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The Cardinal Hotel

2.5 star property

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Photo gallery for The Cardinal Hotel

Interior
Business center
Designer store
Lobby sitting area
1 bedroom, Egyptian cotton sheets, premium bedding, down comforters

Reviews

9.0 out of 10
Wonderful

Popular amenities

  • Breakfast available
  • Housekeeping
  • 24/7 front desk
  • Free WiFi
$178
includes taxes & fees
Dec 5 - Dec 6

Explore the area

View in a map
235 Hamilton Ave, Palo Alto, CA, 94301
  • Place, Stanford Shopping Center
    ‪6 min walk‬
  • Place, Stanford University
    ‪4 min drive‬
  • Place, Stanford University Medical Center
    ‪4 min drive‬
  • Airport, San Jose, CA (SJC-Norman Y. Mineta San Jose Intl.)
    ‪19 min drive‬

Room options

View all photos for Standard Room, 1 Queen Bed, Private Bathroom

1 bedroom, Egyptian cotton sheets, premium bedding, down comforters

Standard Room, 1 Queen Bed, Private Bathroom

8.2 out of 10
Very good
(13 reviews)
  • 250 sq ft
  • Sleeps 3
  • 1 Queen Bed

View all photos for Standard Room, 1 King Bed, Private Bathroom

1 bedroom, Egyptian cotton sheets, premium bedding, down comforters

Standard Room, 1 King Bed, Private Bathroom

7.2 out of 10
Good
(12 reviews)
  • 250 sq ft
  • Sleeps 3
  • 1 King Bed

View all photos for Standard Room, 2 Double Beds, Private Bathroom

Standard Room, 2 Double Beds, Private Bathroom | 1 bedroom, Egyptian cotton sheets, premium bedding, down comforters

Standard Room, 2 Double Beds, Private Bathroom

8.8 out of 10
Excellent
(6 reviews)
  • 250 sq ft
  • Sleeps 4
  • 2 Double Beds

View all photos for Deluxe Room, 1 King Bed, Private Bathroom, Corner

Deluxe Room, 1 King Bed, Private Bathroom, Corner | 1 bedroom, Egyptian cotton sheets, premium bedding, down comforters

Deluxe Room, 1 King Bed, Private Bathroom, Corner

8.4 out of 10
Very good
(5 reviews)
  • 260 sq ft
  • City view
  • Sleeps 3
  • 1 King Bed

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About this property

The Cardinal Hotel

Hotel in University South
This smoke-free hotel features a coffee shop/cafe, a 24-hour front desk, and express check-in. WiFi in public areas is free. Additionally, express check-out and a lobby fireplace are onsite.
The Cardinal Hotel offers 63 accommodations with laptop-compatible safes and complimentary bottled water. Pillowtop beds feature Egyptian cotton sheets, down comforters, and premium bedding. 42-inch LED televisions come with premium satellite channels.

Bathrooms include bathtubs or showers, bathrobes, slippers, and designer toiletries. Business-friendly amenities include desks and phones; free local calls are provided (restrictions may apply). Additionally, rooms include hair dryers and irons/ironing boards. Housekeeping is offered daily and hypo-allergenic bedding can be requested.

The hotel offers a coffee shop/cafe. Wireless Internet access is complimentary. This Palo Alto hotel also offers a fireplace in the lobby, express check-in, and express check-out.

The Cardinal Hotel is a smoke-free property.

Full breakfasts are available for a surcharge between 7:00 AM and 10:00 AM on weekdays.

Property amenities

Internet

  • Available in some public areas: Free WiFi

Parking and transportation

  • Offsite parking available (USD 15 per day)
  • Onsite parking options include a garage

Food and drink

  • Weekday full breakfast available 7:00 AM to 10:00 AM for a fee: USD 22 for adults and USD 22 for children
  • A coffee shop/cafe

Things to do

  • Art gallery

Family friendly

  • In-room crib

Conveniences

  • 24-hour front desk
  • Guidebooks
  • Luggage storage
  • Water dispenser

Guest services

  • Housekeeping (daily)

Accessibility

  • If you have requests for specific accessibility needs, please contact the property using the information on the reservation confirmation received after booking.
  • Assistive listening devices
  • Elevator
  • Visual fire alarm

More

  • 1 building
  • 3 floors
  • Built in 1924
  • Fireplace in lobby
  • Smoking not allowed
  • Traditional architecture

Room amenities

Bedroom

  • Down comforter
  • Egyptian cotton sheets
  • Free crib
  • Hypo-allergenic bedding
  • Pillowtop mattress

Bathroom

  • Bathrobes
  • Bathtub or shower
  • Designer toiletries
  • Hair dryer
  • Shampoo
  • Slippers
  • Soap
  • Toilet paper
  • Toothbrush and toothpaste (on request)
  • Towels provided

Entertainment

  • 42-inch LED TV with premium satellite channels

Food and drink

  • Free bottled water
  • Restaurant dining guides

More

  • Ceiling fan
  • Desk
  • Electrical adapters
  • Free local calls
  • Heating
  • Iron/ironing board
  • Laptop workspace
  • Laptop-compatible safe
  • Phone
  • Portable fan

Policies

Check-in

Check-in start time: 2:00 PM; Check-in end time: anytime
Contactless check-in available
Express check-in available

Check-out

Check-out before 11:00 AM
Contactless check-out available
Express check-out available

Special check-in instructions

An adult age 18 or older must assume all liability for the booking
Front desk staff will greet guests on arrival at the property

Access methods

Staffed front desk

Pets

Pets not allowed (service animals are welcome, and are exempt from fees)

Children and extra beds

Children are welcome
Rollaway/extra beds are available for USD 20.0 per day
Free cribs are available on request at the property

Property payment types

Important information

Optional extras

  • Fee for full breakfast: approximately USD 22 for adults and USD 22 for children
  • Nearby parking fee: USD 15 per day (39 ft away)
  • Rollaway bed fee: USD 20.0 per day

The above list may not be comprehensive. Fees and deposits may not include tax and are subject to change.

