hotels & Resorts, the Palace Hotel cares more about helping its clients enjoy a creative, indigenous experience, the general manager said.

"Curious travelers really want to immerse themselves into the destination."

He said a luxury hotel is where "you don't have to think - we are going to take care of you and anticipate your needs; you don't need to ask something - we are going to see what you need. You just need to let it happen".

Entertaining generations of San Francisco's most innovative social set, from inventor Thomas Edison and automobile entrepreneur Henry Ford to the tech titans of today, the Palace Hotel endures as the city's most captivating destination, said Hoyt H. Harper II, global brand leader of The Luxury Collection Hotels and Resorts.

"The renovation of the Palace Hotel reinforces the Luxury Collection brand's commitment to investing in our landmark hotels and to growing our global portfolio in destinations that our guests are clamoring to explore," Harper said.

"It is about creating personalized experience, based on your own interest and lifestyle, and what you're doing, seeing or exploring. It is about staying away from the sameness."

There are seven Luxury Collection hotels and resorts developed in China and approximately another 25 properties in the development pipeline worldwide, including five planned for the Chinese market, he revealed.

With the target to surpass 100 hotels in more than 30 countries by the end of 2015, The Luxury Collection is one of the world's fastest-growing luxury hospitality brands, continuing to expand and improve its renowned hotel portfolio around the world, according to Starwood.

Harper said, "By having existing hotels join our brand and share in our story-telling, and focusing on hotels that really define the destination, we have tremendous growth potential."

With soaring archways, glass dome ceilings and historic Austrian crystal chandeliers, the Garden Court remains the jewel of the Palace Hotel in San Francisco.

The Pied Piper, a high-end bar named after the prized Maxfield Parrish painting that takes pride of place, has been a favored meeting spot in the city for more than a century. Provided to China Daily

(China Daily 11/21/2015 page10)