Clarion Hotel Bakersfield North

Tried to charge $20 early check in
Pool green
Bed and shower good
Room dated
BREAKFAST UNEDIBLE
Would not stay again even if it was free.
Lady on reception was nice (person in back office was the one who wanted to charge early check in must have thought we were deaf.
Avoid this place

This is one of the few hotels in Bakersfield that set an example for what a hotel should be run. Surestay has become my favorite place to rest my head. I truly recommend you to stay at this establishment. It's been a long time since I've had peace of mind & I've found it at surestay. Thank you & God bless you and yours always.

My 4 daughters and I have been staying at the sure stay for about 2 weeks now The service here is phenomenal. I couldn't ask for better people to be running this place. Everyone has been extremely kind to me and my children. And extremely accommodating as a single father , I would recommend staying here to anyone with kids, the staff is super understanding and I would absolutely say they are kid friendly. Every time I come through the lobby doors, somebody is greeting me with a very warm and welcoming greet, really know how to make someone feel at home.

Rooms are very dated and odorous. Outer door by our room didn’t latch much less lock. We did not stay.

Like a tropical paradise in the middle of the desert, in numerous ways this hotel stands above any of the Bakersfield hotels where I have stayed. I'm sure most of the people hurrying by every day have no idea what they are missing.

(Note: Most of the old reviews posted by others here are obsolete, because in 2026 this hotel changed ownership and became SureStay by Best Western.)

Before you even enter the hotel, you can see one of this hotel's treasures: hidden in plain sight is the koi pond below the waterfall at the main entrance. (I'm embarrassed to admit that I had stayed here numerous times before I noticed the koi fish, even though I once had my own koi pond.)

But the biggest secret this hotel hides is their beautiful tropical gardens, featuring a pool which (as far as I know) is Bakersfield's deepest, along with a jacuzzi with unrivaled late-night access hours.

Many of the rooms share these tropical gardens, with patios providing easy access and featuring unique scenes of tropical beauty (the picturesque bridge on our patio door made our room easy to find after a romantic stroll through the gardens one night).

All of the rooms we have enjoyed (during our various stays) have been beautiful, with some unique features I had never seen before. Even the beds seem much larger and more comfortable than similar beds in other hotels. We prefer the rooms near the restaurant.

All rooms seem to have refrigerators, but I haven't noticed any microwaves. That typically doesn't matter, because usually when we stay here we dine at their own "BuckCafe" restaurant (and of course that's something else most Bakersfield hotels don't have). The hotel's free breakfast is at this cafe, and my wife insisted that I mention the fact that she was amazed by the service Megan provided, and that Megan works so hard and remains friendly under pressure! (Unfortunately, I miss most of the breakfasts due to my work schedule.)

Sometimes when I've found a special place, I don't want to tell anybody, because I want to keep the treasure to myself. Selfishly, I know the prices may not stay this low if this secret gets out. But this is too good not to share. (But I do know of other Kern County treasures I'm still keeping secret.)

The location couldn't be more central, adjacent to one of Bakersfield's main tourist spots (the historic Buck Owens Crystal Palace, where Buck Owens himself used to perform, along with many other celebrities).

Unfortunately, staying at Bakersfield hotels can be problematic, as from my experience there are some serious security problems at most Bakersfield hotels. Our vehicles have suffered break-ins at other Bakersfield hotels, with various thefts including my wife's suitcase which contained her clothes! But the security at the SureStay is better than any other hotel I know of in Bakersfield, as they have a large (locked) lot which is reserved for hotel guests (hotel guests do need to wait for the staff to open the gates, but that is a very valuable inconvenience).

And how could I fail to mention the friendly staff? Again, from my experience, they're the best in Bakersfield. Best location, rooms, pool, jacuzzi, security, lobby, staff. And even with all of that, I'm sure I failed to mention something really special (especially names of some of the staff, but I don't remember all of their names at the moment).

Perhaps a name like Best Western Tropical Gardens would be more appropriate. When we are there, we feel a little bit like we are reliving precious memories of our trip to Hawaii.

Absolutely horrible experience at SureStay by Best Western Bakersfield Central. We checked in with our 2-year-old baby, left our belongings in the room, and went straight to the pool after being in the room for maybe 5 minutes max. The pool was disgusting — black and green slimy mold everywhere and the water looked dirty and unsafe. There were barely any workers around, no manager available, and the staff was extremely rude when we brought up the condition of the pool. On top of that, they falsely accused us of smoking in the room, which is ridiculous considering we were there with our toddler and barely even stayed in the room. We asked for a refund after only being there around 20 minutes because the place was so bad, and they still didn’t want to help us. Very unprofessional and disappointing experience. Would not recommend to anyone, especially families with children.

Their customer service was truly amazing. Griselda made me feel like I was at home and had such a positive attitude. Griselda is the bestest.

Audra was truly amazing! Everything we had a question or concern about she was there right away! I will definitely be visiting Hiltop again on my next trip!!!! And she’s hilarious which was just the cherry on top!

Great location, very nice team

Looks freshly painted. Really appreciate the $7 meals for guests.

Nothing

Large room, secure parking, friendly staff and meet our needs for the one night.

Fenced in parking.. large courtyard by pool including a bbq/smoker.. friendly staff with great customer service…
Next to a 24 hr AM/PM that has an Arby’s next to that and there is a Dennys across the street.