I recently had to spend the better part of two months in San Diego, CA, while attending a school related to my job in the military. As there were no rooms available (leastwise for that length of time) in any of the barracks on base, I was allowed to stay out in a hotel. The hotel nearest where I needed to attend school and ALSO under contract with the government, for providing temporary lodging to military members, was the Red Lion Inn and Suites in National City (sort of a suburb of San Diego).

The room I had, actually it was a suite, was actually quite nice. Upon entering the room there was a living room area with a large couch (this actually pulled out into a hide-a-bed), a small table with a coffee service on it (this was a God-send as I can't start my day without a cup of java), another small table with a phone, local directories and the hotel guide, a moderate sized coffee table and a dresser with 4 good sized drawers and a tv sitting atop it.

As you proceeded further into the room, you came to a little niche on the right that was the entryway to the bathroom. In the niche itself was a rather small "kitchen" area (as I called it). On the one side you had a small refrigerator under a shelf that held a moderate sized microwave oven. Opposite this, on the other side of the niche, was the area for you to hang up any clothes you had on hangers. This area also had an iron and ironing board readily available hanging from its storage on the wall. Above the hanger rod was a shelf with space for you to place your shoes, hats, umbrellas, what-have-yous and it also contained a couple of extra pillows.

The bathroom area had a decent sized basin with a good amount of counter space adjacent to it. This was especially convenient for me as with my being there a while, I was able to save a considerable amount of money by preparing simple meals in the room and using the area around the sink for setting my plastic utensils and containers to dry after washing. There was a shower/tub combination that was actually big enough for me to at least sit in comfortably without having my knees up to my chin. There was also a permanently mounted hair-dryer (great for getting the steam off the mirror). :)

Progressing further into the room, past the bathroom/kitchen area, you come to the main sleeping area. There was a king size bed with matching night-stands on either side and an additional phone on one of these stands. There was also a large dresser identical to the one in the other room, with another tv atop it.

The tv service that was offered in the rooms was adequate, but I felt there should have been a bit of a better offering considering the cost of the room. There was minimal basic cable service (I'm a big fan of the Sci-Fi channel, not one of the ones available). The "On-Demand" service that was offered wasn't REALLY "On-Demand". You had to watch the movies at the prescribed times, as opposed to picking, paying and watching right when you select a movie, as is offered in many other hotels.

As you can see, the amenities of the room itself were quite nice. However, the fact that you have to get to your room by actually traversing along a rather narrow walkway that is OUTSIDE the building, is a major drawback. If it is raining outside and you have to go to or from your room, you are open to the elements from the time you leave the elevator or your room.

The hotel offered no room service and there was only the minimal offering of a continental breakfast provided with your stay.

Another major complaint of mine with this particular hotel, was the parking situation. There were only approximately 30 spaces immediately adjacent to the building (in the rear), all other parking was located in a parking garage that was across the street from the hotel. If you were not back to the hotel by at least 5pm on any given day, it was a crap-shoot as to whether you parked behind the hotel or across the street from it. This, again, another inconvenience as the few "red-zone" spaces that were in front of the hotel (to be used for loading/unloading) were almost constantly full. It was amazing that there wasn't a tow-truck standing by only a block away. Surely, they would have had a steady stream of customers as some vehicles would appear to be there all day (I'd see them when I'd leave in the morning and they'd still be there when I'd return later that day).

All in all, I had a decent stay in the hotel and to be sure it beat having to sleep in a barracks room. However, when compared to some of the other hotels in the vicinity (specifically the Holiday Inn which was right across the street), I didn't feel that the hotel had truly earned what I was paying. I've stayed at much nicer places for less.

Recommended: Yes