Dolphin Hotel

Not bad for a semi last minute find. Found on Tuesday night and booked for the weekend, friday night till Sunday morning. So it was fairly cheap — $ 174 for both nights for my bf and I. I didnt check Unilocal reviews beforehand but glad I didnt since I wouldn’t have set foot in it. It wasnt horrible: bf and I enjoyed the free tv and Wi-​Fi but do bring your own comfy & warm blankets since it was pretty cold (rainy weekend) and heater was not working. Good thing our room had two beds so we used the 2 ugly brown blankets and snuggled. It’s conveniently located by many great locations-swami’s café, pierview café, the pier, regal cinema, and pizza on the same street! Also located on historic route 101, the dolphin hotel is a renovated historic building from 1927! So if you are a history aficionado, there ya go! The guy at the front desk greeted us very well. Hope he gets some sleep! It was a good experience for our first vacation. Not at all rowdy, even for Halloween weekend. Will come better prepared next time and consider a hotel with warm sheets. But a great find nonetheless! :)

As a young buck from NY, I love being immersed in the hustle and bustle of the Oceanside nightlife. Great views of local bars from the bathroom window. The open design of the room was ideal for airflow, especially once we turned on the box fan which was included free of charge. One of the best unadvertised features of this hotel was the worlds largest swimming pool, which the concierge was kind enough to direct us to. Just a couple blocks west. Overall, a great addition among the many eyesores of Oceanside.

I would give it zero stars if I could. This place is DISGUSTING. bed bugs. Ew. Not to mention the fact that the audence they mainly cater to is composed of prostitutes, tweakers, and unsuspecting travelers.
Along with the fact that the guys who (hardly) man the front desk are so very rude and disrespectful.
Long story short. Go here if you would like to sleep in a bed previously occupied by hookers and druggies of Oceanside.
I think that since Oceanside is trying to clean itself up it should really consider obliterating this hotel. It only attracts scum.

I was doing a research paper for a hospitality class I was taking and decided to see what the Dolphin was all about. I was a bit curious to check it out since I had passed it a thousand times on Coast Hwy and honestly I thought it would be more interesting than the Wyndham to write about.
I met with Nick, the manager, and asked him some questions about the history of the property and their daily operations. He then gave me a tour and showed me a few rooms. Let me first off say that Nick was totally friendly and accommodating. He was very patient and attentive and answered all of my questions.
Realistically speaking, this IS a historic building. There have been some renovations but the place is about 90 years old, so it’s not very glamorous. Some of the fixtures are older and they could stand to get some new bedspreads. However, the rooms I saw looked clean and I like older stuff. The moldings and original wooden doors on the rooms are cool and it’s within walking distance from everything. Also, the management seemed to really focus on making people as comfortable as possible. If you are in town and need an inexpensive spot to crash for the night and don’t mind a little character, then the Dolphin should work for you.
Even though I didn’t stay there and just met management and toured the property, I can tell you this: the location, service and price make it worth the 4 stars to me. 2 stars for management, one for affordability, and one for location. If you want the Wyndham, it’s a few blocks away.

Owner was very rude. Treated me like a bum, and refused to accept credit cards (despite signs claiming he accepted them). He pointed me to an ATM, and when I asked if he would credit me for the atm fees (since his equipment was broken), he treated me like I was asking a stupid question. Worst customer service I’ve ever seen in a hotel.

