Below are excerpts of some of my hotel reviews organized by state and alphabetical order. For the full review, click on the hotel name for a direct link to the yelp.com review.

Cambria Pines Lodge

As we pulled in, the 'main house' (or lodge) has a very welcoming feeling with lots of flowers everywhere and very friendly reception staff.  The bar area looked very nice and we decided to check-in, come down for a drink and possibly dinner.  (My restaurant review in that specific section).  The gardens are just beautiful, very peaceful and lush.  In fact, as we walked around, we found people just sitting around having a nice low conversation or just reading a book.  Very peaceful.  To read the full review, click on the hotel name above.  

Carmel River Inn

235 Highway 1
Carmel, CA 93923
(831) 624-1575

The Inn is split between the main building (motel looking rooms) and cottages.  We stayed in one of the cottages, in fact, they gave us the handicapped room and was huge!  We had a huge bathroom and shower with a private balcony, coffee maker, fridge, champagne glasses, TV with great channel selection and comfy bed.  We drove to the supermarket down the street and bought cereal and breakfast goodies.  The main problem in our room was that the fireplace did not work.  We had someone come to take a look at it and he could not get it to work either... bummer...  anyway, it did not spoil our stay.  For the full review, click on the hotel name above.

Doubletree Hotel - SFO Airport

835 Airport Blvd
Burlingame, CA 94010
(650) 344-5500

Location of this hotel is very nice for a quick stay near SFO Airport.  There is a great walkway that follows the water shores and along all the hotels and restaurants located along the shoreline.  A great view of planes taking off and landing from SFO (great if you are a plane aficionado).  Many benches and rest areas along the walk.  Surprisingly enough, I don't hear any plane engine noises when the windows are closed.  The hotel also provides a free shuttle to downtown Burlingame which is a nice place to spend a couple of hours browsing through the stores and having a meal at the many available restaurants.  If need be, you can catch the hotel shuttle back to the airport (every 20 mins) and take the BART into the city.  For the full review, click on the hotel name above.

Glenelly Inn

5131 Warm Springs Rd
Glen Ellen, CA 95442
(707) 996-6720

A little history, the Glennely Inn used to be the old train station depot for the town.  It was then converted into this handsome place.  All the rooms are furnished with antique/era furniture which makes you feel like you are back in time.  We decided to go for the "Valley of the Moon" suite and it was superb!  There was an old stove fireplace, a brass bed, many curtains, couches... I mean, you do feel like you are in the 1800's.  The bed was super comfy with very big fluffy pillows and nice comforter.  And no TV or radio in the room either!  So you do feel like you are back in time with none of the modern distractions...  but if you got your computer with you, wireless is provided.  The facilities are nice.  Great balconies with outside seating, a nice big grass area, and a communal TV room with full cable, DVD and VCR with homemade cookies, fireplace, coffee and tea.  We sat here and watch a movie while sipping tea and eating chocolate chip cookies while the fireplace behind us warmed up the room...  ahhh... this is life!  For the ful lreview, click on the hotel name above.

Hilton and Towers - San Francisco's Union Square

333 Ofarrell Street
San Francisco, CA 94102
(415) 771-0720

The hotel consists of 3 towers.  And it is a maze to figure out where to go and what to do.  The hotel fitness center is in the basement as well as the spa.  I've used the fitness center and it is quite good with good machines and lots of free weight machines, treadmills and bikes.  The spa is nice but very expensive.  I did the mud bath and even though I enjoyed every moment of it and the quality was fantastic, it set me back $150 with tip.  Yikes!  Facilities are wonderful, though.  The location... hum... when it is daylight and, when leaving the hotel through the lobby you make a right, you are in a safe environment and area (Union Square).  However, sun goes down or you take a left when leaving the hotel, you are for a big surprise with beggars, homeless and drug addicts all over the place.  I've seen them shooting up just a block from the hotel.  Certain streets smell like a toilet.  Stick to the Union Square and Market street area.  But when it gets dark, don't dare to leave the hotel walking...  get a taxi.  For the full review, click on the hotel name above.

Hilton San Francisco - Financial District

750 Kearny St
San Francisco, CA 94108
(415) 765-7878

We stayed here for free with points from the Hilton Honor program.  The only problem:  $50 for parking!  And we got there at 3pm and left the next morning at 5am.  Ridiculous!   As for location, the hotel is in the middle of Chinatown.  I did not care for the location surrounding the hotel much.  But walk a few blocks to the water and it will be all better!!!!  Rooms are nice and clean.  Free WIFI with good amenities and essentials for the room as well as bathrobes, which you don't see in hotels that much anymore.  The lobby was ok with upgrades being done so a little messy but ok. We were only here for a short period of time, so we did not use the hotel facilities as much as I would like to.  For the full review, click on the hotel name above.

Los Angeles Airport Marriott Hotel

5855 W Century Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90045
(310) 641-5700

The hotel lobby is nice, spacious and comfy.  The Champion's Bar is good for a drink and a burger.  The pool area is super nice!  I always ask for a room facing the pool and a lower floor as they have balconies (smokers delight!). The rest of the rooms do not. At the pool area, there is hot jacuzzi as well which is nice way to relax your muscles and de-stress.  Plenty of tables, long chairs and towels.  Hotel personnel always coming around to clean the pool area and bring fresh towels.  There is a service phone you can use to get a server from the restaurant to come by and take your drink/food order.  They also have comfy chairs in the cabana with a small fire pit.  However, we were there one night and the fire pit was not working.   The gym is nice with modern machines and each treadmill and bikes has a television.  Good weightlifting machines as well as free weights. They also offer complimentary headphones, fruits in the morning (apples and bananas) as well as flavored water (a nice huge tank of water with lots of fruit pieces inside).  The rooms are nicely decorated, with super-comfy beds (did not want to get up... just lay there and enjoy the fluffy pillows).  You will also find all the typical amenities a Mariott hotel offers.  For the full review, click on the hotel name above.

