Returning to San Francisco International Airport for an overnight layover, I opted for the familiar and convenience of staying at a property I had previously visited. I checked my mom and I into the Westin San Francisco Airport hotel located in Millbrae California, USA. The hotel has been lightly refreshed since my last visit a few years ago. We were able to enjoy the hotel room, experience dinner in the hotel’s Grill and Vine restaurant, and take in a refreshing walk through the harbour bay trail located across the street from the hotel.

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This post is one chapter on a trip with my 82 yr old mom from Canada to Singapore. For informaton on how this trip was booked, please see our trip introduction. This trip was enhanced through Marriott Bonvoy Elite Status, Air Canada Aeroplan and Hertz Gold Plus Rewards. For parts of the trip, please see this index.

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Review: The Westin San Francisco Airport, California, United States of America

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I had previously stayed at the Westin San Francisco Airport hotel on my past trip to Easter Island Chile via Mexico City. If you’d like to see my past stay experience please visit my past review of The Westin San Francisco Airport hotel.

Given that I was travelling with my 82-year-old mother, I figured that the “close to the airport” full serve Westin San Francisco Airport hotel would make a great choice for an overnight layover, over the adjacent aLoft San Francisco or the further away Marriott San Francisco Airport. As a result, I’d return back to this property as a repeat guest for an overnight near the airport prior to our Singapore Airlines Business Class San Francisco – Singapore flight.

Booking the Westin San Francisco Airport:

I booked the hotel through the Marriott website. Initially the pricing as what you would expect on a weekday at around $250 US. However our stay coincided with Memorial Day and as a result the rate dropped quite substantially closer to our stay.

I ended up booking an “Escape Your Way” Premium Bay View 2 doubles Room that promised an additional 2,000 Marriott Bonvoy points per stay for $144 USD a night. The rate was very reasonable for a full service airport hotel.

During our stay, Marriott Bonvoy redemption rates were approximately 53,000 Marriott Bonvoy points valued at approximately $424 USD at a 0.8 cent valuation. As a result, it made more sense to pay cash for this reservation.

Unfortunately the additional 2000 Marriott Bonvoy points never posted upon check out. My reservation stub also did not mention the additional 2000 points, despite it being advertised on the website. I did follow up with an email request to the Marriott Bonvoy help center. They referred the matter to the hotel and ultimately the inquiry went dead. Lacking supporting documentation, I never bothered to follow up for the 2000 extra points which were worth about $16 USD in my estimation.

Getting to the Westin San Francisco:

The Westin San Francisco Airport Hotel is located as an “off airport” property hotel, adjacent to the San Francisco International Airport.

After arriving on an Air Canada Business Class Vancouver – San Francisco flight, I ended up taking the courtesy bus which was collected on the departures level immediately outside of terminal two.

One of the best features of the Westin San Francisco airport is the fact that it borders the Harbour waterfront. There is a short walking trail of about 3 miles in length where you can stretch your legs after your arrival. The trail offers great views.

For those looking for a little American experience, the property is also fairly well located to an In-N-Out Burger fast food restaurant that’s about a 20 minute walk from the hotel. While I didn’t try this with my 82-year-old mom, it’s certainly something that I’ve strive for if I was staying over a dinner hour.

Checking Into the Westin San Francisco Airport Hotel:

It was a short 15 minute ride over to the hotel, with a brief stop at the San Francisco international Airport International departures concourse, and a brief stop at the neighbouring aloft San Francisco.

The property looks what you might expect a Westin hotel to look like. It’s mid rise sprawling shape is better than some of the anonymous towers that you find around airports.

The Westin San Francisco Airport lobby spaces had been upgraded since my last visit. The lobby offered pleasant white and blue carpeting, along with the usual Westin browns and beiges.

The lobby contained a number of flex spaces designed for lounging or working. This is always beneficial in any business hotel when the room is too small or you just need to meet with colleagues.

The lobby space featured a Starbucks Coffee Bar that was open during morning breakfast hours. The lobby also featured the hotels sole restaurant and lounge “Grill and Vine”.

Since we had arrived by shuttle bus, we had a short wait in line to check in. In the mid afternoon, there were two staff working and we were promptly attended to. While there was an elite check-in line available, the desk was not manned.

