Days Inn San Diego-East/El Cajon

When it comes to customer service, the front desk is tops! We accidently booked this hotel and they did not charge us the required cancellation fee.

Came here for one night and maybe I lucked out because I got a good room, but anyway, I’m happy. The price was excellent — $ 64 for a king room with FREE WIFI. The room was clean, new and polished looking, not at all dingy like many 2-​star hotel rooms. The fact that the flooring is laminate «wood» rather than carpeting really gives the place a nice feel. The bathroom is also very clean, for the most part, but the tub’s floor is seriously blackened. It didn’t make sense that a newly renovated bathroom should have such a gross looking tub, especially since the tub walls were literally shining clean. Then I realized that the dark dye from the laminate floors rubs off on people’s feet :(and then, when they take a shower, it stains the tub. I learned to keep my shoes on real fast. The curtains could also use a wash.
In spite of these issues, I’m giving a 4 star because of overall cleanliness and the sleek, modern style of my room, which made it very comfortable for me. When a room looks dingy or old, I just can’t get fully comfortable. The bed was great. The bedding is beautiful! The breakfast was as decent as it is in any other place. I appreciated having some complementary fruit and what not early in the morning. There is also a Denny’s just next to the parking lot, so it’s nice to know there’s a place for hot meals outside the continental breakfast.
The staff is wonderful. The young man who was working the desk when I checked in last night was polite and personable. The young lady who was working this morning was equally personable. I haven’t tried the pool, but it looks remarkably sweet for a motel pool. Normally, I’d avoid those like the plague, but given how new and clean this place it, I recommend going for a dip.

We made reservations here before we drove down to San Diego. Everything else in San Diego was reserved and we thought we would save a little money on our trip. That was the worst decision of the weekend. DIRTY AND POORLY MANAGED.
We got in around 2:30AM and went inside to get our room key. When we climbed the stairs to the room, the door wouldn’t open. Assuming, the key wasn’t working, we went back down to the lobby where the staff member assured us we had the right room and reset the key card. We went back up to the room and the key still wouldn’t work. Then somebody from inside our assigned room yelled at us to go away. Our room was already occupied.
My boyfriend went back down to the lobby to explain the situation and came back with key cards to a new room. This time we got in no problem but upon stepping into the room, we were appalled. The carpet had obviously not been vacuumed in a very long time – there was hair and dust all over the floor. The trashcans had not been emptied after the last guests, the sink was filthy, there were dirty towels all over the bathroom, and the bathroom floor, toilet, and shower were disgusting! I can handle usual wear and tear on the room, but the lack of basic cleanliness is completely unacceptable.
By this time, it was about 3AM and we were both tired and grossed out so we called down to the front desk to tell them the room was not acceptable. The staff member from the front desk came up and apologized and moved us to the next room (the third one!!). He let us in to a new room which immediately looked better and we thanked him and he went downstairs. I went to use the bathroom because I had been too disgusted to touch anything in the old room. To my horror, there was poop in the toilet and hair all over the shower and floor. JUST DISGUSTING. We immediately booked a new hotel for the rest of the trip – more expensive but worth it.
Do not waste your money here. I’m all for saving money and I believe you can book a cheaper hotel and expect some value for your money but not here. To top it all off, they refused to refund our money for the night. Do better, Days Inn.

Stayed there for 2 nights for my Bday celebration. They were renovating the whole hotel and that was nice to see. We checked in quick, got our room and went to it. It was an OK room and we checked out our King size bed and it had a huge dent on one side. My wife slept on that side and he back was hurting the next day. Our phone had no labels on how to call operator or outside calls. The pillows were lumpy, very lumpy and my wifes neck was hurting the next day as well. The shower was OK and the running water was OK. The continental breakfast was good but not the greates and Dennys in just a few feet away. For the price, location and for 2 nights… this place was just OK.

The room was clean and the hotel is right off the freeway. There is also a Denny’s in the same parking lot. The room had a few minor cosmetic issues. Based on the price I can’t complain. The free breakfast had oatmeal, corn flakes, eggs, sausage, juice, coffee, and several different pastries.

Bad Experience. Stayed there on and off for 30 years. Last 18 months, 25 nights with a total of 39 room rentals. Spent over $ 2700 there in the last year and a half. Last March I received one complaint from the night manager. I stayed there 3 months later in June for 3 nights, no problem. Reserved room for 4 nights over Labor Day. When I arrived to check in I was informed that I could no longer rent rooms there. One complaint, 30 years, and banned from the sight. Will never go back. Loyalty works both ways.

