Stayed here 3 nights in their European style room accommodation Jennifer's Room #6. Nice small room off main corridor connecting other rooms.Room had TV and wifi as well. Shared bathrooms,one w small shower the other a claw leg tub shower. Rooms have a small shared kitchen area w coffee maker,microwave and fridge . Continental breakfast included as well. Great value for the money! Live music below these rooms Tues-Thur. from 7- 10 pm so if you need quiet early in the evening I suggest a room further from the main dining bar area. Staff treated me so well I can't remember the last time Ive had such a pleasant experience in a hotel . Had a few friends for dinner last night and we couldn't have had a better time.. great food ,wine and fabulous service. Thanks to all of you there at The Panama! read more

Booked this hotel through Expedia for Memorial Day. Arrived at 5 pm. The hotel door was locked. Called the front desk, no body pick up the phone. Left a voice message. No body called back. Expedia help line called the hotel and told me no body can be reached. So I have to cancel the reservation. Luckily, found another hotel to stay. No instruction to tell me how to check-in the hotel. What a nightmare! read more

They jacked me around on the reservation and charged me $175 when I didn't even stay there

Unprofessional and unreasonable. Bad business to not call back.Was to visit and wanted to this place out. Got call that my granddaughter was sick, so had to cancel early morning, on a weekend. Calls to speak to manager went unanswered, and staff spoke limited English. None of my family will stay there. Over $200 for a senior staying there still charged. 72 hour cancellation is excessive. read more

Unfortunately, I was not able to stay at this hotel because I did not feel comfortable. I booked a room through Booking.com, and I called staff ahead of time to ensure we would be able to get in later. I was told I'd receive an email with a code. I waited all day for an email and didn't get one. When we arrived, we called the number on the front door a few times and received no response. A few minutes later, a staff member came outside to yell at us and to stop calling him, expressing his annoyance with a lot of aggression and anger. Eventually, I found that they had texted the code (at 7:18PM, though I was supposed to be let in anytime after 2PM and they had told me it would arrive through email). After being yelled at, we decided not to stay there. I've been trying to get a refund ever since, and this team is incredibly hard to get a hold of. I've sent them a few emails that they haven't responded to, and when I call, I've had to re-explain this situation at least a few times to multiple staff members and haven't gotten anywhere. I've never written a negative review of any business before, but I feel so strongly about this one that I hope no one has to experience the same thing. Highly recommend not staying here. read more

The hotel is a dump. Pee stains on the toilet paper. The room just felt gross and has taken on the dirt and grime from past visits. No functioning shower head so just a rough spray of water. No restaurant and the breakfast is toxic. Boogers on the wall and it wreaks of bad weed and a stench that I can't quite figure out. Like a beach bathroom with sweat. Save your money a skip this dump. . read more

I stayed in the Roy Rogers #9 room first. The mattress was too short by a few inches. After my first night, they gave me the Dale Evans room, #8. The mattress was too large for the platform it sits on, as if a queen mattress was placed on a double or full-sized platform. The TV didn't work in #8 for the remainder of my stay, several nights. They said that Comcast/Infinity was told, but no one showed up to fix it. Room #8 has no telephone. One needs two hands to unlock and open the #8 room door--their key opens the door lock, and you need to turn the room door handle at the same time.. My bedsheets weren't changed during my multi-way stay, and no offer was made to change them. I had to ask for new, clean towels. Again, no offer came from them. That's enough of a report. I won't stay there again. read more

This hotel should have its license revoked. The room I booked apparently had a broken toilet, which I did not find out until I checked in, gave my cc and id, and was taken to a completely different room. The room I was taken to had a 6 inch at least dip in the mattress visible from the door. I asked to see an alternative room and that room had bleach stains all over the bedding. Not only this, but the hotel was under construction and I saw no other guests or staff except the person who checked me in. When I said that I did not feel comfortable staying there and requested a refund, they refused. read more