During the check in my Marriott Bonvoy Titanium status was warmly recognized. I ended up taking the 1000 points as the Marriott Bonvoy Elite welcome bonus, figuring that we would enjoy a breakfast in the United Airlines Polaris Lounge San Francisco the next day.

The Room: A Premium Deluxe – 2 Double Bay View

We were assigned our Premium Deluxe two doubles bayview guest room in Room #779. Although as a Marriott bonvoy Titanium Member we were entitled to the best available room including select suites, I wasn’t expecting much of an upgrade given I was looking for a room with two double beds. At the time of booking, the hotel didn’t seem to offer any suites with a two double bed configuration so this room type likely represented the best available outcome.

The premium deluxe two double bay view room was reasonably spacious. It offered to Westin Heavenly Beds which were perfectly comfortable for two single travellers. The room offered a large flat screen television, and a small desk.

My mom absolutely loved this room chair. She set herself up at the window and enjoyed the view of the aircraft landing at San Francisco International Airport while I got myself organized and unpacked.

The bathroom in the room was a little bit on the compact side. It offered a standup rain shower with a single vanity sink. The usual Westin White Tea Aloe toiletries were located in the bathroom.

Overall, I couldn’t have asked for much more from the room. While we were just looking for a short overnight stay, the room offered a great view, along with comfortable amenities. The soundproofing on the room was solid, and we didn’t have much airplane noise despite being located right next to the airport.

Food and Beverage:

Grill and Vine Restaurant

The full service hotel offers the Grill and Vine Restaurant immediately on site. This is a good thing as there isn’t much directly around the hotel in terms of independent eating choices. While there is an In and Out burger about a mile away from the hotel, this wasn’t something that I was going to attempt to walk with my mom. As a result, we ended up at the Grill and Vine for dinner.

The dinner amount at Grill and Vine amounted to what you might expect from an urban Westin restaurant. There were starters, salads, sandwiches and some entrées. There was also a healthy “eat well” portion of the menu.

For dinner, I enjoyed a Tuna Melt sandwich with albacore tuna salad, American cheese, thousand island dressing on rustic sourdough. My mom enjoyed a margarita flatbed although she commented that it wasn’t as good as the one that she had recently had at “Trois Brasseurs”in Ottawa on our last shared trip. With just refreshing water to drink, the check was $43.14 USD, which was quite reasonable.

The Indoor Pool:

The Westin San Francisco airport also offers an indoor pool. Much like my visit last time, I didn’t get the opportunity to experience it. It’s a nice amenity to have in case you needed it.

Harbour Walking Trail:

Immediately across the street from the Westin San Francisco airport hotel is a walking trail. The walking trail runs the length of the harbour and has a great spot to shake off the rust from your legs after a flight.

With such a sunny day and an early afternoon arrival to the hotel, we ended up going for a short walk. The walk is completely level and was perfect for my elderly mom.

mom was thrilled at the walk and reminisced about her time working in Berkeley in 1971 she indicated that she would never have thought about coming back to San Francisco 53 years later with a fully grown adult son. She also enjoyed looking at the various fauna that was on the trail, being so different than what she had at home in the Pacific Northwest.

The walk was a great appetizer prior to dinner, and we enjoyed getting in a little sun.

Checking out of the Westin San Francisco Airport:

The next morning, I checked out of the Westin San Francisco airport. The shuttle schedule was readily posted and it was very easy to collect the shuttle back to the San Francisco international Airport.

Everything was accurate on my bill. My Marriott Bonvoy points for the stay posted as expected. However, my promised 2,000 Marriott Bonvoy points for my “Escape Your Way” room rate failed to post. I followed up with the Marriott bonvoy customer care centre, but having no actual proof that I was entitled to the 2,000 points, I gave up after getting shuttled around in the Marriott bureaucracy.

It was very easy to catch the shuttle back and we enjoyed good weather during our stay.

The Bottom Line: The Westin San Francisco Airport

The Westin San Francisco airport was a comfortable stay and met almost all my expectations. I actually found it nicer than the San Francisco Airport Marriott that I stayed in the last time I was in San Francisco as a result of her being closer in distance to the airport itself. Aside from the small headaches with the rate and getting points to post it was a terrific stay.

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If you visited the Westin San Francisco Airport, does it remain your first choice for an San Francisco International Airport hotel stay ?

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