Francis Marion Hotel Review

I was lucky to stay in this hotel close to 30 years ago and I was disappointed when it closed shortly after my stay.

So I was nothing but excited to get to stay here again after many years had passed and I was not disappointed in the least!

Thanks for a great stay and know that the breakfast buffet is quite yummy!!!

Good bed, the building is a little bit old and need some attention but it is a good place to go. The air conditionning is very noisy

Great location close historic AME church, shops, restaurants, etc. Warm staff.

I stayed at this hotel for a conference February 8-10, 2015. The rooms were nice, as was the staff, but what really made the trip enjoyable was the front desk staff. Whenever I had a question, they were quick to answer or accommodate with the small things, like a band aid, or pain reliever. The icing on the cake was one of the managers, Seanan. There was an issue with getting some guests the rooms they needed. He asked for my assistance, but made a generous offer to make it worth my while. Later, he sent some refreshments to my room, on the house, with a hand-written note thanking me for my help. These small touches are what will bring me back to this hotel again and again.

Very nice hotel. Staff were very professional. Close to everything in DT Charleston. Can walk to so many places. Was unhappy about the toilets as they did not flush properly. After both number one and two we needed to flush many many times to get the paper and waste to go down the toilet. Very inconvenient and wasteful.

We had dinner at the Swamp Fox restaurant. We had the brie and crostini for app. It was delicious. I had the filet mignon, fingerling potatoes, and substituted brussel sprouts. The filet was perfectly cooked. The potatoes were very good too. The Brussels were undercooked, but I like raw too, so it didn't really bother me. The sweet tea was probably the best I've had in a long time. It was a great dinner for a special occasion.

The weekly floor smelled like dirty socks. The beds were so short my feet were hanging off the edge. The bathroom was so small you almost couldn't sit on the toilet. The tub was falling apart. They take a lot of pride in a historic restoration from the 1990s, but it just seems like an excuse not to have a well cared for property at this point.

Refurbished old hotel built in 1921. Easy to get to all places downtown

Used to love this hotel, but haven t stayed here in a few years. Booked my room a few days in advance, and got here to check in at 9:30 PM. Front desk tells me my room isn t ready, and it s going to take 30 mins. I m tired, but willing to wait a few minutes for a clean room. Over an hour and still nothing ready. This is ridiculous. Last time I make the mistake of staying here again.

Very nice old world Charleston hotel.
I must visit and stay in the heart of downtown.

This is an older hotel in the downtown area. The service is pretty good and the hotel is well kept.

I DJed an Event for Peachtree. The Ballroom looked great and the staff were very helpful.

I had a great time visiting my friend who was staying there lol

Small rooms and initially they shorted us on a bed for our children which they partially corrected by moving us to a room with less of a view and a sofa bed.

Friendly staff, Clean Room, Comfortable Bed, and Great Location. Would definitely come back.

Excellent hotel! Very accommodating with my allergy problems. Staff went above and beyond to make my stay comfortable. If you come to Charleston, stay here, it's worth it.

My very first bad hotel review. We stayed one night on June 16 with check out on June 17. The room was very clean and we were very happy with everything. I had put some clothes in a drawer though, and 2 hours after we left, I was horrified to realize I d forgotten them. We had to get to a very important business appointment (the purpose for the trip) and couldn t turn around. I called the front desk and explained that I would happily pay for any shipping fees if they could just mail them back. I was told that Housekeeping would be alerted immediately and that I would receive a call back. That night when I heard nothing, I called back and Elizabeth said that it would be 12 hours until they could contact me. I called back the next day after 12 hours and Elizabeth (same girl) said there was no word but that she would check with Housekeeping and get back with me. My husband called on the third day and asked about it and Elizabeth (again) answered and said she would check with Housekeeping. No word since then. One pair of black WHBM pants had never even been worn. I don t think Housekeeping was ever contacted. Elizabeth sounded too busy to care and it was obvious that answering my calls was a nuisance to her. This turned out to be a very very expensive and disappointing trip as some of what was missing were clothes I received as part of Mother s Day gifts.

What a great place in downtown Charleston. Just like one of the older luxury hotels in NYC. Great service and food

Wonderfully relaxing lunch. Great crab cake. A real find.

I have never been disappointed at this hotel. Great beds, amazing service, and a spectacular location.

