Date of stay: February 2024 Room type: King room | 29 m²/312 ft² | Non-smoking | 1 king bed Pricing: Cash + Points reward for 29,000 total ($127 + 9,000 pts) for a total spend of $181 if valuing IHG points at $0.06 each Net price per square foot: $0.58 | Price per square meter: $6.24 Breakfast: No
Reasons for picking this hotel: In cities with high hotel occupancy taxes, the math sometimes works better in favor of redemptions as a way to minimize these taxes. This particular hotel in San Francisco had an occupancy tax rate of 17% for example.
IHG allows for an additional points purchase transaction at the time of the redemption booking (with the caveat that the points are non-refundable), in this case at a reasonable rate of $0.00635 per point).
I just needed to be in San Francisco for one night, and this hotel was perfectly situated for my needs.
Transportation / Access: The hotel is located directly on Van Ness (A major thoroughfare) between California and Pine St. There is some descent public transportation nearby and you can take the California St cable car between from the Van Ness stop (end of the line) all the way to Drumm St (near the Embarcadero waterfront). In addition, a variety of bus routes are nearby taking you to most popular points in the city. One street to the East is Polk St, which has a variety of restaurant outlets.
Parking is expensive in the city, and this hotel is no exception, $50 per night, plus tax.
Room Summary:
Thanks to my IHG Platinum status I was given a high room with a nice view.
The Platinum amenity was two bottles of crystal geyser water and some snacks
Pretty standard layout for city hotels, compact but functional, I appreciated the soft and firm pillow choices. The HVAC system was the old school window-side unit which might be a bit too loud for noise sensitive people.
I had no time to try out any of the food and beverage facilities at this hotel.
Final Thoughts:
The hotel is fine, and for a night that all the other similar-caliber hotels were charging $200+, I was happy to use some points and cash to get something under $200.