St. Regis Monarch Beach Resort and Spa
One Monarch Beach Resort
Dana Point, CA 92629
949.234.3200

The St. Regis experience promptly begins as you drive into the property. The resort has 474 guest rooms (400 regular Guest Rooms, 44 Executive Suites, 26 Royal Suites, 2 Monarch Suites, and 2 Presidential Suites). It is evident that the landscaping was meticulously planned. Each plant, each palm tree, and even the placing of rocks and trellises seem to be in its rightful places. However, there is still some unfinished landscaping work on the southwest side of the resort.

As I walked in the lobby, the bellman and other resort staff promptly greeted me. An elaborate arrangement of tropical flowers sat in the middle of the lobby. The registration/front desk was to my left while the concierge desk was to my right. Check-in was fast and efficient. I handed my credit card to the front desk clerk who promptly completed my registration. She was very polite and she always addressed me by my last name, e.g., Mr. "last name". Since I also have Platinum Preferred status with the Starwood Frequent Guest Program, my room was automatically upgraded from the regular Guest Room (535 square feet) to an Executive Suite (792 square feet).

I was assigned to Room 430 located on the North Wing. The resort's designers successfully combined contemporary and Mediterranean-style décor, both in the room and the rest of the resort. The bathroom had a tub, a large stand-in shower, dual sinks, a separate toilet, and a large walk-in closet. The floor and bathroom counters were made of a light shade of marble. Consistent with other St. Regis properties, the toiletries were from Bijon. The towels were fluffy and made of 100% Irish cotton by Lissadell of Ireland. Adjacent to the tub, plantation shutters were installed so you can look into the bedroom and through the balcony.

The room was also beautifully decorated with modern furniture and foliage (orchids and baby bamboo). Modern conveniences were also included such as a programmable digital thermostat, a Sony Digital TV, a Sony DVD Player, a Bose Radio-CD player, internet access, Cordless phones, a dataport for dial-up connections, and a high-speed port for high-speed connections. The king-sized bed was positioned in an angle across from a full-sized desk. Feather pillows, a goose down comforter, and Italian sheets by Sili D'Oro made for a comfortable night's sleep. Finally, a private balcony provided a view of the Grand Lawn and a partial view of the Pacific.

If you want to avoid the resort's telephone charges, bring your mobile phone. Local calls are billed at $1.50 for the first 60 minutes and $0.10 per minute thereafter. Toll-free calls are billed at $2.00 for the first 60 minutes and $0.10 per minute thereafter. Directory Assistance is $2.50 per call. Direct-dialed US long distance calls are billed at $1.50 per minute with a $2.25 access fee. Direct-dialed International long distance calls are billed at a 120% mark-up based on AT&T rates with a $4.50 access fee.

Since I had such a nice room, I wanted to stay in. They had 24-hour room service and 24-hour butler service after all. But looking out the balcony, there were just too many things to indulge in. As with any proper, upscale resort, appropriate dress is recommended for each activity. Guests only wear their swimwear in the pool and spa areas and are smartly dressed elsewhere. The beach at Monarch Bay is a short walk from the resort. There is a walking trail through the Ritz-Carlton across the street. If you prefer not to walk, the resort provides golf carts to take you to the beach.

I met some of my friends in the resort. They were given a room on the 6th floor of the South Wing, the Astor floor. Guests who have rooms on the Astor floor and the 7th floor, where the resort's two Monarch Suites (1466 square feet) and two Presidential Suites (3100 square feet) are located, have access to the Astor Lounge. These floors are limited-access floors so your room key has to be properly coded at check-in otherwise the elevators won't take you to either of these floors. The Astor Lounge provides complimentary drinks, light meals, and snacks from morning until late evening. The lounge's staff provided excellent service. They were very attentive, well spoken, and well-traveled as we later found out after conversing with them. Within five minutes of our arrival, the butler introduced himself. The lounge staff was so attentive you would think that the resort had assigned them for your every need. They remembered our names as well and were addressed accordingly. Every time we walked in the lounge, we got offered the drink we had during our previous trip there. I am not sure how they remembered. A good example of the lounge staff's service, there was a gentleman who asked if they had Absolut Citron. It was not available in the lounge at that time. Later that day, when the same person returned to the lounge, he was promptly advised that they had acquired a bottle of Absolut Citron.

The quality of the food served in the lounge was outstanding. With the exception of the breakfast pastries, the resort's chef prepared the food served in the lounge. For breakfast, you have a wide assortment of breakfast pastries, cereal, bagels, toast, yogurt, coffee, tea, cappuccino, espresso, and fruit juices. For a light lunch, canapés, salads, sandwiches, and dessert were served. For light snacks in between meals, an extensive assortment of hors d'oeuvres and snacks were available. For a light dinner, similar selections to lunch were served in addition to duck potstickers, chicken satay, and egg rolls. Both alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages were available all day with the addition of cordials in the evening. A selection of cakes, cookies, and pastries were also served for dessert.

