Roosevelt Hotel, Hollywood

There's a lot worse you could do, as far as places to stay and things to do in Los Angeles are concerned, than book a room at the storied and much ballyhoed Roosevelt Hotel on 7000 Hollywood Blvd. For starters, its got history - Over 80 years of catering to Hollywood and sheltering a roster of stars including Clark Gable (he's got a penthouse named after him) and Marlyn Monroe (she's got a suite in her name), and, to top it off - The first Academy Awards in 1929 was hosted by the Roosevelt. Photo by idogcow via Flickr.

Secondly, the Roosevelt is now a Thompson hotel. What that means is that the hotel, in addition to its heritage, now offers discreet luxury, a choice selection of world class amenities and a unique 'atmosphere' which only a Thompson Hotel can offer. If you look at the Thompsons around North America - The 60 Thompson in Soho, New York, or the Thompson Beverly Hills, for example - you'll find a common thread running through all of them - Exclusivity, solid luxury with heavy and classy furniture (no plastic stuff here), a swanky rooftop bar with a scintillating view open only to select members and hotel guests and other little luxuries which are part and parcel of a Thompson hotel. As the hotel says, the Roosevelt is now a place where old Hollywood meets young Hollywood. Translation - Old moneybags studio head meets 20 something starlet ....

It's location along the Walk of fame and slam-bang in front of Grauman's Chinese Theatre, is particularly appealing to wide-eyed star struck celeb chasing tourists, and the hotel makes no secret of using its historical past to extract every possible dollar out of these tourists, with a couple of scalding hot and trendy star magnets in the form of the poolside Tropicana bar and the more stately and upscale Teddy's Lounge helping to add to the Roosevelt's aura of being the real Hollywood 'deal'. There's no way the Roosevelt can compete for trendiness and sheer heat with hotels like the Standard Downtown LA Hotel, but it still does have its share of Hollywood glitterati - Enough to keep the tourists and out-of-towners happy.

As far as amenities go, in addition to the bar and the lounge, the Roosevelt offers a steakhouse called Dakota, a burger bar called 25 degrees, an olympic size outdoor swimming pool with an original mural painted by David Hockney and poolside cabanas, a fitness center, spa and jacuzzi, 24 hour room service and concierge, along with the usual laundry and dry cleaning services.

After the massive renovation in 2005, the 12 story hotel offers 302 guest rooms and suites with cutting edge furnishings and the latest gizmos and luxuries like Fresh bath products, a workdesk area, coffee maker & coffee, iron / ironing board, complimentary high-speed wi-fi Internet access, Sferra linens, spacey bathrooms and hair dryer and Plush terry embroidered bathrobes, an in-room safe and a minibar refrigerator. Room rates start from $279 and onwards upto $479 for a suite. The upper level rooms have views of the city skyline, while the cabama rooms down below have private patios with poolside views.

Info: 7000 Hollywood Blvd Los Angeles CA 90028; (323) 466-7000; www.hollywoodroosevelt.com/

Sir Francis Drake Hotel, San Francisco

You can use many a platitude to describe the Drake - Classy, elegant, historic, stylish - But the one which describes this hotel best is 'timeless'. There's a certain institutional air about it, like a federal building, which says this is how it was, and this is the way its gonna be, even if you come back a decade later. Photo by amelungc via Flickr.

Take, for instance, the ornate lobby with a high gilded ceiling and the crystal chandeliers, or the ever-present Tom Sweeney (the doorman), and the din of the cable cars. Nutty tourists invariably manage to find idiotic things to do, like taking pictures with the Naked Cowboy on 5th Ave in New York City. Similarly, one of the floopy things to do in San Francisco is to take a picture of yourself with Tom Sweeney, with the Drake in the bacground. Point is, it's like San Francisco has got used to the Drake, and to change it now into a cookie-cutter Union Square chain hotel where you simply check-in and check-out would be sacrilage.

But a hotel can't survive on past reputation alone. It needs neat, spacious and well equipped rooms, prompt service and a bucketload of amenities which travelers are used to. Luckily enough, the Drake is a Kimpton Brand Hotel, and Kimpton sets high standards across the board, including availability of the Kimpton Kids program, the EarthCare program and the Global Business program, not to mention Kimpton style shopping. And that's in addition to the usual complimentary wi-fi internet, room service and concierge, safety deposit boxes, 16 meeting rooms and a business center with the latest A/V equipment, in room spa services, shuttle service and an inhouse fitness center that opens late 2008 (meantime you can avail of the guest passes the hotel offers for ClubONE fitness, a block away from the Drake).

The hotel offers 416 guest rooms, including five suites and the plush Presidential Suite, with views of the City and the Bay. All rooms come with a cream, sage and a plum colored scheme, with complimentary wi-fi internet, cable television, on-demand movies and complimentary movie channel, a DVD player, a fully stocked honor bar, an essential travel 'kit', hairdryer, iron and ironing board, and Aveda bath products. Room rates start at $242.

For refreshments, dining and entertainment, the Drake offers three winners - Scala's Bistro, Harry Denton's Starlight Room and the Cafe Espresso - which, like the Drake, have gone above and beyond their call of duty in satisfying the needs of hotel guests, and are now very much part of San Francisco's foodie network. Scala's Bistro is the first floor Italian restaurant, a place very much in demand for its Italian cuisine as for the stylish setting. The Cafe Espresso serves up coffee, pastries and sandwiches, not to mention spreading around the delicious aroma of fresh baked bread. For it's part, Harry Denton's Starlight Room on the 21st floor, has made a name for itself as part of the evening cocktail circuit, with dancing, entertainment and a sweeping view of the City.

If you want a hotel room, there are n number of San Francisco hotels which offer all of this and more. But if you want your hotel stay to be part of the San Francisco experience, then there's nothing better on offer than the Sir Francis Drake Hotel.

Info: 450 Powell St. San Francisco CA 94102; (415) 392-7755; http://www.sirfrancisdrake.com/

San Diego Gaslamp Hotels

As far as I'm concerned, the list of things to do in San Diego gets restricted to three places - Gaslamp Quarter, the San Diego Zoo and SeaWorld San Diego. Again, further refining this list, I usually filter out the Zoo and SeaWorld, because unless you're traveling with family, there's not much point repeating visits to these kiddie zones. Which leaves the Gaslamp Quarter. Photo by Jim Epler via Flickr.

Now I realize that you could fill a small book if you started listing all the attractions in the Gaslamp Quarter, but again, if you had to drill down further - You come up with one focal point - PETCO Park. The attractions centred around the ballpark are the best, and it's the place to be, if you're an adult - A single adult - in San Diego.

So, assuming that's correct, if you're going to book a hotel in San Diego, you should book one in the vicinity of PETCO Park. There must be more, but offhand I can remember three good hotels which offer rooms and suites with views of PETCO Park - The Omni, Marriott, and Hard Rock Hotel.

Omni Hotel San Diego - 675 L Street San Diego CA 92101; (619) 231-6664
San Diego Marriott Gaslamp Quarter - 660 K St San Diego CA 92101; (619) 696-0234
Hard Rock Hotel San Diego - 207 5th Ave San Diego CA 92101; (619) 702-3000

So, if you're going to be in San Diego in time for a Padres game, or you just want to enjoy the guilty pleasures of the Gaslamp Quarter, one of these three hotels would be the best bet. They not only offer baseball packages which include game tickets, but they also have baseball themed rooms, with memorabilia and artwork celebrating the history of the game and its greats.