The Ritz-Carlton, San Francisco

I stayed here for 1 night in late July, 2026. I booked the room through Chase travel. My reservation came with daily breakfast for two and $100 travel credit. I asked at check in if we could use the credit towards the breakfast as we were only there for one night and the lobby lounge was closed (another issue altogether). First the good. Service was friendly & helpful. Everyone we encountered here was lovely and welcoming. No complaints with the service staff at all. The hotel was clean and pretty and in a great location. We planned a fun date night in the city (we are Bay Area locals) and wanted to stay somewhere nice and luxurious. We usually stay at the Omni a few blocks away, but because we booked through Chase and it came with the extra perks, we decided to splurge and try out the Ritz. We will go back to the Omni next time. Again, the rooms were nice but not particularly special compared to other places we’ve stayed in SF. We were disappointed to find out that the lobby bar was closed for renovation. Our plan had been to have a drink and some apps on our way out for the night since we had an earlyish show and didn’t have enough time after check in to get ready, make it to a dinner reservation, and then to our show. Oops, closed, change of plans. Not the biggest deal as this happens, but a bummer nonetheless. Everything was fine with our stay until I checked my credit card. I saw a $300 charge the day after we checked out which was parking plus the charge for incidentals. I figured it would take a few days for the charge to disappear but it never did. We had breakfast and parked there so the $200 charge should have been reversed and was not. We knew we had to pay for parking ($100 is the steepest I’ve paid in SF btw). I called to figure it out and it’s just an answering service- Send an email or talk to their chat bot from their website. So frustrating. You’d think at a “luxury” resort you’d get actual service from a human but I guess that’s not the world we live in anymore. So my refund is in purgatory at the moment. I may amend my review if corrected, but the fact that I was even charged in the first place and have to go on a wild goose chase to get my money back is beyond frustrating. Not worth the splurge. Will stay somewhere else next time. Bummer.

The Ritz-Carlton, San Francisco was a great choice for a staycation, especially if you are an Amex cardholder looking to use a hotel credit. It felt like a solid value with the benefits included. The location is great for San Francisco, and the rooms were very clean and comfortable. The food was good, and the cocktails were especially great. One table next to us even had a smoky bubble cocktail, which was fun to see. Overall, it was a very enjoyable and polished staycation experience with good food, great drinks, clean rooms, and a convenient city location.

Giving one star for our experience but will start with the only positives for the friendly & good service at The Lounge and the room , which was spacious & clean albeit dated. However , I will not forget our experience one afternoon when a stranger in black wearing a helmet suddenly popped in with us in the elevator and got off on the same floor. Unfortunately I have already pressed my floor when he hurriedly joined us in the elevator. Upon reaching our floor, we stalled purposely to let him walk out first so he would not know our room number . Two incoming guest were shocked to also see this man as he alighted from the elevator. Having said this, I am extremely disappointed with the lack of safety and security measure in this hotel. I find this appalling and unacceptable in a hotel specially at a Ritz Carlton. The standards of this hotel has spiralled downwards. I called the front desk and they confirmed that this practice is allowed. Strange that no one even assists the delivery man with a key card to his designated floor for delivery. I have never been in this situation in any hotel in all our decades of travel around the world. I now understand the negative reviews of the Ritz Carlton SFO. Apart from this, after being out for almost 10 hours, we came back at 7:30pm and our room was not even made up. We chose the hotel for its supposedly high standard, safe location but little did we know that the hotel in itself felt unsafe if anyone can just “sneak” in with guests in elevators to deliver food or other items. Except for the location , the hotel is ordinary . Would not recommend nor stay here again.

Here are some details. This hotel was converted from an insurance company that built the original building in the neoclassical style. It is very interesting to have a hotel in such a building. Anyway, the redo was excellent. The hotel is not huge. It is not like some of those business hotels that are just massive. The hotel has all the modern touches, but in a classic style. The rooms are very clean and have everything you need comfort-wise and technologically. The staff is excellent in every way. The food is overall very good as well. There were some misses when it came to the food, but when this was pointed out, the restaurant quickly provided us with an alternative entrée that was comped. Superb touch for a five star hotel (especially because this is an expensive hotel, let's be honest) . The hotel is centrally located, but it is on a steep hill. As we were leaving the city, my kids asked if we can go back to this hotel one day. This single comment solidified in my mind that this hotel it's truly great.

Everything was 5 stars, the room, the breakfast, room service, everyone super kind. But George! He was the best!! He treated my daughter like a princess so I’m really grateful for that! Thank you George!