Deluxury, Delightful, Dog Friendly Hotels in San Francisco, Marin and Napa

by Carol Frischmann

Sometimes you need to get away. Sometimes you want to take your best friend along. Sometimes hotels don’t want dogs. No fear. FETCH has searched, researched, and telephoned to find a selection of nine hotels, three each in San Francisco, Napa Valley, and Marin County, that we would like to escape to.

No tents. No composting toilets. We’re talking the fine places. FETCH found plush establishments where amenities are eye popping, and your best friend is welcome, so long as you pay a cleaning fee. Yep, that’s what’s required in most places. These fees are used to perform a more thorough cleaning to remove pet hair and dander and spruce up any nose prints doggie dearest left on the walls. Honestly, don’t you wish you could remove all vestiges of dog hair, dander, and nose prints from your home for $100 or even the $250 that some highest-end hotels charge? Now, read on and mark your favorites. Phone numbers have been included. After all, this is about you and your pup relaxing.

City by the Bay

Downtown San Francisco is full of ritzy places to stay with your pet. Of twenty that looked nice, these caught our eye. Campton Place, a luxury hotel on Condé Nast Traveler’s Gold List, has a premiere location on Union Square and an excellent restaurant. This hotel also welcomes pets among its Oriental art and antiques, openair atrium, Bose stereo sound, feather beds, and soaking tubs. The cost, a $100 cleaning fee per stay. For reservations and information, call 415-781-5555.

A Kimpton property, the Hotel Serrano is a downtown luxury hotel combining Spanish revival architecture with bundles of aromatherapy products and Moroccan accents. A special “Pet Palace Package” for your canine companion includes friendly hotel staff, water and biscuits, clean up bags, and a hotel shop stocked with pet food, leashes, and treats for the canine guest. Amenities for you include fluffy bathrobes and spa services. Pets benefit from your fun when the hotel challenges you to a hand of Twenty-One. If you win, prizes for you. Regardless, your $5 donation goes to the San Francisco SPCA. For more information, call 866-289-6561.

Adjacent to the Museum of Modern Art, Yerba Buena Gardens, and trendy SoMa, W San Francisco is poised to serve you and your pet. A blend of technology and comfort, this hotel is ready with a special menu, bowls and treats for Fido. For you, Bliss bath products, fabulous robes, and all the services you could want, including a pool that lets you see the stars. With amenities like organic wireless everything and a virtual glut of dog services available through the concierge, you’ll go home sated with culture, food, and logo bedding and bowls, available for purchase from the hotel gift shop as your friend’s souvenir. To learn more, call 415-777-5300.

Cabernet, chardonnay, me and my dog, hey hey hey

Man or beast, who wouldn’t love Napa Valley? A place with natural beauty, trails festooned with scent of ground squirrel for Rex, and the aroma of wine and cheese for you.

The Harvest Inn in Saint Helena is a AAA Four Star-rated hotel that feels like wine country getaway luxury. In this Tudor-style resort with cottages on eight acres, find gardens for strolling, a fine spa and pool, and luxurious guestrooms with the amenities that one expects at a charming country estate. Each guestroom has a unique personality with your choice of a view overlooking the vineyards or lush gardens. Pets are welcome, and a $75 cleaning fee is all that’s required. Need we mention the tasting bar at your hotel or the Sutter Home Winery or shopping in the charming shops, such as Dean & DeLuca, within walking distance? Your biggest challenge will be selecting a restaurant from the 23 in your immediate vicinity (including the Culinary Institute of America). Then you must decide whether Rover sleeps on your duvet or in front of the fire while you enjoy your dinner. For more information, call 800-950-8466.

Located in the historic Napa Mill on the Napa River, the Napa River Inn is a luxury hotel in the midst of all the town has to offer. In addition to all the pampering you could want, the Inn has a Very Important Pet (VIP) program, underlining their desire to ensure you and your pet have a wonderful getaway. The program includes a custom-designed pet blanket, a Napa River Inn placemat for the stainless steel food and water bowls, treats, and doggie walk bags. If that’s not enough, your pet receives a welcome letter and a list of services including dog walkers, on-call veterinarians, and pet sitters. These services are $25 per night and require that pets not be left alone in the rooms. For more information, call 877-251-8500.

In Yountville, the Vintage Inn provides a Provence sort of experience without crossing all those time zones and is quite worthy of Fido’s consideration. The better news is that the Inn is happy to have pets. Amenities are as numerous as the sprigs of lavender, and the nearby spa has a menu of treatments to occupy whatever time you’re not spending with your pooch. For more information, call 707-944-1112.

Time to cross the Gate

An approach to experiencing Stinson Beach for you and your four footed pals is a stay at the
Seadrift Colony. Rental properties are luxurious, as is the sound of waves from your bedroom window. Lagoon or oceanside properties are available. This retreat is divine for canines and companions. For rental information, contact Seadrift Company, 415-868-1791.

A more traditional deluxe hotel in Inverness is the Manka’s Inverness Lodge, a 1917 hunting and fishing lodge reborn as a refreshing, bucolic destination. You can indulge your taste for innovative regional California cuisine because you’ll be taking Sparky for long walks in the surrounding countryside. You and Sparky will reside in the block of rooms reserved for guests with pets. The charge is an additional $50 per pet stay. For information and availability, call 415-669-1034.

Jasmine Cottage perfects Pt. Reyes Station comfort in the same way that Pt. Reyes is a perfect natural place to wander. The cottage is appointed with country antiques, fireplaces, breakfast, patios, garden with hot tub, and stars. A well-behaved dog is welcome. Pt. Reyes Station’s restaurants and shops are just down the hill but you’re in splendid surroundings at this 1879 schoolhouse compound where unobtrusive hospitality could not be more splendid. For more information, call 415-663-1166.

Whichever of these getaways best suits your idea of a good time, be sure to pack a sufficient amount of your dog’s regular chow and treats. Traveling with a crate is a good idea, along with an extra leash. Program your emergency vet’s telephone number in your cell phone, just in case. Pack some comfortable shoes for yourself, and you and your pal will have a walking and wandering good time.