My partner and I stayed at this hotel. The good: the room was clean and well-appointed. Beds were very comfortable and sheets were high quality. Great location (Petco Park is a block away; the convention center a couple of blocks; lots of restaurants in Gas Lamp District). Very friendly and polite staff. Small but well-maintained outdoor pool on the third level with a bar area. Very sleek and modern public areas. The bad: The ONLY downside to the hotel was the fitness facility. It was pretty lame. Few cardio options crammed into a tiny space. Too bad...I would stay at this hotel again in a heartbeat for a one night stay. But anything more than that, I'd look for a hotel with a better fitness room. Kimpton, put a decent fitness room in the hotel -- it would pay off in the end.

I stayed at this hotel two weeks ago for 4 nights, starting on a Saturday. The rooms were nice, pretty clean, and the location is good. But the noise in this Hotel was too much. The pool area features a roof bar that is open until the wee hours of the morning, with plenty of booze-filled people and music blasting... The walls were pretty thin & my neighbor's child was up at 6am - could hear almost all of their conversation. I mentioned this to staff, but they shrugged it off as I am sure they have heard it before. Bottom line: if you choose to stay at this Hotel, request a room on a high floor, not overlooking the pool area. Given the choice, I would stay at another Hotel, especially if you value sleep & freindly service.

My mom and I stayed in this hotel for 5 nights in August 2008. Overall, I am really satisfied with this hotel. It is worthy of the 4-star title. The decor, both in the lobby and in the rooms, was artistic and tasteful, and the service at the front desk was excellent. They also offered free coffee/tea in the morning and free wine tasting in the afternoon, everyday. Though I was not able to take advantage of the wine tasting, by the number of people who did everyday, I gathered the wine couldn't be too bad.

My only complains are: (1) the room was just a bit too small, so only one soft chair was provided -- I would have preferred two, so both my mom and I could sit comfortably. (2) The newly-renovated bathroom had a really shallow sink. While it is stylish, it is really not very practical.

Oh, also, the valet parking was expensive -- $32 a day! But I took the advice of other trip-advisor reviewers, and parked in a nearby covered parking lot for $8/day.

Complementary wired high-speed Internet is really nice!

If I visit San Diego again, I would definitely consider staying there again.

My husband and I stayed at the Hotel Solamar for four nights recently. We were absolutely happy with all aspects of the hotel. The rooms are lovely, comfortable, decorated well, but most of all the hotel staff members are truly professionals. They are efficient, polite, and appear to want their guests to feel welcome ~ which we did.

We have stayed at most of the four star hotels in downtown San Diego over the past ten years, but I would recommend the Hotel Solamar over them all (and I have no complaints with the others) but, the Solamar was just a little more inviting.

I read some of the previous reviews about the bizarre pool scene. I checked out the pool every day and night we were there which included a Saturday. I didn't see anything that was bizarre. All I saw was a few people having a drink at the bar and other guests sitting in lounge chairs reading. And, as my husband who teaches English pointed out, "they weren't even very racey books!"

There are a lot of great hotels in San Diego, but if Hotel Solamar is conveniently located to what you want to do in the area, I highly recommend it.

Also, I would suggest not renting a car for any downtown hotel unless it is a must. The hotel parking fees are all about the same whether you are at the Hyatt, Marriott, or Solamar, and how many times are you going to use a car? The public transportation system is sufficent to get you anywhere within the downtown area; we found taxis are not that expensive.