The place is old and worn down. I saw ants and bugs everywhere.The place is dirty and not really appealing to the eye. On the website it says checkout time is 12 pm but at 11pm someone banging on the door to checkout. There's a shower in one of the bathrooms and it was filthy and the bath towel on the floor looked like it hasn't been changed in months. Full of dirt and hair. The worst part was someone was hammering on the roof at 9am while I was trying to sleep.If you are doing that you should wait till 11 o clock. That's was what a good business does. I would never in a million years ever stay there again. If I were you don't even think of staying there ever. Worst place I ever stayed at period. read more

I want to add to my previous unfavorable reviews re the Panama Hotel that our credit card company investigated the penalty charge issue and determined that the hotel, not me, was at fault. They recommended that our credit card be canceled due to the fraud situation; we did that and had to wait for new cards to come in the mail--quite inconvenient. Never received any further communication or apology from the Panama Hotel manager. read more

I'll start with the pros: -They allowed us to check in two hours early. -Very friendly staff. -The hotel is located at the edge of a peaceful neighborhood. -We could bring our dogs. Cons: -$170 for one night is way overpriced for this place. -Bordello room looked nothing like it did in the photos. Why not have red/maroon bedclothes to match the theme, instead of pastels? -Curtains to the french windows were almost impossible to shut entirely. -Broken blinds in the bathroom. -Restaurant no longer operational. Sorry to say, the cons outweighed the pros. For $170 I really expected better. The room is worth $109 a night, tops! read more

I booked 3 days in July. I had to cancel and was told I would be charged for 1 night. I have been charged for all 3 nights. No one is returning my many calls and emails. And I have been blocked from their website! Something bad is going on there. read more

I had to cancel a trip and told the Panama hotel that I would not be checking in on Friday. I understood for the hotel policy that I would be charged for one night. However they have charged me for all three nights and they are ghosting me.Panama has charged me all 3 days. No call from the manager. I have disputed the charge with discover. I am blocked from their website. I posted a negative review on their FB page. Oceanic Properties owns it. I am blocked from their site too. I found oceanic 's CEO on linked in and messaged him there. On other negative reviews in the last year Lori bevan is listed as the owner but no contact info. read more

This is literally one of the most disgusting places I've stayed in the developed world. To think I used to rave about their restaurant (and eat there!!!). I had the same issue as others have mentioned with gaining access to my room because there doesn't seem to be anyone onsite working. I can't believe this dump is actually allowed to remain open and collect money as a hotel. Thank goodness I always keep my sleeping bag and pillow in my trunk because otherwise I would've just been sitting straight up on the bed all night. There was a hole - A LITERAL HOLE - in the ceiling. DON'T STAY HERE!!!! read more

Panama Hotel - Hole in ceiling! - Bed & Breakfast Near Me - San Rafael, California

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What a massive disappointment. I arrived 6:30PM on Friday, May 3, 2024 - no one at the front desk. Just a key in a lockbox. I walk in, and the place is trashed. I check the room, it's not the one I booked online. Next morning, I bring all this up to the guy at the front desk. He shrugs it off defensively, "Renovation." he says. Repeatedly. The website said nothing about a renovation. As for the wrong room, he said, it was already booked. How could that be when I booked it online? The answer? "Renovation." - He really said that. And what about that complimentary breakfast? Nope! And yet, I'm being charged full price. I asked for the manager, was told manager Manny's wasn't there. He may be in Monday. Or the following Friday. He's not there much, he said. Left a message for Manny to call, haven't heard from him. It's like I booked a room in Hooterville. read more

Panama Hotel - Website vs Reality - Bed & Breakfast Near Me - San Rafael, California

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In retrospect I agree with the review posted by Emma C. I don't know how this place has relatively good ratings and think it may reflect a different time period. Overall, I was shocked by the disarray starting with the broken window upon entering the hotel. We should have paid closer attention to other reviews warning of active construction at the hotel including at the restaurant. When we entered the room were taken aback by the smell, disgusting carpet, and overall outdated room. I have allergies and knew I could not stay there. When we got to the room it took us less than 10 minutes to check out and set out to find another place to stay. We sent multiple emails trying to reach the manager to at least ask for a partial refund for our 2 nights stay as we did not spend more than 10 minutes in the room and checked out before noon the same day. The front desk clerk understandably was kind but stated he had no say in the matter. The manager never even bothered to respond to our numerous attempts to contact them. The courtesy of even a response would have gone a long way. read more

