Hotel Mark Twain San Francisco

Rooms: 118
Reviews - Hotel Mark Twain San Francisco
Read 369 additional reviews of Hotel Mark Twain San Francisco at TripAdvisor.
Want to see more hotels? View all hotels in San Francisco
Historical Traveller Reviews of Hotel Mark Twain San Francisco
9 Days at the Mark Twain SFO
from A TripAdvisor MemberIt's an older hotel, and shows its age in places, but it was clean, comfortable, and certainly a very convenient base for looking around SFO. Public transport is close by, and it's a very short walk to Union Square. The staff were excellent to deal with and were always willing to provide advice and assistance.
In other reviews I read of security/safety issues. We never felt threatened at any time of the day or night. There are "poor folk" in the neighbourhood, but any refusal to contribute was accepted with grace.
We would certainly stay again.
Solid Value - European Feel
from Colts/PacersOk, but you can probably do better.
from TravlinGuyBest part: Location
Worst parts: Front desk staff who really doesn't know ANYTHING. I asked for a spoon one night to eat some hard-packed ice cream, and the front desk clerk REFUSED to give me a spoon. I've never seen a hotel that would refuse a guest such a simple, basic, reasonable request. The elevator is tiny and very slow. If you try to take the stairs, be careful. The stairs are not even big enough to put your whole foot on--a real safety hazard.
t Stay Here!!
from A TripAdvisor MemberThe first thing that went wrong had to do with the reservation. I had booked this room over an Internet website specializing in hotels. When I made my reservation I requested a smoking room. Well, lo and behold, when I arrived they had no record of my request and made little effort to mitigate the situation beyond reciting the "no guarantees" policy as if from rote memorization. I did not make a big deal about it but, mindful of my fatigue and the hotel's noisy location, did ask for a quiet room in the hotel's interior, on an upper floor.
The next sign that something was rotten was waiting what seemed like an eternity for the tiny little elevator to arrive. I had to stuff myself in there along with three German tourists. Exiting the elevator on the eighth floor, it was immediately apparent that the owners had invested most of their money in fixing up the lobby. All of the interior was painted a drab, ugly yellow and smelled musty and dusty, with cheap decor reminiscent of a boarding house. Even beyond all this, the room still managed to disappoint. Room was very, very small with paper-thin walls. The people next door (who were smoking up a storm in their room) were watching a movie on the TV at what seemed like full volume, with tire-squealing car chases interspersed with what sounded like orgasmic moans coming through the wall and blaring out into the hotel's interior. There was no air conditioning and hardly any breeze (surprising, considering that it was very windy that day). Windows of the room directly faced windows of a room across the interior. The queen bed was way too short and covered with a cheap, thin spread. There were marks on the walls and stains on the carpet. In the dark and tiny bathroom I could hear my neighbor turning the faucet on and off, and from a vent above the shower I could hear clanging coming up the pipes from the hotel restaurant kitchen.
I knew I would hate every minute of staying at the Hotel Mark Twain. Between the noisy neighbors and the stagnant, smelly room I did not believe I would be able to sleep there, either. I went across the street to the Hilton and booked a room for that night (beautiful and clean, with a spectacular East Bay view).
I attempted to get a refund for at least one night, to no avail. My feeling is that "bait and switch" for them is a common and accepted business practice, with no remorse for the guests they disappoint and displease from fraudulent advertising and insufficient accommodations. All staff seemed to be able to do was recite booking policies and tell me that I should have called the hotel directly. I suppose that, from their perspective, you are treated with the contempt you deserve for booking online and thus avoiding paying the full price.
I have stayed at boutique hotels before, and I can accept the lack of modern conveniences as part of the experience, as long as standards of quality service and accommodation are maintained. In my experience, the HMT presented all of the inconveniences of a boutique hotel, and none of its advantages. The Hotel Mark Twain is like a tacky, cheap impersonization of it betters (and there are many for nearly the same price, so avoid this one and stay somewhere else).