My mother booked this hotel for about $ 75 a night on Priceline, so I thought I’d check out what hotel we were going to stay at during our trip to Carlsbad. Had I checked Unilocal ratings and reviews beforehand, I’m certain we wouldn’t have booked it. But alas, here we are at the Dolphin Hotel, so I might as well write a review.
Firstly, the customer service was really great. The front desk knew who we were right off the bat, got us checked in really quickly, was really friendly and made conversation. He also would ask us during our stay when we ran into him in the hallway if we wanted extra towels.
In terms of the rooms however, I think that’s a different story.
Firstly, the room smells oddly of your grandmother’s old mothballed couch, and not in a good way. The light fixture was hanging ominously loose from its hinges, threatening to fall at any given moment. The sheets and comforters had cigarette burns in them. And if you stay during the summer, beware. There is no air conditioning, so the place becomes morbidly humid and hot. Additionally, there is no parking. If it says «free parking» that’s because it’s free to park on the street. Good luck finding a place to park overnight, most streets have signs that prevent overnight parking. On the plus side, there is a functioning large microwave and mini fridge (that leaked water constantly) in the room.
Also, the room is too small to fit 2 beds. One bed is pressed less than a foot from the bathroom door, so the door won’t open all the way. I’m 5’1 so imagine how big of a person I might be, but even then, I had to squeeze sideways through the doorway to get in the bathroom. The bathroom itself is small, and should you be on the toilet, don’t sneeze, because you’ll be sure to smash your face into the toilet paper dispenser.
But I know I paid a cheap price, so I didn’t really expect the place to be a palace. But some sketchy individuals chill outside of the hotel downstairs near your windows, and you can see them run behind the hotel to hide from cops. We heard a lot of police sirens during our short stay, so obviously it wasn’t a quiet time at night. I’m from inner-​city Detroit, so not a lot of things bother me, but the location of this hotel was a wee bit sketch.
Personally, I don’t plan on staying here again, but overall, I think if you find the price is right, go for it if you can put up with various annoyances, but the place isn’t exactly a disaster, just don’t expect anything grand.

Worst Hotel Ive ever seen or stayed at.
I’m not the type of person who likes to write bad reviews, I simply move on and forget about it. But I actually feel guilty not reporting about this place in hopes you dont make the same mistake.
First off I was there for the Ironman Competition. At first I thought ’ This is Oceanside how bad can it be”. Man oh man, So I arrived at the place. From outside it doesn’t look bad. However the minute you walk in I had second thoughts. No one was in the lobby. The managers son was walking around and was able to get one of the other managers to come out. The person attending me seemed surprised I had a reservation and it took him about 20 minutes to find me, even with my email confirmation. As I waited I noticed a sign that said «NO SMOKING». Irony was that the whole hotel smelled like cigarettes. I actually giggled when I read that. They also have a «no guest visitor» policy and if you do have a guest they must sign in and out. Thought that was weird.
Finally got my key and headed to my room in the back. The hall way was clean but still smelled like cigarettes. The place did look old but I still had an OK feeling about staying there in hopes my room would be better. Well that all changed once I opened the door.
The room smelled worse. Old moldy carpet and cigarette smell. At that point I felt stuck because I knew every hotel was booked by now for that night.
I immediately inspected the room. Lets just say I wish I was blind. The bed was broken. It tilted to one side. The sheets were stained and dirty. The bed cover had burns, most likely from cigarettes. Holes were pretty big.
I then looked under the bed and the smell of the carpet was unbearable. Words cant describe. Think of sexual fluids gone rotten, mixed with dirty tobacco and sour milk.
The room did have outlets, however they had burn stains. clearly a safety hazard. The Microwave was dirty but unplugged. I didn’t use it. The fridge I did try to use but once I opened it I decided not to. It had a really bad smell. So I opted to buy small cooler. The TV set worked. The chairs were stained. However remarkably the bathroom was spotless and seemed kept up to date. But I only used the toilet and sink. I didn’t want to use the shower.
I didn’t hear any of my neighbors, so that was a plus but sleeping there was tough. I did bring my own sheets and pillows because I wanted to be comfortable to get a good nights sleep before my race. Sooo happy I did that. I also brought my own fan which really helped with the smell.
On top of all that the location of the place was great to where I needed to be. But the parking situation sucked and I really didnt like the safety of the area.
Now, I come from East LA. Ive seen shit in my day and experienced really bad stuff but this location is asking for trouble. There are a bunch of transients outside begging and causing problems. I didnt feel comfortable with that.
The morning of my race, around 3AM I was packing my stuff in my car and I witness one transient harassing a local resident who attacked him. The transient called the cops asked me to talk to them since I was a witness. However the transient was the one bothering the resident.
I personally don’t have time to talk to cops nor want to be involved. So that annoyed me. I ended up leaving.
I do want to mention that the staff were very helpful. They were nice and did give me safety advice on where not to go in Oceanside. However thats the last time I will EVER stay at the dolphin.
I think this hotel has a lot of potential and it can be a success however they need to remodel everything by gutting it out. I would also suggest hiring a night time security guard. But I doubt that will happen.
My advice is, spend the extra 20 – 30 dollars and go somewhere else. Drive the extra two miles and have peace of mind. I regret staying there. Its really sad because Oceanside is a very beautiful beach town. I really wished I would have taken intro consideration all of the other reviews. They weren’t kidding, Hope this helps on your decision.

pay by the hour? this is a brothel! don’t stay here

I mean, it had a bed, and a shower… But it was hot as hell in there, hotter than the temperature outdoors. And quite overpriced. Not a restful night’s sleep.

