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Laguna Beach Motor Inn – reviews, photos

985 N. Coast Highway, Laguna Beach, CA 92651
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Ranked #21 of 22 hotels in Laguna Beach
2.5 of 5 stars 6 Reviews
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6 reviews from our community

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Costa Mesa, California
1 review
“Horrible place to stay”
1 of 5 stars Reviewed 17 September 2011

I stayed at this hotel for a wedding I was attending yesterday and was very upset when I had booked the room with the manager a few days prior. I requested 2 beds and when I arrived, the manager who claims his name was John, had very poor managerial skills. When I asked why I was given a 1 bed room he simply shrugged it off and didn't even apologize for his error. He made one attempt to rectify the situation by asking me to ask another hotel guest if they wouldn't mind switching as they just checked in as well. He assumed since they were part of the wedding party that I knew them. Either way, I don't believe he had the nerve to ask me to do his job for him. The couple had already left there room when he reluctantly went to ask them about switching. Since my check in was too close to the start of the wedding, I did not have any spare time to locate another hotel. The manager John made no further attempts to satisfy my request that of 2 beds claiming he was booked and had no other rooms available. I then asked for a discount on my room which he refused as well. When I continued my request for satisfaction he tried to end the conversation by saying take it or leave it. I advised him that I would be posting my review of this incident and his lack of effort to fix his mistake. He said he didn't care what I did basically telling me to f*** off.

So the next day as I am in the bathroom trying to leave, I see a disgusting bug of some sort that I killed and took a picture of as proof. I think it was a water bug. Knowing the manager wouldn't care, I didn't bother to report the new issue. My friend who was also staying at this hotel, came to my room in the morning to complain of his torn and shredded bed sheets that looked to be 50 years old. I have a picture of that as well.

Overall I have nothing positive to say about this place. I will never stay here again and will tell all of my friends and family to stay away. If John had at least been a little more sympathetic and caring for the request or at least admitted to his mistake, I wouldn't be writing my review

Room Tip: Anywhere but the Laguna Beach Motor Inn
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  • Stayed September 2011, travelled with friends
    • 1 of 5 stars Value
    • 1 of 5 stars Rooms
    • 1 of 5 stars Service
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Ask jason r about Laguna Beach Motor Inn
This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC
Las Vegas
2 reviews
3 helpful votes 3 helpful votes
“Only worth staying at if you want to be able to walk to the beach”
2 of 5 stars Reviewed 1 August 2010
2
people found this review helpful

My girlfriend and I took a recent vacation to Cali that was unexpectedly extended due to car problems. We stumbled upon this hotel by chance. It was the first hotel we came across when we entered into Lugana Beach and we saw that it was only a block from the beach. The rate for a Monday was only $99 so we decided to stay there. The hotel was very old so we didn't expect much.

When we entered our room Ie saw that it was somewhat smaller than average. The bathroom and shower were very small. The room had a queen bed, small refrigerator, table, and two chairs. The walls had been freshly painted (possibly from a remodel) and everything seemed cleaned. It wasn't until later in the night when I went to turn the heater on that I noticed that there was no ac/heater system installed in the room. There was only a small portable plug-in heater/fan in the room (it actually worked quite well). I then went to call the front desk and saw that the room had no phone, or even phone lines installed. At this point, I was not surprised to see that their was no clock in the room either.

Our room was towards the front of the hotel which borders PCH. The walls looked thick but I woke up in the middle of the night from road noise (didn't bother my girlfriend's sleep). Just outside of the room's entry door was a hallway balcony with two sitting chairs where you could sit and watch traffic. We saw that positioned throughout the hotels courtyard were potted plants. The grounds grass and schrubbery were immaculately maintained. There was a soda machine, ice maker, and coffe maker near the office. The pool was a nice size (up tp 7 feet deep) and also heated. No jacuzzi though.

In the morning we walked down a steep hill from the hotel and numerous stairs as we descended into a cliff to the beach. There was about 200 yards of beach where we were at and it was bordered on both sides by rocks (similar to a reef). The back drop was the cliff itself behind us. There were only about 30 other people on the beach. We saw that there were snorkerlers in the water, a couple of professional photographers taking pictures (one of a couple poising), and a fisherman on the nearby rocks, it had the feel of a private beach. I don't know the name of the beach but it definitely is a best kept secret.

