Stayed in the guest house
Checking in was quick and easy. Within 5 minutes we had our key and proceeded to the guest house. We opted for the guest house because my wife didn't want to have to hike around outside in the middle of the night over to the restrooms. The guest house nice, however it was smaller than I envisioned. Basically, the building is a wooden yurt that has a wall down the middle and you only get one half. On-site staff live on the other side of the wall, and we could hear them talking and watching TV at night through the thin wall. As a guest, you don't get a TV, so it was kind of annoying hearing people watching one when you come to this place for the peacefulness of it all. The shower was dirty when we checked in, hair on the floor. A quick rinse cleaned it up. The rest of the unit was was clean. I was wishing there was an alarm clock in the bedroom, but with the thin curtains over the front door, the sun will wake you up when it rises anyways.
The pool was nice because when they say heated pool, it is really heated to the point you can get in; unlike some places that say they have a heated pool and it still feels like ice water. The spa was also very nice. There are some comfortable plastic chairs around the pool and there is a nice sitting area behind the plexiglass where you can relax and view the ocean.
We ate dinner there one night and I had the tri-tip and my wife had the chipotle chicken. Both were good. The rice was a little on the cool side. I didn't like that we had to serve our own drinks. They tell you that gratuity is to be paid in cash, but all they do is bring you your plate and don't even check with you later to see if everything is alright. For around $20 a plate they could at least serve you your drinks. I had water, but they give you small cups and I had to get up three times to go back to pour myself another cup. Alcohol/sodas are in the adjoining store and you just go pick what you want there and they charge it to your bill. The dinner is also charge to your bill, which you settle when you check out.
The views are spectacular. There is even a pair of powerful binoculars mounted on the outside bar that you can use to scan the coastline. Watching the fog being blow down the cliffs out to sea was amazing. We could even hear the bark of elephant seals from the grounds.
I was dissappointed that they didn't utilize their fireplace in the lodge. Granted, it was summer time, but the weater was still cool at night. Also, there is large flat panel TV mounted above the fireplace that they use to play some nature movie of beach scenes. Too bad it played choppy because you could see all the pixelation (square boxes) like there was some bad connection.
The waffle breakfast was just as the name implies. If you enjoy waffles, then you will like this. The waffle was good, but I need more. There is instant oatmeal available too and one day there were apples, but the next there was NO fruit. It wouldn't be hard to offer more choices, like cold cereals, donuts/danishes, bagels, muffins, etc. Holiday Inn has a better continental breakfast. Watch out for the yellow jackets that swarm the syrup containers every morning.
The lodge also offers a small library and a stock of board/card games. We played a few games to entertain ourselves and we had fun doing that.
All in all it was a very peaceful and relaxing time, which is exactly what we expected it to be. I think the price is a little high for what you get, but the views are what it is all about. If you are looking for that quiet atmosphere and remoteness, then this is perfect.
