First, I would stay here again and I would recommend it to my friends. We had self check in, but our host was reachable by phone. Generally, the description was accurate - it's certainly a converted garage. As for the area, it's in an alley behind a hotel, but if you've been to San Diego it's pretty standard to live on tiny streets between the main road.

The Good: The inside was nice! The patio was spacious, but keep in mind it is shared with guests staying in the house. We only used the boogie boards, but there were bikes available as well. The location is perfect for the beach! You can walk to the beach, walk back to the studio, shower, and head back out for the rest of the day without being stuck in a suit full of sand. The best part about the location is not having to find parking or lugging around excessive baggage to shower and change at the beach before you go eat or shop. The proximity to the beach allows you to walk to the house for a shower without having to drive home or even leave Mission Blvd. As well, it comes with allocated parking, so no more circling the streets and fighting for a parking spot. Finally, the AC ran cold consistently, but we opened the windows at night to keep it from feeling stuffy.

The Bad: The only complaints we had were about the kitchen and power. If you aren't using a hair dryer, cooking or baking then you shouldn't have a problem. I tried to blow dry my hair and the power went out. The AC, TV and hair dryer cannot be used at the same time. We searched for the electrical box and the people staying in the house reset the power because the box is located in the house. As for the kitchen, it LOOKS pretty, but it's not equipped for any real cooking or baking. There were a few utensils here and there: bowls, plates, mugs and silverware, but it wasn't enough for anybody looking to cook meals instead of eating out everyday. It wasn't a big deal to us, but if you're looking for full use of a kitchen this might not be for you. More importantly, even if you have no plans to cook, the microwave will take a little extra effort. The microwave needs to be removed from its shelf above the stove and placed near an outlet to be used. We had to balance it on the sink to reach the cord to the outlet. As well, be careful moving the microwave because the piece of wood it's sitting on is not fixed in place, it came tumbling down on us. In general, these things wouldn't prevent us from staying again, but if they are important to you, perhaps you might want to look else where.