The Ritz-Carlton, Laguna Niguel

We had a wonderful evening at The Ritz-Carlton, Laguna Niguel. Our table at the outdoor bar offered absolutely stunning ocean views, and watching the sunset was truly soul-stirring. A special thank you to Julian for his super attentive and efficient service throughout the evening. He was quick with our drinks, prompt in taking our food order, and everything arrived hot and delicious. He is a fantastic ambassador for the hotel. We’d also like to recognize Cadi at the front of house for her warm and welcoming presence. We’re already looking forward to coming back again soon!

I stayed here for 6 nights with my wife and three young children. I have been wanting to stay at this property for years and was able to last minute. We live in South Carolina so it was effort getting out here but it was beautiful! We came during my daughter's Spring Break which was March 15-21 and it ended up being a great choice for us because even though the property was busy it didn't feel overly busy. Everywhere on property was pretty. I actually never even left because it had everything we needed. Most of our meals were in-room dining orders but we did eat breakfast a couple of days at the restaurant. We also had a couple of meals by the pool. All of our meals were wonderful. If I had to say anything negative it was that the food took 1-1.5 hrs to arrive during just about every in-room dining order. The staff was really friendly and I would recommend the hotel for families. The beach is also beautiful albeit a steep hill pushing a stroller. The beach chair setup was good and they always had plenty of chairs available. I do wish the beach chair service would consider extending past 5pm, even until 5:30, because 5pm seemed really early in the day still. I was in mourning upon checkout because I enjoyed it so much!

My recent stay had several positive aspects, but unfortunately a series of operational issues significantly disrupted the experience and ultimately fell far below the level of service and reliability one expects from a Ritz-Carlton property. To begin with the positives, the beach location of the property is truly outstanding. The setting is beautiful and being so close to the ocean creates a relaxing and scenic environment. In addition, every staff member I interacted with was polite, courteous, and professional. The individuals working at the property were clearly doing their best to assist, which I appreciated. Unfortunately, the operational breakdown surrounding access to my room became a major disruption to the stay. At one point I was completely locked out of my room. I walked to the front desk to have my keys re-magnetized. It is worth noting that the distance between my room and the front desk is not insignificant, so each trip required a considerable walk. After returning to my room, the key still did not work. I then had to walk back to the front desk a second time and repeat the process. When I returned to the room again, the key still failed. This resulted in a third trip back to the front desk. A staff member then came to investigate the situation. When he attempted to access the room, his access key also did not work, confirming the problem was not with my key but with the door lock itself. At that point a technician had to be called to address the malfunction. The entire process required repeated trips back and forth between my room and the front desk, along with waiting for multiple staff members and a technician. Being locked out of the room for an extended period significantly disrupted the plans I had for the day and consumed a considerable amount of time that should have been spent enjoying the property. When the technician arrived, I was then told I would need to return to the front desk yet again to have the keys re-magnetized. After already making multiple trips and waiting for assistance, this was extremely frustrating. At that point I simply requested to be moved to another room. Because of the room change, we then had to pack all of our clothing and personal belongings and move everything to the new room, which added further disruption and inconvenience to the stay. In addition to this issue, my key never worked for the back entrance of the building during the stay, meaning that accessing the property from that entrance was not possible. Another disappointing issue was the condition of the bedding in the first room. When I went to sleep, the sheets felt damp, which is not something you would expect to encounter at a property associated with the Ritz-Carlton standard of quality. Management did reach out and offered $75 in compensation for the inconvenience. While I appreciate the gesture, the amount felt very limited considering the amount of time spent dealing with these issues. Between the repeated walks to the front desk, the lock malfunction, waiting for staff and a technician, the need to change rooms, and packing and relocating our belongings, a meaningful portion of the stay was spent resolving operational problems rather than enjoying the property. Taken individually, any one of these issues might have been understandable. However, when combined — the lock failure, repeated trips to the front desk, waiting for multiple staff members and a technician, the need to relocate rooms, the continued key access problems, and the damp sheets in the first room — the overall experience fell short of the expectations typically associated with a Ritz-Carlton stay. The property itself is beautiful and the staff members were courteous throughout the process. However, the operational issues ultimately overshadowed what should have been a seamless and relaxing stay. I hope the property reviews these issues carefully so that future guests do not encounter similar disruptions. Given the Ritz-Carlton brand’s reputation for exceptional service and guest care, I trust management will review whether the service recovery provided appropriately reflects the amount of time and disruption caused during the stay.

My wife and I thoroughly enjoyed our two nights spent at the Ritz in Laguna Niguel. The location and setting is outstanding. We booked an ocean view room and had a perfect balcony to overlook the ocean and sunset. Upon arrival, we were provided a glass of champagne which added to the feel of luxury. We had a few meals at Raya and the food was excellent. We were able to take lots of walks near and on the beach. My wife took a morning yoga class on the lawn overlooking the ocean. But the true highlight was their staff. They exceeded expectations in every interaction. Everyone was perfectly attentive and helpful. We had Ryan as our server for both dinner and breakfast the next morning at Raya who took great care of us including my wife who has food allergies. But the best of all was Lucas one of their bellmen. He helped us with our bags upon checkin which was great. Even better - shortly after checkin we ordered food to be delivered to the hotel. I came to pick it up in the lobby and took it back to our room. We decided to eat on the balcony but did not have a lot of utensils to use. All of a sudden there was a knock at the balcony door - someone from their room service team brought us full serving trays as if we had ordered room service directly. We didn’t ask or expect it. I saw Lucas in the lobby after this and asked about it and he said he recognized me and figured it would be helpful to have with our food. That was one of the best if not the best guest experience I’ve ever had. Needless to say we highly recommend this hotel!

An incredible experience in Laguna Niguel!!. The staff is all so attentive and lovely. I dined in Raya, and the food there is phenomenal. Would love to come back again