There is little need to write what a wonderful city San Francisco is, how much there is to do. On the day I arrived, I could have joined a ghost hunt, had a tour of a teddy bear factory, heard a lecture explaining how California once was an island, seen an exhibition of Japanese "shibori" fabrics at the airport museum, and attended any number of music, dance and theater performances. There are also many well-known hotels, but generally when I consider great hotels, I think of Europe with its centuries of quality and tradition or the Orient with its exotic images and dedicated service. Sometimes you will find a combination. Recently, after giving a lecture in Kobe, I stayed overnight at the Osaka Ritz-Carlton, surprised at the rich furnishings, the heavy silken draperies, the general sense of opulence that is rarely found in Japan. It even passed the ultimate test: In the lobby I met friends I hadn't seen for years who were making a nostalgic trip to Japan.

So when I had the chance, I selected the San Francisco Ritz-Carlton. The building, on prestigious Nob Hill, originally housed the Pacific Coast headquarters of the Metropolitan Life Insurance Company. It was built to replace their former site, which was destroyed in the 1906 earthquake, and its style is a confirmation of the neoclassical architecture with Ionic columns and rich filigree so popular then. Following additions, renovations and changes in occupants, the building, now far surpassing its original magnificence, reopened as the Ritz-Carlton in 1991.

Service at Ritz-Carlton hotels is hard to match. In Shanghai, a concierge will meet guests at the airport to ease any entry problems. There is already an Olympics Concierge in Australia prepared to assist those attending the September events, and there is a Technology Butler at all hotels and resorts worldwide to help with computer and technology problems.

When I arrived, the lobby was filled with an after-lunch group of well-dressed women, returning to work or going shopping or to the theater or perhaps even home. There were mostly well-suited business people in my Club Floor lounge -- and several families in more relaxed dress, like jeans and T-shirts. I shouldn't have been surprised, with Silicone Valley and its offshoots so close by. Making a million once took a lifetime; now becoming an overnight multimillionaire is not unusual. The city has always accommodated a wide range of lifestyles, rich or poor. The fact that these young families like togetherness is, I think, an encouraging harbinger of the future.

The Club Floor is a special innovation, with a bar including champagne and an extensive selection of Scotch whiskys as well as a lavish buffet table changed five times a day with the same high-quality foods as served in the prize-winning Dining Room, both bar and buffet continuously available without charge to guests.

To accommodate the increasing number of children traveling with their parents, an attendant will child-proof rooms with bathtub spout covers, electric outlet plugs, night lights and an emergency kit. If the family is traveling with a nanny, there is a nanny pack with a listing of activities and a sightseeing map of the city as well as Band-Aids and aspirin.

If you plan to be around for the next millennium celebration, you may want to book at the Ritz-Carlton. For this one, there was an Ultimate Experience package, three nights in the presidential suite, use of a chauffeur-driven (or drive it yourself) Jaguar during the stay, a memorial gold Chronograph Bvlgari watch for each guest, a private tour of Napa Valley wineries, meals to remember with wines representing the finest vintages from the past century, but why go on, a $100,000 for two package is certain to be unique, even with taxes and gratuities included. Well, there were lesser plans from $2,800 to $8,225. But remember that Toyotomi Hideyoshi, selecting from three bids for his new palace, chose the most expensive observing that you get what you pay for. Except that at the Ritz-Carlton, you will likely discover that you get even more.

For more information or to make reservations, contact the Leading Hotels of the World office, phone (03) 3210-5131 or fax (03) 5210-3805.