I'm surprised by some of the other reviews. I had a very nice evening here and I enjoyed the quirky charm and vintage vibe. This is an older establishment and some things may be a little funky, but that's part of the appeal. Our room was clean, cute, and charming. If anything our room was a little too warm, not cold like some others have said. The street is a bit noisy, so if you're a light sleeper perhaps bring some ear plugs. I had a lovely evening and enjoyed a very entertaining Lifetime film before bed. A nice choice if you're staying in San Rafael. read more

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Pictures can be deceiving. I booked a last min room at Panama Hotel while I did a quick solo adventure before heading back to reality. The pictures told a story that reality didn't confirm. The whole place is under construction, the restaurant is closed. The room was fine, but a little worn. The bathrooms were shared, which is fine but both were running out of toilet paper with no new rolls in sight, and nobody to ask. Both sinks are tiny and hard to negotiate the shelf above to wash your face without risking smacking your head. One sink didn't have a cold water handle attached, eek. Under the tub was quite dirty, and dusty. No real breakfast in the AM, just appeared to have coffee. I went next door to the bakery for breakfast. Over all this place is dirty and worn out, the photos are from a time gone by, and don't resemble reality at all. I wouldn't recommend this spot, unfortunately. Maybe when the renovation is complete and they have a chance to clean and update the bathrooms it might be ok again. Sad to see it in this shape after so many I spoke to had such fond memories of how it used to be. read more

Hotel was clean and service good. Under construction currently. No breakfast was available as advertised, restaurant shut down. Price should be adjusted for no breakfast read more

ATTENTION: I do not recommend staying at this location. This was the first time my wife and I had stayed at this hotel and we came in late in the evening. In order for us to check in we had to call the owner (the owners numbers is posted at the front door). He gave the keys to one of the late night workers and we were able to get to our room. We checked in for the honeymoon room. Since my wife and I came to this location during the winter season it was cold outside and the heater we had did not work properly. We asked for another heater and the second heater we got still did not work and their response to us "there is nothing we can do". When entering the restroom we noticed the toilet paper was on the floor and when I picked it up it was stained with urine. When I asked for another roll of toilet paper, the front desk told me to go down the hall to the storage closest and grab another roll myself. The bed sheets, blankets and sofa were stained with who knows what maybe some left over bodily fluids of some kind. I do not recommend staying here, the only reason why I gave it 2 stars was because of the Victorian style bathtub, that was pretty cool but overall the quality of service is a definite 1 star, the cleanliness of the room is also a 1 star. Trying to find parking is also very difficult, there is no official parking lot for this location and trying to find parking on the street is difficult. read more

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I really enjoyed my stay!! It's currently under construction but the rooms are fully intact. Very friendly man who let me check in about 45 min early. The room was a little smaller than I expected. But who cares all I need is a room I can sleep in. The beds are very comfortable. It's not new or updated but it's very clean and very welcoming. The other negative reviews really surprised me. It's not filthy, it's spotless and I dont have anything negative to say about Panama hotel. I'd def recommend it to anyone, I can't wait for the renovation to be done. I'm sure it will be gorgeous. read more

Panama Hotel - Cute little private balcony. - Bed & Breakfast Near Me - San Rafael, California

