L. Smocer

Review of L'Auberge Del Mar Resort & Spa

5 Star price for a dirty 3 Star hotel. Disappointi...

5 Star price for a dirty 3 Star hotel. Disappointing! Honestly, I regret not paying more attention to the negative reviews of this hotel before I made a reservation. The negative points were accurate. In a nutshell, for $590 for one night (including ridiculous fees such as $29 for valet, $22 for resort fee) you get: 1)dirty fabrics on sofas & chairs in both the public areas and the rooms 2)dirty carpets 3)dirty walls, doors and switches 4)broken fireplace 5)"premium" rooms only have a d i s t a n t view of the ocean from the far corner of small balcony (which has really uncomfortable chairs) 6)no staff elevator so we were often bumping into the valet or cleaning staff with their carts in the one slow, small elevator 7)aloof staff.

The longer story is that we had requested a specific area of the hotel (based on reviewer suggestions). Our first room was not where the reservations agent indicated it would be. Instead, this "really nice room", according to the front desk, was a half story above a large concrete deck where a wedding was about to commence. We would have had absolutely NO privacy unless we shut the blinds and there would have been a lot of noise. Really? For $580/night?! The front desk did change the room but acted miffed about it. We had plans to stay for two nights but chose to go home early instead.

While the architecture/design elements and location were pluses, they definitely did not outweigh the negatives. We did make the best of the situation. We enjoyed the beautiful beach & weather that weekend. But, in retrospect, wished we had spent our hard-earned money somewhere, make that, anywhere else.