About The Ritz-Carlton Laguna Niguel

This Ritz-Carlton property opened in 1983, so it is on the older side. Based on my limited hotel experience and very unrefined taste, the interior of our entry-level room actually felt less impressive than the Aloft I once stayed at in Buffalo, NY. That said, the location is absolutely fantastic, perched between the cliffs and the ocean, as shown below.

Figure 1: The Ritz-Carlton by the beach

That also helped me understand why the room itself did not really feel like what you would expect from a five-star hotel, yet the nightly rate remained so high. Entry-level rooms were a little over 1000 during peak season and a little over 600 during off-peak season, much more expensive than several other Ritz-Carlton properties nearby. Clearly, what you are really paying for here is the land and the view.

Booking

I am usually pretty busy with work and not exactly a frequent traveler, so when I realized the two remaining free nights from the Chase Ritz Carlton credit card I applied for at the last minute the year before were about to expire, I knew I had to use them soon. That was how this spontaneous trip came together. At the time, I was in Nevada, and within about a 12-hour drive, the Ritz-Carlton options were mainly in Northern California, Southern California, Arizona, and Utah. After thinking it over, I decided to keep it simple and book a resort nearby for two days so we could just relax at the hotel without needing to plan much else. That led me to The Ritz-Carlton in the beach city of Dana Point, south of Los Angeles.

As for the room type, I booked it around 11 pm the night before departure. After reading the site owner’s review of The Ritz-Carlton Tianjin, I decided to try emailing the hotel. I was not expecting a suite, but I was hoping for an ocean-facing room since the base-level room only overlooks the interior garden and pool. In my email, I mentioned that it happened to be my 5th wedding anniversary with my ld, and that as a Marriott Platinum Elite member, I understood I might be eligible for a room upgrade. I said an upgrade would be greatly appreciated, but I also understood completely if it was not possible. The hotel replied within 12 hours. It felt like a template response, but still came across as warm and professional. They also said they would send up a small special gift shortly after check-in, and that the front desk would do their best to accommodate the upgrade request when I checked in.

Check-In

We set out around noon on Monday and took our time driving. The traffic around Los Angeles once again reminded me why I do not enjoy living in big cities, and by the time we arrived, the sun had already set. As soon as we got off the freeway and entered the City of Laguna Niguel, it felt like we had driven into an ultra-wealthy area. The streets were unbelievably clean. I once lived in a small city on the East Coast for several years, and I used to describe the streets there as clean enough that you could roll around on them and not get dirty. Here, I felt like if I rolled around on the street, I would be the one making it dirty.

The hotel only offers Valet Parking, just like in the movies: a staff member takes your car to the designated parking area while you unload and check in at the front entrance. The cost was 50 per day, plus tip. I had already looked into ways to save money on parking, since I was staying on free night certificates, but there really was no workaround. Public parking nearby does not allow overnight parking, and violators get towed. So this was one expense I could not avoid. Add in the 50 daily resort fee, and our out-of-pocket cost for the two nights came to 200+tax+tips.

The check-in desk is immediately on the right after you enter. The front desk agent was both friendly and welcoming. Maybe because I was one of the few Asian guests there, before I even introduced myself, she immediately called out "my last name + group," congratulated us on our 5th wedding anniversary, and handed us two glasses of champagne.

There are many large windows in the hallways facing directly out to the ocean, and my ld and I spent the entire walk saying “wow” over and over again, as shown below.

Figure 2: Large ocean-facing windows in the hotel hallways

Room

Based on the room number and the layout of the building, I happily realized that my room had indeed been upgraded from an entry-level garden view room to an ocean view room. Since it was peak season and I was using free night certificates, Ritz-Carlton properties in the US generally do not upgrade guests to suites very easily, so I was already quite satisfied with this outcome. After all, ocean view rooms seemed to be going for 1400+ during peak season, although that felt heavily inflated to me.

As for the room itself, the hardware and furnishings were pretty average. One specific complaint: the toilet paper was extremely thin, honestly worse than what I have at work. The toilet seat was plastic and did not look especially sturdy. The coffee maker and hair dryer both looked like very cheap models you could pick up at Walmart. Soundproofing was also just okay. I got woken up in the morning by things like people stomping upstairs or neighbors shutting their doors too hard. Then again, many buildings in the US are like that, probably because so many use wood-frame construction. The bed, however, was nice and comfortable, and the room temperature was just right.

Figure 3: Inside the room, King size bed ocean view room

Figure 4: Interior decor from another angle

The welcome gift was very nice and at least surprised my ld. I already knew there would be one, so I was not especially shocked, haha. Still, it was clear the hotel had taken my pre-arrival email seriously.

Figure 5: Welcome gift

The main attraction, of course, was the balcony. Unfortunately, our balcony faced a palm tree that partially blocked the view. Still, sitting out there during the day, sipping tea while writing a little code or working through formulas, was incredibly relaxing. During those few days, what struck me most was the Southern California climate. It was just so dry and cool. The small East Coast city where I used to live, as well as my current base in Wisconsin, both have muggy summers. And southern Nevada, where my ld is, is a giant desert, so no need to say much more about that. The dry heat there can practically roast my face off. Yet after just a 4-hour drive from the southern Nevada desert to the Southern California coast, I was free once again from my UV sensitivity, even though the sun is strong in both places. Anyway, enough talk, here are a few daytime and nighttime views from our balcony.

Figure 6-8: Balcony views from the ocean view room

Another thing worth mentioning is that this property is pet friendly. The in-room dining menu even includes food for cats and dogs, though the prices did not look cheap to me at all. The class divide is real…

Figure 9: Menu for cats and dogs

Public Areas

There was a small hiccup during this trip: my ld forgot to bring my camera charger. So on the second day, instead of eating, drinking, and relaxing at the hotel, we headed into town to look for a battery and also checked out some nearby scenery. By the time we returned to the hotel that evening, we arrived just in time for sunset, so we enjoyed it from the public areas.

Figure 10-11: Sunset at the Ritz-Carlton and a distant view of a private party

Again, this was my ld’s fault, haha, so I never got around to trying the pool or gym myself. I only have a photo of the pool taken by my ld, but it looked pretty nice, and the staff there were also very friendly.

Summary

Overall, I would give this stay an 8 out of 10. The hotel’s service, location, and scenery were all top-tier. The one real downside was that some of the in-room amenities were surprisingly underwhelming, including the notably bad toilet paper, the toilet seat, the coffee maker, and the hair dryer mentioned above. This was my first time staying at a Ritz-Carlton, so I do not know whether it was just this property, but my room did not have a mini bar. That said, I would not have planned to pay for something with such poor value anyway.

I am a pretty easygoing person when it comes to day-to-day living, so I landed on an overall score of 8. But if you are someone who really cares about the finer details of comfort and quality, you may want to think carefully about whether redeeming 60k points for one night or simply paying cash is worth it. Rates start around 600 in the off season and 950 in peak season, with additional charges of resort fee 50 per day and valet parking 50 per day.