This review is so overdue! We stayed here in April 2010 and still can't forget it. We had a room right on the beach front and could hear the waves as we fell asleep (there is a small window to open for just this reason). Wonderful breakfast of croissants and juice, lovely beach with no one on it, and the feeling that you aren't anywhere near LA. A quaint cottagey beach feel that we can't wait to go back to.

The hotel offers some great views of the ocean and a nice garden, but it's not worth the expense. It's far from "paradise".

Staying at this beach hotel in Malibu may seem like a good idea, but you should keep a few things in mind before booking:

-Malibu is far from most tourist attractions, you will be doing quite a bit of driving if you want to visit them (or pay an expensive cab fare).
-The streets are poorly lit at night and this can get little scary, especially if you plan on driving. Turn on your high beams.
-The "private beach" is actually a very small strip, people from the street sneak in and urinate in the water (openly). My family members were harassed by these unwanted "visitors", and they made extremely inappropriate, sexist remarks. It's not really a private beach because these trashy people easily sneak in.
-You can't swim in the water unless you want to get slapped by the powerful waves.
-There was lots of construction nearby which made it difficult to relax.

There's nothing better than watching the sunset over the Pacific Ocean. The staff at Casa Malibu are great, the accomodations are "key west" cool and the continential breakfast is first rate. The sun deck is the perfect spot to start your day with coffee and fabulous muffins. Love this place in the heart of Malibu. Price is very reasonable.

After checking in, we sat down on the deck and took a few minutes to relax and watch the dolphins swim straight past this wonderful hotel.

Whilst the rooms are more motel than hotel, the staff are probably the nicest of anywhere that we stayed during our three weeks tour of California. Their advice for restaurants and local services was personal and helpful and if we have the chance to return to Malibu, we will stay here again.