We also had a chance to look at the two Presidential Suites (Room 720 and 750) and two Monarch Suites (Room 710 and 760) located on the 7th floor of the South Wing. There are also two regular Guest rooms on this floor but the resort only books them if the resort is completely full. We were not able to look at any of the Royal Suites (991 square feet) since all of the suites were occupied. The two Presidential Suites were slightly different in the décor but certainly has kept into the contemporary-Mediterranean style motif of the resort. However, Room 720 is slightly better than Room 750. Room 720 (like Room 710) has a better ocean view from the jacuzzi tub in the bathroom. It is also more private. Room 750 (like Room 760) overlooks one of the resort's restaurant patios (Aqua) so there may be some unwanted noise and less privacy since the restaurants guests can see you if you're sitting in the balcony.

The Presidential Suites have wood flooring on the entrance. There is a spacious living room with a piano. Room 720 might have the better ocean view and is more private but only Room 750 has an original Picasso in the living room. There is a 2-sided gas fireplace (one side in the living room and one side opens up to the patio), a powder room, and a separate kitchen area (no stoves or ovens though). The suites have the same modern conveniences found in the Executive Suite but some upgrades. Instead of the Digital TVs, there were several NEC flat screen TVs in the suite. The bathroom even has a small flat screen TV. In the main bedroom, a flat screen TV pops out of the trunk at the foot of the bed with a touch of a button in the universal remote control. Enjoy watching your favorite TV show or movie with surround sound. The bathroom was huge. There were two stand up showers, each with two shower heads, a large jacuzzi tub, and dual sinks. The Monarch Suites were a smaller version of the Presidential Suites. Similar amenities but no fireplace, pianos, flat screen TV popping out of a trunk, or Picassos.

After the room tours, we decided to check out the rest of the resort. The lobby is located on Level 5. I took the elevators down to Level 1 to access the Grand Lawn and the pool area. The Grand Lawn faces directly west with a spectacular view of the Pacific. A grand staircase leads up to the Sunset Terrace. If you are planning a wedding, this resort certainly has a lot of fantastic views for photos both outdoors and indoors. There is also another staircase by the Pacific Terrace located on the South side of the property, adjacent to the Pacific Ballroom. The Pacific Terrace then leads to the Pacific Lawn, which unfortunately doesn't have any ocean views like the Grand Lawn. There is a gazebo in the Botanical Gardens that is even closer to the ocean and would probably provide an even better backdrop.

The resort has two main pools, located next to each other, situated west of the Grand Lawn. There is the larger Ocean Terrace Pool and the Lagoon Pool, which is also next to the jacuzzi. Poolside cabanas (about 200 square feet), which include a ceiling fan and a telephone with a dataport, are also available by the Ocean Terrace Pool. Reservations are required. There is 24-hour pool access (room key required) but pool staff is only available from 0800-2000.

If you have kids and they get bored with hanging out with you, you can drop them off at the St. Regis Kids' Club, which is a short walk from the pool area and located on the first floor of the South Wing. Games and computers are available for their amusement. If you need to go for dinner or evening drinks, you can also arrange for evening babysitting. Speaking of dinner, if you need a salon to prepare for the perfect evening, there is a salon (The St. Regis Salon- Vogue) located in the resort.

The resort also has a gift shop, which features souvenirs, casual clothing, magazines, and snacks. Bring your own stamps (21 cent-stamps) though if you are sending out postcards. Stamps are not sold in the gift shop. If you are looking for more upscale clothing, fine jewelry, and even some artwork, then you should stop at the Medici Gallery.

Since I only stayed overnight, I simply did not have time to enjoy all the facilities of the resort such as the golf course (a par-70, 18-hole course which overlooks the Pacific), tennis (clay and hardcourt) and Gaucin, the resort's Tuscan spa. I was also unable to try most of the resort's restaurants such as Aqua (contemporary seafood), Crust (gourmet café), and the Pool Bar and Grill (light fare, sushi, evening cordials), which is actually located across from the St. Regis Kids' Club and not immediately by the pool area. I did manage a light lunch at Chianti. The restaurant prides itself in using organically-grown produce that were grown in Californian farms. Both the food and service were good. The server was polite and attentive. Finally, I missed the Botanical Gardens, which was apparently a collection of tropical and Mediterranean plants.

The resort is closest to Orange County's John Wayne International Airport (SNA) 31 miles away. It is 61 miles from Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) and 67 miles from San Diego International Airport (SAN).

Overall, this resort is definitely one of the best. I realize that there were numerous complaints during the first two weeks when the resort first opened. However, people need to understand that in any new business, there will be glitches or kinks that need to be straightened out in the first few weeks, if not the first few months. Based on my recent stay, there is really very little they need to improve on. One thing though, the resort is still working on public parking. Valet parking is available at $23 per day. You can also park on the street (Southbound side of Niguel Road) or the "outside" hotel driveway. Nevertheless, I'm looking forward to my next trip to this resort.

Recommended: Yes