Oof... where do I begin... Well, I'll start at the beginning, when I first tried to book at the Panama a week in advance and had a question, there is no answer, ever for the listed number. You can't leave a message, because the 'inbox is full'. I figured, ok, no problem, we're still going through rough times because of the pandemic, people are operating under strain, I'll just book online and my question wasn't a make-or-break it. Few days later, I needed to add a day to my existing reservation, figuring by now the voicemail is clear and surely someone answers the phone listed at some point. Nope. Got a text shortly after my unanswered, full inbox call from an unrecognized number that says 'can I call you later?' I don't correlate my call attempt to this number because I get scam texts a lot from unrecognized numbers and never reply. To this day I still don't know if it was someone from the hotel or just a timely coincidence, they never mentioned who they were and never replied when I asked if it was the Panama hotel. Fast forward to checking in: it's quaint on a residential-ish neighborhood with a lot of traffic. For now, street parking is ok despite the 2 hour signs because the police aren't currently ticketing (as of May 2021) The person at the front desk was very polite, professional and genuine. I get my keys and walk into the room. I get the 'Venitian' room (how it's spelled on gallery image on the website) This is where I go from excited to grossed out and deciding to cut my reservation short. Biological stains on the sheets, the room is MUCH smaller than pictured (kudos to the photographer and photoshop), stains on every. single. surface. possible. I mean from the door, to every corner, carpet, bed, walls, IN the fridge, on outlets, every surface has something that could've been wiped off - IF someone was tasked to clean the room. Literally EVERYWHERE. Kitchen area sink spurts water when you turn it on, the balcony feels like it may fall any moment, the bathroom sink looks like it'll fall off if you touch it, toothpaste stains line the bathroom wall along with stray hairs from the previous person or housekeeper, and what I hope is red candle wax on the wall. For those in for a chuckle, the 'Venetian' room is only 'Venetian' because of one small photo of a canal in Italy located in the bathroom. The room itself is just decorated with bold red and gold accents on the curtains. The headboard is filled with Indian art panels. It's just a (sticky, stained and gross) room with red curtains and one photo of someplace in Italy in the bathroom. The walls are thin, everything is... sticky. I tried to touch as little as possible, slept on the towels, and used napkins when I did have to touch something. If the pictures reflected the actual size of the room accurately, if the microwave wasn't almost unusably small (maybe 8 inches inside?) If there weren't easily wiped off stains literally on every reachable surface, if they just covered the carpet stains with a cheapo rug, if there wasn't someone's biology stains on the bed (I slept on the starchy towels) If there wasn't a wad of blonde hair under the chair that was left from the previous guest. If I didn't feel tricked into having a hotel with breakfast included (the choices were packets of oatmeal, grapes, old apples and bananas) If it didn't feel like I was tricked somehow, then I wouldn't be writing this. But from the pictures, the description, the experience and the price? I feel duped. This is a hard review to write because despite the number listed being non-operational, no response ever, everything uncomfortably sticky, stained, falling apart, leaking, broken, sticky, I think the owners are just people trying to make it in hard times. Front desk person was attentive and understanding when I requested to cut my trip short (I have a feeling I'm not the first...) The hotel itself and room experience vs. the price and what is advertised - 0 out of 5 The person at the front desk - 4 out of 5 I wish the front desk person matched everything else so I can give the hotel a higher rating, I think the neglect is a part of the times the world is going through, and my heart goes out. But I can't say I would ever come back or recommend it. Of all the times to pay extra attention to basic sanitation, especially in a hotel, this would be it. Sadly, it is apparent they don't do much as far as cleaning the rooms in between guests, it's clear they didn't even vacuum... It seems all they did was change the sheets. If you're concerned about that, please stay somewhere else. However, if you decide to book anyway, please know the room is NOTHING like the pictures (in size or cleanliness) but, it works for a place to just sleep near a lot of food options if you're in San Rafael. It's NOT a place to get if you want a clean room, to relax and get restored after a rough patch in life. Which is what I booked it for, which is why I was so disappointed. :( read more

