This lovely hotel is destroyed by the most bizarre pool scene I have ever come across in all my years of travelling. Im in my early 30's and my girlfriend in her late twenties and we found it way too much. At the weekend they bring in a local DJ from about 11am who plays unbelievably loud dance music right throughout the day, you cannot hear yourself think nevermind talking. The pool has hardly any beds but at the weekend when it fills up with obnoxious drunk people that the DJ brings with him you cant get a spot in the pool nevermind a sun lounger. They also rent out the cabanas so you may arrive down at 9 in the morning to be greeted with reserved signs on all the beds which sit their idle for most of the day because even when the beautiful people who booked them arrive they only want to be seen drinking in the pool. The pool area itself can be rented out to businesses and during one night of our stay was completely shut off to guests. If your a party animal you will of course love this vibe at the weekends but this is certainly not the place you want to go to at the weekends if you have children or just want to relax. One other thing about this hotel is the car parking, between tipping the valet and the car park fee be prepared to pay at least $40 a day.

This hotel definitely has the potential to be a wonderful place to stay. Unfortunately there are so many problems with the property that I cannot imagine staying here again. We arrived on a very early flight and had asked for an early check in which ended up being no problem. We were in town for a wedding and told by the groom that a gift bag had been delivered to our room but to our dismay there was no gift bag in our room or at the front desk. The Concierge said they couldn't find it and suggested that it was accidentally given to someone else in another wedding party. Then he offered their gift bag to us! Obviously we declined as that is not exactly the appropriate resolution to the problem.

Valet and Concierge services very slow and rather detached. If you enjoy good service with a finer touch you will not find it here. I found the previous reviews describing the service as catering to the 20 - something crowd (meaning they cater to the party/drunk crowds) to be very accurate. Lines were very long at the front desk for people either checking in or asking questions. Lines to get your car were even worse. Attempts to call down to the valet to have the car ready went unanswered several times. Room service was disappointing at best. We called most nights for a late snack and they either never answered the phone or said they would call back and never did. The front desk also called our room several times by mistake sometimes in the early morning or very late at night.

The biggest problem at this hotel is the constant pool party. I cannot stress enough to people booking this hotel to book a room that doesn't overlook the pool and bar on the 4th floor. If you want a hotel to relax by the pool then this is not the hotel for you. The few chairs they have are taken first thing in the morning and the place is crawling with people in their 20s and 30s and DRUNK. By the end of the afternoon the pool area was littered with plates of half eaten food, beer bottles, dirty towels and other garbage these people left. The DJ started at noon and went until 11:30 or 12 at night. The music was a constant "thump thump thump" of house/techno mixed in with the noise of bar and pool patrons singing at the top of their lungs. Think of it as a nightclub right in the middle of the property. The drunk partygoers would then spill into the lobby every now and then and harass hotel guests. For a hotel that charges almost $250 per night (and $32 for parking per night) I was appalled that they were ok with all this. Several other guests we spoke to in the lobby were also very disappointed and angry. We demanded a room on the other side of the building to get away from the pool. Our new room was a little quieter but I began to realize that we were smack dab in the midst of more partygoers later that night who had rooms near ours. The noise from their rooms drifted down that halls and into our room. We called security about 4 times to complain about the yelling and screaming which finally ceased around 1am.
I would not recommend this hotel to anyone who doesn't sit well with the younger crowd, partygoers and noise because that is what this hotel is all about. I fully intend on contacting this hotel and the manager about my experience here.

The Solamar is a typical Kimpton hotel where each one surprises because of its modern, tastefully decorated rooms and the unusually relaxed staff. They are very dogfriendly and are the only ones that I know of that do not charge a dime for your dog to come with you. We enjoyed the stay in the Gaslampquarter and will come back here.

The hotel is a hip, sleek place with a cool, modern decor, perfectly located to be a convenient launching pad to walk the Gaslamp/Harborside/East Village neighborhoods. Petco Ballpark is a couple of blocks away. The 4th floor pool is neat. The staff was super-friendly too. The few down points were the noise levels from the neighboring rooms and the rather sluggish air conditioning. The weather was warm during our stay and we had a hard time cooling the room down. Our dogs were welcomed (a gem among the San Diego hotels) but they didn't get the special turndown service advertised. Nonetheless we had a wonderful time!