Monday Musings #55: San Antonio’s High Dollar Hotel Rooms

One thing about inflation: money isn’t what it used to be, right? If you need proof, try checking into the $185 million, 200-room Monarch Hotel at Hemisfair, San Antonio's newest upscale downtown hotel destination. News reports peg starting room rates at $600 a night.

With some still-lingering expense account PTSD, I’ve paid that much money for a hotel room on business trips to New York and London, but in both cases, it was high season for visitors. Is San Antonio a big enough destination for affluent travelers to support another five-star hotel?

The answer is: I hope so. In a city that for too long has been seen as a low-wage, cheap land, high-poverty city, with a corresponding inferiority complex, it’s good to see the Zachry family betting big on downtown, on Hemisfair, and the future appeal of the most interesting and historic of the major cities in Texas. 

I decided to check out the Monarch’s lowest-priced room for a one-night staycation for myself and my wife, Monika Maeckle. We are not alone. I know a lot of other San Antonians are curious to experience the city’s newest luxury hotel. I selected Tuesday, April 21, more than 30 days in advance, and a weekday during Fiesta with no downtown parade. The least expensive room I found on the Hilton Monarch website is listed at a nonrefundable $673 for non-Honors members, $650 for Honors members. With fees and taxes, the totals are $785.30 and $769.59 for Honors members. 

Need a flexible rate allowing advance cancellation? That same room price goes to $775, or $805 with breakfast. Total cost: $939.77.

Arriving by car? You’ll need to valet. Add $60 a night plus tip. How about a park view? Add $31. What’s your dog’s name? Presuming he or she weighs 75 lbs or less, pets are welcome for a non-refundable $250 fee. A 90-minute massage will cost another $170, plus tip.

In other words, most of us will be down $1,000 before our first drink or look at the menus at the Monarch’s two signature restaurants, Aleteo, the coastal Mexican venue, or Oak & Amber, the city’s newest steakhouse. Both of which, of course, we are eager to sample.

The Monarch is not alone. Hotel Emma, the city’s award-winning Grande Dame of hotels and a great adaptive reuse project, comes in a close second to the Monarch Hotel for one-night stays on my April date. Be prepared to pay $617 plus tax and fees for a Classic Brewhouse Queen, the lowest-priced room available. I was offered a $279 upgrade to a Terrace Cellar King, but sticking with my first choice, with $144.08 in taxes and fees, my total would be $761.08.

Valet parking adds $45 a night, and there is a nonrefundable $250 fee for checking in your service animal. A 90-minute massage, depending on your choice, will cost another $250 to 350, plus tip.

The Fairmount Hotel, a frisbee throw across South Alamo Street from The Monarch, advertises itself as “San Antonio’s Best Hotel.” It’s a fine venue, but it might need a new slogan. It is sold out for Fiesta, but rooms there start at a more affordable $302 before fees, taxes and other add-ons. It’s a fine hotel with destination restaurants. I still miss Luke Tips, the canine concierge and rescued Labrador-mastiff mix, who greeted guests in the mid-2000s and was available for park walks. No charge.

I’m a downtown guy, but if golf, spas and family-friendly elaborate pools with water slides are your thing, be prepared for even higher room rates at the JW Marriott San Antonio Hill Country & Spa. The “best value” room rate I found for the night was $1,564 plus fees and taxes. Clicking the Reserve button, the room rate was listed at $1,412.86. With $412.86 in fees and taxes, the total came to $1,900.61.

A 90-minute massage, depending on your choice of service, will cost another $270 to 370, plus tip.

That sent me running, digitally speaking, to the Hyatt Regency Hill Country Resort & Spa, where rooms start at $430. The itemized, nonrefundable cost was listed at $358.68 plus $139.39 in fees and taxes for a total of $498.17.

A 90-minute massage, depending on your choice of service, will cost another $250 to 350, plus tip.

Bottom line: Multiple San Antonio hotels believe there is a growing market for luxury accommodations, spa service and fine dining, among other attractions. Are they right?

Post-pandemic, San Antonio's lodging industry has been the hardest hit of all major Texas cities, according to the San Antonio Business Journal, and occupancy rates fell more than 9% in the 4th quarter of 2025 compared to bookings in the 4th quarter of 2019. Revenue for bookings fell more than 7% year-over-year from the 4th quarter of  2025 compared to the 4th quarter of 2024, along with a 5% reduction in the number of occupied rooms.

Downtown occupancy rates were only 61% in 2025, a reflection of the city’s growing hotel room inventory, with developers continuing to plan or open new venues, as well as the slow, post-pandemic recovery of the convention and visitor economy. The average room rate citywide was only about $160.

I don’t have occupancy stats for luxury hotels like Hotel Emma or the golf resorts, but I am sure they are higher. They serve a less price-sensitive clientele. And there are always deals to be had. Monika and I are among many San Antonians I know who have enjoyed a “friends and family” discounted stay at the Pearl’s Hotel Emma. Our stay was sometime after Hotel Emma's opening in 2015. The experience was memorable. Unsold rooms are often moved at a discount, which allows some of us who otherwise might not be able to splurge on a one-night staycation to celebrate an anniversary or other special occasion.

Will there be enough visitors and locals to keep the expanding five-star market viable in San Antonio? Count me as one who welcomes the Monarch to the list of luxury accommodation options in the city. We’ll be checking it out as soon as the South Alamo Street improvement project is completed next month. And sometime soon, we hope, we’ll be checking in...