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When we arrived at 245pm, there was no one at the front desk and we had received a text that our key was in an envelope. We promptly went to our room as we had our dog with us and wanted to get everything settled. Immediately, when we walked into the room, we realized it was about 50 degrees and turned the heat on. The heat took HOURS to get the room warm, I am guessing bc of the SLATE floors. Again, not a huge deal, but we had to keep our coats on for hours which was ridiculous since the room was less than 250 sq ft We retired pretty early because we were exhausted from the day and realized the bed was going to be a challenge. It was clearly a very old spring mattress with a GIANT sag in it. At this point, I wanted to leave, but my wife wanted to just go to sleep. At around 10pm, we noticed they clearly rented the room above us to actual elephants. It was beyond loud and we could literally hear everything including their conversation. They were by no means being loud, but it became apparent very quickly that the walls were thinner than paper!!! We tried to go back to sleep and we were abruptly woken up about 4am because the person above us was snoring so loudly they literally were shaking our walls....I am not even exaggerating a little bit. I was dumbfounded. Again, the people above us weren't doing anything wrong, however, this 'hotel' was a joke and they didn't give a damn that we were able to sleep for less than 3 hours that night because of the ridiculousness of the walls/ceiling. This must have been an old home or something and the owners never did any actual renovations for HOTEL guests. The next morning I told them I wanted to check out and would not be staying another night as I needed to actually sleep! Not only did they not ask me if there was anything they could do, but when I went down for the 'breakfast' (dont even bother unless you want ruguela......) they had my receipt waiting for me to sign. I was beyond disappointed and guess I should have paid better attention to the other reviews. If you are able to stay somewhere else, DO NOT stay here. You will be sorely disappointed, but if you HAVE TO bc you have no other choice, then make sure you stay on the 2nd floor and bring your own mattress. The decor is definitely outdated, there is a coffee machine, but no coffee, the room itself did not appear clean and the lighting was joke. We had to open the blinds to actually see anything. Oh and good luck ever talking to anyone about anything. I had to go to the front desk 3x to actually be able to catch the person who was supposed to be working. read more

Stay during covid first week of Dec/2020 Housekeeper Veronica was amazing! The on site staff member his name was a hard one for me to remember but it started with a "B" He had really great service and aimed to make my stay comfortable. The rating is for the room/facility & call ahead communication: After I booked I attempted to call the property and nothing tried through on serval attempts. I found that the # to the property isn't the # to the front desk? So that is a bit off putting. When I arrived I was greeted by front desk staff "B" who was great! I switched from "grants Tomb" small Upstairs cute great Sun filled patio access just to small for the stay this time. To #13 bottom floor room with open French doors own private entrance & private bathroom. Immediately I notice the outdated historical pictures on the wall which may have been okay for someone else but I didn't care for them. Staring at old photos in a room is a bit creepy feeling, but that's just me so I had to make like they weren't there. I did like the personal kitchen area/WiFi The private patio & restroom was large & open mirrored door was a nice (on both sides) Shower head can be updated as well as a couple Knick Nak areas I discussed with the on-site staff. The bed comforter needs to be replaced had a lot of wear on it. The old clay hanging pots over the kitchenette area could be updated as well. I did like the fresh air I could let in the room By opening the windows both bathroom & sleeping area. The French doors The ceiling fan The temperature gage made it an option for comfy cozy settings. The cleanliness of the main essentials (bedding/restroom) -cleaned and sanitized! If there is someone above you it can get a bit noisy it's a boutique hotel nestled in a beautiful community not far from Fairfax, San Anselmo within 5-10m drive, local dining is a cute walk -10mins up a couple blocks. Beach depending on which one 30/40min drive. Great biking area! Free street parking! Great central location to the Marin area. read more

Alert: Panama Hotel/Restaurant is totally under construction. While you can still get a room, there is constru5ion everywhere and the restaurant/bar is closed. New owners and City is requiring many upgrades to reopen restaurant and other areas. I made my reservation months ago and think they should have notified us about the current conditions. I have always loved this little boutique hotel, and am completely disappointed. read more

Panama Hotel's rooms are way overpriced when you consider the common areas are dirty, the rooms are drafty and cold, windows don't close, bad heating, bad plumbing, little or no hot water, small rooms, shared bathrooms, a shared coffee machine & small fridge, broken blinds, bad wi-fi, fire code violations, and the possibility of being overcharged or ripped off. When I consider what I got, and what I paid; I feel ripped off. It's your money. For the same money, you can stay at almost any local hotel and get far more for your money. read more

