Here are my needs:
My friends are marrying in San Diego in August. They are staying at the hard Rock Hotel. At $300/night that's way beyond my budget. The Old Town Inn has rates of about $90/night. It looks like it is fairly close to the gaslamp district.

I am, however, a geography moron. So--I checked the San Diego transit trip planner. It said it will take a bus 37 minutes to get from our hotel to theirs? What about walking--is it feasible or safe?

If we rent a car (which we probably will for side trips, etc.) how expensive is parking going to be in the gaslamp district?

Thanks for the help. We're open to alternative hotel suggestions, too.

Ok, I really am a geography moron. It doesn't look like walking makes sense. So I guess the car question is my biggest issue.

You can get the Trolley from Old Town to the Gaslamp.

Just the info I was looking for! Thank you.

just so you know, this place is under a freeway in an industrial area across from the Old Town Trolley and it is extremely dicey..I would in no way recommend staying there..checked the website and it doesn't show the freeway and the riff raff..you can go up the road to Mission Valley for a gorgeous resort room at the Crowne Plaza for $111..catch the trolley too.
So many great 4* hotels for cheap in SD..around $100
Try Expedia.com

The Best Western Island Palms was beautiful! I was just there for a two weeks stay and they had rooms for around $99. It was simply beautiful and the staff was among the best of any hotel I have stayed at. It is very close to Rosecrans which I think is a major road, thouch I don't know how far it is from the Hard Rock.

Oh yeah, and they had free Wi-fi and free parking.

Doesn't the Old Town Inn have free parking? I wouldn't worry about the riff raff, no one is around there. Except for Perry's down a busy street and they are only open until 2 pm.

lsky..
don't you live in Mission Hills?
Go check it out sometime after 11pm and you will see tons of homeless and drug activity..not a good scene..
It seems like an average motel just in the wrong area.
$90 to be under a freeway in an industrial area of SD or you can get a really nice resort hotel for $99 with bayfront views on Shelter Island or similar.

There are about 5-10 hotels in Old Town and there are two that are next to the freeway. Several others are a mile or further from the freeway and are in the heart of the old town area. And are very nice. I would call the hotel and ask them specifically what the location is like.

We've known many people who've stayed in Old Town and loved it. I personally prefer the "downtown Old Town" area to Mission Valley.

If you really want to stay in Old Town, the Best Western is nice there, too, but I'd still vote for Shelter Island.

Shelter Island is a long way from downtown and the Hard Rock. There's no Trolley. They'd have to drive and find expensive parking downtown.

If you find something on the trolley line, you will be able to get to the gaslamp district easily. Many of the busroutes take you to the trolley, but that requires a connection and extra time.

Wow..
Let's review here folks..

How would you feel if you were going to San Diego in August and looked to Fodor's for a great hotel/motel advice in SD..
Fodor's group tells you that that 1* motel under a huge freeway interchange in an industrial area in a blighted area in August is just fine BUT for the same price that you can get a gorgeous 4* hotel with bayfront views and all the resort perks..

Wouldn't you all be livid if you were a tourist..I know I would..

They are going to have a car..it takes about 10 minutes from Pt. Loma to Gaslamp.

Do any of you get out and travel around San Diego and see and what is out there?

Wow, let's review here,

As ability to get to the Hard Rock easily, preferably without having to park downtown, is a priority, most of the advice given here is spot on. The recommendation of a hotel on Shelter Island which fills not one of the OP's stated needs, other than it's a hotel, is not very helpful. It would be more than ten minutes to downtown and it would require parking downtown. It
looks close on the map, but there's a lot of traffic and many stop lights.

If you want to give hotel suggestions, at least try to offer hotels that will fill that one important need, as other posters have.

While Tripadvisor is not the be-all and end-all of hotel advice, this one is #7 currently in San Diego. Not everyone needs or wants a resort hotel, some people just need a reasonably-priced place to sleep. This is not under the freeway interchange, or indeed under the freeway.

Like nanabee, I'd suggest looking at other hotels that are actually in Old Town as that puts you closer to restaurants and historical sites too, while still being close to the Trolley.

Old Town is a very popular tourist area and is quite safe. At night you will see throngs of tourists walking along the main street dining at great Mexican restaurants and browsing shops. The hotel ksucat is talking about is on the fringe area of Old Town not in the heart of Old Town.
The same can be said about certain neighborhoods in the downtown Gaslamp area too.
Shelter Island is a great area, but there is poor bus service there and you would definately need to rent a car or be picked up by friends.

Trip Advisor..now its all starting to add up.

The motel IS under a freeway and it is NOT a long way from Shelter Island to the Gaslamp as you write..

Only someone who doesn't have a clue about drive times would state that its a 'long way'..its approximately 3.5 miles and its a straight shot on N. Harbor drive.
A long way is Del Mar to the Gaslamp.

There are so many great hotel deals in SD for under $100 that aren't under a freeway, in an industrial area and the OP states they will probably rent a car..parking runs about $8-10 a day downtown..$5 rt pp for the trolley.

Just to clarify, the Shelter Island hotel in which cat stayed is very good, just not the best choice location-wise for this person.

I would tend to agree Barbara.

I may have misunderstood the OP. I didn't read that she had to stay in Old Town but that she picked it for the rates. It seemed that Shelter Island was very close by car to Old Town, so I didn't see that downtown would be that different. I did see the Old Town Trolley while we were there, but I never used it so don't know its routes. The expedia map shows that it is 17 minutes from Shelter Island to the Hard Rock by car but considerably longer if using city transit.

If they are going to have a car anyways, Shelter Island seemed to be easy and nice, if price was the main concern.