A great place to stay - loved the pool and perks
Embassy Suites' rooms are great to escape the "side by side double beds" that families are usually subjected to with kids. We got a king room and the kids slept on the pull out sofa, we both had our own tv. Our room had a side view of the ocean and sunset which was a nice extra.
We had never been to an Embassy Suites before and, although this one was a few miles from the Aquarium, I think it was the best choice for us in the area- based on the fact that, at the very least, the kids really wanted to swim. The pool is great (a tad cold), and spa but the beautiful concrete tiling was slippery. It looked like a great gym as glass separated the two areas. Nice facilities there.
We particularly enjoyed the evening drinks and snacks! The kids ran a bit and there was a game room (pool table, a few overpriced video games) adjacent. We hit Chili's (in the same lot as the hotel) and that was fun. The kids loved the macaroni & cheese.
The next morning, the breakfast was nice. I noticed some trouble with not enough coffee cups and a few of the plates were not spotless. We noticed a few people getting food to take up to the room. Later checkout was nice (12).
From there, we got on Hwy. 1 and went to Pacific Grove -Asilomar Beach. It was easy to find if you follow Asilomar signs then left on Sunset and follow it. A great dog friendly beach, tidepools if you go at low tide. It's easy to spend a few hours there. We wandered Pacific Grove a bit until finding the Monarch Butterfly Sanctuary- a pretty cool place that was a few miles over - A few stray monarchs were about. Until it was pointed out, it was hard to see the hundreds with their wings closed (looking more brown) up high clustered in a tree to the right of the entrance to the "trail."