Hotel Metropole — Hotel in Avalon

I hesitated in writing a review until I received an email request from the hotel saying how helpful it is to read past guests' reviews before booking their visit and that the hotel is eager to hear what my experience was.||In 2022, my wife and I visited Catalina to celebrate our Anniversary and birthday a few days apart. We had a fantastic time and decided to return the following year and stay in a different hotel. We looked at several other hotels and chose the Metropole after we took a tour of the oceanfront suite with a walk-out balcony. The hotel promotes itself as the island's most luxurious beachfront hotel. This claim, the location, hotel amenities, and view was a huge factor. I explained that this was for our Anniversary and birthday, and the desk clerk noted our special occasions; we booked a year out, paying the $700 one-night room deposit for our three-night stay.||What a difference a year makes. ||Bottomline upfront: Stunning, first-rate view, but the Hotel Metropol was a colossal disappointment and fell far short of its laudatory statements and the $700-plus nightly rate.||I want to share our experience, starting with the cobblestone path into the courtyard and marketplace. It appears this is also the service entrance to all the shops and restaurants in the market because of the two-wheeled dolly marks on the stones. The entire walkway from the street to the hotel entrance and past the VIP entrance was filthy, with spilled liquid, and trash strewn throughout the area with dead plants in large planters. A weekly pressure wash would solve the problem. It wasn't a good first impression and certainly not very inviting.||We entered the hotel lobby and were greeted by a pleasant receptionist. Before we received our keys, I quietly reminded her of our Anniversary and birthday. I expected her to say she saw the notes, but nothing was said. There was no acknowledgment at all. When we went to our room, it wasn't fully closed or even locked. When I went to put in my key, the door swung open. Comparing this to our hotel the previous year, a chilled bottle of champagne, chocolate, and a handwritten note from the manager and staff were waiting in our room acknowledging our Anniversary. It was a tremendous personal touch and wholly unexpected, but it left a lasting impression. The front desk even called each evening to see if we needed anything. They set the bar high!||The balcony sliding door did not lock and remained unsecured whenever we left the room. Nor was there a screen so we could keep the door open at night to hear the ocean waves. There was a dead fly and bee in the door track and cobwebs in the ceiling fixtures. I can't make this up! I have pictures to prove what I am describing.||The bathroom was beautifully appointed, but remarkably, there were no robes, slippers, or even hooks to hang towels or clothing, just two holes in the door where a hook once lived. Even the shower handle was loose. I mentioned this to the front desk and was confident it would get fixed, but nothing was repaired. We threw our wet towels over the bathroom door and shower glass. And speaking of towels, they looked dingy and old, not nearly as described on the website.||Surprisingly, for a hotel and room claiming "luxury boutique" status, the wall-mounted flat-screen TV was a paltry 42 inches when it could easily accommodate a 65-inch TV or more significant. The hotel promotes 42" TVs in the rooms as a remarkable amenity. Unfortunately, it's not. The Wi-Fi was terrible, cutting out constantly and requiring repeated password re-entry. The connection was intermittent, but when it did connect, it was one- maybe two signal strength bars at best.||Most of the dimmer light switches would flicker annoyingly. You had to turn them up or down, but not in the middle. The gas fireplace was a nice touch, but I had to call the front desk to ask how to turn it on (there is a switch near the bedside table. Why it's not by the fireplace puzzles me). Also, there was so much soot on the fireplace glass that it was hard to see the flames. This hotel is void of a maintenance crew.||Finally, there was a sofa in the room. However, to my amazement, there is no dining table or chairs, especially since you must carry the Continental Breakfast back to your room and eat it standing up or on the bed if you were lucky food was available. We went down at 9:05 a.m., and everything was rummaged through. Nothing remained save a few croissants, granola, and a nearly empty container of orange juice, and that was it. Mind you, they serve breakfast until 10:00 a.m. Why it was not stocked escapes me other than no management oversight.||It was an abysmal experience for a hotel claiming to be "the island's most luxurious beachfront hotel." Businesses all too often claim "COVID" and labor challenges, but it shouldn't be a guest's responsibility to point out shortcomings or glaring deficiencies. When they do, it should be remedied immediately. We're willing to hand over $2,000+ for a three-night stay. Just live up to your claims. Disappointingly, the Hotel Metropole failed...

