Having read many of the reviews for this place (mostly 1-star), I feel compelled to offset those reviews slightly. I stayed here for one night towards the end of October. First, a few words about the area. As an SF Bay Area resident, it's well-known that the area around Civic Center is on the somewhat seedier side, but it isn't so bad that I would avoid it at all costs for safety reasons. That said, it is pretty likely you'll encounter homeless people nearby (as you will throughout downtown SF). This hotel isn't right on Market St, so it isn't quite as bad.

My room was on the smaller side; enough space for two beds, and some walking area, but not much else. The building itself is old, so the rooms have sort of an old apartment feel. A little more interior design would help; they are pretty plain rooms as-is. The bathroom was reasonably clean. There was a heat lamp/dish thing provided, since the building's internal systems are probably broken or inefficient. There was no phone in the room, but many people now have these things called cell phones. No microwave, no fridge, TV on the smaller side, power outlets are kind of harder to reach, so they have extension cords snaking around the room. Overall, the rooms are okay if you're not too picky about decor and amenities, and if your main objective is to have a place to sleep and shower.

The breakfast area in the lobby is cute. There is a dark roast, and a lighter roast, and decaf, and those little flavored coffee creamers. There's also decent muffins, and toast, and that's about it. In the afternoon/evening, they had warm Otis Spunkmeyer chocolate chip cookies, which were pretty good. Overall, a limited selection, but the quality isn't too bad.

Also, they do need to get rid of that confusing Abigail sign. But overall, considering the relatively convenient location and the lower-end price, I think this is a solid 2.5-3 star value, meaning quite acceptable as a place for sleeping and showering (and maybe breakfast), as long as you're not going to be shocked at the realities of life in the city (like having drunk bums in your vicinity).

This place has got to be the worst place in the world to stay at! It is located at Larkin & McAllister in San Francisco near Civic Center. As I pulled up to the hotel the first thing that I noticed was a large congregation of homeless people hanging out and around the front of the hotel. I witnessed a homeless man drop his pants and pee right there in front of the place! While trying to check in they couldn't locate my reservation but after 30 minutes they finally did. They charge a $50 deposit to your card when you check in that is not divulged to you when you book the room in hell. I get sent up to my cell I mean room and let me tell you prison cells are furnished nicer! Bed said it was manufactured for Marriott and this ain't the Marriott which tells you that the bed is used. There are 3 different colors of paint on the wall none of which match, the so called internet/wi-fi was hanging by wires and unusable, there was a pipe that was hanging out of the wall and there were holes around the pipe so that you could see into the room that is next to yours, the lighting fixtures were old and dated and hanging on for dear life, the furniture was old and broken and nasty, the floors looked like they hadn't been swept since Lincoln was president, the towels in the bathroom were dirty and old, it took multiple attempts at flushing before everything went down and if you took a shower you had better make it fast since the shower filled up with water faster than it was coming out of the shower head which makes you wonder where the water was coming from. There was so much traffic noise and yelling outside. Everytime anyone walked by the room you heard everything. There are NO PHONES or HEATERS in any of the rooms. If you want a hair dryer you have to check it out at the front desk like a library book and there is only one for the whole hotel! While waiting for a cab that night - one hotel guest came down and complained that they had no blankets in their room and the front desk clerk couldn't even give her one since she didn't have access to them - another guest's toilet didn't flush and the front desk clerk handed them a plunger because there was no one there to help them. When I went back to my room that night after a stop at Walgreens for Raid and Lysol I put the chair under the door to keep the vermin out! The next night you heard a pimp and his lady of distinction duking it out in the alley right next to the hotel. I left the hotel so damn early that morning because I couldn't sleep for fear of what may happen to me - I figured I was safer sitting at the airport all day trying to fly by standby than staying at that hotel for another minute. They claim that they serve breakfast but toast and juice don't cut it! I am pretty sure that they use this place for other things when unsuspecting tourists aren't around. I kid you not that I was just waiting for Norman Bates to be waiting for me in the shower.

Despite its fine location, this hotel is terrible: infrastructure is awful (no phone in rooms!!!, among others), service is poor as in no other (say, we asked for extra blankets and got no blankets; we needed an extra night but staff did NOT book it although they said it was done, and we asked for it several times. We were almost left out and we believe we didn't pay the proper rate... they even forgot to confirm our shuttle to the airport. We almost missed our plane because of them!!!). Almost every day we found our room as we left it in the morning (no housekeeping!)... not to mention a number of other defficiencies (elevator, breakfast, temp control...).

Where do I start? What an absolute joke. I wouldn't even consider allowing my dog to stay here. I didn't take any of the other bad reviews seriously... & paid the price!

1. My wife & 3 year old arrived late after 2 flights to be greeted by a drunk homeless bum at the the reception area. I think he was in there 2 scab the free coffee. My son was quite frightened after the bum fell off the stool, and stumbled around like an idiot. None of this seemed to bother the staff behind the desk. She didn't bother to have him removed or call another staff member.
2. The old 1920's lift kept getting stuck. Had 2 carry our 6 large bags up 2 the room (no staff assistance offered)
3. Arrived at our room to be greeted by the delightful scent of URINE. It was absolutely unbearable. After advising the staff of the problem, she gave me the key card to our NEXT room.
4. Upon arriving arriving on our next floor, we were all greeted by a different smell...MARAJUANA! And no it wasnt just a whiff. I couldnt describe how angry i was after my 3 year old asked me 'whats that smell dad?' Down I went again to the reception desk. Due to the time of night & how tired we were, I thought I'd give it one last shot at staying in a half decent room for the night. The staff member gave me the key card 2 our 3rd room.
5. We arrived in the 3rd room. Nor this room, or the other two looked anything like the pictures advertised on the net. The bed furniture was old, run down. The windows looked like they had never been cleaned.
6. There is no 'city view' from the room (as advertised) .The hotel view is entirely blocked by the old building across the street.
7. The free wifi didn't work in our room or in the reception area.
8. The 'continental breakfast' is pretty much just toast and awful tasting coffee. I asked the manager for some milk for my sons porridge. He told me that they didn't have the facities to keep milk cold.... What the??
9. Taxi drivers dont know where 'Americas Best Value Inn Civic center' is located due to the fact that it is actually called the 'Abigail Inn' and not advertised as that first name.

Please take my review seriously. I am by no means a fussy person & have stayed in hotels all over the world & have never had such a disappointing experience. What a waste of my money. Be warned people, don't do it! Take these reviews seriously!