WORST HOTEL EVER! ! Its worth spending the extra money to stay at a chain! Got maybe 3 hours of sleep due to our neighbor blasting his tv all nite. The walls are so thin that if you are a light sleeper good luck getting any zzzzs! Told the hotel manager and she said i should be the one to tell the guy to turn it down. BS! Also that hotel housed some shady people! Thank god we only spent one night! Save your money!

Good location, beds and bathrooms were clean, and the staff was helpful and friendly, but bottom line– this place is cheap. If you’re expecting excellent room service and newer furnishings then Dolphin Hotel may not be for you.

Awful. Dirty. Creepy.
Weird people hanging around outside, street level rooms with open windows and no screens.
I placed a room on hold on my credit card, after being assured it would NOT be charged for the hold. I told the woman at the front desk (presumably the owner b/​c she’s the only one we saw at the desk and she’s the only one I’ve dealt with on the phone). Upon arrival I told her that the room was under my information but my friend would be paying.
She ran my friend’s card, had her sign, and we thought nothing else of it.
When I got my credit card statement a week later, I had been charged the full $ 72 for our room– and so had my friend.
I called to complain, and she said she remembered us. The mistake was made because I had been charged as a «NO SHOW». We had made it very clear at check in that I made the reservation, but wasn’t the one paying. She assured me my account would be credited.
The next day, it hadn’t been credited so I called her back. She said she’d been busy and had forgot to credit me but she would. The following day, she hadn’t credited me yet so I reported the hotel to the Better Business Bureau.
Ridiculous.

This is an SRO flophouse that has put up a Web site to make you think it’s a tourist hotel. It’s not. Think YMCA. Think welfare hotel de luxe.
When I arrived just after 11:00 p.m., no clerk was present in the lobby. A sign on the door read «For late entry, ring and wait.» I rang and waited. Finally someone came out and seemed puzzled that I hadn’t come in. The door was unlocked. Silly me to read signs. The clerk, who spoke good English with a strong accent, was friendly and my reservation (made via
, to whch the hotel’s own Web site referred me) was in order. I was issued a TV remote and a (metal) key. «Please let us know if you need anything.» I proceeded to my room with some misgivings.
The door to the room looks as if it has been kicked in at least once and repaired. It is paper thin and likely wouldn’t keep anyone out who was of a mind to enter. Everything that happens in the hall is audible. A cavernous hall with hard surfaces that make footsteps and voices reverberate. The walls are paper thin, too. The furniture looks like what might be on offer at a «distressed furniture» outlet.
There is a programmable electronic thermostat, a nice 25-​inch flat screen TV, a small refrigerator and a microwave. The room appears clean. The bed is comfortable.
The bath has a molded shower a la Motel 6 (where I am now wishing I had stayed). Standard tiny soaps and shampoo in a tear-​open plastic pouch. Towels about like Motel 6.
While this older property is very well located and close to downtown Oceanside’s attractions, I might not have chosen to stay here had I known what it was like. I’ve stayed at the Motel 6 here and it’s much nicer. I tried the Dolphin only because its central location would mean I wouldn’t need to rent a car during my visit.
Despite the friendliness of the staff and the clear effort being made to turn this into a tourist hotel, it’s just not there yet. Not until a guest can bed down in a quiet room in which he feels at least somewhat secure. To say nothing of being able to come and go as one pleases at any hour. The room key does not open the hotel’s main door. You must be let in and out by the night clerk between certain hours. In addition to security, this likely also serves the purpose of ensuring no unpaid ovenight guest sneaks in to one’s room — which again is like an SRO welfare hotel, not a tourist hotel.