Balboa Park Hotel — Hotel in San Diego

I've been waiting to post a review because at first I was worried that I was just upset. After about 2 months of thought, I've decided that they deserve the 1 star rating.

My girlfriend and I left a hamper of clothes there by accident on a long 2 week road trip. Realized our mistake within 48 hours and contacted balboa park and explained the situation. Whoever manned the phone at first insisted they had scoured everywhere for the hamper and had not found it. We called again and were told that they "would check". The way it was worded made it sound like it was the first time. Eventually on the second call, they told us they found the hamper. We were elated! Our clothes! We debated driving 13+ hours back to San Diego to get our clothes as some of them had major sentimental value. They had offered to "ship us the hamper" We decided against driving back to San Diego and had a family member drive over an hour to retrieve the clothes in the hamper. Only to discover after said family member arrived that they just meant the hamper ... without the clothes. It was the stupidest, most insane interaction I have ever had with a hotel. We had no issues at any of our other stops on our trip.

We loved the pictures on their website but when we got there we discovered that it did not feel safe with a very large aggressive homeless encampment just across the street and flimsy locks , the walls were paper thin, there was an odd smell to the room, and the insane interaction that I detailed above. There was a woman when we checked out who seemed nice and competent but otherwise, management was a mess.

I would look elsewhere if it all possible. It was cheaper but if I were to do it again, I would happily pay the extra $50/night on a hyatt. This hotel's negative reviews are completely accurate on a re-read and our experience here ruined San Diego for us on our otherwise...

I booked this hotel through Airbnb back in April 2024 (3 months ago) because I was attending Comic Con. 9 days before my trip I received a message through Airbnb that I need to cancel and rebook using a different Airbnb link because there’s been a “change in management.” I tried calling the host and nobody picked up so I left a message however they immediately texted me asking me to cancel. I asked if I were to cancel and rebook, would they honor my original rate and they said they would get back to me - they never got back to me, shocking. A few days later, I reached out again and didn’t get a response so I ended up cancelling while I was still in the window to receive a full refund and didn’t rebook.||I reported the hotel to Airbnb Support as well as the additional link the hotel sent me and today I received a call from Airbnb Support apologizing about the situation and that they are investigating. The lady I spoke to on the phone was so sweet and offered to help me look for a new hotel but unfortunately, hotel rates are now 5x-10x more than I originally paid. Luckily, I’m attending the convention with friends that are staying at another hotel and they are gracious enough to let me stay with them||After reading some of the recent reviews, I’m clearly not the only one this happened to. It’s really unfortunate that Balboa Park Hotel opted for price gouging over integrity and guest service. I booked the reservation MONTHS in advance and they tell me 9 days before that I need to cancel and rebook and they don't assure me that they will honor my original rate? That’s shady business and will bite them in the long run. My advice for those that this happened to, if you booked their hotel through a third party company, report them and share your experience by writing a review. ||I’ve also attached photos of my conversation...

Im currently there and the property manager Letty, shes a fat, lazy peice of trash who charges 20 dollars cash just to open your room, and pockets the money ex. I went outside to bring out my trash and left my key in the room, she was at the front desk and said she wont open my room without the money so i had to sign a paper saying i had the cash in my room and i would give it to her when she let me in my room. She also charges 40.00 dollars to replace your keycard, and 30.00 dollars for something else to do with the key card. She wont fix anything and ignores all problems except when it involves a key so she can get some cash, she is a very dishonest person and has made it very clear what kind of person she is on the inside, if i wasnt here for work i would NOT be here any longer, theres also a problem with people on hard drugs, up all nite trying to look in the windows checking out peoples belongings, and Letty is fully aware of that issue, but refuses to do anything about it and the other issues going on everyday and nite on the propery, so i would really think twice about a room here if i was you, i was completely fooled when me and a couple of my co-workers got here she is completely diffrent from when we first got here , she smiles at your face all nice..nice..but after she gets what she wants ' money' and when you become a resident she can care less about you or your stay here much less youe safety or property, im just giving you guys a heads up..BEWARE shes extremely nice at first EXTREMELY but that fades away very quickly.....WATCH FOR BEDBUGS..they are EVERYWHERE...