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Monterey Bay is famous for its aquarium, Pebble Beach, The 17-mile drive, and fresh seafood. The area has a lot of fine dining, art, and golf, but also breathtaking beaches and scenic lookouts. At just a two-hour drive from the San Francisco Bay Area, we thought it would make the perfect spot to celebrate a birthday in luxury. We chose to celebrate with a night at the Monterey Plaza Hotel which is situated over a small sandy beach, right off Cannery Row. We booked a king ocean view with a patio and paid $607.72 for one night.
Getting To Monterey California Plaza Hotel:
For those who may be flying in, the Monterey California Plaza Hotel is less than five miles from the Monterey Regional Airport, and only a ten-minute drive, making it easily accessible via ride-share/taxi or public transit! We were not flying, but instead driving from San Francisco, and opted to take the scenic route down Highway One. Stay tuned for our upcoming road trip post breaking down the best stops along the way from SFO to Monterey!
Check-in:
The Monterey Plaza Hotel check-in time was 4:00 PM sharp! Our check-in was slightly underwhelming, we felt that the staff at the front desk was not very attentive or welcoming. They did not go over any details about the hotel property or its amenities. We ended up getting lost trying to find our room since there were multiple elevators leading to different locations! We had to ask the cleaning staff in the hallway for directions (who were extremely friendly and helpful). We also filled out the form on the website while booking that we were celebrating a birthday, and we did not receive any acknowledgment from the check-in team, or throughout our stay. At other hotels of this caliber (4 stars and above), special events have always been acknowledged in some way, so we were slightly bummed! We felt that if they were not going to acknowledge it why ask during the booking process?
The Room:
We booked a king ocean view with a patio and paid $607.72 for one night. The room was extremely spacious. It had a large bathroom, a separate vanity area to get ready, and a nice sitting area next to the bed. There was a small attached balcony behind large sliding glass doors that provided amazing ocean views both in the room and while on the patio! The room was clean and everything was in good condition!
In the bathroom hung two plush white robes, an array of aromatherapy toiletries, and even a shower spray. We used them during our stay, and felt that the scents were all very strong and clashed together! Every item in the bathroom had a different scent, and we felt they were battling to overpower one another. Our room also had a small coffee bar set up with Nespresso products! It came stocked with two espresso cups, multiple flavor pods with decaf and regular options, along with cream and sugar packs. The coffee bar also came stocked with two cans of water.
Although the room was extremely spacious, the patio was not! We were a little disappointed by how small the patio was, it was hard to turn the chairs outward towards the view since the patio was so narrow! Despite the patio size, we enjoyed it! We were able to sit above the waves as they rolled in and watch sea otters swim by with the binoculars provided by the hotel. The biggest plus about the room was the view, we loved being able to sit and enjoy the wildlife without leaving the comfort of our room!
We did not know that the property did turndown service, so we were shocked to see our stuff moved around when we got back to our room after dinner! Our bed was re-made, towels refreshed, and two little chocolates sat on our pillows with the weather forecast for the next day. We loved the little touch of adding the chocolates and the weather forecast with turndown! We wish we had been informed at check-in that there was a turn-down service. We were unaware and left the room in a small wreck since we left in a rush to dinner! We felt bad for the housekeeping staff who came in and organized our clothes during the turn-down service while we were gone!
We tried to order room service in the evening, but we could not find a menu in the room. We looked online and after much digging, finally found it, only to find that it had closed at 9:00 pm. They did not offer any sort of late-night, or all-night menu, at least that we could find! We found it odd that for a hotel of this status, we had to search so hard for a menu, and that they did not offer any late-night room service.
Property:
The property has many amenities such as rooftop hot tubs, an acclaimed spa, multiple on-site restaurants, and even kayaking add-ons! During our stay, we were able to try one of the onsite restaurants Schooners for some light bites and drinks. They have an outdoor patio that sits just above the water and provides amazing views of the bay and the sea life swimming by.
We were also able to enjoy the property's rooftop hot tubs! There are two hot tubs on the roof overlooking the ocean, complimented by a roaring fireplace. It was delightful to sit and relax in the hot tub and take in the view. While we were enjoying the view, the staff came in, shut the fireplace off, turned the hot tubs off, and simply told us "out.”
When we checked our phones we saw it was 9:00 PM on the dot! If you plan on stargazing from the hot tub make sure to set an alarm on your phone since there are no clocks out there, that way you do not get kicked out!
The property also has a bike rental shop attached that they are partnered with. We were not told of any discounts and are unaware of any unless you book a room package with the bike rental included. They also host kayaking tours from the property, but we were not told of any discounts if you are staying there! The property is well known for its spa, and it is one of the top-rated in the area! We were so excited to try a spa service, but they had no availability while we were there! If anyone has tried the spa let us know if you enjoyed it below!
Check out:
Check-out went smoothly, we did not have to do anything besides leave our keys in the room. Check-out time for Monterey Plaza Hotel is 12:00 PM which we enjoyed as it let us have a coffee and start the day slow. Later in the day, we got an email receipt and everything was correct there! We also opted to not valet our car, so we did not have to handle valet.
Wallet-friendly tip:
If you do not want to pay for valet parking there is street parking nearby that is free from 8:00 pm until 9:00 am! To pay the meter in the morning you can use the Parkmobile app, and do not even have to get out of bed to pay your meter! When the meter was on it cost us about $8 for four hours.
California Monterey Hotels: Monterey Plaza Hotel Summary
Our recent stay at the Monterey Plaza Hotel cost us $607.72 for one night in a king ocean-view room with a patio. We opted out of valet since street parking was free overnight! The hotel offers many amenities like rooftop hot tubs, on-site restaurants, and turndown service in the evening. We enjoyed the views from our room, and loved that they included binoculars for us to view wildlife! The patio in our room was small, and we wish it had been bigger. We could not even turn our chairs and sit facing the ocean it was so narrow! We also encountered a few staff members who were not the friendliest, like at check-in and the hot tub. We feel that the price is a little steep for the service we received, and we can find similar views for less in the area! We would consider staying in one of the cheaper rooms which can be closer to $300 a night, but do not think we will book an ocean-view patio again! Have you stayed at the Monterey Plaza Hotel before? Did you think your stay was worth your wallet? Let us know below!
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