The Washington Inn Hotel

When we got to our room we realized the toilet almost overflowed when flushed. Told the front desk and they offered us another room. This room was on a floor lower and the toilet still didn't flush right. It was better than the first room but we needed to flush twice for it to do the job. What are the odds of us getting 2 rooms with bad toilets. This led us to beleive the entire hotel must have this problem. Other than that, the staff, cleanliness and proximity to everything was great.

Not what I was expecting looking at the photos (my mistake). Very small room, sink area 2 feet from bed. Low flow shower water and no/little hot water in morning. Outdated decor with need of fresh paint, carpet and general cleaning.

Clean and comfortable with helpful staff. Close to public transit and downtown Oakland businesses.

Stayed here for a business meeting. There's a Smart & Final right next door, and a pub behind it. Less than a block away there's a variety of food given it's Downtown Oakland, and a lot of closes fairly late. The room I got was large, with a king bed and a separate kitchen-like area (read: I had a lot of space, it was comfortable, and gave me the opportunity to store food I bought at Smart & Final and microwave when ready). The staff were very helpful as well. While an older hotel, it had a quaint feel to it. The only thing I would really complain about is the parking: it is officially at the Convention Center across the street, and while you do get a discounted rate via the hotel it does end up costing about $15 a day. I imagine there are more expensive places to park a car, but that really is the only complaint. With that said, regular parking at the Convention Center is closer to $50-75 a day.... so that is a great deal overall.

It was a great location, as I was close to all the festivities I was going to. However, they couldn't find my reservation. Once I got my room, there were no pillowcases on my pillows, had to wave down a cleaning person. Was right next to elevator and the door didn't close tightly( light was streaming through the crack), so I heard everything going on in the hallway.

Very nice accommodation. The decoration is very antique and clean. As an international guest, I am impressed in furniture layouts. Only breakfast is a little bit simple.

Pros: Price, Enough facilities to stay for business. Cons: Noise, very old elevator (some buttons don't work sometimes), No parking and no free parking around. You can get flat rate $15 per day from hotel.

Very good. Stayed two nights. Old hotel, but just fine. Comfortable. First (Saturday) night noisy, as hallway noise comes right into your room. Second night just fine. Would stay again with no problem.

Staff is extremely rude. Walls are thin. Rooms are tiny....etc... But the room was clean and comfortable. Worthy of considering if you get a cheap rate.

I stayed here the last week of February, 2014 while I took the California Bar Exam. The exam is administered right across the street so you couldn't ask for a better location. Also, it's substantially more affordable than the other hotels in downtown Oakland, making it a perfect choice for anyone attending an event at the convention center. The rooms are small and there are really no extra amenities, but it gives you everything you need at the most reasonable price in the area. Staff was friendly, no complaints in that department. Overall, this hotel is a great value and I would definitely stay here again.

Very nice hotel in the middle of Oakland, walking distance to most activities in the inner city. The price was great and the room was clean and nice. Try to stay in 309, a corner room with great views, breeze, and bright! Across the street from expensive hotels so we felt special. Good continental breakfast and very nice staff.

Internet not working and toilet didn't flush, refrigerator not working. Manager argues about my request for an equivalent room. Won't see me again!

Conveniently located. Good value for price. Quiet, clean rooms. Staff was very polite and personable. Basic necessities though -- no pool, no workout facilitiy, no airport shuttle, and the restaurant/lounge had very limited hours. Limited cable channels. Free wireless Internet. Grocery store right next door! Would definitely stay again.

I stayed at this hotel the night before a contractors exam at the federal building. It was quiet and clean. Room service was quick and the food was good. Parking was cheap and I was able to leave my car and walk to my test and get back in time for noon checkout.

Stayed a second time here but this time upgraded the room to a King Suite. I highly recommend upgrading if you can for a bigger a more comfortable room with a separate living room. Quick and easy check in out out with discounted parking at the convention center across the road. Lots of good restaurants and bars close by including the Pacific Coast Brewing Company and a short walk to the Fox Theater. The hotel is clean and the beds comfortable. Will definitely be staying here again next time we're in Oakland.