Panama Hotel - Bed & Breakfast Near Me - San Rafael, California

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2023 Winter: has a droll abandoned energy. Restaurant is gone. Breakfast is coffee and a tangerine. No one on site after 5pm. We felt the website has to show more accurately where the property is now, not how it once was. read more

FIVE+++ stars for Enos and staff, 1.5 stars for the actual hotel. I was stranded unexpectedly in San Rafael late at night, due to a terrible rain storm that made my car break down. Called the nearby Panama Hotel, and delightful Enos answered the phone, reserved a room for me, and got it ready and warm for my arrival. I had to abandon my car in a parking lot and Uber over with a ridiculous amount of luggage and three heavy storage boxes. Wonderful Enos helped me carry the heavy boxes to my room, despite me letting him know that I did not have any cash on me at that moment to tip him for his help. He waved it off, saying he just wanted to be nice and help me out. I was so grateful, as I am a small woman and carrying all of my crap up a few stairs to my room at 8 pm while soaked from the windy rainstorm (in addition to just having to abandon my broken car) really sucked. I had to extend my stay one more night, but the room I was in was booked. So, while I was out in the morning getting my car towed to a mechanic, kind Enos and the housekeeper prepared another room for me and (with my permission, of course), moved my bags to the new room. The housekeeper even relocated some milk I'd forgotten I'd left in the first room's mini fridge, to the new room's mini fridge. I REALLY appreciated their thoughtfulness during this stressful time. I've worked in the customer service and hospitality industries, and can honestly say that Enos and staff are more thoughtful and helpful than co-workers or staff I've encountered in supposedly 'high-end' facilities. Both rooms that I stayed in (the Venetian and then the Honeymoon), were very clean and cozy. I hope the owner gives the Panama some love and makes some much-needed repairs/supplies rooms with convenient consumables (like tea bags/coffee). Mostly, I hope the owner just realizes how valuable Enos and the rest of the teeny hard-working staff is. The hotel itself is not great. My room had what looked like a broken smoke detector with no battery. It is fairly clean and the interior architecture and some decor are charming, and it's in a safe and walkable residential area. It's just very old (built in the 1920s or so) and needs A LOT of repairs. I found that some of the info online about the hotel is not currently accurate. For instance, the on-site restaurant is not actually open at this time. I think it had to close during the pandemic, and has not yet re-opened. But, the hotel does offer a fresh continental breakfast every morning. I did have a small coffee maker and mugs, in my rooms, but no teabags or coffee. I'm sure I could have just asked for some, if I'd really wanted that (I'd happened to have tea bags with me). The room also had a mini fridge and microwave. The hotel's location feels safe and is very walkable. There is a very good small cafe next door (Armida's Cafe...formerly Muffin Mania), that closes at about 3 pm. Other cafes/restaurants/markets are located just a few blocks away, and are easy to just walk to. The barebones staff keeps the hotel as clean as they can. It just feels like the owners have seriously neglected it within the past couple of years and do not provide the tiny staff with enough resources to maintain as well as they could. But, Enos (the nice man at the front desk) and staff work VERY very hard to keep the place running as well as they are able to, with the resources and time that they have. The owner is lucky to have such great employees working so hard with so little. read more

My room was covered in ants. Management was supposed to contact me. Instead, they've ignored my calls and messages. Don't spend your money with these people. read more

I give 1 star only to leave a review. I rented a room there on one of the websites that come up every time you search for hotel or plan a trip. I selected this hotel and paid for 2 nights. I arrived at check in time and not a soul was there. It was locked up w the lights on. I called 3 emergency numbers and left messages. No on ever called back. I waited for 2 hours till the company I contracted w for the room agreed to repay my money. Friday afternoon traffic and no room to stay in. Also I asked and had been told there is a parking lot. There is no parking lot. It's on a narrow road built into a curve on the road. It's a bad neighborhood and there is no safe place to park. 1 star is way too high a rating. Negative 5 stars is appropriate. read more

