I stayed here with young children and we had a great stay, but this place is meant for people who want a hip, trendy place to stay and want to be close to the action. The location cannot be beat. It is directly across the street from the Convention Center and directly at the entrance of the Gaslamp District; an easy walk to Petco Park and next to the Hard Rock Hotel. This area is party central.
First tip: skip the valet parking that is offered for $30+ per night. We parked in a garage at G Street that charges $3 per night on weeknights; $9 per night on weekend nights, plus $1 per hour after 3:00am. Total tab each day was usually $10 for us.
Second tip: Weekday happy hour is a great warm up for the night. Excellent complimentary buffet and happy hour drink specials. Children were welcomed in the bar area, but there is also plenty of adjacent lounge space where you can take your food and beverage. This is important because there is often a long wait for dinner at any number of the area restaurants.
Third tip: Understand that you are staying in a downtown, urban location with people who want to be in a downtown, urban location. You will hear noise from the railroad tracks and you will know if the people in the room next to you are having an argument. In our case, the people next door were incredibly intoxicated, loud and unruly. They were quickly ejected by the hotel staff (who also comped us for the night because our room was next door). The next morning, I saw housekeeping cleared two empty 32 oz. bottles of Jack Daniels from their room (to give you an indicator). I don't complain about much, but this complaint justified and was ably handled.
Next - there is a laundromat about 5 blocks up the street. There were two college basketball team managers doing their laundry there in the morning, so I felt it was a safe, comfortable choice - although obviously there were many "lower caste" users in the area. Many would disagree with me here, but with airlines charging $50 RT to bring anything more than carryon, I thought $6 for doing my laundry was a better value on a two-week trip.
Finally, the staff are hit or miss. The hotel has excellent, 5-star quality staff and apathetic, 1-star quality staff. They are pretty easy to tell by their smile (or lack of). Hint: Guests do not exist to provide staff with tips; staff is there to provide guests with excellent service - at which point those who are 5-star will receive generous tips...
I have a couple of quick notes after reading previous reviews. First, everything in the downtown area is relatively close and is easily walkable. There is a Hilton Bayfront that is right around the corner for those looking for a more quiet experience and want to stay in the Hilton family and also a Doubletree nearby. That said, all the hotels in this district are within 8 blocks of each other, so there's no reason to pay much more for any one hotel compared to another. Also, be prepared to see homeless people on every block in this area. They are part of the scenery, but not often in your face.
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