Kimpton Hotel Palomar San Diego

We stayed at this hotel during a 3-day weekend in San Diego. We have stayed at Kimptons all over the world, and expected a good stay. At the edge of Gaslamp Quarter, it's in a decent part of town, though some sketchiness exists a block or so further away. During our first night there, I was awakened in the middle of the night by a "bloop-bloop-bloop" sound--relatively loud, and certainly loud enough to wake me from a sound sleep-- coming from the bathroom. I went in to check and saw foaming water beginning to overflow the toilet. It was not stopped up from use. The foam was coming from somewhere in the hotel pipes. The toilet overflowed and covered the bathroom floor and the rug outside the bathroom in water. I shut off the valve on the wall to prevent more water from overflowing. I had disrobed for bed and put my dirty clothes on the floor next to the bed, and they were soaked by the water. I called the front desk, and they dispatched security to the room at 1:30AM with a lot of extra towels. Two security guards mopped the floor and then turned the water back on. It seemed everything was now working and the sound had stopped. There were no other rooms to move to that night, as the hotel was completely booked. The guards sprayed disinfectant all over the bathroom and left some additional clean towels. They also entered all the information in the hotel system. The next morning, after fitful sleep, I took my wet clothes to the front desk, which had them laundered for us. Front desk staff indicated that as soon as a guest checked out and the room was cleaned, we'd be moved to another room. A bellman was sent to the room to take our luggage to storage, and we went out to explore the city, taking the advice of manager George to visit the weekend farmer's market (a GREAT suggestion!). When we returned later in the day, we had been moved to a two-story suite for the remainder of our stay. It was a delightful room with a full tub and a walk-in shower and a half bath downstairs. There were two refrigerators and a microwave, and the front desk sent up a Keurig and several pods. We were taken care of! 'Stuff" happens sometimes, as it did this time. But Kimpton--with major kudos to George--made sure that our visit to San Diego was one to remember! Read less

Hotel is very nice. Staff very kind. I had to major issues. First issue is that only some of the bottles of water in the room have price stickers on top. Happened to not see one of the stickers and opened an $8 bottle of water. But that's fine not a big deal. There was something extremely wrong with the shower in my room. There was only one temperature setting which was scalding hot. I did note this to the person at the front desk when I checked and but she didnt seem to care, or apologize or offer any sort of credit. Read less

Full disclosure, Kimpton is our favorite brand hotel in the US! We have stayed in several around the country and find these small, boutique hotels really specialize in the personal touch. The Palomar is no exception. From the warm greeting at the valet, to the kindness and helpfulness of Paige at the front desk, we knew we were in for another wonderful experience. Paige asked if we would like a coffee or tea maker for our room, we said yes! She explained the amenities of the hotel including dining options, pool and fitness center, hours, free coffee and wine downstairs and even offered a coupon for our dinner place. Upon arrival in our room, we received two welcome texts from both Paige and Anna at the front desk and within 5 minutes, a Keurig coffee maker along with a good assortment of coffees was delivered! Our room was large and comfortable. Plenty of room to hang our clothes and fill the drawers. Cozy, upscale robes, not your typical terry cloth! The towels were fluffy and absorbent. The shower gel, shampoo and conditioner are in large, refillable pumps and smell amazing. There were plenty of hand towels and wash rags. A well stocked mini bar (including snacks, wine and a “lover’s kit” -condoms, etc.) along with water, wine and wine glasses are all available for an additional cost. The room had a good size flat-screen TV, an iHome clock radio with Bluetooth and cordless phones. The bed was exceptionally comfortable and pillows both firm and soft were on each side of the bed. The sheets were high quality and the comforter made it cozy with the AC on! The only tiny problem wasn’t really a problem but the drain the in the bathroom was very slow causing the sink to fill rather quickly and the fan didn’t work. We reported both to the front desk upon departure and were thanked and assured they will be fixed. We were able to text for our valet parked car and given directions on how to get to the freeway. With San Diego a frequent getaway destination for us, the Kimpton will always be our go-to hotel. Thank you for a lovely stay. Read less