Hotel Aida

I was skeptical at first about this hotel. I seen the reviews a few days after I booked this hotel and it was too late to cancel for free. I read about bed bugs, about rooms smelling like pee, people being cold at night, etc etc.
Well here's my review on it.
The location of the parking structure wasn't the best. I've never been to a hotel where the parking isn't connected to the hotel. We also got there at 5 am and had to sleep in our car since check in time was at 1pm and woke up next to some homeless people shooting up heroin and fighting with each other.
But back to the hotel part, when we finally got inside, the staff were really kind to us and cracked jokes and told us the rules. We respected the rules and agreed. When we got on the hotel, I won't lie, it was scary when it was going up but we only rode it once and decided to take the stairs. We were on the 2nd floor soo not too bad. We got the family suite which had a PRIVATE bathroom. The room was very spacious for us 4. I was thinking about the bed bug reviews on this place that I saw on them but I saw nothing, came home with NO bites like many people did. I took extra blankets since people said that it would be freezing at night. It was very warm in the rooms that I even used the thinner sheets they provided. I slept 9 1/2 hours and only woke up once to a strange noise, sounded like something banging pipes. Not very loud since I was able to sleep shortly after with it in the background. The rooms smelled perfectly fine. No pee smell!
About the key situation, when you do leave to explore San Fran knowing you'll be coming back still, you had to leave your key with them, I honestly saw nothing strange about it, it was just one less thing I had to take care of!
Out of my entire San Fran experience, the parking spot was what did bother me but other than that, would I come stay here again?? YES!!

Last night, as a movie made reference to The Shining, my hubby said, "look it's our hotel, the Shining hotel." Now Hotel Aida bears little resemblance to the spooky Overlook but I suppose there is a similar vibe. Don't get me wrong: we slept fine with no supernatural goings-on. Maybe it's the old facility, sketchy neighborhood, or other off-ness.
We booked Hotel Aida on Bookings.com to coincide with our Cirque du Soleil date. Hotel rooms in San Francisco can be ridiculously pricey. I couldn't take the day off from work the following morning so I knew we needed a place to crash after the show. I wanted to be close to BART and I wanted economical. You get what you pay for.
The old man running the front desk in the evening was sweet if slightly slow moving. The first room we were assigned had not been cleaned so we got a different room. The second room was clean and cozy. The shared toilets are located at the end of the hallway with the shared shower located at the far end of the hall. Because a fellow patron vomited in the rickety elevator, we had to take the stairs to and from our room. The stairway light was not on nor could we find the switch so we took our chances and safely made it to our location each time.
I did enjoy the kitschy decor in the lobby: vintage jukeboxes, odd knicknacks. I especially liked the jazz playing in the hotel. It made me feel like I was on a Twin Peaks episode and that it is never a bad thing to me.

Pictures online looked better than actual place. We chose this place because it was cheap BUT DEFINITELY NOT WORTH IT!!

When you walk in, there's this creepy vibe you get from this over a century building. They make sure that you give the front desk your room key before you leave the building. The elevator was very old and shaky.

For the room, its pretty small and fitted just two twin beds. We have to share a toilet with the whole floor AND there's no sink in the bathrooms so after you're done, you have to walk back to your room to wash your hands. The shower is also very tiny, so we didn't end up showering. The hallway lights are very dim, so it was very scary to walk out to pee at night.

For the beds, it didn't seem like it was clean. The pillows still had hair on them and it was just dirty to the point I have to put something on top to sleep. I read other reviews saying that there were bedbugs so I didn't use their blankets. For the tv, it did not work at all.

This hotel is located in a busy street, so there's a lot of noise at night when you sleep. Also, lots of homeless people and druggies around this place. I would not come back here again despite the cheap price!

The hotel is exactly as it is described/marketed. Nothing more, nothing less. A place you can stay for a hostel price with no bunking. Bathrooms are shared. Honestly, it was only one of two I could find with private rooms, cheap. $85 a night, even on a holiday weekend. I looked at 100''s of ads/sites and this was the best deal in town.

