The Ritz-Carlton, Laguna Niguel

Beautiful quiet hotel. Great staff. Beautiful room overlooking ocean. Lovely quiet pool (Monarch). Perfect stay!

Of course, the property is beautiful, and the location is second to none. Because we live in the area, we have been coming here since it was built in the 1980s. We came here tonight to celebrate our 39th wedding anniversary and were given a beautiful table by the window with an outstanding view. Unfortunately, what should have been a wonderful experience was marred by a disappointing interaction with our server. I asked the waitress whether they had Luxardo cherries or used an imitation version. She responded, “Oh no, we absolutely have the real thing.” I asked, “Are you sure?” and she assured me, “Yes.” Based on that, I ordered a Manhattan. When the drink arrived, I quickly realized that the cherries were not Luxardo cherries. I went to the bar and asked the bartender directly whether they used Luxardo cherries. He said they did not and told me the brand they actually use, although I don’t recall the name. I later mentioned this to our waitress, and she apologized. I expected that, given the incorrect information I had been given, the drink would be removed from the bill, but it was not. Perhaps she felt that the complimentary dessert she had provided in recognition of our 39th anniversary was sufficient. I appreciated the gesture and thought it was generous. That said, the issue is not the cost of the drink or the dessert. It is the fact that I specifically asked a straightforward question, asked for confirmation, and was assured that the answer was yes—only to discover from the bartender that it was not true. We have been coming to this property for decades, and that makes the experience particularly disappointing. A mistake is understandable; confidently giving a customer incorrect information after being asked to verify it is not. I’m sharing this review because I believe guests should be aware that they cannot necessarily rely on their server's information when asking specific questions about what is being served.

Be careful when checking in if you are using points and upgrades. Have everything written out for your approval prior to excepting a room involving any changes from your original booking. Without this documentation that should have been provided it cost me almost 4K on reservations that should have been points, upgrade certificate and a quoted Club Level discount. There management was condescending to my situation and didn’t listen to what actually happened. They only wanted their money. I wanted to meet with the original employee that I worked with and they wouldn’t consider it. He offered me the two bedroom upgrade and I asked how many points it would cost when combining my original two rooms and he said about 3K points. I showed him the account I wanted the points out of and he said not to worry the adjustments will be made at check out. You would think he would have said when I showed the account it was $3,000.00 not points. He did not nor provided me with anything showing me the difference to this room from my original two rooms. The Ritz was completely in the wrong. I would never recommend nor will I attempt another stay with them. Not something you would expect from such a prestigious hotel.

I am a Bonvoy Marriot Gold Elite member and regularly stay at Ritz hotels. The Ritz Laguna Niguel is not recommended due to extremely ridged and non-traveler friendly attitude of the hotel management. My flight to SNA was canceled due to mechanical issues and I called immediately to inform the front desk I would not make it. One of my sister companies was having a large and very expensive reception that evening with over 100 people at the Ritz. But the "fee" committee decided to stick us for another $1250 as a cancellation fee.

This is a beautiful Ritz property. The views are breathtaking as it's sits atop a cliff above the ocean. The beautiful scenery of the beach and hills can't be compared. It was a nice getaway for 2 days as I'm only about 45 min away. I do have one complaint about cleanliness in the room. I am going to bet someone with a child was in our room before as there was sticky reddish /pink substance all over the tray above the coffee bar. I cleaned it up myself. Then I also noticed a huge snotty dried booger on the wall just at the level a child would wipe it. As someone who keeps my house very clean I Don't see how housekeeping could have missed both these things. I've attached a few photos. Other than that staff was great and I had a great time!