Many San Francisco hotels near the financial district are hit or miss, unless you spring for a top chain like the Hilton or the Hyatt. A few weeks ago I took a chance on CQ Club Quarters Hotel hoping for a clean quiet room.
I booked a standard room at the CQ through Hotels.com at a rate of $114.23 per night, non-refundable.
Getting to the Hotel is simple, but parking isn’t as straightforward. CQ Club Quarters doesn’t provide parking and I ended up parking at the Hilton, a few blocks away, at $60 per day. There are probably better solutions, but it takes some research.
The CQ Club Quarters is a block from the Transamerica Pyramid and a corner across from Embarcadero shopping.
With a Starbucks and plenty of food shops within a block, the location is central to the Financial District. The hotel has a restaurant attached, but I did not get a chance to eat there. Walking into the front of the CQ, I confused the registration desk for the host desk for the adjacent restaurant. After a bit of exploration and a return to the counter just inside the door got me promptly checked in. Courtney was kind enough to put me in a suite room on the 11th floor.
There are two elevators which are speedy enough. The halls are carpeted and narrow and ice, cups and snacks are available just outside the elevators.
The “L” shaped suite entrance starts with a narrow walkway that includes a wet bar with refrigerator.
Most reviews credit the rooms as small and clean and I found no exception. My suite has a European feel with a tiny but usable closet, an “American-sized” bathroom and full shower and a reasonable amount of space to unload, get some work done and take a nap on the couch.
The suite includes a small couch, desk, and sitting area.
The view of the neighboring wall wasn’t ideal, but the room was quiet for a downtown hotel.
The desk included two comfortable working chairs.
No-fuss wireless was included with the room, required no key, and was fast enough to stream video or upload a few presentations in short order.
Presentation done, powered by snacks from the local CVS market.
The wet bar included plates and silverware and the refrigerator was clean and free of ‘honor bar’ material. The room was quiet through each night and I never heard adjacent room noise or hallway traffic. A tiny bit of street noise is expected for any downtown hotel and CQ wasn’t an exception.
In all I’d stay at CQ again when traveling solo for business. If you choose to check out the hotel, visit http://www.clubquartershotels.com at 424 Clay St, San Francisco, CA 94111 or call US (415) 392-7400.
Michael is an entrepreneur, world traveler, and tech geek.