Wx4caster

I didn't realize the DT didn't participate in HH.. FWIW, Salinas does now have a HGI - at least I assume it's open now.
It's a toss-up between DT and ES, but if the choice is no HH vs. HH plus free breakfast, I'd choose the ES even though it's not right downtown. It would be a few minutes shorter drive from Salinas, and more convenient than driving through Monterey. Coming from Salinas, a right turn on Canyon Del Rey will take you directly there.
It's also close to what the locals consider the best seafood in town, the "Monterey Fish House" - although I've never been, not being one who likes fish..


[This message has been edited by Wx4caster (edited 10-08-2003).]

BingoSF

The ES is indeed very close to this restaurant. The food at the Fish House is good but I wouldn't agree with the reputation that it's the "best in town" (though you hear that it is from virtually everyone). I prefer a couple of places down on the old wharf, about a 5-10 minute drive away (can't recall the names right now).

FWIW, it takes virtually the exact same amount of time to get from Salinas to the ES, the Hilton or the DT. The drive's not fun during "rush" hour though. If there's a brand new HGI open in Salinas, that might be the right call.

installer

I stayed in the new HGI Gilroy (which I believe the previous poster is referring to) last night, and if internet is important to you, look elsewhere. No high-speed, poor modem connect speeds, and frequent disconnections. Additionally, their phone call charges are very aggressive (1.00$ for the first 30 minutes + .05 per minute after that).

However, the drive to Salinas was quick, taking about 25 minutes for 30 miles. The traffic from Monterey to Salinas is much heavier and consequently, will take longer.
On the other hand, the drive

CarmelGreg

Hi,
Depending on where your working in Salinas it's about 25-30 min drive from Seaside. There is a McDonalds, walking distance from the ES but anywhere else you'll have to drive. Traffic on HWY 68 from about 7am till around 9 am is pretty slow going in both directions. The rooms are typical "ES" suites. It's a nice hotel just not near (walking distance) to anything other than McD's and the beach.

Cory6188

I was exploring the Northern CA coast with my family on vacation for a week, and one of our stops along the way was the Monterey/Carmel area. I wasn't completely sure where to stay on the Monterey Peninsula because there was no *wood (sorry!), so I relied upon the always-reliable suggestions of everyone here at FT to stay at the ES Monterey Bay-Seaside.

We arrived at about 1 PM, having driven down from the San Jose area where my sister and her family live. The lobby was bright and well-appointed with the typical garden atrium that all Embassy Suites have. There was a waterfall that dropped from floor to floor in front of one of the elevators - my younger son thought it was the coolest thing ever.

The extremely friendly front desk clerk acknowledged me and motioned for me to come over. He pulled up my reservation and told me that I had been preblocked for an 11th floor corner suite with a view of the bay (the hotel has 12 floors, to give you some perspective). Unfortunately, the room wasn't available at the time, and he guaranteed that it would be ready by 4PM. He offered me a regular suite, non-bayview on the 9th floor, but I decided to wait until later.

We spent the afternoon on Cannery Row and touring the Monterey Bay Aquarium - a must-see for anyone in the area - and returned back to the hotel at about 4:30 PM.

The lobby was a mob scene. The tranquil setting before was now a mass of tired parents and screaming kids - and a line that seemed to be at least an hour long. I inquired to a passing bellman if there was any desk for HHonors members. He grunted "No." So, I proceeded to wait. And wait. And wait some more. Finally, after an hour and fifteen minutes, I got to the front desk.

The clerk, a different women, motioned me over. It was obvious that her patience and friendliness were wearing thin. After a quick checkin, where she simply asked for my last name and said nothing else, we were given keys to our preblocked suite.

The suite was definitely a step larger than the average Embassy Suites suite. It had a large dead area, probably because they had no furniture or anything to fill it with. The suite was very clean, as expected, and did have a nice view of the bay.

When we asked to have an extra set of towels brought up (they only gave us two), it took two hours and three phone calls to get them delivered.

Later that evening, we went down to the Manager's Reception. It was nuts, filled with kids running all over the place - just like checkin! My wife and I waited 45 minutes for a drink because many families in front of us asked for four different things for each person. The hotel had bowls of chips and ketchup (yuck!) to accompany the drinks. Not to sound snobby, but it was apparent that these people were not frequent travelers and were attempting to take advantage of the hotel's offerings.

However, the room was quiet when we finally went to bed - no noise could be heard in the hallway or in other rooms. I was worried about that due to all the small children in the hotel.

The next morning, we went to breakfast early, as to avoid the impending rush of demanding families. The selection was average - only one type of omelette was offered and there were only a few types of other items such as toast, pancakes, etc. We then checked out quickly and left at about 9 AM.

Overall? It was fine for one night, although I don't know if I would want to spend longer there. However, the service may have been lacking to the number of demanding families - I got the impression that these people weren't leaving the staff alone. If I went there at another time, the entire experience might have been different. Would I go back? Yes, I believe so. My family had no problems with our stay - maybe I'm just too picky.

Cory6188

Apparently no one cares about this property...

DJ_Iceman

I'm glad you'd go back, and sorry you had kind of a harrowing stay. That's been my experience at pretty much every Embassy Suites, so it's been years since I've stayed in one again!

Anyway, there are countless better hotels in the Monterey Bay area. Who gave you the advice to stay at the ES in Seaside?

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CO plat, UA prem; Marriott plat, Hyatt plat, Hilton gold, Starwood gold; Avis select, Hertz 5-star, all the others base level...