A Perdect Fit
from gan03Terrible - Could not wait for the time to check out!!
from A TripAdvisor MemberFirst of all, for some reason, many that respond to tripadvisor seem to give us bad reviews. Perhaps some of these reviews are other hotels and perhaps a lot of them are legitimate. But we do have MANY departing guests that enjoy their stay and do come back. AND, we have (currently) a 3.7 out of 4 rating with Expedia and 3 out of 5 with Travelocity. It just shows that, like Baskin Robbins with 31 flavors, everyone has a different taste. We're sorry we are not everyones. But I would like to comment on some of these reviews.
STARS
Someone wrote that how dare we say we are 3.5 stars. We never have claimed that. This site gives us 2 and AAA gives us 3 diamonds.
ROOM SIZE
Some of our rooms do have tiny baths as mentioned and some rooms are not giant - we are a boutique hotel. But many rooms are very spacious and some bathrooms are large by boutique standards. With any hotel, if you don't like something, see if you can have your room changed. If we are not sold out, we will gladly change you to a room with a larger bathroom or more room space.
NEIGHBORHOOD
We are three blocks from Union Square and Cable Cars. We are right across the street from the biggest Hilton in San Francisco and one block from the 4-star Hotel Monaco and Clift. So it's funny, no one ever says they are in a bad neighborhood. It's true that if you go right out of our door a few blocks you will be in the Tenderloin. So go left to Union Square! You'd have to go right if you are going to the Golden Gate or Warfield Theatres.
And I have seen no pimps in the neighborhood, so I doubt those were the people yelling (as one person wrote). And someone blamed our neighborhood for their car being broken into - crime does not have a neighborhood - it can happen anywhere.
CLEANLINESS
We do not have dirty sheets. Our housekeeping staff is really good at cleaning and work long days and work hard. But since the 4-year-old carpet gives people the illusion it is dirty - we will be replacing it completely by next year. We are also adding a tier of deluxe rooms with higher thread count sheets and bath linen as well as ceiling fans, new carpet, mini bars - this should be completed in the next few month.
AIR CONDITIONING
Very few boutique hotels have air conditioning in San Francisco. We only have about 8-10 hot days a year. But in addition to putting ceiling fans in our deluxe rooms over the next few months, the entire hotel should have time some time in 2006.
PARKING
Our valet parking at $30 (plus tax) per day is perhaps the best rate in the neighborhood. Parking at many other hotels is over $40 per day. And it does have in/out privileges. Those who book with the hotel directly can also ask for a parking package, which will save you $10 per day. And the parking charges go directly on the room bill, so I don't understand the comment about how the valet couldn't figure out the change for a guest. Also, we did have some delays that were reported to us directly from guests from our valet service. So we have switched to the valet service that was voted best of the city from SF Weekly readers.
ELEVATOR
Yes it's small. Sorry. Getting a bigger and newer one has been discussed, but it's a major overhaling and still being reviewed.
A good base
from adrienne1Overall, very good value for money
Run Away
from A TripAdvisor MemberManagement and Employees refuse to solve your problems and deal dishonestly
from A TripAdvisor MemberI stayed there for 4 days and during my first day after I went out for a few hours I couldn't open the electronic door of my room. It took sometime before an employee really went to check with me that the electronic door was not working and they had to call an engineer to deal with it.
Meanwhile they had to place me in another room, but the thing was - they promised I could get my stuff early in the morning (my bags, my clothes, my passport and documents - everything that I had was in that room), and the in the morning they told me that the engineer had never appeared during the night, but they would call him and then in the afternoon I would be able to go to my room and get my stuff again.
Fact, when I returned in the late afternoon - nothing, no one had moved a finger to open my room and allow me to get my stuff. They made a new promise that I would be able to do it by the next morning, but I could see they were not being honest in their "talk" about trying to solve my problem.
New morning.... nothing absolutely done. They had done nothing to open my room.... Worse, in the third evening, I wasn't still able to go to my room, and you can imagine my worry about my passport and documents, and the fact I had not been able to change clothes for more than 2 days. Worse, I couldn't even check-out of this bad hotel to find another one, since they had my passport and clothes with them.
