Our family stayed here on a 2-day trip to San Francisco. On the plus side: the hotel is being painted (pink exterior is being painted white), the room was clean and newly renovated (black-and-white ultramodern with a red amoeba-shaped coffee table), the pool was clean, and the valet service (they must park your car for you but it is free) is polite and prompt. The downside: the hotel is in a somewhat seedy part of town (we walked the streets trying to find a more reasonably priced restaurant for breakfast than the one attached to the hotel and were accosted by aggressive panhandlers). We could not find any suitable restaurant nearby other than a Subway sandwich shop and ended up eating breakfast in the hotel's restaurant anyway. The restaurant could use a facelift but the food was decent even if overpriced ($10 for bacon and eggs). Bring some earplugs (loud fire-engine noise) and your own breakfast if you can and enjoy this comparatively well-priced hotel and its peaceful swimming pool.

Stayed here on our final night of a Trek America trip and were slightly worried after reading some of the reviews. However the hotel itself was excellent. They seem to be renovating the rooms and ours was very clean and modern. The food in the burger bar was EXCELLENT and the whole place was very clean. The area was not great, but like others have said there are street people all over San Fran and unless you want to pay to stay right in the Wharf/Pier area you are going to get some shady characters about. Having said that, we had absolutely no problems with anyone and one bloke even told us the best way to get to Pier 39 and gave us a heads up that we'd need exact change for the cable cars! Hotel staff were extremely helpful...we had LOADS of questions and they were very patient! Rooms were very comfortable, but the only compaint we had was that with them all being set round a courtyard it was quite noisy when other guests were coming in and out. Quite a way from the airport, but the reception staff are more than happy to sort out a taxi/shuttle which we used and paid about $16 each...?8 for at least 20 mins to the airport didnt seem to bad! Overall a good hotel and for the price we paid we definitely couldnt complain!

My son and I stayed here for 3 nights on the second leg of our first ever overseas holiday after spending 4 nights in LA and driving all the way to SF. I had read a few reviews on this site and was a little dubious about the pink facade amongst other things. However, as it turns out, this is a terrific place and we really enjoyed our time here. As of April, 2008, the building is no longer pink and is currently being renovated. The rooms were comfortable although not overly spacious and were clean. They were also equipped with coffee making facilities, free internet access and a hairdryer and ironing board. If you are looking to stay in a 'swank' area of SF to stay, then this place is not for you, (plenty of homeless around - but that's the USA for you anyway),) and you would need to move closer into the heart of the city. But all that comes at a price of course. The hotel has a swimming pool, Laundromat, burger joint and bar. The staff were friendly and helpful and it is easy to walk a couple of blocks to Market St and catch the bus/tram/thing (whatever it is) to Fisherman's Wharf. A couple of blocks east puts you in a very nice area of the city as well. We really had a great time at the Americania and I would use this place again if I ever get the chance to visit the USA on another occasion.

The Best Western Americania did many things well, considering the price. The hotel has a nice lounge, retreat, and lobby. The hotel even had a fully functional restaurant called “Custom Burger”. Don’t let the name fool you, for the money, the meals are outstanding, and if you listen carefully, you might be able to hear Jay-Z on the radio in the background. As for the room, it had many amenities you would expect: Ironing board, Iron, plenty of towels, TV with free cable and WiFi. The beds were serviceable, the linen clean. For that matter, the room was clean throughout. The bathroom and shower showed very little signs of wear. The carpet appeared clean, the furniture, if sparse, was clean. The water pressure was great, with hotel water only seconds away. The only negative I could say about the hotel is the noise level. It seemed like the walls were paper thin. Sirens and car horns could be heard clearly in the room. Other hotel doors opening and closing could be heard, and the worst part was when someone walked down the stairs (nearby to my room) or across the walkway in the floors above, it was like someone beating on a large bass drum. I am, however, a light sleeper, so others might not have these issues. In summary, the room was clean, the staff was very friendly and knowledgeable, and the price was fair. The location is convenient for downtown excursions (located only a short walk to the BART Civic Center stop and to the Market Street Cable Car stop) albeit in an area frequented by panhandlers, shady characters, and homeless.