Need to know
Rooms
121, including seven suites.
Check–Out
11am, but flexible, subject to availability. Earliest check-in, 4pm.
More details
Rates don’t include breakfast.
Also
Be sure to budget for the resort fee of $50 a night (which covers everything from tennis balls to beach chairs).
At the hotel
Tennis courts, free WiFi throughout, year-round heated pool, 24-hour fitness center, scheduled fitness classes, beach-cruiser rental, free village shuttle (within a two-mile radius), seasonal beach valet. In rooms: 42-inch TV, minibar, Keurig coffee machine, tea-making kit, Bluetooth sound system, bathrobes, Lather Lust bath products and air-conditioning.
Our favourite rooms
We were big fans of the Cabana Kings, with their easy access to the pool area and big covered patios that were made for balmy evenings. For toasty nights in during the chillier winter months, plump for a Coastal King, with its cosy end-of-the-bed fireplace.
Poolside
Bookable cabanas take poolside lounging to the next level, with sofa seating, sunloungers, free guacamole and even a big TV for the easily bored. There are plenty more loungers circling the pool, plus a pool bar and a bubbling hot tub just steps away.
Spa
Guests are invited to warm up around the spa’s fire-pit before enjoying treatments such as rosemary salt scrubs, sea-stone massages or soothing body wraps, before sweating it out in herbal steam rooms.
Packing tips
You can leave your beach gear at home, since a valet is on hand to cover essentials such as towels, chairs and parasols.
Also
All areas, including the restaurant, restrooms and swimming pool, are accessible to mobility-impaired guests, plus several room types are ADA compliant.
Pet‐friendly
Very. The hotel welcomes up to two dogs a reservation with a $200 pet charge (for the stay). Four-legged friends also get plush beds, water bowls and even a chef-prepared menu that will make Rover feel like royalty. See more pet-friendly hotels in San Diego.
Children
Little Smiths are welcome, although there is nothing that caters specifically to kids and the atmosphere is more suited to grown-ups. Cribs can be arranged free of charge and extra beds will cost you $45 a stay.
Sustainability efforts
L'Auberge del Mar is green in all the right places, with energy reduction and water conservation measures, recycling bins in all guest rooms, and reusable cups, water bottles, etc throughout the hotel. They also partner with the Feeding San Diego hunger-relief organization.