TownePlace Suites by Marriott San Antonio Downtown Riverwalk — Hotel in San Antonio

Pros: Location is AMAZING. Two blocks from "Restaurant Row" on the riverwalk, two blocks from the Alamo. If you plan to spend all day every day out and about exploring this might be the place for you. But if anything else below applies, be warned.

Cons: The room we got didn't have a sleeper sofa but we didn't notice until we unpacked and my husband didn't want to move to another room so we didn't bring it up. But the room was clearly old and worn, with the carpet ripped/worn and coming up at the tile transitions. The shower had only full-blast hot water which made it a song and dance to only duck under the water as fast as we could to avoid scalding. No vent in the bathroom meant after your HOT shower the entire room was muggy and gross. Everything was cramped and small feeling; in the bathroom if the shower door or the bathroom door are open, you can't use the sink which makes sharing the bathroom to get ready extremely difficult.

Worst of all is the parking/valet. I'm shocked by all the good reviews I saw about the valet that make me take the risk. First off, the parking is a scam; there are two surface lots on the next block, one north on Broadway and one west on Jefferson, plus a garage kitty-corner to the hotel. All are cheaper than valet parking, but nobody tells you that until you start exploring. Valet has a $10 surcharge for "large vehicles" that isn't anywhere on the website and you only find out once you are charged it. Valet takes a good 10m+ to get your vehicle out because one kid is run ragged for the entire hotel. We were prepared to chalk it up to a bad experience until the 2nd to last day when we got in our truck and the drivetrain immediately started grinding. We pulled over into the surface lot down the street, where my husband discovered someone had put it in 4WD on the pavement. We were able to get a stopgap measure in place to get home and we have our mechanic looking at what it will take to fix it, but it could be thousands of dollars in the hole. The manager was apologetic, offered to comp the parking for our trip, and helped us submit a claim...except we haven't heard anything from the claims department, and my card just got charged for the full price of the parking for our trip ($260 for 4 nights; literally 2/3rds the cost of our hotel room).

What was supposed to be a wonderful anniversary trip turned into a stressful nightmare the last two days as we canceled plans and struggled to get our vehicle working all because of the valet/PMC company. If you have no vehicle and want something cheap but close this hotel is probably for you! But in NO CIRCUMSTANCES trust your vehicle...

Extremely disappointing for a Marriott property (and I’ve been to many throughout the US). I intentionally chose a Marriott due to the standard of accommodation they usually provide, but this one felt like a 2 star hotel. Needless to say, I do not plan on staying here when I return.

Positives Daily free happy hour. Major plus and helps compensate for all the other downfalls. hotel is 2 blocks from the central riverwalk area Main entrance requires key for access (much needed due to the homelessness in this area) No issues with housekeeping or cleanliness of room.

Negatives: 1 out of the 2 elevators was down for 7 of my 12 day stay. 2 days the hot water pump was down so the showers were freezing cold Laundry room was down and they did not know when it would be back up. bathroom shower had a constant leak so I’d hear the drip drip throughout the night. I did not bother asking to change rooms because I wasn’t sure if it was worth risking getting a worse room. bathroom only had one light and it was very dark. room was dark and dingy. Outdated decor with peeling, frayed carpet which looks decades old. King sized bed had 4 awkwardly small and round pillows that were not designed for a bed that big and were way too small and round for comfort. Cockroach and small insect problem throughout hotel. My friend had to change his room due to this issue and I personally saw many dead bugs by the baseboards whenever I used the gym. Also noticed small ants of some sort crawling along breakfast counter. Location is 2 blocks from the central part of the riverwalk. However, the parking lot (for self parking) is 3-4 blocks in the opposite direction, which gets incredibly sketchy to walk to at most times of day. Do not recommend for those who are easily deterred by homeless people, underdeveloped sidewalks and minimal lighting.

**Shout out to the valet Vincent and the guest services ambassador Matthew.

Vincent the valet was very sweet, trustworthy and welcoming. Whenever I saw him in the dodgy parking lot, he would offer to walk back to the hotel with me and told me which areas to avoid at night.

Matthew typically led the happy hours and his energy, hospitality and personality were unmatched. He was constantly engaging the guests, ensuring everyone was enjoying themselves. Marriott really ought to promote him because I’m pretty sure he works above and beyond whatever his duties entail. My hotel experience wouldn’t have been as good without...

First of all, we were greeted by a very well dressed and polite front desk clerk named Dominick. When we entered our room, we saw that it was very clean and very well kept. The carpet, bathroom, installations were all clean and in great condition. Anytime we needed anything it was always brought us to within 5 minutes. The bedding, pillows and comforter were very soft and comfortable. We slept very well.

We enjoyed very much the breakfast options that the hotel offered. Having breakfast every morning was very enjoyable and the variety was very nice. The coffee is excellent. The breakfast staff was extremely friendly and polite. The two women who worked breakfast shift were so sweet to me and my family (Linda and Norma-Jean). Norma Jean surprised my 3 year old one morning with a little bag of cookies and a grape juice. They really helped make our morning breakfast pleasant. The food was also well stocked and the breakfast area was always clean and tidy.

My family and I were in and out of the hotel during the course of our 4 day stay and every-time we entered and exited the hotel the front desk clerk on shift was always smiling and polite and always acknowledged us. We encountered Dominick and Raquel who are both excellent front desk clerks.

We encountered two small problems during our stay (not that big of a deal) but the staff immediately took action and resolved the issues quickly with a very sincere and apologetic tone. We felt very special and my family and I were not inconvenienced in the slightest.

One more thing I want to add is that on the day of our check-out, I accidentally left behind my son's blanket and teddy bear in the front lobby area. After I realized that I had left it there, I called the front desk and they confirmed that the items were there. I received a call from the house keeping manager and she graciously offered to ship the blanket and teddy bear to my son at no charge. Again, we felt very special that the hotel staff was willing to do this for us.

We have family in San Antonio and my husband and I have decided that every-time we visit our family we are going to stay at this hotel. Our children were comfortable, the room was affordable without compromising quality, the location of the hotel is close and walking distance to all the fun attractions downtown and the staff is polite, friendly and hard working.

Thank you for a...