Take your money elsewhere- I recommend the Pavillion or Atwater over this hotel any day for countless reasons! On the first day we were told the complimentary water bottles were provided bc it’s advised not to drink or swallow the water by the front desk staff. They said we can call and request more when we finished those. That being said, we requested more bottles with room service everyday. It took multiple request/calls to get this fulfilled and on day four they said they will no longer provide us bottles and we can drink the water bc it’s safe. This conflicting information is unsettling and consistent with other guest experiences (I learned to read those reviews after this rude interaction with the staff on the fourth day- at $344 a night, providing guests water bottles should be the very least they can accommodate considering the following). Let’s talk about the shower- not only is there black mold in the shower, but the pressure is so high it would easily knock over a toddler. The room provided was near the laundry, which you heard the slamming of the machines at all hours. There was also a constant squeaking coming from either the bathroom or the laundry. The AC didn’t work- if you unplugged it and plugged it back in then it would run for maybe 5 mins but wouldn’t budge anytime after that (regardless of the temp set)- talk about hot and bothered while sleeping! All of the doorjams stick - from the shower doors to the closet to the dresser- you get a workout just from opening/closing them. Nine out of ten times the staff isn’t actually at the front desk and if you call (like for room service bc that’s not an automatic service provided) you always have to call twice (minimum)- and they aren’t happy to help you! The curtains don’t fully close in the room and the windows clearly weren’t cleaned before we came as there was facial/hand grease visible on the window. For a room with two beds, only one bed has access to an outlet. One bed was hard and stiff- also one bed had nasty stains on the bed skirt, which made me question how clean the sheets and towels really were. The only positive thing I have to say about this hotel is the great continental breakfast. Otherwise, they steal your money for the experience you get (esp when visiting in the off season!). They will also treat you trash if you didn’t book directly through their website. Like I said, take your money elsewhere even if it’s a little more expensive. I hate to say this as there aren’t a ton of option in a small community, but this hotel really needs to be reassessed. The Metropole shopping plaza/restaurant/cafe does not reflect how the hotel will be- it’s...

Pros: Location is great. I liked our "VIP" ocean view room layout in general. The big soak tub was great, the floors and bed were nice. The building architecturally is really cool.

Cons:

1. Staff - For the price and how they advertise this is a more "upscale" hotel, they are way off. Basically I would compare this staff to what you would expect from a Motel 8...maybe slightly better. We had booked a "VIP ocean view room" and we were escorted by some guy who was hungover, unkept (baggy, dirty, wrinkly shirt and shorts, he looked like he just woke up from being passed out in the dirt), smelt bad, and didn't even offer to help with our luggage. The front desk staff was helpful in general, but they were not friendly. Anytime I had to contact them which was only a few times I felt like I was an inconvenience.
2. No room service, and no housekeeping...at all. You could request towels, and coffee, but they wouldn't come in to clean rooms at all. I've stayed at hotels during COVID (and after, if we are in the after phase yet?) and if it was requested they would clean the room at least.
3. Room Was advertised as "updated" and portions of it were. But for ~700$+ per night I expected better. For example, some of the lights didn't work, the AC control panel was old and overly complicated, light switch panels were old/broken (also wiring was bizarre and some switches weren't logically placed to their corresponding light). While we didn't really watch TV, the mount job was pretty ghetto...there was wires hanging around and drooping below the TV. Why not use some wiring conduit, or tuck them into the wall with the rest of the wire routing? The shower door and some of the surrounding had mold/mildew growing on it (not a little, the mounting fixtures were covered, it was visible from 6ft away). The curtains were tearing in spots, and had quite a few stains. The patio screen door was off the track and wouldn't open/close properly.

All in all, if there were other options in Catalina Island with this great of a location I wouldn't stay here again. However these guys kind of have a monopoly with how perfect their location is.

What I realized is all of the staff (throughout the island actually, restaurants, shops, activities etc) are either seasonal workers, or live on the island...apparently its really hard for Catalina Island businesses to find good employees, or they just don't emphasize that customer service is important. It wasn't terrible, but it wasn't what you would expect..at least it wasn't what I expected for the amount of money you'll...