During Comic-Con we stayed at the Radisson Harbor View again, on the cusp between Downtown San Diego and Little Italy. The hotel was in the process of being converted into the Doubletree Hotel San Diego Downtown. This meant that our room had been recently remodeled, with new carpeting and furniture. Unfortunately, it was really new—we had to air out the wardrobe and dresser to get rid of the smell of varnish. And they’d taken out the old towel hooks, and hadn’t put in the new ones yet. So that was a bit of a mixed bag.
They were still working on the lobby when we checked in, so they had moved the reception desks onto little plywood stands over on one side. One of the clerks accidentally knocked the power cord out while we were checking in. By Saturday morning they were done. The painters and plastic tarps were gone, the desks and furniture were in their places, the fountain was running.
Meanwhile, we kept coming back to our room to find that yet another item had had its Radisson logo removed or replaced with a Doubletree logo. And then there was this bulletin:
Hotel Plusses:
- Near trolley stop (Little Italy/County Center)
- Shuttle stop
- Near coffee (It’s a Grind)
- Near restaurants
- Nice rooms
- Free wireless internet (though the wired port didn’t work)
- Just remodeled, so everything’s new
Hotel Minuses:
- Shuttle has to go through traffic
- Trolley requires transfer unless you get the red line (special event service)
- Won’t be an issue next year, but we were there during the transition
Factor in waiting for a shuttle or trolley, and you can figure on 40 minutes to get to or from the convention center.
I’d stay there again, though I think next year I’ll try to get something a bit closer. Of course, I tried that this year, and by the time I got through, everything closer was either full or way too expensive.
See Also: Convention Photos & Write-Ups
