We needed to book four nights' accommodation in SF at just a day's notice. With a big conference in town, Hotel Tropicana was the only establishment with rooms left within the city itself. Preferring to stay within the city rather than further out in the Bay area, we took the plunge and booked.

Walking from the DART (metro) station, we were too thrilled to have found ourselves in such a buzzing, vibrant area (Mission) to be overly bothered by the hotel's shortcomings, which were: a small room, a shower and a TV that wouldn't work unless the proprietor told you how to operate them, one very small towel per person, stifling heat in the room (no fan or air con at this price), a lingering smell of stale curry in the public areas that sometimes seeped into the room, and having to share the hotel with some slightly odd guests who appeared to be longer-term residents.

And yet, and yet... the room and bathroom were perfectly clean, the shower and hot water in general were fine, the bed was comfortable, and the proprietor friendly enough. I've stayed in much, much worse places than this.

What's more, you get all the benefits of one of SF's trendiest, most interesting neighbourhoods right on your doorstep, with abundant eateries, cafes, bars and shops. Castro is a ten-minute walk away, and the DART station (convenient for both downtown and the airport) five minutes' walk away.

After three nights at the Tropicana, returning to the hotel for a fourth night did make our spirits sag somewhat, but for a quick pitstop on a budget, it ticks more than enough boxes.

This hotel was without doubt the worst hotel I have ever had the misfortune to stay in. Not quite sure where to start here ... but I will try.
1) on arrival the "receptionist" was to say the least rude,
2) the room had no on suite bathroom,
3) there were no working locks on the shower or toilet rooms
4) we were told we had to pay cash the night before we checked out (funnily enough were were only there for one night).

There were no screens on the windows (one at each end of the room), no air conditioner or fans, no toilet paper, no toilet paper holder, no towel rack and no bathroom mirror. The tub was equipped with a shower nozzle but no way to direct the water to the nozzle. Towels were the size of postage stamps and were stiff rather that soft. There was no wi-fi as advertised but the room seemed clean enough. With the windows open it was quite noisy and the street cleaners (imagine vacuums the size of trash trucks) begin as early as 6am. At $149.00 + tax it was the most expensive camping experience we've ever had.

Hotel Tropicana is great for a young person on a budget.

Most inexpensive hotels in San Francisco are in undesirable, touristy, dangerous, and characterless parts of the city (e.g. Tenderloin, Civic Center, etc). Hotel Tropicana, though, is located right in the center of one of SF's youngest and trendiest neighborhoods: Mission Dolores. Just a block away on 18th st are some of SF's hip health food hotspots like Bi-Rite Creamery, Delfina, and Tartine. It's also 2 blocks from Dolores Park, which has become a sort of hipster haven. Also, it's 2 blocks from the 16th st Bart stop, meaning that you can get to most parts of town in just a few minutes. Valencia St. has just been redone and turned into a pedestrian-friendly corridor; it's becoming a magnet for lots of furniture stores, clothes shops, antique outlets, and restaurants.

While the location is great--especially for a young person--I will say that the amenities at the hotel are very spartan. My room was not cleaned during my week-long stay, although it was very clean when I arrived. If you go for the really cheap rooms, then you'll be sharing a bathroom. But, at half the price of a typical SF budget hotel, I'm not complaining.