we stayed at this budget hotel/​motel while visiting friends in the san diego area. having booked our room on orbitz during one of their many sales, we were able to book our stay at the very low price of $ 80.15 per night, including taxes and fees. although the reviews on Unilocal weren’t stellar, and we knew not to expect white glove 5-​star service, these Unilocalers were fair and led me to believe that the accommodations would be sufficient for our needs… and i agree and thank them for their candor!
these were the PROs of staying here:
+despite arriving very late (close to midnight), we were able to check-​in quickly at the front desk in the lobby and were given two card keys for our room
+parking on site was free and plentiful
+hotel is located right next to the ramp onto freeway 8
+the king size bed was big, clean and comfortable, i slept pretty well for 3 nights
+air conditioner was provided, which kept the room cool and comfortable while it was 90+ degrees and humid outside
+there was an average-​size love seat with coffee table near the front of the room
+we had a good size desk with chair and desklamp
+there were double dressers plus an open closet area in the rear of the room
+bathroom had bath towels, hand towels, a hair dryer, soap, and shampoo.
+there was a shower over the tub and the shower head had good water pressure
+a good size tv with remote control were provided along with access to cable and hbo
+one large window in our guest room, but we were instructed not to open it ???
+a mini coffee maker with instant coffee, cream, sugar, and insulated cups were provided
+a mini refrigerator with freezer was provided and worked well in keeping our drinks cold
+a microwave was also provided, but we did not have a need for it during this trip
+free wifi, password given upon check-​in
+ice machine on site, accessible by inserting your room key
+gated swimming pool and jacuzzi on site, accessible only by hotel guests with a room key
+staff on site around the clock at the desk in the hotel lobby
+free continental breakfast from 6−10am daily, which included bread, peanut butter, fruit preserves, muffins, english muffins, danish, croissants, apples, bananas, cereal, milk, yogurt, hot oatmeal, eggs, sausage, juice, coffee, and tea. pretty good spread that stayed well stocked, even for those of us who strolled in closer to 10!
and some of the CONs of staying here:
–located in el cajon, a mixed neighborhood that was a bit far from san diego and anything else worth seeing
–walls were very thin as i could hear the kids shouting while playing in the pool one level below
–guest room was not that clean since after walking around barefoot for an hour or so, my feet were pretty gray and dusty… guess they didn’t vacuum prior to our checking in?
–the mini coffee maker had a crack in the spout area, so i had to be careful not to touch it
–the tub was old as it had some noticeable stains
–although having a pool on site was nice, we could only use it from 9am-​9pm, so we were unable to take advantage of this amenity… we attempted to one evening around 9.30 only to find that the gates were locked
although the room wasn’t spectacular, it definitely met our needs for 3 days and we felt that we received good value for the money paid. if you are looking for a good budget hotel with no frills and don’t mind driving 20 – 30 minutes to san diego, then this is a good option for you.

I was pleased with my stay here. Comfortable accommodations, pleasant service and a decent continental breakfast. Looks like some helpers don’t share my sentiment; God bless America and the land of the free… speach. Hey, for $ 56 I’m satisfied

Affordable but not very clean. Not in the best neighborhood. Holes in the sheets, stains on the curtains and bathroom ceiling.
On the plus side… I did not find any bugs.

This has got to be the worst place we have ever stayed. Yes the price was fare but I have stayed in way better places for the same price. This place is not kept up. Looks old and ragity. We were afraid to put anything on the floors. Gross carpet. And I was bitten by something 8 times in the bed. Super gross! And if all that wasn’t bad enough, our mini van was broken into while parked in the parking lot. The passenger side window was broken, seat messed up, & paint scratched. They took the DVD remote and wireless headphones that came with the van. Our perscription sunglasses… really? And our dog bag and leash plus several other things. Needless to say we will never be staying here again and you shouldn’t either!

I will give it cheap, but I wouldn’t stay again. They say I booked a smoking room… I guess I did accidentally. If I wanted a not smoking room I would have to move up to a suite? The room smells awful. I have a headache, I stink, I can’t breathe… Shame on them…
walls are dirty

I was looking for something farther east in San Diego County partly because I like the more outlying areas and partly because it is usually less expensive than at the beach or in the city of San Diego. This property was a little smaller than I expected it to be. As a matter of fact, they did not seem to have anywhere to put their trash dumpster other than front and center. It is the first thing that you see after you park your car in the small lot. That was the only major problem with the appearance of the place, although some of the furniture does seem to be a little worn, as mentioned in a previous review. Everything else about the property seemed to be pretty good. The bed was very comfortable and the breakfast was great. They have an indoor jacuzzi which is nice in cooler weather. Another feature that I liked was the fact that the in-​room temperature was set perfectly and there was no need to make any adjustments to the thermostat. Although it’s not flawless, this is a decent place. I would recommend reserving one of the King Suites.

This hotel was cheap but I wouldn’t call it a good value. I would not recommend staying here.
I wanted to find a deal on a place to sleep somewhere near San Diego. This was a same day, short notice reservation. I shopped around on the usual sites. I ended up booking this hotel on the Days Inn website for a pretty good price.
There were some pluses to my stay. The staff was courteous and efficient. The rate included a decent breakfast (cereal, pastries, make your own waffles) and decent wireless internet service. No charge for parking.
But I couldn’t get past the big minus: this hotel is old and my room was unpleasant. The room and bathroom were clean. However, the furnishings were worn and the bedding should have been trashed and replaced long ago. I slept ok on the bed. It was comfortable enough. But I’m glad I spent most of my time in the room (only one night) unconscious. The experience was rather dreary.
The location, El Cajon, is another minus in my opinion. It’s fairly remote from the rest of the San Diego region. I guess that’s why the hotels there tend to be one of the better places to look for bargains. If you consider staying El Cajon, double check that you will be ok with the extra time and gas money you may spend driving to other places. The hotel is easy to get to. It’s right off a freeway exit. On the downside that means you do hear noise from the freeway. I didn’t find the noise bothersome but some may.
If you do decide on this hotel, ask to see the room they are giving you first and see if you can look at more than one. Perhaps some of the other rooms are in better shape than the one I was in.

Three of us stayed here last night visiting relatives. It was a very, very clean and welcoming room. There were no stains anywhere, the bathroom was spotless, the beds super comfy and not worn. The décor was warm colors, and the AC was quiet for a wall unit. They offered a continental breakfast of bagels and cream cheese, danish, cereal, and coffee or tea. The lobby was nicely appointed and the desk clerk was very nice and smiled a lot. It’s nicely located just off the freeway. The value was great for the room and for three of us, less than $ 80 for a Saturday night. A bargain! We’re from North Hollywood and this hotel was suggested by my cousin who lives in Lakeside. We will be back, thanks for a nice stay.