Our return in March of 2023 was quite spectacular relative to our first visit just over a year ago. In fact, I dare say this has leapt to one of my top spots— if not THE top spot— in Northern California.
Our visit was unplanned and unexpected. As we started the journey to Carmel Valley Ranch, we got a text informing us that the power was out in guest rooms, and not expected to be restored until late the following evening. We were given the option to cancel, so I looked at other availability in the region. At 45,000 points a night, the Ventana was not a cheap alternative, but I noticed that suite availability was wide open. Given how many reports from other Hyatt Globalists there were about getting upgraded, I figured my status with the chain meant I would have it in the bag if I booked. This definitely impacted my decision to make the booking, considering I had been deterred from returning in part because of our poor experience in a standard room last year.
After verifying that power was on and roads were open, I made the move to cancel Carmel Valley Ranch and secured our room at Ventana. We then drove the extra 30 minutes south on Highway 1.
We arrived at just past 3 P.M on a rainy afternoon. The valet took our car and handed us an umbrella for the short walk up the steps to the lobby. We were immediately welcomed by all four staff in the room and chose a check-in desk to get situated.
The agent warmly welcomed us back to the resort and went over amenities and activities. Some surprises were in the mix, including a happy hour from 4-5 at the Sur House restaurant and access to the saunas at the Spa. As I had anticipated (and basically expected), we were upgraded to the Forest Shower Suite.
We secured dinner reservations for 7:30 and walked over to our room.
Our room was room #14. It was directly behind the social house. It was a handful of steps up from the sidewalk. Among other things, it featured high ceilings on the top floor of its building, the standard oversized tub, fireplace, spacious seating area, and a dual showerhead outdoor shower. The toilet was doored off from the rest of the bathroom, and there was access to the deck from both the bathroom and the bedroom.
The complimentary minibar was stocked with Soda, water, and soda water. Above that was energy bars, trail mix, chocolate covered berries, and chocolate covered nuts, along with a box of almonds.
In the room there was a Bose speaker and a vinyl record player. Records were available to borrow from the lobby.
A basket contained three burlap bags of firewood. Placing these in the fireplace and lighting the instruction paper on fire was wonderfully convenient.
The last thing of note was when I realized I had left my USB charger at home, and all I was left with was a USB-C to USB-C cable. The bed’s headboard not only had USB slots, but a port to directly plug in a USB-C cable.
After exploring the room, we ordered room service. Along with a charcuterie platter, we ordered chips and salsa, a brownie, and some strawberry ice cream. The delivery estimate was 35 minutes, but it came in closer to 25 minutes.
The food was pretty impeccable, and we instantly devoured a good portion of it.
No sooner did we finish that then it was time for Happy Hour at the Sur House restaurant.
In light of the rain, we opted to take a buggy over, and were there in a jiff.
The Sur House restaurant is where guests will spend a substantial portion of their time during their stay. While in 2022 lunch was served down the hill at the Smokehouse Restaurant, this time breakfast, lunch, happy hour, and dinner all took place at The Sur House. During good weather, guests have the option of patio seating, and there’s a lovely ambience to the outdoor space and bar. This time around the weather was uncooperative, but I’ve provided pictures from our first visit, when we had a chance to sit outside for a few meals.
At happy hour, we were limited to a single drink apiece, and were brought a “Marine Layer”, and excellent cocktail with a smoke bubble placed gently atop. While there was a bit of novelty to it, it was still a strong and decent drink, enjoyed with some truffle cashews. French fries and Cheese Platters were also being served on request.
We stepped outside after our drinks to find the mist had mostly cleared away.
With a gap between happy hour and dinner, we decided to walk back to the room. But we didn’t make it all the way before spontaneously stripping down and enjoying some time at the Japanese baths. This jetted and private area was quite enjoyable, and a few others made their way in as well. After a bit of time there, we tried our hand at the clothing-optional pool, but it was too cold to justify plunging all the way in. The hotel claims their pools are heated to 84 degrees, but on both visits, they were uncomfortably cold, perhaps attributed to wind and rain.
We spent a little more time at the room and a bit at the social house before changing and heading back to the Sur House. Again we chose to walk, as the rain had basically cleared out.
The walk between the rooms and the Sur House is always lovely. At night, lighting gives the path a romantic ambience, during the day you can enjoy the sights of the trees. It’s only about 10-12 minutes to get there, with a slight incline towards the end.
We were immediately seated upon entrance, and our server Juan—who served us on our last visit as well— welcomed us back.
For dinner I chose Dungeness Crab as an appetizer with Halibut for our entrée, and a Fig Cheesecake for dessert. Meanwhile, my wife had both The Hen Egg and the Harvest Lettuces. Overall, dinner was great, and service was on point.
Before calling it a night, we secured a couple activities for the following day. Then we returned to the room, started a fire, and fell asleep.
On Saturday we only managed to sleep until 8, but we didn’t bother with breakfast.
We made another fire, hung out in the room, explored the spa, and relaxed until around 11, when we got ready to go out for Axe Throwing. This was a paid activity which ran $35 per person.
At 11:30, we showed up at the Redwood Cathedral… a clearing along the path between the rooms and the restaurant. There, Nancy taught us a few various techniques for throwing and we tried our hand a standard, overhead, and underhand are throwing, before engaging in light competition.