Attended a wedding here, so can't say much about the rooms but the staff was nice.

Beautiful historic hotel. The staff was super friendly. Had a bitbof an issue with the parking. The garage says over 9ft clearance out front but drops to 7ft inside with no oversize paking available. The hotel is close to lots of restaurants and stores. Even the waterfront is walkable from here. The historic market is also nearby

What a great stay we had! Amazing staff and amazing food! We will likely be back for another stay during the summer months.

Love the historic hotel. Great location at King St and Calhoun.

I am staying here now. I can see why so many people gave this hotel such good reviews. It is very pretty. The staff is excellent. Everything for which we've asked has been happily supplied. That is why I gave two stars. Otherwise, I would have given this hotel one star. The location is excellent. The lobby area is lovely, but I'm not staying in the lobby. Our room is very uncomfortable. The layout is a big reason, but I imagine this historical building limits the room size and layout. The bed is lumpy and very uncomfortable. I tossed and turned all night, finally falling asleep at 5 a.m., only to sleep until 11 and miss breakfast. The bathroom is impossibly tiny. I don't know how other women who are dressing for events have been able to do it. You definitely can only bathe in the bathroom and use the facilities. It is far too small to apply makeup, dry hair (unless it is very short), etc. The toilet is the size of those found on a houseboat or motorcoach, and every time we reach for toilet paper the holder falls on the floor with the paper not very sanitary. We were able to check in early so many of the rooms on our floor were open as the maids cleaned. I could see the other rooms were just like ours, so I don't think changing rooms will help. Despite the lovely staff, lobby and wonderful location, I would never stay here again and am anxious to leave. I'm disappointed; I really wanted to love this hotel when we planned this trip.

The best if u can stay one night you got the life. live it up! Check the view awesome

This hotel is located right next to so the shops which makes it convenient to walk around and grab something to eat. However the rooms and bathroom is small.

Wonderful service. Our room was a little damp though not sure why it was so humid.

Loved the location of this historic hotel! The only issue I saw was with the size of our bathroom, which was insanely small. Also, It might be worth it to get a 2 bed room. Our friends got a 1 bed and it was very small, however, our 2 bed was perfect size.

The service was understanding and all around awesome. Only complaint is how small the bathrooms were.

It was a pleasurable experience overall, i wish they had a hot tub or pool but since it is in the middle of downtown its understandable

I ate at the Swamp Fox, inside of the hotel. Nice restaurant in Charleston. Quiet and cozy. I went there on Christmas eve. Delicious food.

For a older place to stay it's nice but the bathroom is sooooo small

Great central location in downtown Charleston. You can get to all the restaurants on King St very easily.

Fantastic time and service for Courageous Kidz event.

Very nice hotel. People are great. It just doesn't have a pool on site.

Overall experience was really great. The staff is very friendly and professional. The location is perfectly situated for walking downtown.

Terrible toilet paper. Very beautiful. Great atmosphere.

Great value (relatively speaking) for the nicer places to crash downtown! I have stayed here 10+ times.....it's consistently a solid experience for me! The beds are so comfortable!! It's centrally located on King St. for all your sightseeing and shopping city strolls. All the restaurants I frequent are nearby, and there's a Starbucks in the lobby!

Check it out....you'll love it!!

Capt Mike Tucker

Check-in was a breeze. Location is great. The room was big. Has refrigerator in room. The only thing that was annoying was the bathroom. It was so small. For a room that big I would have expected a little bigger bathroom. Other than that I highly recommend.

Very nice and elegant, they went out of their way to accommodate my wife and I for our wedding anniversary, only problem was the small bathroom

Old fashioned but beautiful. Very nice, maids were so kind and friendly.

Great room, very clean, friendly staff, very convenient to downtown, and the building/restoration is magnificent. Looking forward to my next stay with you.

Beautiful view. Location super handy, you can walk to a lot of different restaurants

Very fancy...just had a party here, did not sleep here. Very nice customer service

It's a four or five star hotel in the middle of restaurants and bars. Shopping, tourism, and night life are all around it. The place is an older place that has been very well updated. Bathrooms are a bit small but who cares, if you're in Charleston and spend much time in your room you probably need to stay home anyway. A bit on the pricey side but you pay for the location. We will be back!

