Motel Review : Motel 6, San Francisco Airport (South San Francisco)

The Motel 6 out by SFO in South San Francisco is one of the least expensive "tourist class" motels in the Bay Area, and one of the few suitable for families. Prices seem to fluctuate weekly (depending on whether there are any major events going on or not), but I've seen them as low as $45 a night to as high as $55 (before 10% tax). The place is nothing special, but it's kept pretty well, and you get a private bath (which is usually impossible to find for $45 a night in the Bay Area). It's probably the cheapest decent place to stay with private bath that's convenient to the city.

The location really isn't much - it's convenient if you just flew in, but there's little to see or do here. It's basically at a crisscross of highways, with a bunch of other hotels and chain restaurants in one direction, and industrial parks and business complexes in the other. If you're on foot it's not the most convenient location, but it's workable - there's a SamTrans bus that stops right outside which goes into San Francisco, and you're also about a ten minute walk away (or a $5 taxi ride) from the Caltrain station. Downtown South San Francisco is also close by, which is actually a kind of charming little place with a wide variety of restaurants.

The hotel lobby is nice-looking and in good condition. The building looks like a HoJos or middle-upper class hotel chain from the 1970s. It's a bit run down, but clean. As with most Motel 6 locations, they allow you to have one small dog or cat in the room. Unlike most Motel 6s this particular location has all of it's room entrances in the interior of the building, with an elevator serving multiple floors. The clientele seemed to mostly be middle-class travellers and business people looking to save a few bucks. It was very quiet when I stayed and appeared to be safe. Since the environment is clean and not too sketchy, and you have a private bathroom in the rooms, this seems to be a decent location for families travelling with children. If you've stayed at any other Motel 6 before, you know what to expect from the rooms - this one is virtually identical to every other location.

It's not a good choice if you want great sights and restaurants right out your front door, but if you have business in the city during the day and just want a place to lay your head at night when you're done with it, this is a good choice on the inexpensive end of the scale.