For our first trip to Carmel, I did a thing that I normally don't do: use a non-chain hotel. But Carmel-by-the-Sea prides itself in the lack of national chains, so ended up booking two nights through Citi Travel for $591.06 prepaid. It ended up being a very good stay.
Carmel River Inn is located right off of Highway 1, southeast of downtown, next to the Carmel River. Originally called the Rio Carmelo Motor Court on a 10 acre property, 14 original cabins were built in 1934. From 1941 to 1962, 10 more cabins were added, and a two-story motel building (including an outdoor heated swimming pool) with 19 rooms (some overlooking the river) added in 1960. In 2014, came under new ownership (a Carmel based hospitality company) which installed 10 new cabins. Total: 19 inn rooms and 34 cottages.
We arrived around 14:00 on a Sunday, and Jacob was the office manager on duty. He was very engaging, and told me our room in the motel was ready. He mentioned that they had cottage rooms available during our stay, and that he could upgrade me for $25 a night, letting me check out both rooms. Both rooms were nice, but having an entire building to ourselves won out and I accepted the offer. Old fashioned metal keys are still used, so obviously important to return them on checkout.
Ended up getting Cabin 51, which was described as a two queen bed with wet bar set-up.
Pros-
-- no neighbor walls/floor/ceiling so quiet once lights out
-- large vaulted ceilings providing spaciousness, and skylights providing natural light. Very clean. Even though a manufactured house, it had real tile and good quality floors.
-- bathroom large walk-in shower (though cheap showerhead with low water pressure). Towels and linens were of good quality.
-- fully equipped wet bar: microwave, coffee maker, dishwasher, dorm fridge (no freezer section). There is an outdoor ice maker and filtered water dispenser on the grounds.
-- There are plenty of electrical outlets everywhere, with a built-in desk. -- WiFi is free and works well.
-- It uses a split type HVAC with the remote being a little confusing.
-- The property is very dog-friendly, with a nice grassy area for them to play and do their business.
Few Negs:
-- Very little space to store clothes (two drawer, and small open closet), definitely not enough for more than 2 people.
-- There was no nightstand on one side of the bed, so ended up using our luggage for that.
-- There was a TV with many satellite channels, but it did not work well enough to watch the NBA finals.
-- Because the base floor for the bathroom tile wasn't done well, the tile and grout are becoming very loose. It will need to be replaced soon.
Rooms are not serviced during a stay, Instead, fresh towels and garbage emptying is done by leaving it outside the outside door.
Breakfast is served via a food truck on the grounds: Morning Joy Cafe (opens at 7:30 for breakfast) serving complementary coffee and grab and go items (paid) items like pastries, bagels, parfait.
What makes this work are the small cottages down the private road. All of them are independent, with private driveway parking (space for one car, complementary). Each also has a private porch with seating for two. read more