Casa Madrona Hotel
Our Rating.................................... 7 Sea Lions
801 Bridgeway, Sausalito Reservations and Hotel: 800-288-2502
Website and reservations are here. Spa page is here. Valet parking, city parking lot is across the street.
Fast Forward SummaryTM: How did we get to this 
7 Sea Lion review? We collected our own and our friends' experiences here and came up with a contradiction. Depending on the room and the tastes of the visitor, sometimes it's a 9 Sea Lion place you'll adore, and in the worst cases it can be as low as a 4 Sea Lion place you'll regret. So we averaged the two to 7, and we'll explain below how to decide if it's right for you. Part modern hotel, part Victorian gingerbread fantasy that belongs in a Bond film. Call ahead to reserve a specific kind of room -- do not book through discounters since you lose that control. Why go to the trouble? Casa Madrona is a dream location for those who seek this kind of place and has some of the most wonderful rooms we've ever stayed in. But it also has some run-down distant-stairway rooms to frustrate those who did not plan ahead or who expected all the modern amenities at a discount compared to other downtown Sausalito properties.
The Two Sides of Casa Madrona: The Details
No, those aren't two different hotels pictured in this article. The evening photo above shows the original hotel, which was assembled from older buildings, houses, cottages etc. and sprawls across a hillside above Bridgeway, the main north-south street in Sausalito. The original house at the core of the hotel dates to 1885, and was converted into a hotel in 1906. (Yes, that 1906 in San Francisco.) The rooms in this area come in all shapes and sizes, many with balconies, others with unique fixtures. Everything here is old and one-of-a-kind. Some rooms are "Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous" charming, classy and the hpme base for a wonderful vacation. But others are antiquated, worn-down and hard to get to.
The daytime photo above shows the newer wing where the spa and Poggio Trattoria (which earned a top 9 Sea Lion review from us) are located, as well as modern-style guest rooms. Unlike the hotel, there is nothing inconsistent about Poggio Restaurant in our view: everything from the ambiance to the food to the service is first rate.
This modern section of Casa Madrona was originally built in 1924 as Mason's Garage and filling station, serving people driving to the nearby ferry that carried cars and people to San Francisco. In the 1950's it became the Village Fair shopping complex, for many years a popular four-story open-air shopping and restaurant area that pre-dated the concept of malls. We spent many a happy hour there with our family. Village Fair featured the miniature "crookedest street in the world" leading up from street level... a feature that was preserved as a stairway in the recent renovation that integrated the building into Casa Madrona.
The hotel is about a three block walk from the Sausalito Ferry pier, with regular service to San Francisco. Our complete guide to the San Francisco ferry is here.
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Keys to Enjoying this Unique Hotel
Staying in the Modern side of the hotel will give you just what the name describes: a familiar, modern hotel room in a very convenient location.
Both the greatest highs and the most disappointed lows of guest reactions to the Casa Madrona come from the Victorian side.
Just as with the Cavallo Point Lodge (which has some parallel issues), we recommend investigating the wide variety of rooms in advance and deciding what part of the hotel you want to stay in to avoid surprises and unfulfilled expectations. Do not book this hotel through discount travel sites, especially those with "no cancellation, no refund" policies. This is likely to get you a room up a lot of stairs in the least popular part of the hotel, and make it much harder to make changes once you get there -- more on this below.
Room sizes on the Victorian side range from tiny to huge, and many of them have unique shapes and accoutrements. If you call ahead the hotel will share more information about your room if this concerns you. Sometimes a slight price difference will get you a significantly larger room. Many visitors specifically ask for a room with a balcony and/or a built-in fireplace.
If you're booking a Victorian Bay View room it never hurts to ask if it is a direct view of the Bay or if it's tucked in at an odd angle. For example I recall seeing one room (as I looked down from our romantic balcony) that looked like it had a fabulous view from its big balcony, but not much of a view from the room itself. That's perfect for some guests, disappointing for others.
Much of the Victorian side of the hotel is a 120 year old wood structure. If you like things new and modern, ask for the Modern side. The walls are not that well soundproofed on the Victorian side, they are on the Modern side. Traffic noise can be an issue on the Victorian side; double paned glass windows make the Modern side as soundproof as any hotel I've stayed in.
We have also seen recurring stories online of a handful of Victorian-wing rooms and cottages at the top of the hill that appear to be in need of renovation, or at least a serious cleaning. Calling ahead should make sure you avoid these. If our "call ahead and plan ahead strategy" does not get pleasant and supportive responses you should pick a different hotel in town.
The Victorian side does not have air conditioning in the rooms. Very few homes in this area have AC, because most of the year the afternoon breeze cools houses naturally. But if you happen to stay in Sausalito on one of our infrequent boiling summer days, it can get pretty hot inside.
Because the Victorian side of the hotel climbs up the hillside like a creeping rose bush, there are some weird little passageways, steps, etc. to get to certain rooms. For the highest level Bay view rooms you take the elevator to the 5th floor, then take a stairway, wind along a path and take a series of additional stairways to reach your room. Not all that fun, especially if you carry your own bags! This is also an issue at the Cavallo Point Lodge.
If you or your out-of-town guests have any mobility problems, call ahead to the hotel and make sure you can get a Victorian room with easy access, or one of the Modern rooms, which are arranged off traditional hallways.
Given all the "be careful" issues I've described, why do people stay on the Victorian side? Because staying in the better rooms here can feel like you're living on the set of a really romantic movie, and some weeks the room rates are the least expensive in downtown Sausalito. There are balconies that overlook San Francisco Bay and would earn a front page spot on any travel brochure. Built-in fireplaces. Charm that you can't just manufacture with antique (or modern) furniture and lots of marble.
Depending on your carrier, the cell phone signal may not be strong in some rooms. This pattern is common in many of the little valleys and promontories of Sausalito, and varies widely based on which carrier you use.
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How ComeToSausalito.com Reviews are Different
We use a One to Ten "Sea Lion" system to rate hotels, where ten Sea Lions is the highest possible score. The Al Sybrian statue of a Sea Lion that graces the edge of the Bay in Sausalito is an enduring symbol of the city.
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Something else that people should know about Casa Madrona? Did you have a once-in-a-lifetime dream stay here, or a disturbing nightmare visit? Disagree with any of our suggestions? Please leave a comment below so our readers get the full story.
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