Are there ways they can make this place a bit better? Sure, of course! I will get to that in a minute. However, honestly, the owners probably have no incentive to do so. They are offering a product, at a truthful description, at a great price. That is what you will get.

The reviews are all over the place on here, Google, Trip Advisor, and airline sites. In mine I will address the main discussion points I read in many online reviews. My guess is that some people have never stayed at an older/historical building before. Still others might want a hotel vacation. If the later is you, this is NOT the hotel for you. SF has tons of fancier hotels near the Wharf or Union Square. Try a major chain if you want room service and hotel lounging. This hotel is for folks who just need to crash after a great day spending all the money they saved on the room. So here are my comments and opinions on the major elements of Aida Plaza.

1. The shower and bathrooms are water closets, how the term was invented. Very small. I was lucky to score a room right across from them so the walk to the bathroom was shorter than the one in my home. This was not an issue. You just have to plan a little bit for your shower. Both facilities are very old, need hooks, and were always clean. On 5 the curtain had some mold on it but the rest of the shower was spotless. They really need to add hook units or some adhesive hooks. There is nowhere to hang your clean towel, clean clothes or even a place for your dirty clothes/bathrobe. There is only the doorknob. That is a simple thing they could do. I managed just fine though.

The toilet needs a small shelf, hooks for keys, a gel bottle, or one of those anti bacterial soap dispensers. It seems the biggest complaint was not having a sink in the same closet for the doorknob germs. So if you are paranoid about that, bring a washcloth or wet wipes with you to open and close the door.

2. The decor is your great grandma's attic. Come prepared to laugh at the kitzchy and or Chotchkies in the lobby, where everything is broken and or not allowed to be used. The rose sofa upholstery on the elevator walls is hilarious.

3. The room is a typical city room in a non renovated historical building. I read a lot of, "too small" comments. I disagree. I myself found the room larger than some of the older rooms I have stayed at in NYC, Chicago, and LA. Historic hotels are old and the rooms are small. Over the years we have become spoiled and larger. Ha! The room is sparse with only a bed, a TV, a dresser, a stand, lamp and a sink. There is a closet too. The curtains are awful and need to be replaced. Yes the room is dumpy but I could care less. I did not come to stare at the walls of my hotel room for two days.

4. Bedbugs-- all hotels have them or had them. It is a common occurrence these days that bedbugs are in most public places. You need to be very vigilant about them when you travel. You should always do a very thorough Bed Bug check in any hotel you stay at. Check Google for a video that tells you how to do that. I did a very thorough check of the entire room and did not find any evidence of bed bugs in my room. There are laws about bed bug infestations.

5. Breakfast- just donuts. I went out, and planned it as such. I appreciated the tea/coffee 24/7.I didn't expect food so the donuts were a nice treat.

6. Yes the elevator makes noise. It is old. It is a bit bouncy. They tend to do that.

7. Key policy/visitor fee- Yes, very weird but they kept my key safe for me. I let my friend up to use one of the bathrooms. We did not pay a visitor fee. Frankly I don't get it at all and neither does he. (Local)

8. The dresser has an obscene message carved into it. I suggest painting it, chiseling it off, or replacing the piece. Another guest added another word after to make it less offensive. Very funny!

9. Location- perfect! Buses, Muni and Bart are all within a few feet. Near Civic Center and Orpheum for Hamilton fans.

10. Homeless people- I walked all day and yes early morning and at night. There are all types of folks walking around. "Whatever!" Insert eye roll here. I am not afraid of the less fortunate. In fact, I had some good conversations with a few of them and fed my leftovers to them. One man helped me to buy my Bart ticket and was extremely polite. If you are bothered by that stay elsewhere. I myself refuse to live like that.

11. I think they have no heat.I was cold. No thermostat that I could find.

12. My neighbors were noisy.

13. Very friendly staff!

Conclusion-under three day stay, perfect and cheap. More might prove difficult unless you hostel often.

This is a great little hotel right on Market Street. It's not a 5 star hotel, but I gave it 5 stars because it's a nice hotel with friendly staff at the desk, clean lobby with old juke boxes on display and interesting furniture in public spaces. Clean small rooms. Staff told me all rooms now have bathrooms in each room. Front desk is staffed 24 hours a day. Feels very secure. Room key must be left at the front desk. No parking but plenty of parking garages nearby and you can load/unload in a large loading zone right in front of the hotel.

