Sands of La Jolla — Hotel in San Diego

We were a party of 32 people who booked this hotel to attend a wedding in San Diego, from UK and Canada for 1 week|On day 1 of our holiday Upon arriving in our room, we all found that the shower water was only tepid, which was quite uncomfortable. I immediately contacted the front desk to report the issue and was informed that maintenance advised this could not be increased due to concerns about scalding However, 2 days later, the water temperature in the shower was noticeably warmer and reached a comfortable level. This suggests that the initial explanation provided by the maintenance staff was either incorrect or misleading. The inconsistent and lukewarm response to my complaint is unacceptable, especially when the issue could have been resolved promptly on the first day of my stay.|The towels left bits of fluff on our skin and clothes after use, which was both uncomfortable and unhygienic and resulted in us purchasing a garment brush to clean our clothes. Such a condition is unacceptable.|The rooms were oddly designed, the sink facilities were situated outside of the toilet and shower room, positioned within the actual bedroom area. This layout struck me as quite unusual and, frankly, unhygienic. It is standard practice and generally expected that after using the toilet, one should be able to wash their hands immediately within the same room. The current setup requires guests to exit the toilet room and walk through the bedroom to access the sink, which raises significant hygiene concerns. |During our stay, my family and I spent a significant amount of time in the poolside area. We were surprised and quite inconvenienced to find that there were no restroom facilities available in this area. This lack of basic amenities was particularly challenging as we were traveling with young children who frequently needed to use the toilet. Having to return to our rooms or use the restroom in the reception area was not only inconvenient but also disrupted our leisure time. This situation caused unnecessary stress and discomfort, I believe that adding restrooms near the poolside area would greatly enhance the convenience and comfort for all guests, particularly those with young children. Such an improvement would undoubtedly be appreciated by many future visitors.|Furthermore, upon check-out, I was shocked to find an additional charge on three payment cards for makeup marks left on towels. This charge is not only unreasonable but also discriminatory, as I discovered that other guests were not subjected to the same penalty for similar circumstances. |I sent two messages on the hotel's online contact form to Jay the manager and received no response. Consequently, I contacted my credit card company to cancel the charge on my credit card due to the lack of response and the absence of any evidence of makeup marks on towels provided by the hotel. I am pleased to report that they agreed with my claim and refunded the charge.|Unfortunately, the other two charges cannot be refunded as they were applied to debit cards. Jay, if you have any decency, you would refund this amount to the two family members who have been unfairly billed. |I made a booking for 9 rooms directly on the hotel website, where it clearly states that payment for rooms is to be made at check-in. However, two months after making this reservation, Jay the manager contacted me to request immediate payment for the rooms due to the large size of the booking, threatening to cancel the reservation if I did not comply.|Although this request was outside of the hotel’s stated policy, I agreed to it and made the full payment of $13,000 plus in advance. This was a considerable amount and a significant inconvenience, but I complied in good faith to ensure our booking was secure.|Given the substantial advance payment and the deviation from the hotel’s normal policy, I expected to be treated with a high level of professionalism and respect. However, the service I have received since making this payment has been subpar and unacceptable due to poor management|The staff at the hotel were extremely friendly and helpful but the management of the hotel is very poor and they could not help with our situation as they said only the manager can deal with this and get back to us which a week after arriving home there has been no communication by him| The experience has left me and all family members who attended deeply dissatisfied and questioning the decision to book with Sands of La Jolla. As a customer who has shown considerable flexibility and trust in their establishment, I believe I deserved a satisfactory resolution to this matter but received a complete lack of response...

People with service animals - BEWARE! I wish I had read the reviews before booking. I reserved a King Room with Balcony, expecting a spacious room with a terrace and a quiet street view, as advertised. Instead, I was met with discrimination and a serious downgrade simply because I have a service animal.

When I arrived, the woman at the front desk seemed immediately irritated by the fact that I said I had a service animal. Instead of giving me the room I paid for, she insisted on moving me to "another room that we have for dogs," as if having a service animal automatically meant I needed a pet-friendly space. I was placed in a handicapped room, which had a very low bed and a roll-in shower—clearly designed for someone in a wheelchair. It felt sterile and like a hospital room. There is no lamp near the bed - just 8 bright and obnoxious can lights overhead that add to the hospital room ambiance.

Service animals assist with many different types of disabilities, not just physical ones. I do not need or want a roll-in shower, and I specifically book top-floor rooms for security reasons due to a past physical attack. The front desk clerk decided for me that I would be "more comfortable" in this room, ignoring my actual needs and making assumptions about my disability.

To make matters worse, instead of the balcony and terrace I paid for, my room was shoved behind the office, with a view of storage boxes and the front desk. It felt like I had been placed in a storeroom, hidden away on ground level - exactly what I did not book. If this is how they accommodate guests with disabilities, they need serious training and policy adjustments. Not all disabilities are visible, and staff should not be making discriminatory judgments about where guests "belong." I purposefully selected the room I wanted - and paid EXTRA for it.

On top of all that, the room itself was outdated, uncomfortable, and unclean. It lacked a bathroom counter or vanity making getting ready impractical, had no extra door lock for security, and featured silver lame curtains that made it feel like I had stepped into a 1970s burlesque theater. There were black smudged handprints on the bathroom door. The final straw? A large black hair in the sink. After a long day of driving, I was too exhausted to fight for the room I had actually paid for, but the entire experience left me feeling deeply disrespected and unwelcome.

If you have a service animal, think twice before staying here. They do not follow ADA guidelines, they discriminate, and they downgrade paying guests to subpar rooms instead of honoring their pre-paid reservations. Unacceptable and very...

So, I stayed here four or five years ago for many many months. I am only giving three stars when I should give five star from before. However, when I came back it wasn’t the same anymore. It makes me uncomfortable and I felt I was waking in the egg shell.

1. Their policy nowadays is not cool. They will charged you $10 for checking in early and $10 in each hour you checked out late where it is not even stated in their website this so called hotel policy🙄

2. So the room are updated and nice l. However, I can still smell the smell of a motel and smell of kind of wasp around that makes me feel scared if there’s a wasp around the room.

3. I can hear the person snoring from below me.

4. While I was asleep amidst the day, there front desk call my room and ask me questions that can wait until i am awake. It’s like it’s not making sense at all. It was a nice question but I do not appreciate calling my room while I am in the middle of my sleep because I am a light sleeper and the fact that I had a DO NOT DISTURB sign on my door. And I felt that my privacy had been cross.

5. Their staffs has miscommunication and they are not in the same page (except Stephanie) as one will say a different thing than the other one if you ask them questions.

6. I felt my boundary had been cross as the staff Javier ask me if the guest below me is making noises and for me it is None of my Business whatever their guest is doing inside their room as it is the guest privacy. Once the guest is inside their room it is the guest privacy and you are not to nose about whatever they’re doing and as long as they don’t bother me.

7. To think the fact that the area La Jolla Bird Rock is a safe place and an upscale place, this Sands of La Jolla has cameras all over their place even they will monitor the street (I think). How funny in the first place as I know the area very very well as I am one of the locals in the area. So even in each floor there’s camera. I agree it’s for safety, however, I think they are overdoing it that makes my stay very very uncomfortable.

8. Their rates are way too high. I much rather stayed in a five star hotel with the same rate.

9. Even there’s a screen and you can open the sliding door and get some fresh air even you seat in the balcony it is way way too noisy as they are located right by the busy street during the day and even sometimes in the evening.

Overall, I will...