Palihotel San Diego — Hotel in San Diego

Unfortunately this was one of the worst experiences I’ve ever had at a hotel. My husband and I booked 4 nights here, upon arrival at 4pm we were told we would need to wait for our room to be ready. This was a bit confusing as check-in was scheduled for 3pm. We waited about 30 mins for our room. As we made our way up to our room, we had to navigate the ancient elevator. The elevation doors are unable to be held open making it very difficult to navigate with baggage. Very long wait times. And exceptionally small. My husband decided to take the stairs (also a maze) up to our room with his luggage and made it about 10 minutes before me in the elevator.

When we arrived in the room we instantly noticed how small the room was. We had a queen sized bed suite. There was not enough space for our both of our luggages and we had to shuffle between the bed and the fridge to get to the other side of the room. Unfortunately when we walked in we also noticed just how stuffy the room was, as if the air in the room had not been circulating for some time. When we tried to turn on the A/C we realized it was not working. Upon inspection we realized the unit was not connected (picture below for reference). We called the front desk and had no answer, we also text with no answer. We finally headed down to the front desk to ask for another room or if our A/C could be repaired. We were met with a a shocking revelation. Apparently 90% of the rooms were without A/C and had been since the day prior. I asked why we were not informed and was told “because you could have gotten one of the few rooms that did work, so I didn’t want to tell you unless it wasn’t working.” A bit of a strange response, alas, we were happy to continue our stay if there was a room with A/C, unfortunately, there was not. We were told the electrical would be repaired by Tuesday, which would have been our last day, meaning the entire stay would be without A/C. Unfortunately, my Husband and I had to book a last minute hotel in a different location. I realize the front desk staff was not to blame as the issue was way bigger than them, however, I do wish I would have been informed of the issue before paying my incidentals fees and bringing all of our luggage up to the room. It felt very unprofessional and we left having a very bad experience and a free drink voucher.

All in all, the building is stylish without any true modern amenities. The pricing should match the experience and unfortunately I feel as if they are charging a bit too much for what you are getting. However, if you’re willing to have some amenities lacking, this could be a great experience as the location and aesthetics are nice. The staff is...

I also wish I took a deeper dive into the reviews prior to booking. The biggest thing is that if you are not a heavy sleeper DO NOT BOOK HERE. The rooms are beautiful, clean, and comfortable (small, but as expected according to the pictures on the website, not a problem) but the building itself is old and the walls are thin. The nightlife around this hotel is bumpin - the street noise carries right into the rooms and you can clearly hear the music from the nearby clubs that goes late into the night (2-3am). We requested to have our room moved on the first night and the staff was more than accommodating, but the other side of the building was not much better. In addition to the street noise, the AC makes a strange noise and seemed to be talking back and forth with the plumbing. This would happen on and off throughout the night. We did not get one good night's sleep during our three night stay.

In addition to the noise issue, we felt that some of the additional fees that they charge were unfair. Please note, there is a $25 PER DAY "destination fee" that you will be charged AFTER your stay that is supposed to cover a few of the amenities (the "free" wifi, coffee in the rooms, use of the rooftop bar, etc). The rooftop bar was what drew us into this hotel and my friends and I were excited to use it on Friday 11/1, but we told when we arrived that not only was the bar done serving for the season, but the area was closed for a private event.

We also came back from a long day on 11/2 and were looking forward to ordering room service and watching TV. At 8pm (during restaurant service hours) we were unable to access room service via the QR code or website and the TV was not connected to the wifi. I ended up walking around the corner to get a pizza and tried to fall asleep to the sounds outside.

The $60 valet fee feels steep although I will say it is fast and convenient. Try to grab a local lot if you can, but they fill up fast. Also if you do use valet, review your receipt after the fact as we were charged for a day that we did not use the service. Another friend of mine was as well. The overpayment was refunded but there should be a way for the hotel to better track when the service was used.

Again, the hotel is beautiful and the staff was kind and accommodating, but there's a reason that the base fee is so low and it all just felt a little scammy. We wanted a cute boutique experience downtown but were overall disappointed and left exhausted. Should have stayed at the DoubleTree...

Not worth the value. Was cute with charming decoration and excellent location, which is what drew me in as a fan of boutique hotels, but immediately upon checking in I was turned off as we asked about parking options and were told parking was $60 a night (a room was already $400 per night) when most hotels in the area charge a max of $40 per night with private garages. After we begrudgingly accepted the price, they told us actually there was no parking for the night because it was full (which was so angering- like why tell us the stupid price then?) And they were not helpful about giving alternative options and basically said “good luck with street parking or the private lots” but didn’t even inform us that street parking is in fact free overnight and on Sundays- so we actually found free parking right outside the hotel without their help. I even asked the valet to confirm the street parking was free at night and he just looked at me and said “I don’t know”. The elevator is a cute feature but horrible in practicality. It takes forever and seems dangerous. It took us to the basement floor and got stuck there. We couldn’t open the door and had to sound the alarm to get out. A receptionist had to come find us in the basement of the hotel and lead us through the messy and disorganized inner parts of the hotel which no guest would want to see, just to get back to the main lobby. And then, they just left us in the lobby and did not assist us to get another elevator to the 8th floor. The rooms are very cute but extremely tiny. The shower is extra tiny. There was dirty make up wipes on the floor of our hotel when we entered, presumably from the last guests. They have fewer than normal toiletries- no body wash, no hair cap- and no free bottled water or anything. We were worried about the noise staying close to some bars and night clubs but honestly the only noise that bothered us all night was the air conditioner unit in the room- it was so loud! At night there are a lot of drunk party goers around the area which is totally fine because you have to scan your key to get into the hotel, but as we sat in the lobby the front desk personnel kept allowing drunk people who were not guests into the lobby to use the bathroom which was not enjoyable for the guests sitting there. Overall not worth the money- would not stay there again or recommend to others- there are so many hotels in the area with bigger rooms and better parking accommodations and likely more...