The ride up to the campus was absolutely beautiful. But the scenery was like something out of a…read moremagazine. Being from New Orleans, we don't see beautiful wood scenes very often. But the school is nestled in the middle of the gorgeous wood scenery. We were greeted at the guard gate by two guards who came out and welcomed us personally. We chatted for a couple of minutes and then it was off to our room. What you just have to see is the beautiful view from the main driveway looking up the middle of the campus. Postcard like, to say the least.
The wife and I stayed on campus during the week of Christmas visiting friends. Not too long of a ride from the Oakland Airport. While in the car, our hostess received a call from the guard gate asking if we'd gotten in alright. I thought that was quite nice, that the people at the security gate we are aware of our arrival. With that type of attention, we knew safety would not be an issue.
Our room was very, very nice. Not really large, but plenty of room for two people and also a spacious desk area for working. We were staying for a week, so the fact that there was a nice sized walk in closet was a bonus for us. I work from home. Which means I also work when I am on the road. So for me, the litmus test is always the ease in which I can do my work. Well, the Wi-Fi work perfectly. No glitches and fast speeds. Also, because we knew there would be Wi-Fi, we brought our Roku with us and was able to stream our favorite shows. Cool, right?
For you folks who hang out in the bathroom all the time (my wife is one of them), our bathroom was extremely spacious with plenty of towels. And oh man, did that water get hot. So believe me when I tell you that you will have no trouble in the morning with a cold shower.
The kitchen was fully equipped with everything we needed to make our own meals. The refrigerator, stove, and microwave both work fine. The wife and I are big believers and prepping our own food because we have been trying to lose weight. There was a 24-Hour grocery store (Safeway) right up the street, so access to groceries was no problem.
While we did not use public transportation, we noticed the BART line passing right by the school, so for you folks who want to get around, you will have no problem.
Not that I would ever have the opportunity to use them, but during a tour we also saw that the campus had excellent conference facilities. As a resume writer, I would not likely have much use for this. But I figured some of you reading this review planning business retreats or team building activities may need this. Appears to be able to accommodate any size group.
We have friends in the San Francisco area, so we have decided that the next time we return, we are definitely staying at Saint Mary's College of California again. The wife and I are not big fans of hotels, simply because of the lack of personal feel. Staying on a college campus was different for us, but we really felt as though we were treated like family.