Handlery Hotel

The rooms were good, and the endless hot water was handy when two adults and a child needed turns in the shower or bath. The place feels like it peaked in the 1970s or 1980s. Renovations had closed the pool and fitness center, which really stunk. A free shuttle to the other hotel where guests could use the pool would've been nice. As it was, that was an 8-10 minute walk.

We enjoy this property and have had a very nice time there, including attending jazz concerts. We genuinely appreciate the hotel's support for live jazz and the arts, and that community commitment is one reason we like visiting. After checkout, though, we realized we'd left a Musicozy sleep headphone headband behind. We contacted the hotel right away and initially dealt with lost and found and housekeeping. We called at least four times over the next week and were told someone would get back to us, but nobody did. On the last call I asked for a manager to contact us and was told that would happen. It didn't. We understand that a lost item may not be found. What disappointed us was the lack of communication and follow-through after several attempts. We hope the hotel keeps supporting live music and guest experiences. Better follow-up would make this a place we'd be happy to return to.

My stay had some positives, including a reasonable price and useful facilities. The small gym has two treadmills, a couple of other cardio machines, free weights, and a small bench. The pool is a decent size, and there's a little jacuzzi too. The main problem came after heavy rain overnight. Although the balcony door was shut, I woke to find the carpet beside it completely soaked, apparently from water leaking in from outside. Reception offered to move me, but I only had a few hours left before leaving, so packing everything and switching rooms didn't make sense. The way this was handled, along with the leak itself, left me concerned about maintenance and the building's condition. More proactive help could have made the visit much better, but I left disappointed.

The breakfast restaurant was okay but overpriced. When I pointed out ants crawling up the wall, the staff member just said, “Oh, yeah, ants… again,” without apologizing or offering to move us. Parking also added up: it was another $25 a night, which felt crazy for San Diego, especially since there was no nearby free parking. They should fold it into the room rate so guests aren't surprised after a week. Front desk service was hit or miss, with some friendly people, some who didn't seem to care, and others who were rude and abrupt. One day my boyfriend and I left our personal blue towels in the bathroom, different from the hotel's white ones. When we came back that evening, they'd been taken while the room was cleaned. I wondered if housekeeping had simply washed our towels, but they were gone. I reported it to the desk and was told housekeeping had been notified, but nobody followed up. At checkout several days later, a man said it would take a while to find them. We left our contact details and never heard back. A few months later I called a couple of times, got transferred around without a resolution, and eventually reached a manager. He said staff wouldn't take towels except hotel towels. I understood, which is why I was confused about ours disappearing. He said compensation might be possible, but I'd need the original purchase receipt, which I didn't have for towels we'd owned for years. I still don't know where they went. Disappointing.