Sheraton Petaluma

March 20, 2020

As we made our way home as COVID-19 spread we stayed one night at the Hyatt Centric in Santa Barbara arriving just as the Governor forced restaurants to close and we grabbed a last take out fish and chip meal before everything was shuttered. The next day we had a beautiful drive along Big Sur, to Carmel by the Sea and Monterey, and were on our way to the Westin Versa Napa when we received the call that they were closing due to COVID. We were able to make a last minute switch to the Sheraton Petaluma as fewer and fewer options were available and San Francisco was suddenly a do not visit area with a strict lock down.

We arrived to find the hotel deserted and the Club Lounge and restaurants all closed. The friendly check in attendant allowed us to take items from the pantry and the next morning made us coffee from there as well as no other food options were available. The hotel was a bit if a walk to the actual town itself which was a cute spot along the river and Oliver and I had a nice walk there in the morning though the beginning involves crossing under the freeway. The much better aspect to the hotel's location is that it is on the Petaluma Marsh with walking trails and a dog park and plenty of dog poo bag stations.

The hotel had ample parking, a great pool just off of the boat slips, the split level lobby was a little dated as were the furnishings but still very pleasant and standard. The room was large as was the great gym, little did we know this would be our last workout for a very long time. Overall a good hotel at a great price, it would be nice to see it open with all of the amenities available, but again the friendly staff did a great job considering the difficulties of the pandemic and since they accommodated us when others could not.