The only thing that made this stay Okay was the fact that we only paid $50, tax included.

This was because the night time manager suggested that we stop at Denny's to get a coupon from their FREE travel directory. This was great advise because it saved us about 20 bucks. Be aware that this is a Sunday thru Thursday deal.

The room was small, but clean. The blanket had a big tear in it, but it was summer and not needed.

Now the bad news. You you are staying in a room that faces the train tracks, be aware the the San Diego Trolley operates until 10:00 PM. Bells whistles and all. We were in room 411 on the top floor and when a neighboring guest turned on the shower, the sound of water through pipes drowned out the TV volume. When the shower wasn't on, we could clearly hear the conversations from the guest next door.

Stay further north is my advice.

If you plan to make a reservation call during the evening. Not only will you recieve far friendlier service, but a much better rate. The daytime front desk manager is rude and lazy. She will refuse to help with early check-in, late check-out, local info, or anything else for that matter. The rooms are clean and comfortable.

If your goal is to experience the Mexican culture and to stay as close to the border as possible, then this is the place for you. There are a lot of the basic fast food restaurants around, but the real draw is the distance to Tijuana. It is a short walk across the border and into Tijuanan loca and that makes the place worth the stay. The rates are certainly reasonable. Beyond that, what more can one say - it's a TraveLodge. It's clean enough and the staff is friendly enough. Nothing outstanding about it but the location. No horrible drawbacks, either.

March 26, 2004 $80 Reservation for Couple at the Travelodge in San Ysidro. When we arrived, we asked to see the room, before registering.
Julia, the manager, sent us up to a dirty, smelly (profanity omitted here) room that had not been cleaned. We asked for a alternate quiet room, but the North side of this Travelodge is located less than 100 feet from the Trolley Line, which runs all night, just like the bathroom sink. We were provided with 1 hand towel and 1 wash cloth (which we used on the dripping faucet). After morning shower, we had to use bedding to dry off, as NO bath towels were provided. The morning manager offered to move us to South side room, that has 24 hours a day of over 100 dB of I-5 freeway noise, NO Way JOSE'. Ruined an entire day looking for alternative motel. Recommend other travelers to this area: several motels located in Chula Vista (~2 blocks from Trolley Line direct access to Tijuana or San Diego) on "E Street" with several popular restaurants etc. There are no good motels in San Ysidro, I checked them all out personally. Ted Goodwin