The Sterling Hotel — Hotel in Sacramento

A long review, but worth reading if you're booking a wedding block!

I had a wedding block at this hotel back in October. It took a couple months for them to get back to me; I left voicemails, online inquiries, and emails. Once they did, they started by being very helpful and got the contract ready to go. The problems didn't start until a couple weeks before the wedding.

I called a week in advance to see what rooms I still had unassigned(family was asking if any was available). I was told I had one room available on the first night, and one on the second night. Great, no problem. I booked the room for the first night for a groomsman and we were otherwise set.

On the day we checked in, they ended up giving one of my bridesmaids rooms away to someone else that was NOT a part of the wedding because they had the same first name? How they did not confirm they were part of the block, and did not confirm with me since I booked that room, I have no idea. She traveled across the country and so we had to give up someone else's room that lived closer, but it was still an hour and a half drive home for them.

Come wedding day, I got a text about the spare room. The one we spoke about over the phone, and no one had checked into it. Family ended up staying somewhere else, since they would have needed a couple rooms since it was a larger family. No problem, it's always good to have a spare room at a wedding. Then I got two more texts and a phone call as I'm getting ready for my wedding. During cocktail hour, they went up to me and told me there were actually THREE rooms left over. I told them that we would have to figure it out the next day, since it was my wedding.

We discussed this the next day, and all those rooms were unassigned. I was confused because we had spoken about this a week ago, and they did not give me the right information then. When I left the hotel, I was assured those would be refunded to me since I otherwise could have booked these with my family.

My brother stayed in one of the rooms, and he ended up having no hot water. He told the front desk, they took a look at it, and said there was nothing they could do.

My mother in law booked a two bed, and she was given a one bed.

As soon as I got home, I got an email from the hotel saying that they weren't going to offer any discounts because they discussed this with me, and sent me an email conversation we had 6 months prior. I explained to her how unhappy the guests were, that I had talked to someone one week ago so sending the information from 6 months ago was pointless and that the thread is no longer current.

We went back and forth for a month. And the result?

No discounts were offered. They said they were a small business and can't afford to help with the issue, I signed the contract and there's nothing else they could do, all the while they breached said contract by giving away my bridesmaids room. Not even a discount for the room with hot water issue. I tried calling to help resolve the issue a few times after the emails were proving useless, and was told they could only take a message and have someone reach out.

I will say the suite itself was nice, but not worth all this hassle.

If you can help it,...

The Sterling Hotel used to have an incredible reputation. For years, it stood as a beautiful, well-kept Victorian gem—full of vintage charm and cozy elegance. It was worth navigating the frustrating downtown Sacramento parking and city chaos because the stay itself felt special. Sadly, that’s no longer the case.||The hotel now describes itself as an “Airbnb-style” space—which seems to translate to “low to no upkeep.” During our recent weekend stay, my boyfriend and I were met with:|* Leaking, crusty sink fixtures|* Outdated, tiny, and frankly scary-to-use toilets|* Cracked, questionable tub/shower combo|* Faux plants coated in dust and grit|* Ventilation grates so dusty they were fuzzy|* A “coffee station” with a moldy pod left inside, no cups provided|* An ice bucket half-filled with old water and no liner bags anywhere||The once-elegant décor has been replaced by generic, stiff lobby furniture straight out of a roadside motel. Gone are the soft featherbeds and antique four-posters that made the rooms feel dreamy and romantic—now replaced with stiff, boring mattresses and drab surroundings.||Even the lovely sitting room just off the lobby, which used to feel like a secret garden of calm, has been walled off entirely—now seemingly reserved for private rental events only.||The price of the stay is no longer justified by anything the property offers. They provide no parking assistance or validation for the expensive garage next door. And while their business model now clearly relies on being a wedding venue, I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone. I certainly won’t be returning.||Adding insult to injury, the guest experience is now entirely “contactless”—but not in a good way. I had to download two separate apps, create accounts I’ll never use again, and still couldn’t get into the room. The mobile key gave me an error, and I was told to “see reception”… which had closed over two hours earlier. So much for a smooth arrival. I was forced to track down a physical lockbox key, after dealing with vague text responses that felt partly AI-generated and partly disinterested customer service. Apparently arriving at 6:30pm on a Friday was unreasonable?||I have such fond memories of staying at the Sterling Hotel in the past—when it felt like a true escape. Now, it's just another sad example of a beautiful, historic space gutted by the modern “charge more, offer less” approach. Truly...

HORRIBLE AND SCARY EXPERIENCE! So unsafe; especially for women. We got locked out of the hotel lobby AND our hotel room for hours! Random strangers can access the lock boxes on the porch and get your room key. No employees available to help.

We arrived at 6:30 pm after a flight delay only to find that the lobby door was locked. No employees are available after 4:30 pm which is RIDICULOUS. I called the number and was able to eventually access the lock box. We entered our room, put down our things and went out to dinner. BIG MISTAKE! We returned after a short while, and our key wouldn't open the lobby door. Other guests were stuck outside as well. Eventually, a guest opened the front door from the inside for us. We went up and were horrified to find out that our key couldn't open our hotel room door. Other guests were complaining about the same thing. One poor man had surgery the next day and his required medications were locked away. It took about 2 hours to get back into our room. We had to wait on the floor of the hallway, exhausted after a long day of travel, for an employee to come and unlock our door. It gets better! A woman, who was supposed to be a guest in a room on the same floor, told us that she had walked into her hotel room only to find A NAKED STRANGER in her room! Apparently someone broke into the lock box outside and took one of the keys and let themselves in to her room. SO FRIGHTENING to be a woman traveling alone and find someone in your room. I understand that mistakes happen but there is so much negligence and little regard for the safety and comfort of hotel guests. No one reached out to apologize nor did they offer to give us a discount or make this right. AVOID this hotel...