La Playa Carmel

Visited this delightful hotel in quaint Carmel recently. From the minute of arrival to departure 3 days later, it was apparent that nothing was too much trouble for the staff. A beautiful location with terrific views of the Pacific ocean , this hotel exuded class, but without being glitzy. Some lovely touches such as complimentary wine tasting of an evening , room delivery of cookies, milk, ice and chocolate added to the sense of being very welcome. Highly recommended.

Having planned my trip 6 months in advance, I was very excited to finally arrive in Carmel. However, one week before, La Playa called to inform me that my beautiful poolside room with fireplace was "unavailable." They were going to "upgrade" me to a suite. No excuse, except so sorry for inconvenience. Offered bottle of champagne. When I checked in, i questioned the receptionist about my original room and she informed me that it was "sold out." They just took my room away to give to someone who was , more than likely, staying more than one night. No turn down service - put me on the 4th floor! In what looked like the servants hallway. If you don't care what room you end up with, then make a reservation here. I would never recommend to anyone. There are many more beautiful hotels in Carmel - try one of those!

Where do I begin...They changed the price at checkin ("Oh Yes, the amenity fee went up"), NOT a remodeled hotel, rooms were TINY. We reserved the "Carmel Suite" but it was the same as a roadside motel...No, I take that back, it was SMALLER than a youth hostel. No air conditioning, they gave us a fan but we could not open the windows because our room was above the kitchen and laundry facilities! They would not move us to another room. This was the most overpriced hotel, sorry, Motel, I have ever stayed at. If they charged $200/night it would be fair based on the location but what they are charging is ransom.

For starters- no screens, AC, you can hear EVERYTHING from garbage trucks at 7am to servers preparing breakfast. The bathrooms are something out of a Bates Motel scene. You can feel holes in the floor under grungy brown carpeting. For the price you are paying, stay at Hotel 6. The service might not be as efficient, but your room will be more to your satisfaction. Very disappointing. I am giving a 1 because I'm a nice person.

Where to begin....the sound of the ocean outside our window; absolutely fantastic 'small plate'(not really) delicious food served either inside or on outside deck; chocolate chip cookies and milk in the evening 7:30ish; wine served in the lobby 5:30; stunning grounds that are well cared for; shuttle to and from Carmel during the evening dining hours; package pickup service for those who have shopped all day and don't want to haul their treasure homes; two easy blocks up to Ocean Avenue which is the Main Street in Carmel; chocolates on your pillow at night as well as a little card that tells you what the weather will be the next day (along with fascinating history of the hotel); fresh fruit in the reception area; a truly amazing breakfast buffet served from 7:30 to 10:30 daily...everything you could possibly want for breakfast; helpful,pleasant staff. Great place to bring children and family pet. The rooms are clean, simple and comfortable and the linens on the beds are luxurious as are the beds. Evening and morning breeze through the open windows (no screens but no bugs so lovely) Safes in all of the rooms along with the standard mini bar. If there is something you need...just ask. Parking around the hotel is easy to find (no charge in the small lot or on the street). Simply a beautiful, relaxing place to 'be.' There are some lovely patio/garden rooms that have tables/umbrellas just outside the room and there are some rooms that open onto the pool (I was told those have fireplaces)

Chilled hotel with nice pool area and verandah attached to the bar, a couple of blocks walk from the beach, and from the restaurants of Ocean Avenue. It's comfortable and relaxed, but pretty expensive and they charge a compulsory amenity charge which includes breakfast whether you want it or not. Nice touches include a free wine tasting in the afternoon and champagne with breakfast.

Expecting to arrive at a lovely old hotel ( considering the price of the room per night) I was extremely disappointed to find our room was little better than a third rate motel. A garden patio room - our room is small, dark and dank. The furniture and fittings are cheap and ratty with a horrible carpet to add to the already depressing atmosphere. The bathroom is another horror - worse than motel standard. An amenity fee is charged for a second rare breakfast in a room that is actually padlocked prior to admission. Some of the staff are very rude and dismissive. There is absolutely no service here. We have another three days here and I feel like I have landed in a hotel straight from the set of faulty towers. An absolute disgrace. Save your money and go somewhere else worthy of the prices charged here. I give it a one out of ten - and that is being generous.

We just celebrated our anniversary over Labor Day weekend at this charming Spanish style hotel. There is a loading zone where you can park while you check in. Service was quick and efficient and accommodating. Parking was a bit of a challenge. They do have a parking lot behind the hotel, but it was always full. Being a holiday weekend we had to circle the block several times to finally find a street parking spot. Fortunately, everything is within 6 blocks from the hotel. If you choose not to walk, they have a shuttle van which is clean, and timely. The room was well appointed, and sufficiently modern to satisfy our taste. Nothing musty or Dusty about it at all. The bathroom was surprisingly small. You literally could only have one person in the bathroom at the time, but it was clean, and they had good quality products available for use. This was the only drawback at this facility. Our room had robes, a safe, a refrigerator, Flatscreen TV, Pretty much everything you would need. We were there during a heatwave, but the Honeywell portable fan worked fine for us. You can hear the ocean at night from our room, although The "view" of the ocean was very limited.The breakfast was amazing. We booked our stay through travel zoo, so we accepted the additional charge of an additional $35 to get the breakfast, afternoon wine and cookies, etc. For me, it was worth it. You could have breakfast on the covered patio or inside the restaurant overlooking the beautifully landscaped grounds and partial ocean view. We enjoyed our wine and cookies in one of the several lounge areas which had comfortable couches with Chintz fabric.We did not utilize the pool because there were too many kids in it, but it looked inviting. There were lots of nooks and crannies with tables and comfortable chairs, or you could sit and enjoy the view of the gardens or an indoor fireplace, or outdoor fire pit. The staff was very accommodating and the service from the front desk to the housekeeping to the restaurant exceeded our expectations. It was very relaxing, and I would've been happy to stay there all day and hang out in the garden reading a book, but shopping beckoned to us during the day. It definitely made for a special weekend. The only negative was the small bathroom, and quite frankly that did not bother me too much. I hope you take the opportunity to visit this historic hotel on your next trip to Carmel!!!

La Playa reminds me of the story about the little train engine trying to make it to the top, but just can't get there. The property is in a great location and the layout of the property is good. In my opinion this is where they fall short. ( >Room furniture could be updated >Beds need to be updated/upgraded (Pillow top is indicated, however, the bed was hard. >Pillows, give options, only one type was available and was not comfortable. Other hotels in the area charge the same $$$$, however, provide a more comfortable stay. The service was very good, and the employees at the front desk were excellent.