Very big deal with a stoning. Very nice and capable customer service

Awesome hotel. Parking and navigation of the hotel is a little weird. You will get the feel as if you were in the movie the Shining

I wanted to take this time and thank Gillian and her staff at the Francis Marion Hotel for a smoothly run wedding reception. As a professional wedding vendor in and around Charleston, it is always nice to find a great staff that works well with all the vendors coming together for the bride and groom. I look forward to working with Gillian and her staff in the future.

Did a CME here. Very nice hotel (as far as long and conference rooms). Fun location on King Street. Served pretty good food for a CME. 100+ participants making a nice active learning environment. Staff very respectful.

Stayed here in 1973 for my honeymoon. We loved how we could walk just about anywhere within a matter of minutes. Food excellent as always. Came back years later and it was just as grand as I remembered. Truly a Charleston icon.

Always like this elegant old hotel. Swamp fox, Swamp fox, tail on his hat...

Excellent facility for a business training or workshop

The hotel looks very grand. But the rooms were moderately small. The worst part was the bathroom. It was smaller than a bathroom on a airplane. However service was really good and the people were nice.

My boyfriend brought me to the Francis Marion for a long weekend and we stayed on the corner of the 10th floor. This was my first visit to Charleston and I was absolutely enamored with this hotel. You can feel the rich history from the moment you walk in the lobby and throughout. Our room had a wonderful view of the park and downtown area with windows on both streets. The King size suite was very comfy and clean. Everything was well maintained (thermostat, water pressure, toilets, etc). This is an historic hotel, so if you are expecting a large state of the art bathroom, they are limited on space but they are updated nicely. The parking garage was a short walk from the hotel and the attendant working there was helpful in validating our hotel ticket so we did not have to pay the daily rate.
The concierges were all extremely friendly, the Swamp Fox has fantastic food and service, and the manager was attentive to the safety and well-being of the guests during the Covid pandemic.
The only disturbances during our stay came from the park across the street which seems to be a gathering spot for riff-raff.
Suggestion for improvements, place some seating benches outside and cigarette disposal containers. There were many smoking guests we noticed during our visit with nowhere to dispose of the butts. Throwing them on the streets looks worse than having a disposal container. The door man had to sweep them. Overall, we had a fabulous stay and would certainly stay here again.

Was not terribly impressed with this hotel. The room was small, had a smell and the toilet didn't work right. It was also the smallest queen bed I ever slept on. Staff was neutral,not welcoming but also not offputting. Price was ok for the room so some if the items were acceptable. I'd stay again in the future as the location was really ideal and they have their own parking deck.

Francis Marion exceeded expectations in every area
The friendliest staff, cleanest rooms, amazing service.

Wonderful, historical hotel in the heart of downtown. Parking was easy

Attended a beautiful wedding here. Had cocktails and then brunch. Food was absolutely delicious.

Great location and reasonably priced. Quaint but in need of updating/refreshing. Staff was helpful and we got a room upgrade. Starbucks located in building.

Handicapp accomodations were good and the staff went out of their way to assist us..

Clean rooms and great location to the historic district. Staff is very nice. Can be noisy in the evening.

Nice boutique hotel. Great service but pricey. Rooms are nice but typical of an older hotel with odd shaped, smallish bathrooms.

The only reason I'm leaving one star is because the bed was comfortable. The bathtub was clogged and I had to all twice to get it in logged. The rooms were a little old. When I called for late checkout I was told I had to call I the morning. I called in the morning and was told it could not be offered because other people had requested it. The bathrooms are really compact as well. Hotel not recommended.

Everyone was nice, room cozy, bed a little too soft. Couldn't control AC. It stays on 71. All n all it was a good stay.

The Swamp Fox restaurant was a great choice for New Year's breakfast. The wait staff was attentive and the food was excellent. Love the selection and the service.

Great Old Southern charm in this hotel! They've modernized but still allowed for it to take you back in time as well. The bathrooms are small as it keeps to time period but overall felt up to date and very luxurious. Located on King Street within walking distance to everything downtown Charleston has to offer. Front desk was friendly and helpful and the Starbucks in the bottom lobby just sets it apart for me!

Quaint hotel located near the center of downtown Charleston. Easy walking distance to a large number of shops and restaurants. Rooms are slightly smaller than typical due to the age of the building, but the service was always warm and friendly.