St. Regis San Francisco Review: Astor Suite vs Deluxe Room

Update, October 2026

• I’ve combined my two 2014 reviews of this hotel into one page: the Astor Suite first, then the Deluxe Room, which I liked better. Both stays were on a work trip and fully reimbursed.
• The St. Regis San Francisco is now a Marriott Bonvoy hotel. Frequent Miler’s December 2024 review paid 75,000 points a night (with an 85,000-point certificate) against a cash rate of about $500, so the 20,000 Starpoints I mention is long gone.
• The same review called the front desk one of the best they’d seen in the US, which is the opposite of what I found in 2014, so my service complaints below may be out of date.
• Marriott’s page says suite guests still get butler service and describes “newly reimagined accommodations,” so the rooms may no longer look like my photos.

I had to work in downtown San Francisco a while back for about 6 weeks. My hotel accommodations were fully reimbursed and the cost of each hotel was roughly the same on special negotiated rates, so I took the opportunity to sample the many SPG properties that are in the area. I plan to review the hotels I stayed at in this series.
 

I stayed at the St. Regis San Francisco twice, and like my two stays at the Palace Hotel, the experience was roughly consistent. The difference in my stays was the type of room I was in. For my first stay, I decided to use one of my Suite Night Awards that I received for staying 50 nights with SPG. This got me an upgrade to their standard suite, which they call the Astor Suite. I didn’t receive a suite upgrade on my second stay but I did get upgraded to a Deluxe Room, which I’ll review separately since the rooms are very different.

Lobby and Check-in

The lobby of the St. Regis is relatively small, especially compared to the Palace Hotel. There’s an open bar area and a small seating area, but that’s pretty  much it. Check-in counters are around the corner, and just past that are elevators. The bar was full during weekday evenings, and based on their attire, it seemed like everyone was in town for business.

Check-in was easy and they acknowledged that I used a Suite Night Award to upgrade. As I always do, I asked if it was possible to upgrade me to a higher category suite (there are several more), but was told there was no availability. I didn’t bother checking to see if he was being honest since it really doesn’t matter after they say “no” the first time. The front desk agent wasn’t particularly friendly and didn’t offer any additional information about the hotel. He simply gave me my key and pointed me towards the elevators. I expect more from a St. Regis!

The Astor Suite

I went up to my room, which thankfully was on the 16th floor. My experience at the Palace confirmed that I’d much, much rather be on a higher level in a downtown area. The suite didn’t look larger than the one I had at the Palace, but according to the hotel websites it’s about 200 sqft larger. The only way I can think this is possible is because of the bathroom, which was significantly bigger and better here.

The first thing I noticed upon entry was the wood floors, something that’s pretty rare as far as hotel rooms go. The second thing was the view. It was a pretty great view and I arrived just after sunset, so the lights were just turning on as the sky faded to different shades of purple.

The work desk was directly in front of the entry area and tucked away in its own section. I think this area was great, because it provided a view out of two directions. Who doesn’t like working with a view? The desk also had one of those touch-screen room control devices. I could turn off all the lights, turn the “Do Not Disturb” sign on or off, call the butler, set an alarm, and more all from this control panel. The only negative is that it’s not really portable due to its size.

The sitting area in the living room had carpet underneath, making the room feel more homey. And again – the view was fantastic. Otherwise, the whole room was kind of dark. I wish they had more lighting in this room!

A small hallway led to the bathroom on the left and the bedroom on the right. Here’s the bedroom:

My first impression of the bedroom was that it’s pretty small, especially compared to the on at the Palace (despite the St. Regis room having more square feet). The bedroom had another touch-screen control device, a TV, and a similar view of the city. The closet had all the usuals including  a robe and a safe.

Across the hall was the bathroom, which was almost my favorite part of the room.

As you can see, the bathroom was decked out in marble and limestone and had a large soaking tub and separate shower. The shower had a standard handheld shower head plus a rainfall shower head, which is probably my single favorite bathroom feature. There were two sinks, a TV, tons of towels, and another bathrobe. Everything looked great.

The only problem was the thing I was looking forward to most – the rainfall shower head. It didn’t work! I tried over and over to get it working, but it just refused. I was bummed and didn’t have time to deal with hotel service in the morning, so I had to let it go. Luckily the view in the morning was excellent, which helped bring my mood back to the positive side.

I did mention it to the front desk at checkout, letting them know it needed to be fixed while also hoping to get some kind of compensation for the trouble. The front desk agent simply shrugged and said “huh, that’s strange” and didn’t even offer an apology. I didn’t ask for any compensation, and they certainly weren’t about to offer any. I had doubts that they’d even report the issue so I let the SPG twitter team know as well.

