How did it strike you on arrival?Hello, views! While your first inclination when checking into a hotel is usually to go right to your room and make sure it passes muster, walking straight toward the pool area, which overlooks (and overhangs) the ocean, is the first thing you’ll want to do here. Unobstructed water views, softly swaying palm trees, and the smell and sounds of the sea will strike your senses.
What’s the crowd like?Like any big-name hotel, The Ritz-Carlton has a loyal base of guests who seek the brand out in whichever city they might be in. This base just happens to be a rather well-heeled crew who expects a certain level of perfection and attention to detail that The Ritz has long been known to deliver.
The good stuff: Tell us about your room.If you’re going to stay at a beachfront resort, you should treat yourself to a room with a view. While most of the hotel’s nearly 200 rooms and suites have some sort of view, it might be just a partial one or a glimpse of the Intracoastal Waterway. That’s fine… but you deserve better. We lucked out with an Oceanfront One Bedroom Suite, which, at a massive 600 square feet, included a separate living room, kitchenette with microwave, kettle, and coffee maker, and a wraparound balcony with views from every angle. The almost all-beige palette extended beyond the walls and rugs to the furniture, window treatments, and even the art on the wall, which really allowed the vibrant blue of the ocean to shine through and those calming water vibes to reverberate throughout the entire space. Even the smallest rooms start around 300 square feet apiece, so space isn’t an issue.
We’re craving some deep, restorative sleep. They got us?The easiest way to predict whether you’ll have a great sleep in a hotel room is this: does the hotel sell versions of its mattress for guests to order at home? In this case, the answer is yes. And with good reason. Their beds feature a state-of-the-art gel cooling system, which eliminates that whole routine of pulling your covers off and on all night. And a goose-down duvet is always a welcome addition to a room, no matter what time of year.
How about the little things, like mini bar, or shower goodies. Any of that worth a mention?Having a small kitchenette was an unexpected and very welcome surprise, as it allowed us to linger over our morning coffee on the balcony, squeezing every extra moment we could out of the view. When the vast openness of the ocean wasn’t calling, the room’s décor channeled it, with photo vignettes of retro beach scenes from the 1940s. If I could fit the vintage wooden trunk that sat at the foot of the bed into my suitcase, I would’ve taken it.
Please tell us the bathroom won’t let us down.You never realize the true value of great counter space until you’re stuck in a hotel room where that kind of real estate is severely limited in the bathroom. Fortunately, that’s not a problem here. While, unless you’re traveling solo, you’ll still have to share a bathroom, the soothing, all-marble space is laid out particularly well for twosomes. In addition to double sinks, the tub and shower are separate. While the shower itself is nothing too wild, it had just the right amount of water pressure. The hotel’s partnership with Asprey means you’ll be smelling like their signature Purple Water throughout your stay (perhaps longer if you happened to have accidentally dropped that extra bar of soap into your suitcase).
Maybe the most important topic of all: Wi-Fi. What’s the word?While there’s free Wi-Fi available in public spaces (which is fine for checking your email on your phone), in-room Wi-Fi will cost you $14.95 per day—and is powerful enough for Skyping and sending out those 10MB files you desperately need to ship off to your boss.
Room service: Worth it?In-room dining comes courtesy of Burlock Coast, the onsite, Prohibition-inspired restaurant/bar/café/market. While it’s nice to be able to have a cocktail hand-delivered while you get ready for a night out—we’re slightly obsessed with For Peat’s Sake ($17), a powerful mix of tequila, mezcal, scotch, grapefruit, lime, and agave—treating yourself to breakfast in bed is what vacations were made for. Especially if you throw your diet out the window and go for something deliciously over the top, like the Brioche French Toast Sandwich ($24) loaded with citrus cream cheese, homemade jam, pecans, maple rum butter, and your choice or bacon or sausage.
Staff: If you could award one a trophy, who gets it, and why?It takes a lot of preparation to properly lounge poolside for the day. No one knows this better than the hotel’s pool “butlers,” who spend their days keeping guests properly hydrated and protected from the sun.
Anything stand out about other services and features? Beach chairs and an umbrella are included with your room, and there’s a team of beach pros to help you sink your toes in the sand. For some people, the pool is the preferred option—particularly since it’s a heated infinity pool with a nearly 30,000 square foot pool deck. Like the hotel itself, the spa treatments are sea-inspired and can even be scheduled in one of the pool cabanas. Because the only thing better than gazing out at the ocean is getting a massage while you’re staring at those crystalline waters.
What was most memorable—or heartbreaking—about your stay?It’s one thing to be staying near the ocean; it’s another thing completely to be staying on it. Paying what turned out to be about an extra $50 per night for an oceanfront view was well worth the additional cost.
Bottom line: Why are we choosing the Ritz-Carlton?With The Ritz-Carlton’s very personalized brand of service, it’s easy to feel like you’re the only guest even staying at the hotel. Which in itself is priceless.
