Sep 28, 2016, 11:56 am
- Wireless, high-speed Internet access in guest rooms and common areas.
- Outdoor Yoga, Pilates, and Seaside Hikes alternate daily.
- Shuttle service to and from Salt Creek Beach on an individual guest request basis (not applicable to group transfers).
- Access to resort’s Beach Butler Service and use of beach recreation equipment including towel service, umbrellas, and beach chairs.
- Unlimited use of the Tennis Courts including rackets. Tournament and clinic fees are additional.
- Courtesy resort driver – transportation within 3 miles of the resort.
- Complimentary 45 minute private photography session and one digital image (not applicable to special occasions and events).
- A special Garden Tour experience where you discover Birds, Bees, and Butterflies local to Dana Point in the beautiful Eco-Adventure Garden, reserve through the [email protected] m.
Valet fee is $70 per night
Platinum benefits:
- Free breakfast is no longer offered
- 1,000 welcome points
- One category upgrade based upon availability (usually a coastline or ocean view room)
Tips from a local:
- If you want to avoid the $70 valet fee and don't mind a 10 minute stroll you can park for free on Niguel Rd & Stonehill Dr on the hill except for Friday’s between 10am and Noon.
- The marine layer usually burns off around noon to 1pm each day.
- May, June, and early July are known as “May gray/June gloom”. This time of the year is usually overcast and not the most ideal beach weather. Hot summer weather is usually July to mid-October.
- Beach Hut Deli and Moulin are cheaper places for lunch and are a ~3 minute walk. There is a hidden walking path on the backside of the property that makes walking there slightly easier at Cabrillo Isle & Ritz Carlton drive.
- If you live in the area there is a locals "anniversary" card that allows for a 15% discount on food/alcohol/spa and free valet parking for the day for two cars (not for overnight stays). You will need to show evidence that you live in the area.
- Valet is $5 for the day if visiting a restaurant or marketplace.
- The free OC Parks Summer Concert Series on the Salt Creek Beach lawn is usually a few weekends in August and is very popular locally. Alcohol is sold and usually multiple food trucks. They also have free movies on the lawn during the weekends in August.
Ritz Carlton Laguna Niguel [Master Thread]
Mar 7, 2017, 8:38 pm
The Ritz-Carlton, Laguna Niguel
1 Ritz Carlton Dr Dana Point, CA US 92629
Lovely Stay. Superb Staff (3 Photos)
The Ritz-Carlton, Laguna Niguel
We spent 4 days at this property. It was lovely. The service superb. The location on a bluff breathtaking.
Check In
Check-in was thorough and the desk agent took the time to explain the resort to us. The only blimp in our entire 4 day stay was our first few minutes…..she listed our amenities as a FHR Platinum Amex reservation which included space available upgrade. When I asked her if there were any upgrades available she looked and said “ no”. A minute later as the welcome monologue continued she asked us if “we would like to upgrade our room” with the implication there would be a rate increase if we did. It was a little off putting and confusing to be told no Amex upgrade but then offered one if we were to pay for it.
Edit: I wrote the GM while still here about our first encounter and upgrade confusion. The GM's office as well as the Front Desk Manager contacted me and bent over backwards to make it right. Their out reach was exemplary and a further example of the outstanding staff and management.
Room
We were in a club level coastal view room. Adequate well-appointed room, albeit a little small…..and a tiny terrace with a wonderful view of a park and partial ocean but ( at least during our stay) always in the shade so a bit too cold and windy to use. The marble bathrooms are beautiful but no vent so they steam up easily. This was the most expensive hotel room we have ever stayed in ( over $1000 a night) and we felt the value was lacking a bit for the room. We tried to move our room to an ocean front ( the website said there was availability but the front desk said it was an error). The view in these rooms are spectacular and the rooms much warmer from late afternoon sun. Next time.