The experience lasted half an hour, and we followed it with a terrific lunch at the Sur House.
While about half of the entire menu appealed to me, I opted for Grilled Fish Tacos, while my wife had the catch of the day: swordfish. We also shared a mango matcha pudding.
We concluded the meal with a pair of warm chocolate chip cookies served with vanilla ice cream.
Next up was the Botanical Pours, another paid activity that ran $60 per person. We showed up to The Loft, immediately next to The Sur House restaurant, and found a table with four barstools prepped for a wonderful cocktail making class. Tiffany showed us the ropes on creating a simple syrup from honey, and we made a fantastic hot toddy (one with bourban and one with gin) a dried orange, anise, cinnamon stick, and dried curacao, and the honey simple syrup.
Next up was a rosemary lavender fizz, a drink even more up my alley. We separated an egg and shook the whites to make foam. Then we added gin, lemon juice, honey syrup, and a touch of club soda.
We enjoyed our beverages while Tiffany took us to a nearby path and showed us various plants growing on the property thaf could be used to add flavor and garnish. To conclude the experience, she Tiffany put together a take-home bag with a variety of garnishes.
No sooner had we finished that then it was time for my wife’s facial at the spa.
I worked on this review while enjoying a complimentary Margherita at the social house. Due to inclement weather, free beverages were being offered to guests, and I happily devoured one. Albeit, the Margherita served to my wife the following day was far superior.
The spa treatment ended shortly before 5, and I rushed to the Sur House to get in on happy hour before it ended. I ordered us two Marine Layers and a Charcuterie plate ahead of my wife arriving from the spa herself.
Afterwards, again we had the opportunity to enjoy the Japanese Baths, and we found we were the only ones there. After relaxing there and putting away things in the room, we went straight back to the Sur House for dinner at 6:30.
This time we decided on Burrata, Salmon, and California Beef, while we took a Cheesecake and additional Burrata back to the room for dessert.
While I didn’t particularly care for the cut of beef, it was edible enough, and the Burrata was particularly fantastic.
We finished the evening with some relaxation at the dry Sauna by the spa, and with another fire in the fireplace, and we went to bed around 10.
It was not an entirely uneventful evening though, as while we were enjoying the sauna, a creature began to attack the walls. I jokingly suggested it was a bear, but what we found outside was much more vicious.
This creature stalked us to our room, and we finally had to shoo it away to get inside.
The following morning, while both of us could’ve lay in bed longer, a family of woodpeckers had other plans and began to disturb us at 7:30 by pecking at our wall. Factoring the time change we experienced, it felt more like 6:30 when we got up and pounded back on the wall to scare them away.
Since we were up, we went ahead and ordered breakfast to the room. As with our first experience, we were told 35 minutes, but it came in closer to 25.
For breakfast we ordered a Croque Madame, Huevos Rancheros, and the Ventana Breakfast with scrambled eggs and bacon. The food was great, and I especially enjoyed my scrambled eggs… unlike so many others, these were seasoned to perfection and went down easy.
We enjoyed our meal with hot chocolate and orange juice while we sat by the fire in the fireplace.
I next went to the front desk to inquire about a late checkout. While I requested 1 P.M, they were only able to accommodate a noon checkout. But they did clarify that lunch was included, and that I was welcome to remain on property longer if I desired. This ended up working fine for us.
We got our bathing suits on and wandered over to the hot tub. With the poor weather still in force, we found ourselves being the only ones using the area, and enjoyed watching the mist drift through the forest.
We followed this with another stint in the dry sauna, then rinsed off at our room’s outdoor shower. We packed our things then went to the lobby to check out. My wife picked up a couple items from the spa, and enjoyed another free Margherita at the social house. The valet loaded our bags into our car, and we drove the short distance to the restaurant where we enjoyed a Chicken Quesadilla, a Spicy Chicken Sandwich, and took some additional cookies to go.
While this trip was excellent, and I anticipate returning, I’d be remiss to ignore our first experience in January of 2022. During our first trip we were immediately disturbed by the sounds of pacing dogs in the room above us. This property is pet friendly, and there are many who bring their dogs. So long as there’s availability, it seems the norm is that Globalist members get upgraded to suites or villas, so ending up on the bottom floor might not be typical. But between ending up on a bottom floor room, a poorly constructed charcuterie delivered to us in a to-go container, and a sudden fire that required an additional 3 hour drive south to get home, I was not keen to return after our first visit.
Even on this trip, weather threatened to close off the road leading north, and with the south route being blocked by a landslide earlier in the year, I was not without some anxiety. I also wonder how frequent being woken by woodpeckers is, though the first morning there was quiet. Oddly, the food and its presentation was slightly better on our first visit (room service aside), though it was still quite enjoyable this time around.
Ultimately: this property is an excellent and unique retreat, and a great value on points. It’s not without its flaws, but seems to be making improvements. I’d highly recommend a visit.
I invite you to scroll through the remaining images from both our visit in January of 2022, when we were placed in a King Deluxe Room with Fireplace, and from this visit in March of 2023. Also, check out this short video I took while walking around the outskirts of the property.
