Luxury Hotel Reviews: St. Regis Monarch Beach, Ritz-Carlton Laguna Niguel, Montage Laguna Beach, The Ranch at Laguna Beach

May 17, 2016 | By Seta Kembikian

Our group of Andavo Travel advisors/affiliates on beautiful Monarch Beach.

Earlier this month, I along a few other Andavo Travel affiliates had the opportunity to explore a few Southern California hotels.

We all arrived independently from different parts of the country, where we met up at the Orange County airport. From there we were picked up by St. Regis Monarch Beach’s car service. Upon checking in at the hotel, we were upgraded to spacious suites with coastal views.
The lobby of the hotel is open concept with a very welcoming, modern theme, and all of the staff was friendly and attentive. The hotel recently has undergone a $40 million renovation and looks amazing. There is still construction going on in the pool area, but it is set to be completed by the end of May.

The St. Regis Monarch Beach has a great golf course and great options for food, both on and off site, including Stonehill Tavern, their signature restaurant, as well as AVEO. The beach club restaurant, Monarch Beach Club, is a private establishment that allows only club members and St. Regis hotel guests. It boasts excellent food and is literally on the sand!

The hotel also has a new Miraval spa with 22 treatment rooms and numerous activities including yoga, Yogilates, TRX endurance training, meditation, and more.

Enjoying the beach

The following day we met up for our transfers to the Ritz Carlton Laguna Niguel for a site inspection and luncheon at their Raya restaurant. Of particular note is the Eco Center and activities center including whale watching and eco-adventures for all ages.

We enjoyed the afternoon with free time and all met up for cocktails and delicious food at AVEO.

Our classic ride to take us to our new hotel

Saturday morning we checked out, and were escorted from the St. Regis hotel in a 1956 red Chevrolet Limo (which the owner found on a ranch in Arizona), and taken to The Ranch at Laguna Beach to check-in. We were immediately accompanied to our rooms, and this time we all shared two-bedroom suites. Downstairs held the living room, dining room and a guest bathroom, while upstairs were the two bedrooms – one overlooking the golf course – that shared one big bathroom, all of which featured a beautiful rustic decor theme.

After we all settled in, we met for a wonderful luncheon with the director of Sales & Marketing, Jim Tolbert, who gave us the full story of the property. The reception area and the restaurant are still under construction and should be completed by July 1st. We were also lucky to have Nancy Rosene, who represents this hotel, join us on this part of the trip.

That evening, we headed to the Montage Laguna Beach for another amazing dinner and a tour of their property. All in all, we had a 5 star experience all the way!

I’d like to give a big “thank you” to the St. Regis Monarch Beach, Ritz Carlton Laguna Niguel, Montage Laguna Beach and The Ranch at Laguna Beach for hosting us, and showing us an amazing time.