Hampton Inn San Francisco/Downtown-Convention Cent

We went out at night quite a bit and I never felt unsafe, even though there are a lot of unhoused people in the area. The rooftop view of the city is spectacular, and getting around downtown was easy with public transit nearby. Breakfast was filling and saved us time and money. The rooms are small, but otherwise this was a great find. I didn’t use the parking or gym, so I can’t comment on those. Don’t let the bad reviews put you off.

Finding the hotel was the one frustrating part. We were less than a block away and still couldn’t see the sign, so we called and were told to keep walking. It would help to put signage on the building, over the sidewalk, where people coming from either direction can spot it. Once inside, we found a clean, charming room and helpful staff. We’d stay here again, especially now that we know where to look.

The Mission St. entrance is in a rougher area, though it does have a keycard scanner. I’d come back for work in SF. For parking, if you’re arriving by car and won’t be driving during your stay, Ingka Centres Garage at 945 Market Street is two blocks away. I left my car there for three nights and felt it was secure. You can only enter and exit once by car, and it closes around 11 PM, but SpotHero let me reserve for ~$40/night instead of paying $70/night for valet. It’s a no-fuss place that works well for a 3-star hotel. The manager moved me to a room with a desk, and it was clean and serviced every day. The breakfast area and fitness room are small, but adequate.

The waffle maker worked well, and the Wi-Fi was fast and free. But the room wasn’t clean, the closet had too few hangers, and there was only 1 set of bath towels. To be fair, the night manager brought more when I asked. The gym was a joke, cramped, with broken equipment and no scale. After hours of back and forth with the hotel’s general manager, he finally agreed to let me pay for just one night and leave without any further charges. We won’t be back. Hilton corporate didn’t help resolve things either, so I’ll think long and hard before staying at another Hilton property.