Service
The best part of the Club Level...and this is the ONLY way I would do this hotel again…. Is the near perfect superb concierge service and the non-stop food offerings in the lounge. Open bar as well as breakfast, light lunch, and enough hearty appetizers to make a dinner. And the food was outstanding. Not your usual because it’s free lets scimp…..everything was well-prepared, well stocked, and delicious. The Club staff were stand-outs. Everyone of them. They were so friendly and gracious that they made us feel special. In all my 61 years of travel I have never experienced staff as wonderful and attentive as I did at this resort.
Overall
The hotel is a grand dame… it is meticulously maintained and feels historic ( in a good way) but I felt some of the public spaces ill-conceived. The ocean and magnificent view is why we are here….and so many of the grand vistas are blocked by walls, small windows, and claustrophobic halls. I think this has to do with the building’s age, the steady wind that blows, and the layout of the rooms offered. Surprisingly, few offer full ocean view.
I love this hotel and hope to return one day. The service and staff is what makes it shine and sets it above all the rest.
Last edited by david55; Jul 13, 2017 at 1:39 pm
Mar 9, 2017, 12:54 pm
We tried to move our room to an ocean front ( the website said there was availability but the front desk said it was an error). The view in these rooms are spectacular and the rooms much warmer from late afternoon sun. Next time.
Club Level...Open bar
few offer full ocean view
club ocean not available? that would have been one category upgrade
sometimes rooms are available for part of stay (can sometimes switch)
seems jump from club coastline to club ocean runs 40 to 200 per night
definitely let GM/office know about the great staff, including by name
Last edited by Kagehitokiri; Mar 9, 2017 at 3:14 pm
Mar 9, 2017, 1:01 pm
Not sure if they are still offering them, but ask the hostess at Raya for a Silver Anniversary card. It gets you a 25% discount on food/beverage throughout the hotel and maybe more, but that's all we use it for. You get an instant 15% discount with your resto/bar check and then the hotel sends you a $100 voucher for every $1,000 of spend, although you have to persist to get to voucher.
Mar 9, 2017, 3:00 pm
Mar 9, 2017, 6:36 pm
One feature they mentioned was going to see the Pageant of the Masters in the summer, and getting their prime tickets...we did this once (we've stayed at this hotel twice), and it was incredible!
If you've never heard of the Pageant of the Masters, it is put on every summer by the townsfolk of Laguna Beach. They pose as famous paintings. It is so hard to describe...and sounds really dorky...but even my husband, who is SO not into Fine Art Museums, after 5 minutes, said "this is the most magnificent thing I've ever been to"...oh, and that was not with the Ritz Carlton tickets. That was the FIRST time we went, when we sat pretty far back.
Fast forward several years to going again, staying at the R-C, and getting their tickets, thinking "oh we'll be so close the magic will be lost" - the tickets were in the 5th row, and the illusion was even MORE magnificent.
I don't have the vocabulary to describe it adequately, but look it up, and stay at this wonderful hotel, and be prepared to be blown away by the performance.
Mar 9, 2017, 8:38 pm
Mar 9, 2017, 10:49 pm
seriously incredible, especially for north america. i wonder how RC clubs at FLL, central park, washington are these days. such examples explain why many are fans of top clubs and other top properties that are similar.
Last edited by Kagehitokiri; Mar 9, 2017 at 10:55 pm
Mar 10, 2017, 5:36 am
I love this hotel service, location and food, I would definately come back as it is now in my top 3 hotels in the world.
1. Al maha
2. Ritz Carlton Laguna
3. Emirates Palace
May 31, 2017, 1:43 am
Also, Platinums do not get free valet parking. Was informed by the front desk at check in that platinums get free resort fee and $60 breakfast credit.
Sep 10, 2017, 11:21 am
The basic room is super pricey ... $789 a night (but it is one of the few Marriott properties on a beach in Cali ....) . Its slightly more through the Amex FHR program. the next level room up is substantially more expensive. The Amex FHR program includes breakfast vs. a $60 credit.
Are there any recent experiences on upgrades for Plats/Plat Premiers or through the FHR program?
Sep 11, 2017, 3:16 pm
Did have to pay for parking though.
Overall a wonderful stay and I would love to return one day, but I have too many other hotels to get to first!
Club level was really great but its definitely not worth $375 a night