I have a new "go to" restaurant when I'm visiting my parents in Marin. We've been there several times in the last six months, so I guess you can say that we're officially fans! It's been around for years, but for some reason it was never on our restaurant rotation. (Yeah, we were in a rut.) We've tried several dishes during our visits and our favorite is probably the wild salmon, but the cheeseburger is a close second! Both are just perfectly cooked and really flavorful. The meatloaf (yes, meatloaf) and the pork tenderloin were other standouts. As far as appetizers go, we always have the Tuscan Toast Platter, which has a selection of olives, goat cheese, roasted garlic, and a caper/sundried tomato mixture. It's a perfect sized appetizer for three people and it's only $10! The Panama serves beer and wine only, but it's no problem because they have a nice selection. If you're looking for a place that's off the beaten path with good food and friendly service (and outdoor seating available), I would suggest that you give it a shot. (They also have a charming little inn that they run that's attached to the restaurant. I was checking out the pictures of the rooms online and now I want to stay there!) read more

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The Panama Hotel and Restaurant is a fun and funky little place tucked back into a corner of San Rafael. We just spent a couple nights there, staying in the Bordello Room. It ain't the Ritz, but we enjoyed ourselves just the same. Small things like the pretty pedestal sink doesn't drain very well. The shower curtain rod over the claw foot tube is a little loose. But, the shower works great with lots of hot water. Eating in the restaurant is wonderful, especially the patio area. Dinner with heaters, lunch with umbrellas. The interesting menu choices are mostly delicious. My pork chop was rather dry, but that is a common malady. They only serve Beer and wine only, but they have lots of choices by the bottle or the glass. If you are thinking of staying in the San Rafael area, take a chance on this cool, funky place. We will definitely go back and try a different room. read more

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Woohoo! Love this place! After having our wedding at the nearby Falkirk Cultural Center in September 2012, we spent our honeymoon night at the Panama. The following morning a few close friends and immediate family members joined us for a delicious brunch. Fast forward a year later, and my husband planned a mini weekend getaway back to Panama since I didn't want to take time off from my students to have a full fledged anniversary trip. Like the previous year, our stay was great. The only drawback was that there is no a/c in the rooms, and we happened to be in San Rafael on a HOT weekend. We got brunch the following day and everything was fresh and tasty. We'll be back! Thanks, Panama! read more

Between myself and my relatives, I think if we rented out maybe 85% of the rooms at Panama hotel on one of the September weekends in preparation for my wedding. Such a lovely hotel that's tucked away in an residential area in San Rafael, and with an amazing restaurant to boot. What's so interesting about this hotel is its location and theme rooms that is not cookie-cutter like chain hotels. I am actually a Marriott and Starwoods member, and my first decision when I started my wedding planning was to stay at the Courtyard Larkspur Landing as it's close to the ferry that came in from SF. However, another bride beat me to that location, so I rented Panama hotel instead. I was not disappointed. Between all of us, we rented out the following rooms: Garden room (the only ADA-compliant room) on the property and has a semi-private gated patio for relaxing and dining. Rosie's room is upstairs and can sleep up to 4 people and have a large private balcony. There are also 2 tvs in this room. Ken's Safari room, Lady Bracknell's room (ground floor near the restaurant patio and also where I stayed. Pros and cons about this room, but overall, I am please with it.) Maria's Pueblo room. Opens to a private sitting patio. Really nice if you want to drink some coffee in the morning and relax under the sun. Mimi's Bungalow was really interesting. Can sleep up to 3-4 people I think. Has a really nice makeup mirror in the back. Then there's the Bordello Room that's really red but has a cute balcony that you can relax on. Service was pleasant and overall, we had a great stay at this hotel. Lots of flowers and trees providing some privacy and made you feel like you are staying inside a secret garden. Although I did not eat at the restaurant on this hotel visit, My MOH and I actually had brunch here months ago when we were scouting wedding locations and we had great food. Friday is their Yappy hour (no dog required) and it's super popular. But everyone is out by 10 pm, so I had my peace and quiet in my room by that time. It's really quite lovely. I am giving them 4.5 stars. Only reason it is not 5 stars is that one of their stairs is quite narrow and I slipped and fell and bruised my elbow on this visit. read more

