After spending a night at the Aloft Sunnyvale, we headed up to the city for a weekend at the W San Francisco.
Booking
With Marriott running a double elite night promotion during our visit to San Francisco, I knew I wanted to try and stay at a Marriott Bonvoy property id at all possible. Though I visit the Bay Area quite often, it had been quite a while since I spent any time in the city.
Some properties were wildly off the beaten path while others had eye-watering rates. Ultimately, I found a few good options in the SoMa (South of Market Street) neighborhood. Using the map feature and comparing prices, I ultimately decided on the W San Francisco. It’s been a few years since I’ve stayed at a W property so I was looking forward to getting reacquainted with the brand.
I booked our room directly through marriott.com for a rate of $179 per night for our Standard King room. This rate included a $40 per night Destination Amenity Fee which didn’t have anything that wowed me, which is a good thing, though I’ll go into that in more detail below.
W San Francisco Location
W San Francisco is located at 181 3rd Street, San Francisco, California, USA, 94103, which is on the north side of the 3rd and Howard Street intersection. It is catty-corner from the Moscone Center, which is the primary convention center for San Francisco. For those arriving via private car or rideshare, the driveway entrance is located on 3rd Street.
The primary pedestrian entrance is located at the corner of 3rd and Howard Streets and is clearly marked, though signage is kept to a minimum.
A second set of doors is located next to the valet drive which leads directly into the check-in area of the lobby.
W San Francisco Lobby & Check-In
We arrived at the property just before 4:00p and, since I had a rental car to return at the nearby Avis location, they allowed us to park it in the driveway while we checked in and took the bags up to our room.
Inside, the lobby has the old school W feel with dark colors and mood lighting. The property originally opened in 1999 and while it has been well maintained, the decor is beginning to look dated, especially when compared to the new W brand standard which is more muted and grown up.
There are multiple seating areas throughout the lobby, primarily arranged for groups of 2-3 people. These seats continued down towards the bar area, which I’ll cover later.
There was no line at check-in when we arrived and we were helped immediately by the friendly front desk agent. However, things got a little odd from there.
Since we were traveling with ATX Jr. we were hoping to get an upgrade to a room with more space. When we inquired about an upgrade we were told we had already been upgraded to a King Cool Corner Guest Room which was essentially a studio suite with a partially obstructed view.
I inquired about the cost to upgrade to a true suite so that we could still move around and watch TV after ATX Jr. went down. We were quoted an upgrade price of $500 per night and promptly declined. We were then askes how much it would be worth to us for the upgrade. I threw out $100/night and he went back to talk to the manager, eventually returning at an upgrade offer of $200/night.
At this point we didn’t want to keep bidding against ourselves on something that wasn’t a necessity so we passed and decided to keep our assigned room. We were given our room keys and headed towards the elevator to head up to our room.
It wasn’t until I got home and started working on this review that I realized we never had the amenities included in the Destination Amenity Fee. According to the property’s website, these were the items we should have been entitled to during our stay:
- Daily $40 food and beverage credit
- SF MOMA tickets for two guests per stay
- Two reservations for daily hotel activation with entertainment. Brand Activations include: Body/Sound – Fitness Class (Equinox &/or The Pad Studios) with live DJ; Taste – Beverage Tastings with local partners (K&L Wine/Spirits); Scene – Private Showing with Illusionist/Magician (Reality Thief); Stance/Sound – Glam Up with clean Beauty Experts (Cassandra McClure)
- 2hr bike Rental for two guests per stay
- Stainless Steel W Water Bottles for two guests per stay
- High-speed internet access
While some of these we wouldn’t have used, it would have been nice to know about the $40 F&B credit. Ultimately, this is on me for not knowing what was covered as part of the fee in advance of checking in.
W San Francisco Guest Room
We were assigned Room 602, a corner room on the 6th floor. The room was located at the end of the hallway, close to the elevators. Upon entering, there was a hallway with the bathroom off to the left and the main living/sleeping area directly ahead. A luggage rack and armoire were also located in the hallway.
