Courtyard by Marriott Salinas Monterey

Kamalii and Steven were especially helpful and made me feel welcome, which made my stressful apartment search much easier. I stayed at the Courtyard Marriott in Salinas for a few nights while looking for a new place in Monterey. The hotel was reasonably priced, about 20 to 25 minutes from Monterey and Carmel, and gave me a good base without the higher coastal rates. It was clean, comfortable, and reliable, with everything I expect from a Courtyard. The property was showing some age, but renovations were underway during my visit, so I’m confident it’ll be even nicer soon. The gym was a pleasant surprise, modern and much larger than at many full service hotels. A solid, dependable stay with standout service.

The staff were extremely helpful at check-in, checkout, and whenever we had questions. Our room had a slight smell when we arrived, but it was very clean overall. We traveled up from Long Beach on Friday along the new highway, stopping a few times before we checked in. On Saturday we saw the redwoods and made it to the Golden Gate Bridge by sunset. We drove back down and made all the stops we’d skipped on the way up. It was perfect for us. Thank you, Courtyard Salinas!

The bar was super convenient, though a little pricey, and the construction was annoying. The manager has been very accommodating on other visits, so I think this was just that front desk lady. She was rude when I checked in and, for some reason, refused to let me tap to pay the deposit. I used tap anyway. She also downgraded us from the king room and sofa bed we booked to two queens, then put us right next to the construction. It’s a very nice hotel.

There’s no pool at this hotel, it’s next door at the Residence Inn. The people there let me use their pool and hot tub when I walked across the parking lot. The pool water was murky green, so I decided not to swim, but I did enjoy the hot tub.