Just spent two nights here with some friends to burn all the Cat4 certificates that had been accumulating in my account since COVID. Property was fully booked over the holiday weekend, so no real upgrades to be had. We had a 2QQ w/ balcony in the main (Catalina) building, which felt a bit old (popcorn ceilings) and oddly arranged with a corridor leading down to a bathroom. But on the positive front was very large in size (a lot of empty space) and with pretty quick access to everything. Our friends had a 1K room in the Lido building - which was a bit more remote on the property, and seemed quieter. Though their room felt kinda dark even with the windows/curtains open.

Overall experience was good as a Globalist: 4pm checkout was offered up front, valet was free and the crew was fast. Though it's a small traffic circle and you sometimes got stuck waiting between cars during rush checkin times. Breakfast at SHOR was solid. We tried just about everything on the menu, and nothing sub-par except maybe the Avocado Toast -- which only suffered from having been served on a slice of too-thin bread given all the otherwise good ingredients piled on top. Entree standouts included the Huevos Rancheros, Crab Cakes, Steak & Eggs, and French Toast. In terms of quality, I'd concur with what others said above, not as good as WaterTable at HB down the street, but better than most HR's in the Cat3 range. The lobby bar staff was also great, and globalist processing is automatic -- we didn't have to remind anybody to remove any charges from our bills on checkout.

Pool experience was decent. It was super-crowded on account of the holiday weekend. We booked a cabana expecting the busy weekend, and we definitely saw a lot of people circling the pool unsuccessfully looking for empty chairs to sit in. The slide is a bit weird -- pretty short, and just sorta levels out as opposed to emptying into a pool. Upside of this is the height requirement is pretty low, so even our little one could ride it. But even he got bored of it pretty quickly. The food selection seemed pretty limited -- you purchase food and your waiter would give you tickets to go redeem for items at the BBQ station. But the staff was all friendly and fast.

The resort fee was waived as a Globalist, and it's something that a lot of visitors online complain about since most people don't use the included amenities. We didn't really take advantage of the free beach cruisers -- it's still a bit of a long ride to the beach as this property is on the other side of PCH, so would've been largely limited to running around the Newport back bay. Which could be pretty nice -- but it just felt too hot for it over the past weekend. The golf course is also free -- I'm not a golfer but it seemed a bit small -- though could be good for a pressure-free intro-to-golf experience with free loaner equipment. We did kill some time playing tennis at the club next door (also free).

All in all, a pretty decent experience. At current cash rates (~$450/night), I probably wouldn't stay here -- it's not worth anywhere near that even if one does take advantage of all the resort-fee tacked-on amenities. On a revenue stay, I'd probably pony up a few extra dollars and go stay at the HR HB down the street -- which is beach adjacent and has much better pools and slides for the kids (and adults). And at the points rate, for a getaway I'd probably head down to San Diego instead to the GH Manchester or the HR Mission Bay. But if you're sitting on a Cat4 certificate or four and need to use them in Orange County at some place not Disneyland-related, this place may be your best bet.