The Monterey Inn Bayfront

For over twenty years we have been vacationing in St. Augustine. We will return to St. Augustine, just not this hotel.

The best part about this hotel was the fabulous location. It is right across from the bay and Castillo de San Marcos and within walking distance of just about anything you might want to see in the city. The beds were pretty comfortable and the linens were clean. However, the bathroom floor was dirty, which was pretty gross, and the pool was being emptied, so no swimming. I would recommend this hotel if you're visiting for the beautiful sites and don't want to splurge on the Hilton. Also, you might want to do a once over on the bathroom and make sure it's clean before staying in the room.

Great location but room was not very clean and bathroom very old and outdated. Would not stay here again. Had to pay extra to park. Not worth the money!!

The staff was very friendly. First thing we noticed was the parking. Very, very tight. Check-in wasn't until 3, so we parked, paid our $ for parking. Yes, I said $ for parking. I have to say that this is the first time I have ever had to pay a hotel for parking. Then we walked around the historic district of St. Augustine for about an hour or so. Came back and our room was ready. The front desk clerk was very helpful and friendly. We were able to check in at 12:30. The room was clean. One of the things that we noticed was a very musty smell. It seemed to come from the AC unit. However, after being in the room for a few minutes, the smell seemed to disappear. The TV was very old and the speakers were horrible. Very hard to understand some of the channels...sound was distorted and crackling. The furniture was old and could stand to be replaced. The chair cushions were stained. On the positive side, the bed linens looked to be extremely clean and almost new. The beds were very comfortable and we had a great night's sleep after traipsing around town all evening. Whether or not we will stay there again is up in the air. The location is great, but the accomodations are a little overpriced for the condition that the furniture, TV and AC unit was in.

I was dissappointed that the hotel room was so "stained" and dated. I was surprised to have to pay to park my car at the motel. $7 a day was too much.

We stayed at the Monterey Inn on the 4th of July because it's right across from where ST. Augustine shoots off fireworks. Instead of fighting traffic to get home, we walked across the street and crawled into bed. The rooms are small and could use some updating (pink and gray bathroom), but it was clean and you couldn't ask for a better location. We even made reservations for next year!

stayed at this hotel after extensive online search despite some unsavory reviews. Check in easy, allowed early check in. Clean room and bath. Very soft bed. Very dated rooms that need major overhaul. No sheers in the windows for privacy, you have to either close the curtains completely making the room very dark or have a clear view for all to see as they pass by. Absolutely NO internet access at all.Parking adequate at check in since every one was out and about touring the city. While I was selecting a cheese plate to enjoy at the beach, my husband returned to hotel to retrieve and item we had forgotten. There was not a single available parking spot and 3 cars circling like vultures for a spot to park. All vehicles registered hotel guests! Returning to the hotel to change for dinner, Parking situation way worse! As if this could be possible!! I counted 50 parking spots for the 57 rooms with each room allowed one spot each. clerk on duty directed us to DBL park against a line of vehicles already inappropriatly parked forcing our vehicle to possibly be rear ended by some other poor sap rounding this corner to search for a parking spot. We demanded a refund since this hotels mandatory $7 fee did not guarantee a spot. They stated that they would return the fee however, we could not park on this lot or they would have us towed or fined $130. Their solution for us was to park 3 blocks from the hotel if we didn't pay the fee. About this time, some unknowing victim left his parking spot and we slid in to it walking the city from this point on. Returning to our room at 1200am, the parking lot looked like a herd of cattle with SEVERAL cars completely blocked in.We have photos to prove this. Best yet was the damage to our rear bumper from someone trying to attempt a 250 point turn to simply drive their car out of the parking lot of the hotel that they paid $150/ night for. Were it not for the fact that the additional 7 parking spaces needed for all the guest required folks to be completely boxed/blocked in, this hotel is in a fabulous location. The sundeck overlooking the bay is wonderful. Rooms are clean and adequate with what they lack in modern amenities they make up in location, location, location. Unfortunately,we will not return there simply for the way my husband was spoken to by the owner regarding the parking.

As a facility, the Monterey isn't all that special. In fact, if it were anywhere else, I'd call it "ordinary". Their ace in the hole, so to speak, is it's location. It's right on the bay in downtown St. Augustine, providing beautiful views right out of your window. Night life is wonderful, simply because everything is within walking distance. Plus the motel does have an elevated patio right on the boulevard to enjoy all of the happenings downtown. Service was fine. Cleanliness was fine. All in all a good value. I wasn't disappointed at all. I would go back.

The overall dingyness of the room really detracted from the enjoyment of our stay. The repair work especially in the bathroom was very obvious and second rate. My wife's immediate reaction was that she wanted to leave the very next morning. If we had not been driving all day in a storm we would have left on the spot.

The location is PERFECT...the staff is helpful...the onsite restaurant is GREAT for breakfast...best omelettes I have had...rooms are small and parking is tight...but, we rode the trolley or walked everywhere we went except out to World Golf Village...We would stay there againin a heartbeat!!!!!!