Hahaha... I'm chuckling thinking about our trip to this hotel. When looking at a map of Bakersfield, which I am not that familiar with, I chose this hotel for it's location: "downtown Bakersfield". Well what could be better than that? Sounds like it's in the middle of all the action... the reviews here are good, and the price was right (we paid less than $50). So I booked it.

Surprise -- Downtown Bakersfield is a ghost town. Everything is closed, empty, shut down, and you won't be within walking distance of any places to eat or shop. Nope. And this lovely little Inn is situated just past the train tracks and across the street from three bail bonds offices. A lovely, industrial-ghetto side of Bakersfield. My favorite part of staying here was when our friends we we were visiting told everyone they ran into:: "guess where they're staying!? The Downtowner!" and everyone's reaction would be the same: shocked, wide eyes. And no words.

Apparently this place has been recently renovated in hopes of losing it's old reputation. Apparently it used to be called the Downtowner and attracted plenty of underhanded types of people and activity. (This is just what we heard from locals. No official sources.) However, the reviews here aren't far off: Our stay here was just fine, and aside from being so far from anything to eat or do, we really couldn't complain.

Our room was clean, the bathroom was clean, bright, the a/c was old but it worked fine, the bed was fine, we had free wi-fi and free parking, which is under the hotel at street level. One can pay three times as much for a room at some hotel where one has to pay for internet. The signs in the parking garage say "park at your own risk" as there is no locking gate or anything into the garage. But nothing seemed fishy. The only way to get into the hotel is with a card key for the elevator, so that's reassuring. Sounded like the pool was a hit, and there were families with kids staying there -- perfectly normal. Oh yeah -- free breakfast, too! Make-your-own waffles, cereal, coffee and everything with a big screen TV. The girl at the front desk was very nice and did try to help us find a place to get drinks nearby (it was closed when we got there, but not her fault, just the ghost town).

For the price this place is a complete steal, it has all the amenities one needs, and friendly staff. Just be in mind of the location, and that you wil have tol drive to anything. Next time I would definitely get a room on Rosedale Highway, on one of the many hotels in the cluster where all the good restaurants and shopping are.