- Restaurants |
- Nightlife |
- Shopping |
- Movies |
- All
Park Plaza Hotel
- Price Range:
-
$$
4 reviews for Park Plaza Hotel
In an effort to avoid the early morning mad rush to the airport and risk of getting stuck in a traffic nightmare I decided to do the park and fly thing and looked around at the various hotels that offered it. After reading tons of reviews and checking prices I ended up at the Park Plaza Hotel.
The hotel does not look like much on the outside but I was not expecting a 5 star place at a 2 star price anyway I just wanted someplace clean and close to the airport where I could leave my car.
The hotel desk clerk was very nice and I was quickly checked in and given instructions on where to park and how to contact the driver. I got up to the room and it was super nice and clean. The bed was a little too hard but that was my only complaint with it. I ate across the street at Carrows which was pretty decent and turned in. The place was very quite which was a surprise being so close to a freeway and an airport.
The park and fly service was very good the driver showed up about 5 minutes after the call and dropped us off quickly and coming back at the airport you just push one button on the phone near the baggage area and they answer and send the shuttle to pick you up and take you back to your car again about 5 minutes. Excellent.
So bottom line, Cheap, Convenient, and Clean. Perfect.
Can't complain about $59/nt rooms, courtesy of Priceline.
Okay, fine, I can:
-Don't like to be 'welcomed' into the parking lot w/a sign that says 'Park at your own risk'. Red flag!!!
-Front desk staff are slow and rarely answer the phone, but there were pleasant moments.
-Towels are the size of large HAND towels.
-Toiletries were abominable.
-Elevators were rickety and EXTREMELY slow.
Surprisingly, there was a pool and gym w/pretty updated equipment, central heating/ac in rooms, a nice big HIGH back desk chair & flat screen TV.
Ok. So I got a rate of $89 per night for Sat and Sun which is the lowest I found in this area. I rented a double bed room for four people. When I first arrived, I was disappointed. It's no wonder that most of the pictures in http://Hotels.com are of the lobby and the rooms; the outside looks outdated and old. Pulling into the parking lot, I was also nervous about the big signs all over saying "Park at your own risk!" It's understandable the hotel not wanting to be liable for any lost or stolen items, after all, I know this area of Oakland pretty well and it's not the safest. I parked to the side of the hotel next to the street figuring it would be my safest bet. Anyway, the elevators are old, crickety and unusually placed side by side in a corner. This is probably due to the poor design of the hotel. As I walked to my room, I noticed that there were electrical plates missing from the walls, so you could see the big gaping holes with exposed electrical wires. The room itself was big and clean. The remote SUCKED. I'm guessing it had dull batteries. The towels, like the previous reviewer stated were "the size of a large hand towel"! Not to mention that there was only two of them.
The night that I stayed, I assume there must have been a very large party, because around 3 AM, I was awoken by loud laughing and talking. This continued for about 45 more minutes followed by another 20 minutes of loud TV. Lucky for me, I was already mostly awake because the AC in the room shut off in the middle of the night and the hot, stuffiness in the room woke me up. The bed was squeaky, kind of what you get when you have mattresses for years and years and years. The bed sheets were scratchy, like what you get when you wash sheets for years. And lastly, the pillows....were the worst! They were lumpy and crunchy. I imagine they use some sort of plastic protector between the pillow and the pillow case and thus the crunchy sound every time I adjusted my head. I was also surprised that they only provided two pillows per bed. Most of the time I see four...but this is just an observation.
I didn't eat at the restaurant or use any of the other services. When checking out, I was hoping to do it via-television like many hotels offer. This hotel, did not. I waited in line in the lobby for 15 minutes before checking out.
This hotel pales greatly in comparison to the Holiday Inn or the Hilton that are located blocks away. In all fairness the Park Plaza was there first and all the other hotels are new, but still, Park Plaza needs to do some MAJOR upgrades to their buildings. I think the only reason they get as many guests as they do is because they offer a much lower rate. This was the main reason I stayed there. But not all is bad...my car didn't get broken into.
I will not be staying at this hotel again.
I give this hotel five shining stars. Why? The cafe serves a great cup of coffee and an outstanding corned beef hash. Other exciting and flavorful options are available for lunch and dinner, along with a great glass of local wine (Or three!!!). The rooms are spacious and clean. I even had a balcony with a sliding door and a very large bird visitor who liked to sit in the sun and mark his territory. How charming!
