We have stayed at the Estancia La Jolla hotel many times. We initially chose it because our son went to UCSD, which is across the street. Even though he graduated several years ago, we still love the hotel and the location. It’s always a beautiful property in great shape. There’s always a sense of peacefulness when we arrive, the rooms are always perfectly appointed and spotless! All of the staff are very friendly and accommodating, as well. We will visit there again!

Had the opportunity to stay here for business on two chilly days so didn’t enjoy the gorgeous pool or beautiful spa but this was still a lovely place to stay. The service and welcome are fantastic (including a delicious tequila cocktail on sign in). The room was extremely reasonable and included 2 waters daily, a bottle of local wine and branded his and hers flip flops. The coffee bar/gift shop has a nice selection of merchandise and a killer breakfast burrito (more than big enough for 2). The restaurant, Mustangs and Burros, has a really cozy outdoor space, courtesy of the heat lamps and a much better atmosphere than the brightly lit inside space. The food was quite good, albeit pricey. The only ding is that the rooms are a little dated and could stand for a refresh but it’s clean and has good quality linens and amenities (white cedar & balsam). I would definitely recommend.

Being in the hospitality industry for many years, it is clear this hotel has significant customer service and staff training issues. We had not visited the property for a few years (opting to stay at nearby luxury hotel) and my, have things changed. Every single time we phone for Valet (over our 4 day stay), it went straight to Voicemail, the call was immediately put on hold (with no one speaking), or answered abruptly and were made to feel we were an imposition. This was a recurring theme every time we phoned any extension...either direct to hold with no one answering/greeting, or the person on the other end could not be bothered to provide friendly service. We requested a "quiet room" and they provided a room with a view of the pool that was also directly in front of an exterior entrance/exit door, so that was a bust with people coming and going all day/night. The housekeeping did not show up the entire second day. When we phoned the front desk at 8:30PM requesting someone please just bring sheets and blankets to make up the pullout sofa, we were told it was "a holiday" (Valentine's Day...not exactly a national holiday) and they were short staffed. We proceeded to call 4 more times and at 11:35PM, a security guard finally delivered the items. Our daughter had already fallen asleep in our bed, so I spent the night on the uncomfortable sofa. We overheard front desk staff saying "they've called 3 times, so annoying" when we dared to walk down to check on the request after two hours of no answer. (The first night, the housekeeper argued with us over the requested foam pillows, I guess this was foreboding of what was to come.) The room service was over an hour each time. The wait in the restaurant was equally unnecessary. No one made ANY apologies or overtures of ANY KIND the entire stay to account for the ongoing issues. On the way out, we were simply told by the front desk person "yeah, we are kind of in a transitional period". No apologies, nothing. A few of the Valet staff were just plain rude. This is not the behavior of a resort aspiring to be a Fine Hotel and the attitude from the coffee shop staff, Valet, Front Desk, Receptionist and Housekeeping is more in line with an overburdened 3-star Hotel chain that doesn't care if you return. It's a shame, because this is a great location and beautiful property. More importantly, if this is how the resort handles a non-holiday, Valentine's Day, what on earth kind of service will you receive in the busy season or real holidays? Still, all said, this is not a horrible property or location if you don't have high expectations or you do not frequent 4 to 5-star resorts. Much more suited to a couple or adults, not necessarily family. They are pet friendly and the Spa is very good.