Travis Park / Downtown

The St. Anthony, a Luxury Collection Hotel

★★★★★

The St. Anthony is San Antonio's grande dame: opened in 1909 as the city's first grand hotel, overlooking leafy Travis Park in the heart of downtown, and restored in recent years as part of Marriott's Luxury Collection. Its public rooms are the showpiece. Peacock Alley, the long, gilded lobby promenade, is lined with chandeliers, mirrors, antiques and art, and it has been a place to see and be seen for more than a century; the hotel's ballrooms have hosted generations of San Antonio weddings, debutante balls and political events. The rooms are vintage-inspired and polished, with plush beds, marble bathrooms and a quiet, residential feel, and the suites are generous, ranging from roughly 900 to 1,200 square feet. Up top, the rooftop pool area has an outdoor infinity pool with private cabanas and cocktails over the downtown skyline. Dining includes Esencia, the St. Anthony Club, Anacacho Coffee and Cantina and rooftop drinks, and the hotel has a fitness center and event spaces. The location is excellent: Travis Park is on the doorstep, the River Walk is a few blocks south, the Alamo is about a five-minute walk, and the theaters and restaurants of the Houston Street corridor are close. Parking is expensive, with both self-parking and valet charged daily, and the area around Travis Park can be busy during events. The St. Anthony suits couples, celebrations and travelers who want classic luxury and history without the crowds of Alamo Plaza right outside.

Through its long history, the St. Anthony has been at the center of San Antonio society. It was one of the first hotels in the country with central air conditioning, according to its own lore, and it has hosted presidents, film stars and royalty, with a ghost story or two along the way. Major restorations brought back the public rooms' glamour while modernizing the guest rooms, and the result manages to feel both grand and comfortable.

Staying here: request a Travis Park view for the leafy outlook, or a higher floor for skyline views. The rooftop pool is the best place to cool off after a downtown morning, and Peacock Alley is a lovely place for a cocktail before dinner. Weekend events and weddings can make public spaces busy, but rooms are quiet. Service is in the Luxury Collection mold — attentive and polished.

As a base, the St. Anthony suits first-timers and couples who want to walk to the Alamo, the River Walk and downtown restaurants but prefer a calmer, more elegant setting than the river hotels. Travis Park hosts events throughout the year, including the free Fiesta Fiesta kickoff in April, which makes the hotel a front-row base during the festival — book early for those dates. Because the hotel sits a few blocks back from the river, it avoids the late-night noise of the downtown loop while keeping everything within a short walk. If you plan day trips to the theme parks or Natural Bridge Caverns, factor in the parking charges, or rent a car only for those days.