Latest news with #hotel
Daily Mail
4 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
6 of the best sights and local secrets in San Francisco
The hotel After a ten-and-a-half hour flight from London, the 1920s glamour of the Beacon Grand (rooms from £169, makes for a plush and, crucially, well-located refuge for the weary traveller – it's just two miles from the San Francisco Opera and Fisherman's Wharf. Time your arrival right and you'll want to head straight to the 21st floor for a refreshing sundowner at the rooftop Starlite bar, which has one of the most enviable 360-degree views in town. The heights Shake off your jet lag with a pre-dawn taxi trip up to leafy Twin Peaks (below) to watch sunrise over the city, serenaded by birdsong (that is to say, unless Karl the Fog has rolled in). Then take a 20-minute stroll or bus down, past San Francisco's 'I'd definitely live there' houses – with their flamboyant colours, bay windows and the occasional turret – to the Castro district for revivifying pancakes beneath fairy lights at Orphan Andy's diner. The sights Despite its sticky-sweet confectionery stores and tourist tat, Fisherman's Wharf is a must-visit for its barking sea lions. Catch a ferry to Alcatraz Island, the infamous (and, for now, still former) prison, and out past the Golden Gate Bridge (below) from Pier 41. If you haven't packed your sea legs, a clattering old cable-car trolley ($8 a ride, bring cash) is a great way to see the city, or ride the Wiggle, a bike route that winds around (instead of over) many of SF's famous hills (Bay Wheels bike day pass, $15). The bites From Four Kings' cheeky spin on chicken and waffles in Chinatown to the 'cozy Nob Hill jewel box' (Michelin's words, not mine) that is Sons & Daughters, British chef Harrison Cheney's homage to the forest-to-table kitchen, you could take a year to eat your way around SF and barely touch the sides. My favourite is the homely waterfront Italian, Scoma's of Sausalito (above), a 45-minute ferry ride across the bay, with superb views of the city and seafood dishes to die for. The park The city has tripled down on friendly open spaces post-pandemic, a welcome counter-narrative to the tough times that some people will tell you the city has fallen on. The new Tunnel Top Park (above) has spectacular views of the Golden Gate Bridge, The Great Highway (an ageing stretch of road) is now closed to cars on weekends, making it a beachfront promenade devoted to pedestrians and cyclists, and Aquatic Park is where swimmers brave the frigid San Francisco Bay. The after-dark SF loves a revival. Take in live jazz at the Dawn Club (above), the 2.0 update of the club of the same name from the 1930s and 40s (it's down the road from Twitter HQ, and after a few cocktails my friend wrote a job application to CEO Elon Musk here on the back of a napkin; she didn't get it). Sink a mai tai made with Chinese wine at legendary Chinatown cocktail bar Li Po Lounge or sip champagne with spiced nuts in French wine bar Verjus, then whizz back to HQ in a Waymo, Google 's ubiquitous driverless taxi.
Wall Street Journal
11 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Wall Street Journal
Is That Hotel Too Young for You?
The moment I realized it's possible to age out of a hotel scene came at 2:03 a.m. on a Friday night. My husband and I had splurged on a stay at a posh hotel in New York's SoHo neighborhood. A few hours after going to bed, I was jolted awake by a pounding bass vibrating up from the establishment's chic second-floor lounge. Though we'd enjoyed a quiet cocktail there earlier in the evening, it was a public nightclub now. Two floors above the fray, I felt like I was at the party against my will—and that the hotel was to blame. Your lodging actually can be too young—or too mature or too family-focused—for you. Many hotels target hyperspecific customers, and they will tailor everything from decor to guest amenities accordingly. So how do you avoid an unintentional nightclub suite, or a similar mishap? Deep research.
Travel Weekly
12 hours ago
- Business
- Travel Weekly
IHG's upscale Voco brand is coming to Canada
IHG's Voco brand will add its first hotels in Canada with signings in Montreal, Toronto and Niagara Falls. The Voco Niagara Falls -- Fallsview will be a conversion of what was a Radisson hotel. Vrancor Group announced its acquisition of the 232-room hotel in February and plans a renovation. IHG expects a Voco reopening in late 2026. The 55-room Voco Montreal will be a new hotel in downtown Montreal expected to open in 2027. The Voco Toronto Airport West, situated near Toronto Pearson International Airport, will also be a newbuild hotel. Targeted to open in 2027, the 180-room property aims to be a zero-emissions, carbon-neutral hotel. The upscale Voco brand launched in 2018 and now has 115 hotels, including 21 in the U.S, according to Voco's website. IHG says Voco has an operational framework conducive to conversions, which has been a driving force behind its rapid expansion.