You need to know

Extra-person charges may apply and vary depending on property policy
Government-issued photo identification and a credit card, debit card, or cash deposit may be required at check-in for incidental charges
Special requests are subject to availability upon check-in and may incur additional charges; special requests cannot be guaranteed
This property accepts credit cards and debit cards; cash is not accepted
This property reserves the right to pre-authorize the guest's credit card prior to arrival.
Cashless transactions are available
Safety features at this property include a carbon monoxide detector and a smoke detector

We should mention

Only registered guests are allowed in the guestrooms
This property welcomes guests of all sexual orientations and gender identities (LGBTQ+ friendly)

Property is also known as

The Cardinal Hotel Hotel
The Cardinal Hotel Palo Alto
The Cardinal Hotel Hotel Palo Alto

The Cardinal Hotel Reviews

Reviews

9.0

Wonderful

Rating 10 - Excellent. 240 out of 362 reviews
Rating 8 - Good. 66 out of 362 reviews
Rating 6 - Okay. 35 out of 362 reviews
Rating 4 - Poor. 12 out of 362 reviews
Rating 2 - Terrible. 9 out of 362 reviews

9.6/10

Cleanliness

9.4/10

Staff & service

8.4/10

Amenities

8.8/10

Property conditions & facilities

9.0/10

Eco-friendliness

Reviews

10/10 Excellent

Paul

Traveled with partner
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
This property is in the heart of downtown Palo Alto. Walking distance to shops and dining. Will definitely stay at this property again.
Stayed 1 night in Aug 2025

10/10 Excellent

Edward

Stayed 3 nights in Aug 2025

10/10 Excellent

Nicolas

Stayed 1 night in Jul 2025

8/10 Good

Eliza

Stayed 1 night in Aug 2025

8/10 Good

Shani

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service
Stayed 1 night in Aug 2025

10/10 Excellent

Coromoto

Traveled with family
Liked: Staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
.
Stayed 2 nights in Aug 2025

10/10 Excellent

Jesus

Stayed 1 night in Jun 2025

10/10 Excellent

Marianne

Business traveler
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Stayed 2 nights in Aug 2025

10/10 Excellent

Marlene

Traveled with family
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
The Cardinal Hotel was everything we wanted!
Stayed 1 night in Aug 2025

10/10 Excellent

Jennifer

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
Hotel itself is dated compared to current big brand hotels but it’s charming and in a great spot. Walking distance to shopping and restaurants. Parking can be tricky. Super clean, kind and helpful staff and the rooms are nice.
Stayed 1 night in Aug 2025

10/10 Excellent

Sylvia

Traveled with group
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort

Relaxed and Refreshed

This 100 year old hotel is beautiful! Perfect location! Very clean! Super helpful and friendly staff!
Stayed 1 night in Aug 2025

10/10 Excellent

Laura

Traveled with family
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
this property is great example of historic preservation done right!
Stayed 4 nights in Jul 2025

8/10 Good

NOVA, Arcadia

Stayed 1 night in Aug 2025

6/10 Okay

Dana

Liked: Cleanliness, property conditions & facilities
The property is in a great area for shopping and dining. However, the neighborhood can be noisy at night. At 2 am, the guest above me decided to have a loud conversation and did what sounded like moving furniture around. That lasted until after 3 am. The front desk person in the morning didn t bother to ask about my stay, so I didn't share it with them.
Stayed 1 night in Jul 2025

8/10 Good

Noelle

Traveled with family
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort

Beautiful History

Beautifully maintained historic hotel. Staff is incredibly helpful and kind. Absolutely loved. The only drawback is no air conditioning and you have to leave the window open to get air which unfortunately due to the prime location, cars people, trains, etc are very loud.
Stayed 3 nights in Jul 2025

10/10 Excellent

Jon

Stayed 2 nights in Jul 2025

10/10 Excellent

Michal Ravid

Business traveler
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
An impressive historic landmark, staff is friendly, rooms & facilities are clean, in the center of Stanford.
Stayed 2 nights in Jul 2025

10/10 Excellent

Robert, MINNEAPOLIS

Stayed 4 nights in Jun 2025

4/10 Poor

Alexandra

Liked: Cleanliness
Disliked: Property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Stayed 1 night in Jul 2025

10/10 Excellent

Laura

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort

Perfect Historic Hotel!

The only place we stay in Palo Alto! Perfect location, easy (free) parking curbside and walkable to restaurants, cocktails/wine bars, shopping, and historic Stanford Theater! Front desk staff is always friendly and helpful. Quiet and comfortable!
Stayed 1 night in Jun 2025

10/10 Excellent

Sally, Menlo Park

Stayed 1 night in Jun 2025

10/10 Excellent

Nathan

Liked: Cleanliness, amenities, property conditions & facilities
Would stay again.
Stayed 3 nights in Jun 2025

10/10 Excellent

Che

Stayed 1 night in Jun 2025

10/10 Excellent

Y

Traveled with family
Liked: Cleanliness, amenities, property conditions & facilities
Front desk ladies are super helpful and nice. Hotel rooms are clean, neat, and quiet. Historical evaluator is fun. Super close to restaurants and markets. Good stay!
Stayed 2 nights in Jun 2025

10/10 Excellent

Andrew

Liked: Cleanliness, property conditions & facilities
The hotel is 100 years old and very charming, with original tiles and features throughout. Much nicer than the usual bland hotel chains.
Stayed 2 nights in Jun 2025