Olea Hotel — Hotel in Sonoma

Over the past year and a half, my husband and I have had the pleasure of staying at the Olea Hotel at least 10 times. It became obvious early on that this hotel is the only place we would want to stay in Glen Ellen or the Sonoma Valley.

When you arrive at the hotel, it’s rather unassuming. It's built into a hillside and in its past life, it was a little motor lodge type hotel. The owners did an amazing job taking something that didn’t look like much and turning it into an oasis where you can relax and truly enjoy all that Sonoma Valley has to offer. Now for the specifics…

The staff: Every single person we have interacted with at Olea has been amazing. They are so kind, welcoming and helpful. Kent, who has been with Olea since the beginning, is a fixture there and always greets us with a warm smile and a "welcome back!" After all of our visits there he now feels like an old friend. Kathryn always asks about our project and how we have been. The last time I was there with a friend she hooked us up with some delicious dark chocolate almond bark and some nuts that we enjoyed while playing a board game and sipping the complimentary wine in front of the fire. Gretchen is the other hostess that works the front desk and she is just as sweet as the rest of them. They have always made sure we had everything we need, have been accommodating with every request, no matter how small or how big, and have been so delightful to interact with.

The food: One of the most wonderful perks of staying at Olea is that every morning you are greeted with a complimentary 3 course breakfast cooked by the talented Chef Arda. We are always excited to see what delicious creations he has come up with since we were there last. Recently we sampled his home made “everything” bagels, fresh from the oven, with a whipped avocado cream cheese. YUM! Most of the food comes out looking and tasting like something you would get at a Michelin star restaurant. It’s usually almost too pretty to eat! And we are never disappointment when we do eat it, as everything is bursting with flavor and made with the freshest local ingredients. We also look forward to the home made SUPER spicy Chai that is available along with coffee and tea.

The rooms: We have stayed in quite a few of the rooms and they are all just so beautiful. The beds are comfortable, the showers are all fitted with rain shower heads and EO bath products and the bathroom floors are heated. They even provide makeup removing towelettes for us ladies and a night-light that doubles as a flashlight in case you venture down to the pool after dark and need a little extra light. A number of the bedrooms come with gas fireplaces as well. The newly built cottages are spectacular. They have high ceilings, a fireplace that is accessible from the front porch and the bedroom, a huge flat screen TV and an oversized bathroom. There is a desk and a couch with a coffee table as well.

The extras: In the evenings, they offer complimentary wine, and have a selection of games to choose from. The patio area has a fire pit with comfy couches for relaxing. Each room comes stocked with a nice little selection of snacks that are complimentary. They also come equipped wtih a mini-fridge, filtered water, and a coffee maker with craft coffee. You will also find a cozy robe and slippers that are perfect for the short walk down to the pool and hot tub. If you have a dog, you will find a couple of their rooms are “pet-friendly”. When we brought our dogs with us back in December, we arrived in our room to find a dog bed, a canister full of dog treats and a couple of dishes for their food and water! For those with electric cars, you will be thrilled to find multiple places to plug in and charge your car. If you are a Tesla owner, they have a Tesla specific charger that charges at a faster rate than the regular charges. They literally thought...

The Olea Hotel boasts a beautiful ambiance. The queen room, as expected, was compact but clean. The furniture and design were modern. The property is beautiful. Organic wine was available in the lobby during the evenings. Two of the employees were very nice, welcoming and helpful.

However, our stay was disappointing. Olea felt like a glorified motel, not a luxurious experience.

The walls are paper thin, we could hear our neighbors’ conversations, sneezes, loud breathing, using water, flushing, walking in their room. The sound of water through the pipes was also quite noticeable. Fortunately, everyone behaved after 9 pm. The mattress was hard and the pillow uncomfortable, we didn’t sleep well.

The parking lot is narrow and uphill, posing a challenge when full. Some spots are in a carport, others along the driveway in front of the rooms (your hill view is really parking lot and hills in the background), others downhill. The upper spots overlook the pool and spa. Kudos to the website designer, the photos are amazing and didn’t show the parking spots in front of the room.

There are nice restaurants just down the street, but you’ll have to drive as there is no curbside, no lights, and fast driving cars.

The breakfast buffet offered a variety of items, including what seemed (based on the huge kitchen adjacent to the lobby) homemade quiche, cakes, pastries, and granola, Bob Red Mill oats (needs hot water/milk), organic coffee, milk (including a non-dairy option), and orange juice. Good, but a far cry from the Google review pictures!

On Monday, however, there was only a thermos of coffee and a basket of store bought biscuits. I inquired about this with the young lady behind the counter, and she informed me that breakfast was not served Monday through Thursday. This information was not provided during our check-in or booking process. As a matter of fact, the website states: “Start your day with complimentary breakfast and unwind during our evening wine hour.”

That’s how we left Olea at 8:30am: a dark lobby, no breakfast, and an employee who needs some training on customer service and how to make customers feel welcome when they step...

I want to start by saying the staff at Olea are truly wonderful. The women at the front desk were incredibly welcoming, kind, and clearly work hard to create a positive guest experience. They are the highlight of the property.

Unfortunately, I can’t give this stay more than two stars because of the gap between what we paid and what we received. We spent over $550 for a single night in a king room, plus an additional $120 to bring our dog (a fee that more than doubled between when we booked and our stay). That’s luxury pricing — but the experience didn't reflect it.

The room did not have a king-size bed as advertised. The sheets felt low quality, and the bathroom was separated from the bedroom by a flimsy barn door that didn’t fully close — meaning zero privacy. The tub and shower were outdated and worn. One of the robes in our room was stained around the collar.

The “free” breakfast, which is often a highlight at smaller inns, was only available for a narrow two-hour window — and we missed it. Even more frustrating, the breakfast is heavily advertised as a weekend highlight, but the actual serving window wasn’t mentioned when we booked. We were in town for the Napa to Sonoma Half Marathon, a major local event, and a luxury hotel would have anticipated this — offering extended hours or early morning coffee and light bites for guests with early obligations. Even a simple room service coffee option would’ve made a difference. That kind of thoughtful detail is what separates a true luxury experience from a standard one.

None of this would be a dealbreaker if the hotel were priced like a typical three-star property. But Olea is charging luxury rates, and the experience just doesn’t match. It felt more like a dressed-up Best Western — with standout staff, yes — but not the $550+ experience we were...