If I could give them zero star I swear on everything I would. First of all, the room description is wrong. The bathroom is a shared for the entire floor. In addition, the bathroom is soooooo small. They lied about the room description and tried to charge us a visitor,'s fee. We booked two room and when the people the second room came they said 25 per guest. At that time there was two of us in one room and the 3 guys that we book the other room for, they tried to charge 25 dollar for each of them though one of their names is literally on the booking list. This was my birthday weekend and I didn't want to spend too much so I choose here. But, I regret it and this took away from the phone.

Worst hotel experience of my life. Hotel is old & dirty. My reservation was for a PRIVATE bathroom but the manager had booked me for a "shared bathroom". The "shared" restroom was dirty and the size of an airplane bathroom. The shower is not even connected and is just as small & dirty.

I spent two hours arguing with the management about my reservation and at one point the manager accused me of changing my reservation. How can I even do that??
When it was finally resolved the room with the "private bathroom" was not any bigger or cleaner but at least it was a private bathroom...

The hotel REQUIRES that you drop your key off each time you exit the building but they have signs all over saying they are not liable for lost/ stolen items. How can I be liable for my possessions if I am not even permitted to hold on to my key when I am not there??

Not to mention it is in the tenderloin so it is not the safest neighborhood.

Not only would I never stay here again, I really think this hotel should be closed and renovated.

There have been 0 upgrades probably since opening and this include the bedding!

So gross.

One star because I have to and because Elsa at the front desk was very nice.

Furthermore, there is construction going on next store and they were banging on pipes and making loud noises until 11:45PM and started again at 8AM.... made my bad experience, WORST!

This is probably the worst hotel I have ever stayed at. The front desk watches guests like HAWKS. I'm not sure how many workers there are, but they literally see everyone who comes in and out of the hotel. We got a room with a SHARED shower- The shower is down the hall and there's only the shower in the closet sized room. There is a random sink in the room with no toilet. The toilet is in the hallway as well and the small closet sized room only fits the toilet. Yikes.

THINK TWICE BEFORE U BOOK THE PLACE! To be honest the pictures basically reveal how outdated they are from looking at the setting and the TV in the photos...

If you are here for a spooky experience you have chosen the right place. There is no problem with old fashion style however when you can clearly feel the elevator is cranky and light is dim, it just turns to something you would not want to experience. Shower and toilets are shared, which the spaces are super small and kinda creepy when you really need to use it at mid of the night when you see yourself standing in "the shining-like" hotel setting. We were scared of the bed bugs but luckily seems like we didn't got bitten so far. TV channels are not working at all... it's more scary when you are in a room that is not bright with all grey-striped TV display.

The people around the hotel seem quite scary too, even though the overall convenience of the area isn't that bad. Pro is the free donut in the morning (7-9) and the price just basically tells how much quality you can expect in Bay Area. Would not recommend to anyone except people who do not care about the cranky setting and demand for economic place to stay.

Let's start with the good:
- it's very economical (which is part of the problem)
- it's very well located

The bad:
- I am not sure how this specific lodge qualifies as hotel. Man, I am not even sure it qualifies as an inn.
- Most rooms do not have bathroom, it is shared with the rest of the guests. See previous bullet point.
- it's very very old and not necessarily super clean.
- You HAVE to leave the keys every time you leave the hotel, which is a first for me in a 'hotel'.
- the worst part (at least for me): they tell you they DO NOT are responsible for any jewels or otherwise valuable objects 'lost' in their premises. In other words, you leave the key of your room and if, for whatever reason, some of your possessions 'disappear' is on you, not them.
- No AC, and the heating is not central.
- Not sure how faulty they are on this but the entrance of the hotel stinks of urine.

I understand San Francisco is very expensive but this 'hotel' is an insult to visitors. The only reason why I didn't forgo my stay is because I don't have extra hundreds of dollars laying around.

DO NOT STAY HERE.