Wall Street Journal
13 hours ago
- Business
- Wall Street Journal
Caesars Palace Times Square Submits Official Casino Proposal for 1515 Broadway
The backers of Caesars Palace Times Square submitted an official proposal that includes converting an office building at 1515 Broadway into a casino and 992-room five-star hotel. Caesars Entertainment CZR 1.23%increase; green up pointing triangle, SL Green Realty SLG 1.86%increase; green up pointing triangle and Jay-Z's Roc Nation have been working on the plan. On Friday, the companies said Live Nation is also part of the effort.
Daily Mail
2 days ago
- Daily Mail
Americans are losing their minds over the 'dystopian' way British windows open
A post about windows in the UK has reignited a furious debate between British and American people. A US tourist visited Britain during summer and struggled to cool down in his hotel room because of a removable child lock that wouldn't allow his window to open 'more than two inches'. The man claimed the lock was installed because of a British regulation that restricted citizens from opening their windows more than a few inches and complained about it online. The post quickly went viral and drew in hundreds of replies with Americans expressing their outrage and confusion over the hotel window while British users defended their nation's windows. In a post to X, the US traveller said he tried to open his accommodation window as his 'boiling' room was much hotter than the outside temperature but was thwarted by a child lock. He assumed the child lock was installed because of a regulation restricting how much Brits can open their windows. 'It's 100 degrees in my room, but 68 outside, but I can't change that because England has dumb rules,' he posted. The man later revealed that he managed to pry the lock off the window with his nail clippers because the hotel didn't have a key and 'every store was closed and nobody had a screwdriver'. It's 100 degrees in my room, but 68 outside, but I can't change that because England has dumb rules — Chris Arnade 🐢🐱🚌 (@Chris_arnade) September 10, 2023 The cultural misunderstanding, posted back in 2023 and is doing the rounds again on X, has prompted an online war between Brits and Americans. Americans took the post literally and were shocked to 'learn' that the UK has a law that doesn't allow any windows to open all the way in a bid to stop children from falling out with one calling the country 'dystopian'. 'I have an American Mind and I do not understand this,' one person replied. 'I don't understand, so like they have a law preventing them from opening the windows?' a second asked. 'The amount of laws in England is wild,' a third commented and a fourth wrote: 'Wait wtf is this contraption?'. 'The way I'd lose my mind if I couldn't open my windows,' someone added. 'Might as well put holes in the bottom of buckets so kids won't drown in them,' a man said. 'Thankful for the freedom I have to open my dang windows,' another chimed in. Many were concerned the window restrictors created a hazard as people wouldn't be able to escape a building via the windows in the case of a fire. 'Yeah, best burn to death in case of fire to prevent kids falling out of the window,' one person scoffed. 'So if the building is on fire and the only way out is the window…you're dead, basically?' another asked. In the UK, there is no law that restricts windows opening all the way in residential buildings and homes however some hotels use the locks for guest safety. The safety cables can be released by key and are installed to prevent people, particularly small children, from falling out or from robberies. Window restrictors are only a legal requirement in buildings with vulnerable people like schools, hospitals and care homes. Brits were quick to point this out to the outraged Americans while some claimed they had never seen the locks before despite living in the UK for years. 'An entire thread full of poorly travelled Americans who think this is a 'rule' in England, rather than the choice of a single establishment with a single window,' one user quipped. 'I am British and have never encountered such a device. What is its purpose and what do you do in the event of a fire?' someone asked. Is it illegal to open windows all the way in the UK? No. Regulations vary depending on the type of building and between local authorities but residential dwellings are not required by law to have window restrictors. They are a recommendation, not a legal obligation, in houses and flats but some landlords chose to install window restrictors and child locks above the ground floor to protect tenants from injury or break-ins. Hotels often also have window restrictors to protect guests from falling but it is not mandatory by law. Depending on their purpose, some buildings must only have windows that open no more than 100mm. Windows restrictors are required by law in places with vulnerable people like children and the elderly including hospitals, schools and care homes. 'People really out there thinking it's against the law to open the window,' a third said and one commented; 'It's a window comes with keys. Stop being dramatic'. 'I was born and lived here all my life and never have I seen windows like that in any house in London,' a Brit responded. 'The rule was brought in because Americans kept coming over and falling out the windows when it was too hot!' another joked.