Only in the 3rd morning did I find an employee that realized that my problem was indeed serious and deserved immediate attention. I asked to see the manager and see promised to refund my credit card in 2 days (since I had prepaid my stay), but one month passed and the refund never appeared.
I politely called to the Hotel and asked for the manager on the phone, and she just hang up on me! What I think makes it all worse is that I realized that my misfortunes were more than just the result of mere laziness and forgetfulness - they were just the normal act of a dishonest and unprofessional management. The Manager definitelly lacks any care or interest in the clients troubles, and deals rudely and dishonestly with them, promising to solve problems that she never intends to deal with.
Terrible--Never Again
from BOOSHIE22Top Local Tips for San Francisco
Save Big Bucks by Flying Into Oakland Airport Rather than SFO Generally, you can get a MUCH better airfare by flying into San Francisco via Oakland Airport. From Oakland, you can take an easy-to-catch bus to BART (cost = $3) and take BART into central city locations (cost = about $4). I thought it might be challenging with my wheelie suitcase, but it wasn't at all. If you are returning to the airport on a Sunday, be aware that BART does not start running from Powell until 8 a.m. I found this out the hard way and had to take a $60 cab ride to the airport. Still, even with the cab ride factored in, I still saved big by flying into Oakland.
San Francisco destination Go to Muir Woods, Yosemite and Alcatraz. Be wary of "helpful" people who will expect cash in exchange for their "assistance". If travelling by public transport, get the relevant 3/4/5 day pass.
The Journey Up Lombard Street When you come to San Francisco, you should not miss the "crookedest street" in the world. Avoid just driving down the street or being dropped off right next to it. Instead why not fulfill the whole experience by first walking up the 90 degree sidewalk at the very start of Lombard Street. You'll have some good laughs along the way with poking fun at each other and resting at intervals because it is quite a challenging feat. When you reach the top you are amazed and proud of what you accomplished even though you are out of breath! So if you're looking for a fun, physical experience you'll never forget, climbing up Lombard Street is a must on your to-do list.
- (hotels)

Other names for Hotel Mark Twain San Francisco
- mark twain san francisco
- mark twain hotel
- hotel mark twain
- Address: 345 Taylor Street - San Francisco - California - 94102 - United States
- Loading Image...
- Loading Image...
- Loading Image...
- Loading Image...
- (hotels)

Hotels Near Hotel Mark Twain San Francisco
- Hilton San Francisco Hotel San Francisco, California Distance: 0.1 km / 0.1 mi
- Serrano Hotel San Francisco, California Distance: 0.1 km / 0.1 mi
- Clift Ian Schrager Hotel San Francisco, California Distance: 0.1 km / 0.1 mi
- Layne Hotel San Francisco San Francisco, California Distance: 0.2 km / 0.1 mi
- Hotel Monaco San Francisco, California Distance: 0.1 km / 0.1 mi
- The Touchstone Hotel San Francisco, California Distance: 0.2 km / 0.1 mi
- Warwick San Francisco Hotel San Francisco, California Distance: 0.2 km / 0.1 mi
- Hotel Adagio San Francisco, California Distance: 0.2 km / 0.1 mi
- Best Western The Hotel California San Francisco, California Distance: 0.2 km / 0.1 mi
- Hotel Nikko San Francisco San Francisco, California Distance: 0.2 km / 0.1 mi
- Hotel Bijou San Francisco, California Distance: 0.2 km / 0.1 mi
- Hotel Diva San Francisco, California Distance: 0.2 km / 0.1 mi
- Union Square Plaza Hotel San Francisco, California Distance: 0.2 km / 0.1 mi
- Adante Hotel San Francisco, California Distance: 0.8 km / 0.5 mi
- The Prescott Hotel San Francisco, California Distance: 0.3 km / 0.2 mi