Westin Bonaventure Hotel & Suites

404 S Figueroa St
Los Angeles, CA 90071 (213) 624-1000

The rooms are totally outdated, caught up in the 70's time warp...  I hope they do have some plans to remodeled because the rooms are just disgusting!  The bathrooms were disgusting, the furniture had broken drawers and multiple scratches accumulated throughout all the decades they have been there...  and the carpet?  YUK!  I had white sports socks on for a couple of hours and they were black by the time I took them off.  The bedding...  would not even dare to touch the bed spread...  The carpet had a iron burn mark, the colors are like the 70/80's and the window curtains are just dusty and ugly."  For the full review, click on the hotel name above.

Wilshire Grand Hotel

 Comfort Inn

 401 17th St
Denver, CO 80202
(303) 296-0400

The rooms are basic.  TV channel selection is good and the rooms have coffee maker, closet, desk, good lighting and free WIFI!!!  Yeah!  In fact, I am sitting in the bed,watching the morning news and having my coffee while typing this review... as for the bed, is ok. Not as "heavenly" but it is ok.  The room is clean; however, the bathroom is very small...  no counter space and even the handle to flush the toilet is next to the sink, but clean and simple.  The fitness room is great with new machines, bright, lots of windows, water, fruits and towels.  The breakfast is good, with scramble eggs, bacon, potatoes, cereal, yogurt, fruits, bagel, toast, juices, coffee and tea.  I tried a little bit of everything and all was good except for the 'waffles'...  they were soggy and tasted more like an "eggo" toaster waffle than a mix made one.  24 hour room service available.  To read the full review, click on the hotel name above.

Denver Marriott City Center

1701 California St
Denver, CO 80202
(303) 297-1300

The rooms are quite nice, comfortable and clean.  The décor is quite good with a reading chair, desk, coffee maker and regular amenities such as Bath and Body Works shampoo, conditioner, soap and body lotion.  The bed, typical of the Marriott chain, is quite good and comfortable.  Our view was the office building across the mall (just a few feet away from the hotel).  We did not have much of sunlight to start with.  In addition, we had to keep the curtains closed most of the time for privacy, which made the room even darker.

Television is LG digital with great clear HD pictures and a good selection of channels.  However, the television is very low in the entertainment unit, which makes it very hard to watch if you are laying down in the bed or seated in the reading chair at the end of the room.  The Management of this hotel should order the engineers to move the television to the top of the entertainment unit and/or hang in the wall, where it will be much easier to watch.  And for those of you who follow my reviews (or become a 'fan' today), do know that I hate when wireless is charged when most business or upper class hotels offer this amenity for free.  A $9.95 charge is quite ridiculous.  To read the full review, click on the hotel name above.

Courtyard Marriott

114 W 40th Street
New York, NY 10018
(212) 391-0088

Located just a few steps from Battery Park, the Courtyard Marriott is a rather small, yet elegant hotel with more like an upscale motel feeling.  The lobby is rather small.  Two coffee machines in the lobby as well as computers are available in the elevator area, which can get quite crowded in the mornings.   The room is clean, comfy and includes free internet, a coffee machine and an HD television as well as a docking station for an Ipod.  However, the furniture looks all scratched.  It is rather beat up and needs replacement.  The lighting in the bathroom is very low making it hard to see yourself in the mirror.  However, overall the room has all the amenities needed for an overnight trip to the city.  For the full review, click on the hotel name above.

Marriott Marquis Hotel - Times Square

1535 Broadway
New York, NY 10001
(212) 398-1900

After waiting for over 15 minutes and seeing one waiter running back and forth all over the place, I thought we had to order at the bar.  As I started walking that way, the very rushed, unfriendly and sweaty waiter took our order and left.  We ordered to cafe lattes and an order of the chicken quesadilla.  About 10 minutes later, we got our lattes and about 5 minutes later the quesadilla.  I do have to say, the food was pretty good as well as the lattes.  Mind you that the whole time we sat there with our coffees and empty water glasses, no one came over to check on us.  Meanwhile, I did see a few servers standing by the bar area chatting away and even one of the managers walking around the restaurant but not really doing anything... hum...  We left the bar but I am rather disappointed that the personnel here is so rushed, unfriendly, not following through with customers needs and just with a "I don't care" attitude.  I have received better service at lower class places and if I am paying $30 for 2 coffees and a quesadilla, I do expect to receive service from someone who cares.

 Country Inn and Suites

7025 NE Alderwood Dr
Portland, OR 97218
(503) 255-2700

The hotel has the basics for a small airport hotel.  This is a cute little place if you need a place to stay near the airport. There is nothing to do around the airport or hotel so don't expect any major attractions in the area. The hotel has a country house ambiance in the lobby and the staff is very friendly.  The rooms are big and comfortable.  They have a microwave and refrigerator in each room.  Also a nice big couch, desk and big bed.  Free wireless throughout the entire hotel.  The facilities are limited; such as a very small indoor pool.  However, the breakfast is super fantastic!  The waffles are to die for!  It is very nice.  However, if you leave before breakfast starts (6am), they give you a breakfast bag with juice, fruit and pastry to take with you.  The restaurant has great bar food and drinks. Click on the hotel name for the full review.