BingoSF

I don't think it's that nobody cares about the hotel - more that it's been covered in detail in other threads.

I, for one, have spend over 100 nights at this hotel and wouldn't disagree with a word of your description (except we used to get lots of different types of omelets). Preemptive comment: I was forced to stay here. Truthfully, there's not much better in Monterey within a reasonable budget. The Hyatt and the Hilton and the Marriott are all marginally better but nothing to write home about. In fact, both the Hyatt and Hilton are in frantic need of a remodel.

I'm not sure what threads actually recommended the ES, per se.

kymbakitty

Had a State holiday last week, Ceasar Chavez, so hubby and I drove down to Monterey for 4 days and stayed at the ES in Seaside.

I wasn't expecting a whole lot...not sure why, but we were VERY pleasantly surprised. The hotel is, IMHO, in a GREAT location. Lots of great places to run. Decent gym too (with bottled water...always a bonus).

Breakfast was typical, egg beaters and the spray (why bother with egg beaters if they are going to use 3 tablespoons of lard to cook your eggs!) to keep it really low fat. Crap beer...domestic (it is getting harder and harder to find good beer out there at ES), but I brought my own so it didn't matter.

Our room was on the top floor--10th. That floor had just been renovated; new carpet, bed, furniture, drapes, etc. It was very nice. Many of the ES that I am in are like dungeons. The only light you get is from the atrium, which doesn't provide much. Well, on the 10th floor facing the ocean, it is like a beam of light. It was so wonderfully bright in there. We sat out on the balcony each morning and had our breakfast. The balcony was a decent size....probably 8x5...plenty big for two to sit comfortably.

The bathroom had this LONG countertop (enough room for 4 carry-ons), just one sink, but the room was great to put all of our stuff on. I liked that feature.

We saw the new shark exhibit at Monterey Bay Aquarium, had dinner at The Barnyard in Carmel, and actually, one of our best dinners of the trip was at the Double Tree in Monterey (2 Portola Plaza). It was the California Grill and it was SUPERB!!!! They have the best salad bar left in California (includes soup and pasta) and when you order an entree, they throw that in! Yes...we were stuffed and took most of our food home. Great ambience without being stuffy. Great prices too! (They are in the Entertainment Book also.)

Took a drive up 10 and went to Rocky Point. (www.rocky-point.com) Overpriced, but pretty cool. I think our lunch was $50 + and I had one drink, hubby had none. Very expensive, but the view is fabulous. Drove up to Big Sir also...beautiful country. We also did the 17 mile drive along Pebble Beach. Saw a house for sale for $33 million. Wonder if we could afford the maid's quarters? And stopped and shopped a bit at the Pebble Beach resort.

Hubby said he would go back to the ES in a heartbeat. To go to Monterey, you just had to take Del Monte up a mile or so and you are there! There are two bodies of water with trails for running or you can just run under the overpass and run on the beach, which is what I did. You can go for a long run down there.

Weather was great, albeit windy. A real treat and a nice ES.

One thing that I saw that was a first here, they have 4 or 5 personal small reservation stations (instead of one long counter to check in). Very private and intimate. A really nice touch.

Drove home on Saturday...about 3 1/2 hours. Nice drive. Cool place.

Dawn

kymbakitty

I forgot two things. They have the hotest dry sauna that I have ever been in. My jewelery burned my neck (I ALWAYS wear my necklace in the sauna). I LOVED it! Truly the hotest sauna I've ever experienced!

Also, one door down is a "business center." It is open 8 to 8, no one ever seemed to be using it. Free internet access, printer and fax! It was quick too!

Dawn

nwr1txg

Glad you had a good stay. I had a room on the 6th floor in Jan. Very tired, small and noisy. Unless you are booked on the 10th I would think twice! Evening reception was crap and the breakfast was below the usual ES fare. The only positive thing to say about it was is HH points near some of the best scenery on the planet! Highly recommend Pt. Lobos State Park on your next visit!

Jailer

Unless something has changed in the last year, the Monterey ES is one of the (about) six in the US that aren't truely affiliated with HHonors. Status isn't recognized, althought if you fax the bill to Customer Service you get the points credited.

kymbakitty

Jailer:

Are you sure you aren't talking about the DoubleTree in Monterey? That is the only one that I know of (besides the ES in Maui) that does not recognize Hilton Honors.

I was most definitely recognized as a Hilton Diamond, given the Embassy Touch (the one with the two waters, Vienna Cookies and Chips and Granola Bar), given a GREAT room with the ocean view. I rec'd the points within 2 days of my stay and I didn't have to fax anything to anyone.

Incidentially, the fellow checking me in told me that the DoubleTree in Monterey is in litigation because they DON'T offer or accept the Hilton Honor program. So, no...the ES in Seaside most definitely does...

I found the breakfast to be very good. I like egg beaters and I like the spray. They had both. They also had skim milk, which I like. They had plenty of pastries too. I just finished a week stay at the ES in Santa Ana and it didn't have half the amenities. Crapola gym...yucky water. The Seaside ES had a really nice gym (don't find many hotels that have free weights anymore) AND bottled water.

Are you referring to Seaside...because they I got my upgrade/points very quickly!

Dawn

kymbakitty

My husband is the pastry king. He likes good pastries and he was pleasantly surprised. They had cheese danishes along with fruit danishes. I splurged my calories on dinner and fine wine!

Dawn

Jailer

Ah Kitty, you are of course right, my bad.