Resort Details

Riviera Beach & Spa Resort
34630 Pacific Coast Hwy
Capistrano Beach, CA 92624
(949) 248-2944
Google Maps | Fly Here on Earth

• Kid-Friendly: Yes
• Stuff for Kids to Do: Not Really
• Swimming Pools? Yes, 2
• Our Rating: 3/5

Paris’s Review

The batteries didn’t work in the remote controls on the TV, so my dad had to change the channel on the TV and it was hard to find any of the kid channels. The back patio had a view of a wall (boring!). There wasn’t much for kids to do, mostly because it was cold and we couldn’t go swimming.

I thought we were staying on the beach, but it’s actually across a super busy street from the beach without a crosswalk or traffic light. Mom and Dad seemed really frustrated a lot. Dad likes to eat and the restaurant was closed forever.

Parents’ Reviews

We stayed at the Monarch Riviera Beach & Spa Resort to celebrate a 30th birthday. We arrived after the party, during off hours at the resort. We were told upon booking (before our trip) that there were no ocean view rooms available. However, Sergio at the front desk made it clear that there were plenty of ocean view rooms open, but could not change our reservation because he was apparently just the security guard. As it turns out, even if there were rooms available, the two buildings had separate booking engines, so we’d have to request (and wait) for a refund on one and put a new deposit down for the other. We know there were lots of rooms open, as the parking lots were totally empty.

The walk from the garage to our room took less than 2 minutes, making carrying luggage a breeze. As we mentioned, there was plenty of parking, but the spots were very close to together; we imagine it being a bit of a chore to park during peak season.

We were in room 427, which was absolutely stunning, spacious and in great shape. As Paris noted, the remote to change the channel was dead, making finding channels to watch a real chore. We just plugged in our laptop and watch movies on iTunes instead. The TV was an older, pre-LCD, model.

The jacuzzi tub was a blast to have a bubble bath in. Too bad we arrived late in the evening, as they apparently have a “no using tub after 8pm and before 8am” rule. We had a 8am bubble bath while Dad slept in. The view from the back patio was of the back of some other building; not too exciting to look at.

Dad was looking forward to the advertised “ocean view restaurant”, which had apparently been closed due to slow business/use by guests. The front desk recommended a neighboring donut shop for breakfast, which didn’t sound too appealing so we drove to Dana Point Harbor and had a very scenic brunch at Wind and Sea Restaurant [fly here in Google Earth] for $13 (adults) and $5 (kids).

Conclusion

This was our first impression of Monarch Resorts after buying a timeshare with the company in December of 2010. Unfortunately we weren’t impressed at not having the ocean view, not impressed with the difficulty of getting to the beach, and not impressed with the limited amenities or things for kids to do. We did absolutely love the spacious room and were impressed with quality of service at the front desk when we checked out (early by the way). We bought though Monarch mainly for the Cancun Resort in Las Vegas, so it’s not a deal-breaker for us by any means.

Final Rating: 3 Out of 5 Stars