The room was dirty, the towels were thin and over used. The sheets seemed unclean and the bed cover was stained. The bathroom was barely useable. If you can over look those fundamental necessities you may be able to appreciated the dated charm of very old furniture. The location is a plus if you want to be near downtown San Rafael. The best thing about the Panama hotel was the restaurant and that's now closed. I could not think of a single reason to ever come back to this place. You get what you pay for. read more

I'm really glad my gf talked her parents into seeing a movie up here so we could try this place out again. Last time, our party had already snacked at another local shop so we weren't super hungry; however, we knew that the menu looked enticing. We got the Tuscan toast platter again and it was just as good as before. The Caesar salad was much larger than anyone thought for an appetizer salad, and the beet salad looked and tasted great. The special that evening was the Mahi Mahi with polenta...man, I'm such a sucker for good polenta (as any southern person should be). The fish was cooked perfectly. I mean this was soft, moist, and buttery. The lamb chop was also moist and succulent. As I've said before, a great lamb chop should feel like a good cut of steak when you eat it - not tough and not dry, which is apparently harder to do than you would think. The Carolina (yay!) mustard and pilaf accompaniments were the perfect combination to that dish. I haven't had pork with mustard often, but man, it works here. The wine flights were as good as always and the ambiance was just as intimate as the first time, but this night, we had a live jazz band of older folks playing a Cole Porter tribute! How awesome was that? I really want to give this great little joint 5 stars, but I just have to knock off one star because of our clumsy server - knocking over a real candle is no bueno. Parking is all street so try to beat or come after the dinner rush. read more

Oh yeah Panama Hotel. After years (literally) of meaning to check out what has always seemed like a great spot, you so lived up to my expectations when I finally enjoyed a wine flight and appetizers along with live jazz on Halloween. The ladies and I were some of a handfull of people festively dressed on a rainy night with the band swinging, the faces smiling, and the wine tasty ($16 for three generous pours served all at once). The waitress was sweet, on top of it, and soo familiar looking. I guess I've been around San Rafael for a looong time. Long enough so that most people look familiar to me, I guess. With plenty of parking, professional staff, and a funky beautiful atmosphere: Panama Hotel Restaurant -- I'm ready to get much more familiar with you. read more

Panama Hotel - Bed & Breakfast Near Me - San Rafael, California

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This place is great! I love staying there. My only suggestion is to improve the breakfast. But this is a wonderful, funky place. Always clean and friendly. I love this spot! read more

I responded to an OpenTable promotion that the Panama Restaurant was part of. What a nice surprise. My wife and I would NEVER have gone here otherwise. We sat outside on a very warm night. Our server, Ben, was very nice and very knowledgeable. I had a roasted beet and goat cheese salad and a glass of Alsatian Pinot Grigio. I followed with a seared Ahi Tuna over pickled beets that was a special. My bride had Tuscan toasts (goat cheese, roasted garlic etc) as a starter and the Calamari Fritte salad with a glass of Sauvignon Blanc. It was a romantic little place with nice people and good food. The bill (sans tip) was $82. We'll go back. There were too many things on the menu that we wanted but couldn't fit into one meal. Now there's a nice change! read more

There is no way to get in contact with the hotel. After booking online, I tried for weeks ahead of the reservation to change my reservation. I was not able to communicate to anyone at the hotel despite my repeated efforts by email and phone. Because of this "ghosting", we ended up not staying there and now cannot get any sort of refund or credit to try again. There is no way to call the hotel, no way to leave a message for the hotel, no way to ask a question of the hotel, no way to get any information from the hotel, no way to modify anything about your stay at the hotel. Nobody there picks up the phone when it rings. Nobody there answers messages if you are lucky enough to leave a message - the voicemail box is usually full. Nobody there answers emails either. You can't even stop by there to talk to someone if you happen to be in the neighborhood! read more