Residence Inn by Marriott San Jose North/Silicon Valley — Hotel in San Jose

After driving 2 hours and arriving at the hotel, a lady at the front desk lied to us and said that Expedia cancelled our reservation and should have relocated us. We called Expedia and they had no record of the room being cancelled. We were then told by the Assistant Manager that Expedia did not cancel, that it was the General Manager of the hotel that cancelled our room due to "maintenance" and emailed Expedia and Expedia should have contacted us. When we told them this didn't happen, they said we are fully booked. They did not offer to relocate us, they did not apologize for not contacting us, and they did not offer to give us a voucher. No remorse, no empathy. The girl who lied to us was the Operations Manager and she told us that she is the head of Housekeeping and just helping out. When asked how many rooms they had to cancel for maintenance we were told 3. They could not pickup the phone and call 3 customers? But, instead the left it up to Expedia who serves millions of customers. An hour later, as we were trying to book our room, the Assistant Manager comes up to our table and quickly shows us an email from his cell phone, telling us that this is the email the General Manager sent to Expedia. He quickly took his phone away so that we could not see the screen. We then asked him if we could see the email because we did not see it the first time. He told us no and would not let us take a picture or print it out for us, to send over to Expedia so we could get a refund. We asked him a second time to see the email and he said no that we were not allowed to see the email. Which seems very unethical. We spent 2 hours on the phone with Expedia sitting at their bar while Expedia attempted to relocate us with a hotel of equal quality and all hotels were booked except hotels who had suites available for over $500. They sat behind the counter laughing and talking watching us as we struggled to find a room. When we approached again to ask them if they knew of any hotels that were not booked, a man next to us was checking in, we said "he must be a Marriot Rewards member" to which the Operations Manager replied "Yes, he is a gold member." After finally locating a 2 star hotel to stay, the Assistant Manager walks up to us to tell us that Expedia should be contacting us shortly. Needless to say, this was a horrible unethical and illegal experience and horrible customer service. They still have not had any one reach out to us and apologize, offer their sympathy for being lied to, or being left to fend for ourselves when THEY were the ones to put us in this position in the first place. Never have we ever had something like this happen; but it has ruined our opinion of Marriott hotels. And we will make sure that everyone knows that Marriot will cancel your reservation for their own reward members which seems to be illegal and we are considering consulting a lawyer...

To start: I live locally but with so much traffic in the Bay Area, I am not afraid to admit about once a month I get a room at a nearby hotel and just enjoy the amenities,the 2 minute drive from my office, etc. Another tidbit: I also work in the industry.While some would say I could have a bias, I actually am just tougher to please than most. ALL of that being said, I have a new favorite hotel! I may go as far as to say this is my Santa Clara go-to. SO many good things! Jeff @ the desk was great!Very accommodating, he really went the extra mile to ensure that my requests were all met, asking his manager when he was unsure at times, which I think is awesome. He was polite&professional, while being humble&patient. When my card was acting up he & his manager (didn't get her name) worked with me and were understanding while I moved funds around electronically for a few moments in order to check-in. Great experience. The room was a first floor corner 1-bedroom suite and it was LOVELY. Parking was convenient. Bed was super comfy, only thing is that it was an ADA room & those roll-in showers aren't my favorite, but not at all a deal breaker.VERY spacious, the view was on the water and just absolutely lovely in the AM. Which brings me to my favorite part of the hotel: THE LOCATION. Guys, this is a hidden gem of San Jose. Right up on the most southern part of the San Francisco Bay, def. feels like you are in a different place entirely that the congested Silicon Valley. The area of Alviso is directly north of the property & talk about TIME WARP. Def. recommend walking along the Guadalupe & checking it out! Vahn's restaurant is great local color (they have a piano bar!) & there is even the old Bayside Cannery building (circa 1906!), which pays homage to the valley's fruit industry roots. If you're a total history nerd like me, it is awesome to explore this neighborhood.The salt ponds are cool, too.
But honestly, the real reason I am writing this review is for one staff member who was the highlight of my stay & that was the bartender, Amy.She was wonderful from the get-go: warm & hospitable, funny,and kind. We got to talking with other guests and it was such a wonderful convo that I came back the second night. Amy & I had another really great talk & she just..well,she made my night! Amy rocks & in an area where there are LOTS of hotels to choose from, a LOT of which are Marriott properties, she absolutely makes this property stand out from the...

Let me open with that I'd recommend this place to anyone. Like the title says, it's a sharp place with GREAT value.

This opened just a couple of months ago, so the facility is brand new all around. It's modern and pretty stylish inside, with a great lobby area with plenty of sofa seating, high-back chairs, table space, and a few TVs. There is enough room, nothing seems too crowded which is different for a hotel of this kind. It's a great place for business travel, families and even teams to use.

The staff when I was there was very friendly and had a smile on their faces -- always a good sign of a good team. They have candy at the desk and offer you a couple of waters when you arrive... small things, but they show that they do try to do all they can to make your stay enjoyable, and don't nickel and dime you for things like waters, etc.

My room had a GREAT layout with a small kitchen complete with everything you'd need to cook a meal, a sofa/relaxation area, spacious desk, bureau with big-screen TV, queen-size bed and nice bathroom. It was very comfortable and livable, NOT like some standard boxy hotel room with a bed and bathroom.

And the heat/air conditioning worked like you'd expect it -- which is becoming harder to find these days!

The rate I got was a steal for a Saturday night at a new Silicon Valley location, so they understand how to price their rooms to fill up. If you see a good deal, grab it -- it's not because the place is questionable. It's because they want to fill the place every night, and understand their customers and market.

To top it off in the morning, the free Breakfast was VERY good. They had everything laid out well with plenty of space to move around, was clean, and the food section and quality was all at the top of what you find at any comparable hotel. The staff kept it stocked up well, and were buzzing around to keep it clean and organized (after messy guests had used things).

If this hotel is anywhere close to where you need to...