The main living area wasn’t huge but it was laid out in a way that made the most of the space. A king sized bed was located in the middle of the room and was flanked by two nightstands that are built into the wall.
For the nightstands, one side had the in-room phone and notepad while the other held a small alarm clock.
To the right of the bed was the mini-bar, desk, and a small seating area.
The mini-bar and desk area held the coffeemaker, ice bucket, mini-bar, and had a countertop with a stool.
The price list for the mini-bar could be accessed by scanning a QR code on the counter. I found the pricing to be on the steeper side, though not outrageous given the location.
While some of the beverage items were on the countertop, the majority of them were in the drawers underneath. A refrigerator was also located in a cabinet and was stocked with beverages.
Additional storage drawers as well as the in-room safe were also located in this area.
The counter had a useable desk space though I preferred to work from the adjacent seating area during our stay.
The seating area was arranged in an L shape and had a somewhat functional table in the middle. This is where I spent the majority of my time working from, especially after ATX Jr. went to bed.
Though this room was advertised as having a partially obstructed view, only one side of the corner suite had a building directly adjacent. The majority of the room overlooked 3rd street and let in plenty of natural light.
Directly across from the bed was a decent sized TV that could be connected to your personal streaming accounts.
Back towards the entrance was the bathroom which was a decent size. It had a walk-in shower, sink with a large vanity, and a toilet area.
Toiletries in the shower were in reusable containers and were MOMO branded. This was true for the items at the sink as well.
While the room didn’t feel dated, it definitely had the old school W aesthetic. it was well maintained but could use a refresh in the near future.
W San Francisco Food & Beverage
W San Francisco has two primary food and beverage outlets. Trace is the full service restaurant on property and is open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. While we didn’t visit during our stay (maybe we would have had we known about the food and beverage credit), you can find out more information here.
Living Room Bar serves as the lobby bar for the property and is located near the check-in desks. I visited here both nights during our stay to try and get some work done. The bar is double sided with high top, cafe-style, tables surrounding it.
Our stay spanned a Friday and Saturday night and the busiest I ever saw this space was during a Golden State Warriors game. There were, at most, 10-12 people in the bar which is a far cry from the chaotic scenes I’ve seen at other W properties on the weekend.
Between the bar and the lobby are a group of booths that can get service from the bar. These seats looked comfortable, though I rarely saw anyone using them.
The bar area was out of the ordinary compared to most W hotels I’ve stayed at. I can’t help but wonder if that is more of an indictment on San Francisco as a whole rather than the property.
This observation was further identified on the first morning of our stay when I went downstairs to find coffee. The property typically has a coffee station downstairs for guests in the morning but, I was informed by a member of the staff that they wouldn’t be setting it up as the hotel was below 30% occupancy.
W San Francisco Fitness Center
W San Francisco has a good sized fitness center for those looking to get a workout in during their stay. Branded as FIT, the fitness center is located on the fourth floor and is clearly marked for those trying to enter.
Before we get to the photos, let me start by saying that this fitness center isn’t for everyone. There are a ton of neon lights, funky angles, and loud club music playing in the gym day and night. While some folks may like that environment, i felt like I was working out in the middle of a nightclub.
Though it had nightclub vibes, the gym had a good selection of equipment and featured multiple treadmills, elliptical machines, free weights, and weight machines.
There are also a few seating areas available in the fitness center along with towels, water, fruit, and headphones.
While the equipment in the gym is great, this isn’t a place I could see myself spending much time due to the atmosphere. Maybe it’s better during the day.
Summary
While we had an enjoyable stay at the W San Francisco the best way I can describe the property is quirky. Our odd check-in experience aside, the hotel is still stuck with the old W brand standards which is targeted towards younger groups looking to have fun.
Instead of that, we found a virtually empty property that didn’t have any nightlife to speak of. Our upgraded room was spacious but I’ll likely shop around on my next trip to San Francisco as there are plenty of properties in the SoMa area.