HOTEL PALOMAR SAN FRANCISCO - A KIMPTON HOTEL

"The worst"

$461 per night before taxes' For this cesspool' This hotel's only redeeming quality is its location, which is superb. The decor is pleasing to the eye and it thinly veils the filth underneath, best described as an elaborate illusion. The bed in my room would not even be acceptable in a flop house. One side of it is significantly lower than the other, probably a hangover from some obese guest that I can't stop imagining. You hear and feel springs pop and recoil when you sit down. I cannot imagine how I am going to get thru this stay. Barely slept a wink last night in this misery. After not sleeping due to incredibly awful bed, I decided to start my day early in the "fitness center", a small, windowless closet on the 6th floor, so smelly and dirty it is impossible to describe adequately. There were exactly two machines in their "fitness center", one elliptical and one treadmill. Both were loosely strewn amongst the garbage and filth. And stink. I worried about contracting a disease in there. There was no way to work out, so dejected I went back to my room.... This place is the worst! Avoid at all costs.

"We keep coming back!"

Hotel Palomar is perfectly situated at 4th and Market, close to BART and MUNI stops with easy access from SFO and downtown sites. We had requested a room on the 4th street side because they are quieter and got a room on the 9th (top) floor. It was so quiet that it was hard to believe that we were in the midst of such a bustling urban environment. Lobby and desk staff were friendly each time we entered and exited. The coffee/hot tea set up in the lobby each morning is a very nice touch. We will return.

"Great location - high recommended"

Our first stay at Palomar and we were very happy. The primary appeal is the location - right on top of city center with City Center around the corner, right on Market street at the Powell Street station. Easy access to BART, Muni, F-line, Cable Car - movies, shopping, restaurants. We stay in SF often and we were still pleasantly surprised. We used an upgrade to a suite and we also had a separate 2-bed (queen) room. Both were on the 9th floor, one overlooking the quad in the middle and the other overlooking 4th street. Both were quiet and we slept very well. Larger rooms than other Kimpton's in SF. The lobby is small and sparse. We enjoyed both the wine at 5:00 and the coffee/tea in the morning. There isn't a lot of room to sit and hang out, but they make it work and we were always able to find a spot. The staff was great - but this is what I expect from a Kimpton. Overall, I highly recommend this hotel.

"Nice location and ok stay, but missing Kimpton feel"

I'm a HUGE fan of Kimpton and have stayed in close to 10 different properties, including 3 in San Francisco. For whatever reason, this property did not have the Kimpton feel. The front desk at check in felt more like a hilton/marriott. I inquired about Chef Tasting since this is the first property since I achieved Tier 3 status; and they did not really seem to promote it and just said, "call the chef". We also requested a welcome amenity on Valentines Day requesting Champagne (yes, I know I'm complaining about getting red wine instead of Champagne); but that's what Kimptons do. We went to the front desk to share feedback, and the response from the front desk woman was "I don't usually work at this property". We wanted to spend our first Valentine's Day away from home at a Kimpton for the exceptional service we always receive from New York to SFO and Boston to San Diego - but this property totally missed the mark across the board. The only staff member that had Kimpton spirit was the door man who ran upstairs to get some lemons for our tea. Pros: - Great Location in heart of SFO - Easy access to public transportation - Decor in hallways was really nice in a historic property with a lot of character Cons: - Lacked Kimpton Feel and felt more like a Hilton/Marriott - Room was tight with bed being right next to bathroom; and I've stayed in smaller rooms at Harbor Court down the street which had a better layout - Staff was unexceptional which has never happened at a Kimpton before

"The highlight of our stay"

Even weeks after staying there my wife still talks about the hotel. We weren't sure what to expect, as the reviews are all over the place but I booked us in as we were going to see a play at the golden gate theatre just a few blocks away. I'm very glad we booked in here! We were nicely greeted by the doorman and our check in with Josh was very fast and easy and he wished us a pleasant stay and congratulated us on our anniversary. We had 5 hours of delays in flights so we were pretty travel worn and had already missed some activities we wanted to do. We came down for the wine tasting - by tasting it's nice sized glasses of wine :) and it helped lift our spirits quickly. The room was clean and comfortable, but the staff really made this place shine. After we came back from supper, we found we had a bottle of wine and fancy (and yummy) cupcakes in our room with a note congratulating us on our 20th anniversary. It was unexpected and a great personal touch. I suspect this was done by Josh - thank you! My wife forgot her hairspray - we asked where we could buy some and in a few minutes they gave us some to use during our stay. Nice! Anytime we went out for a walk or to do something, they were great to volunteer places to go to based on what we were interested in or give us little tips. As a visitor from out of town this is really valuable as who knows when we'll be back and we always want to make the most of our trips. The next day we said we were going to go out bike riding across the Golden Gate bridge. The manager there (I forgot his name unfortunately - he was really great) gave us a card to get a discount off our bikes at the place we were going and gave us some great tips for our day trip. Every time we walked in we were greeted with a smile and a friendly hello by at least one person often more. The hotel is made amazing by the great staff there and gets an easy 5 stars from us. My wife isn't always easy to impress and she really was with everyone there. She said when we come back we are definitely staying here again, and I agree! To the staff here - thank you so much for making a special trip feel REALLY special.