My Take on the Astor Suite

The room and view was great, minus the issue with the shower. The location is very good and is only a stones throw away from the Palace Hotel. The hotel was quiet aside from the crowded bar downstairs and the bed and everything else about the room was comfortable. The only negative I have (aside from the broken shower) is with the front desk agents. The St. Regis is supposed to be a top-tier hotel, and the service is supposed to be top-notch. I barely received a smile, a thank you, no explanation of anything at check-in, and no sympathy for my broken shower at check-out. I stayed here a second time a few weeks later (review coming) and found the service to be just as lethargic.

With that in mind, I would not stay here again and wouldn’t recommend it. With prices at $500+ a night or 20K SPG points, it’s simply not worth it in my opinion. My stays were full reimbursed and I still chose not to stay at this hotel more than twice given the other good SPG options in the area.

Next up, the Westin San Francisco Market Street, which was my favorite of the bunch!

The Deluxe Room, and Why I Preferred It

I reviewed the Astor Suite at this same hotel a few days back, and to cut straight to the chase I can say that a suite didn’t make much of a difference for me at this hotel. If you’re traveling with a group or plan to have friends over then yes, I can see how a larger room would help. Otherwise, I actually liked the Deluxe Room better.

The service from the hotel staff, however, was still below par for a St. Regis. I explained in my previous post on this hotel that the staff just seemed uninterested and unapologetic for everything, and that was true with my multiple stays at this hotel. At check-in I asked for a suite upgrade due to my Platinum status and was told that nothing was available. I didn’t bother to check and I was fine with a smaller room anyway. Still, I was told that I was upgraded to a Deluxe Room. I was handed my key and up I went.

If you ask me, this room looks a whole lot better than the Astor Suite that I had previously. I think it was the wood floors that I wasn’t a fan of in the suite – they seemed a bit beat up and the dark color darkened the whole room (and my mood with it). The bedroom in the suite was also small and every room felt cramped. This room, on the other hand, is fully carpeted and was very airy and felt extremely spacious. A big part of that is the way the bathroom is connected to the bedroom – there are sliding doors that enable you to see the bathtub and sink if left open.

The room itself is well appointed with similar furnishings as the Astor Suite. There was a desk with plenty of goodies (letterhead, paper clips, etc) and a view of the downtown area right next to it. The TV was on the wall in front of the TV, and also built into that wall was the closet. In front of the bed was a seat, which I presume many people use simply to take off and put on their shoes.

The room also had the same type of bedroom remote my last room had. It controls all the lighting, the window shades, the “Do Not Disturb” sign, can set up your wake up call, order room service, or contact hotel services. Pretty nifty, but also very bulky. It’ll be nice when these things are reduced to tablet-sized controls in a few years!

I love the bathroom. Decked out in marble, the large soaking tub gives you an optional view out the windows if you want, or complete privacy if you close the doors. Alternatively, drop the shades to the windows and just watch TV on the big screen in the bedroom. You have options! There’s also a menu with ridiculously priced champagne and other items, so don’t even bother. Bath salts and the loofa are good enough!

The sink has all the standards, plus a ton of towels. I feel like luxury hotels often provide twice the number of towels of other hotels do. I guess nothing says luxury like excess, right? The shower and toilet were behind frosted glass doors to the side.

I’m guessing you don’t need more detail on the toilet area – just know that there’s a phone in there. The shower is awesome, at least from my point of view, because it includes two shower features that are in my top-3 of shower feature-awesomeness list: A bench to sit on and a rain fall shower head. I get some of my best thinking done in the shower, so not having to waste the energy standing is quite the luxury :P. The rain fall shower head is just plain awesome. The other item in my top 3? Body spray nozzles that run simultaneously with the shower head – they exist, and they’re fantastic! Yes, I take my showers seriously! 🙂

This room is simply awesome, and much better than the Astor Suite which felt confined and dark. This room feels the opposite, despite it’s smaller square footage.

The one thing that still wasn’t up to par was the service. Check-in and check-out agents never smiled, created conversation, asked how the stay was, or even seemed interested in being there. Quite a shame, really, especially for a hotel that costs $500+ a night normally.

Other small items – the St. Regis pens at this hotel are amazing. I grabbed several of them and still use them at home and have one in my laptop bag. This is also one of the very rare hotels where your key will still work after 12pm when you request late checkout. Anyone that’s dealt with the frustration of going back downstairs, waiting in line, then having your key re-done will know how big of a deal that is. It saves time and headache.

I do recommend this hotel, but interestingly only for Deluxe rooms. The service stinks, but beyond check-in/check-out I didn’t have to deal with the front desk. I didn’t try the butler for anything but I would hope he/she was more service-oriented than the rest of the staff I came in contact with. I personally won’t be staying here again unless it’s paid for once more, because the price is simply too high for me. Otherwise, it’s a good location and worth a visit if it’s within your range.

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