We were aware that there were better rooms available at the hotel with a view, kitchen, or balcony but at much higher rates. Some of the rooms are 3 month rentals and possibly longer. I don't think the hotel quality would have improved if we spent more money on a better room and if we were willing to do so we would probably be staying somewhere else. Although our room had no ac controls, telephone (hence no room service), or clock we found that we did not need these items anyway. The weather was comfortable at about 75 degrees during our stay and at night the heater fan worked quite well. Also, I used my cell phone to make calls and also as an alarm clock.

My girlfriend and I talked in depth about this hotel and we both reached the same conclusion. Despite its many short comings, the distance to such a remarkable beach made up for it. Ordinarily when we are on vacation we don't spend much time in the hotel room anyway. We found this hotel to be clean and we felt safe in it. We would stay here again and recommend it to a friend however, if you want luxury and to be pampered your better off staying elsewhere.

  • Stayed July 2010, travelled as a couple
    • 3 of 5 stars Value
    • 4 of 5 stars Location
    • 2 of 5 stars Sleep Quality
    • 2 of 5 stars Rooms
    • 4 of 5 stars Cleanliness
    • 1 of 5 stars Service
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Ask VegasTravelin about Laguna Beach Motor Inn
This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC

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1 review
“this is a charming older hotel.”
1 of 5 stars Reviewed 8 July 2009

We had an ocean view suite with a balcony in the front of the room with a table and chairs. We had a couple chairs and table in the room along with a refrigerato and microwave. We stayed on a Monday night and it was only $129. It is and older remodel hotel. The bed was comfortable and it was worth the money. It is a quick walk to the beach. The grounds at the hotel are very charming.

  • Stayed July 2009, travelled as a couple
    • 5 of 5 stars Value
    • 4 of 5 stars Location
    • 3 of 5 stars Rooms
    • 3 of 5 stars Cleanliness
    • 4 of 5 stars Service
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Ask luv2otravel1950 about Laguna Beach Motor Inn
This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC
Long Beach, CA
Senior Contributor
22 reviews 22 reviews
Reviews in 11 cities Reviews in 11 cities
38 helpful votes 38 helpful votes
“Not worth the price”
2 of 5 stars Reviewed 27 August 2008

This hotel has a great location just steps from the beach and a large heated pool. But for $200 a night we got a room in desperate need of renovation, a "kitchenette" stuffed into a closet with the smell of leaking gas. No phone, no clock, no view and a refrigerator next to the bed instead of a night stand (it couln't fit into the closet) There were a few people appearing to live there and kids running around in their diapers in the courtyard. What a wierd experience!

  • Liked — location
  • Disliked — room quality
  • Stayed August 2008, travelled as a couple
    • 2 of 5 stars Value
    • 5 of 5 stars Location
    • 3 of 5 stars Check-in / front desk
    • 1 of 5 stars Rooms
    • 2 of 5 stars Cleanliness
    • 3 of 5 stars Service
    • 1 of 5 stars Business service (e.g., internet access)
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See 4 more reviews by SweetnDandy for Laguna Beach
Ask SweetnDandy about Laguna Beach Motor Inn
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missouri
1 review
“it's my favorite place to stay”
4 of 5 stars Reviewed 15 February 2008

I've stayed at his motel for many years. I am 42 with 4 children and i own a business. This is not a fancy hotel if that is what you are looking for...however, there is a great little coffee shop just across the street that we go and get early morning java and head down the street to Shaws Cove and sit on the beach and watch the sun come up....every room has a beautiful view of the ocean and it is very old and nostalgic.....we don't spend our day's in the room, so room luxury is not what we love...we love the smell of jasmine in the courtyard and the beautiful views and the great coffee and short jaunt to the beach.....I could afford to stay in any place in Laguna, but this cute little place is our special place and will continue to stay there every year that we go.

  • Liked — the views and the proximaty to the beach
  • Stayed October 2006, travelled with family
    • 4 of 5 stars Value
    • 5 of 5 stars Location
    • 4 of 5 stars Check-in / front desk
    • 3 of 5 stars Rooms
    • 3 of 5 stars Cleanliness
    • 4 of 5 stars Service
    • 3 of 5 stars Business service (e.g., internet access)
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Ask lele4laguna about Laguna Beach Motor Inn
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