The staff was friendly. When we checked in we were a half an hour early and were informed [...]booked us for May 19th. I showed him my confirmation and he told me not to worry they had rooms. We were given a room with in ten minutesMany of the channels would not come in. Those that did were fuzzy and unclear. Bring your VHS tapes as there was a VCR in our room.A little weird having the sink outside of the bathroom, never seen that before.Bathroom floor was tile a some of the tile was cracked and broken, the floor was super slick. It reeked of harsh cleaner when we first got into the room, so I had to air it out as not to get sick from the fumes. There was a large water spot on the ceiling that looked to be poorly repaired as the plaster was falling off. The tub was rusty and had what looked to be mold stains on many parts of the cocking. The pressure sucked and there was a fine line between freezing water and boiling water. The temperature would fluctuate without moving the handles. The bed was ok, comfortable enough for a hotel. The pillows were awful, super flat, two of them with stains on them. The heater worked almost too well and it got very hot quickly. I would stay here again if we come back to Oakland.

I stayed over night on my way back from Sacramento. The room was comfy and I got a lot of work done.

I first chose this hotel because of its reasonable price and close proximity to the Oakland Convention Center to take the CA Bar Exam.My experience during my stay went from one extreme to the other. [...]The first night I stayed here the General Manager of the Inn was having an anniversary party. They were playing the LOUDEST music. My room was right above the restaurant where the party was and everything in my room was shaking. The lights were flickering as well. I called the front desk 3 times with no answer. Then I had to get dressed and go down to the lobby. What I found there was one employee who was more concerned with surfing the internet then paying attention to me. The other employee suggested that I move to another room. It was 11:00 and I had already unpacked in anticipation of being there for 5 nights. I thought his suggestion was ridiculous. Not only that but he said he couldn't do anything about the sound level, but that hopefully the music would be turned down in 10 minutes. It is an understatement to say I left that conversation less than pleased. The music did not stop and the shaking in my room did not stop until at least 11:30. It wasn't until the next morning when I found out it was the General Manager's party. Needless to say my complaint fell on deaf ears.The reason I gave this hotel 3 stars is that other than the first night and the one rude employee, the other employees were helpful and the rest of the nights were quiet. It should be mentioned that the internet-surfing employee was rude throughout the entire stay. Anytime I had contact with him, he was short and uninterested in assisting customers. This even included other customers.To conclude, I would make sure to find out if the Washington Inn is planning any parties during your stay. If they are, then you should not plan on sleeping or enjoying your stay during those nights. Also, avoid the employee with the goatee (unless he shaves it in the future). Be aware that the general manager is more interested in having a good time at his place of employment than ensuring his paying customers are satisfied.

Stayed here on my honeymoon and it was mostly adequate. It's a nice old historical building in the heart of old town Oakland and convenient to BART. We stayed here to be close to the Amtrak station and save money over staying in SF. First, the rooms are incredibly tiny. There is barely room for the bed and you're going to be falling over each other trying to get around it. After some initial disappointment, my Europhile husband decided it was "European," which is code for "old and small," or as Lionel Hutz would say, "Some people would call it cozy." There was a sign on the toilet paper dispenser asking you to put toilet paper in the garbage can instead of flushing it. Yeah, I'm sorry, but I'm not putting used toilet paper in a trash can on my honeymoon, or any other time for that matter. Once I figured out that you had to hold down the handle until it was done flushing, I had no problem (but it was scary until I did). The bathroom also had some cracked tiles and the towels were old and tattered on the edges. I could hear the footsteps of the people upstairs, so get a top floor if you can. The TV is old and reception is *awful*. We only got a handful of channels that looked like they were coming in on rabbit ears. But who goes on vacation to watch TV? Oh, and you might not want to stay here when a police officer is on trial for killing someone at a BART station, because we narrowly avoided being in the middle of a race riot. Well, it certainly made our last night memorable, anyway. All in all, it was perfectly acceptable with some minor inconveniences. If you're staying here you're obviously on a budget, so I don't know if you'd do better for the money. The next time I'm in town I'll probably look for another place, but I wouldn't be disappointed if we wound up here again. This time I'd just know what I was in for.