Bancroft Hotel

Danger! Do not stay here! I am consulting on the UC Berkeley campus this week and the department that hired me put me at the Bancroft Hotel because it has a direct bill relationship with the university.When I arrived at the Bancroft Hotel at 7:15p, there was no one at the front desk and the front lobby was blaring this really loud, horrible music with obscenely violent lyrics. I waited for eight minutes and still no front desk person showed up. I called the hotel's phone number and no one answered. Finally a front desk employee showed up, but he was dressed like a homeless person with a cigarette tucked behind his ear. He was high as a kite and incapable of comprehending that I wanted to check in. He then started banging his forehead against the desk. So I walked out and called the department who is hosting me and told them that I needed them to move me.The no uniform is a big giveaway. It honestly felt like I walked in in the middle of a violent crime. Like maybe the front desk person had been attacked or robbed. Or maybe the real employee wasn't granted the night off so he paid the guy cash to cover for him?Bottom line is I felt unsafe and wasn't going to stick around to find out. I found a room at the Faculty Club on campus and called the police nonemergency line (they said they'd send someone to check on things).

This evening at 7:15 on 1/28, my husband and I attempted to help our out of town guest check into the hotel for her 5 night stay. When we entered the lobby there was no attendant and the loudest possible rap music was playing describing sexual violence towards women. We searched around for an attendant for about 5 - 10 minutes and even went behind the counter to turn off the offensive music. Still, no attendant. The back office was wide open with a back door wide open to a back alley of the hotel. Finally, a man ran into the lobby from the front door and indicated he worked there. He ran behind the desk and sat there but it was difficult for him to have a conversation and he seemed slightly incoherent and difficult to understand. We expressed our annoyance at the hotel playing loud music about assaulting women and asked why there was no one at the front desk. He couldn't really put together a coherent sentence and kept mumbling and putting his head on the desk. He seemed to be getting visibly frustrated so we quickly grabbed our bags and left the building. From the street we could see the same man pacing around the lobby as we loaded up our luggage into our car. The young man had dark blond hair, scruffy facial hair/goatee, was wearing a baggy black t-shirt with baggy jeans, and had a cigarette behind his ear. This whole situation was very off-brand for Hotel Bancroft. This evening around 9 pm, i attempted to call the hotel to formally cancel the reservation for our guest. No one was answering the phone. I then contacted Berkeley PD who indicated they will go to the property to ensure nothing criminal or dangerous was taking place. Tomorrow, we will attempt to speak with hotel management to ensure we are not charged for this reservation.

You want to feel royalty? Stay here... The vibe here was beautifully royal... The breakfast was delicious... I loved my stay here... utter serene...

Really cute old hotel! It was an easy and sweet stay. Rooms are quite small but that's to be expected in older boutique hotels.

Pros:-excellent location! You can't beat it. So many places to visit that are walking distance-offer continental breakfast-it's a historic hotelCons:-it's a historic hotel. Although this is incredible, that also means that there aren't a lot of amenities that you would expect to find. There is no A/C (they had a ceiling fan), no elevator, and only a few electrical outlets. So plan carefully with the time of the year that you come and pack smartly because you could be hauling your own items to the third floor.Tips:-they have things like hair dryers, irons and ironing boards at the front desk, but not in your room. You have to request it.

Although this has some charming aspects to it and the location is good...overall it was not what we expected. To say it's lacking in amenities would be an understatement. There is no elevator so you have to drag your stuff up lots of floors (depending on which floor you're on), there is no heat or A/C, the windows are old so it's loud from outside noise plus drafty, the sink and bathroom in general are absolutely tiny, and the small tv is so old it's essentially unusable (we watched tv on our laptops). Overall I would not recommend for a comfortable stay.

Very cute euro style hotel. Wonderful location. Parking. Breakfast. Easy check in. Actual keys. Recommended!

This a doozy, hold tight. My main review is with the venue and their staff -- I have a mention of the hotel stay, though, if you needed to know, skip to the end. :)Held a wedding ceremony, reception and stayed 2 nights with the hotel. I have so much to say as the whirlwind of events that occurred over the course of a pandemic, I don't think I could ever recreate (or change anything for that matter). The biggest shoutout I need to give is for Kelly. I have never met a more personable, kind, patient and thorough person and I couldn't be more fortunate to have crossed paths with her! All of my communication of each facet of my wedding was through her. My major vendors had been all recommendations through her: (Denon & Doyle DJ, LaNana Salon + Ashby Flowers, & Sweet Adeline Bakery and her own team for catering the event)! Kelly knew her stuff and she proved it by keeping together a very anxiety-filled bride like myself. I seriously could not have had a better day if it weren't for her. She kept great contact with all the vendors for the day of. Her opinions and patience throughout of the uncertainty of the pandemic-planning kept us all going. Her menu options were delightful. Her catering team provided so many choices, it was hard to choose what we did (we wished we could've done them ALL)! Alot of my guests paid so many compliments to the food, bartending and the Main Hall. I always made sure to remind everyone that it was all Kelly's doing for such a wonderful experience. *The Hotel stay: the hotel itself, was beautiful. It was a historic landmark which has its merits. The architecture has so much character that the photos do not do it justice. UCB often hosts alot of events there. It's walking distance to one side of the campus but also neighbors to frat/sorority housing.The room I stayed: There were very limited rooms and selection due to its age, regardless if I were a bride or had guests that wanted to stay there were no special rooms.. You can either have a room with a balcony or not, which I was lucky to have one. It was an August summer weekend and boy, did the rooms get scorching. There is no air conditioning, so beware. My room was medium-sized, including a TV, a desk, closet and a bathroom. The charm for me was certainly the presentation of the room and its balcony. There was a heater so I'm sure a stay during cooler months would've been a bit better but I didn't want to test it out. They offered a one-time "breakfast" voucher courtesy of Caffe Strada next door so I thought that was a nice treat in lieu of the traditional sense for a continental breakfast. Overall, the hotel room wasn't the comfiest but knowing the hotel's landmark-status, it's understandable. It's not known to be modernized, much less on the same vein as a Hilton or a Marriott. Overall, I would highly recommend Bancroft as a venue and a catering service, but would not recommend staying at the rooms themselves.

What a remarkable place for an event, how could I have not known about this place all these years. With fairly short notice I was able to throw a retirement party for my husband with little to no stress. Kelly is simply amazing, she clearly knows what works and how to put it all together and more than delivered on all her promises. She takes all the stress away so that one can just enjoy their event. Her staff is friendly, welcoming to guests and the cook is absolutely incredible. My suggestion is to listen to Kelly and let her do her job, she knows her business . I received multiple comments from guests about how good the food was and how beautiful the setup was .It was a perfect evening and I couldn't be more grateful. Thank you Bancroft Hotel for such an enjoyable evening.

We had to find a venue with catering for a large event on short notice; we were able to book the Bancroft Hotel, and could not have been more pleased. We estimated we would have 40 to 50 guests, and had over 80. Kelly was the most pleasant and competent as director, as she quickly had more food made (a full meal), and set up more tables to accommodate the added guests.Because we were using both the interior space and the exterior space, she suggested we have food and drink at each location. The staff and the food were wonderful, and the ample parking garage across the street made the event seamless. Cost was extremely reasonable in comparison to the many other venues we looked into.We felt very cared for, and the event felt warm and accomodating. The feeling was as if we were a small group and were in a family home, and everything was perfect. Check this venue out.