Thursday, June 13, 2013

The Yearly Monterey Getaway

I started writing this post back in Febrauay. FEBRU-freaking-RARY.

For some reason it just got away from me? Back then, I felt like I was fighting for my life, practically. I caught a cold back in November and by February it still hadn't gone away. Waking up in the middle of the night on this particular trip to Monterey, drenched in sweat from breaking yet another fever from the sickness that wouldn't go away is what inspired me to finally go to an acupuncturist, and get well. And it worked.
I know, random. But it's important you should know this about me: I am random. Maybe. (?)


Original, unpublished post, written in February:
It's becoming a yearly thing, going to Monterey. And if you've been to Monterey, you'll know that is a really good thing.

I had one goal during this trip: I wanted my sister to have a restful, relaxing weekend. She's had a rough year, with a tough pregnancy which ended with an emergency c-section and was followed with thirteen weeks in a NICU (thankfully) tending to her twins. The twins are now a healthy 17 and nearly 20lbs and thriving. (June update: weights pushing 22 and 30lbs now!) And the emergency time is officially over. It was time for a little bit of relaxing and pampering. Sister's rock-star of a husband and amazing mother-in-law graciously agreed to watch the chilluns, allowing us to take off for a couple of nights.

Monterey is a little slice of heaven. Tons of people go there for the aquarium, which is very cool, but I haven't been in my past two trips; there is so much else to do in Monterey! Or not do, if you're in the mood to not do much.

I booked this year's hotels with mileage. I had to use two separate hotels as I had to split the mileage balances between two accounts, so we had a nicely varied weekend.

We started off near downtown, at Casa Munras hotel, a visually lovely property with a great, relaxing spa. Spa treatments, an easy walk downtown, amazing oatmeal chocolate chip cookies from our other favorite Monterey hotel, The Portola, (we stayed there during last year's trip) a long walk along the beach, and did I mention the spa treatments? Heavenly!

Overall, if you are looking for a centrally located, affordable hotel, Casa Munras is quite nice. But our beds were as hard as rocks and the walls were VERY thin, and neighbors NOT QUIET. Not a recipe for a good night's sleep. I'd pick The Portola over Casa Munras any day.



 Relaxation alcove at the Casa Munras Spa
 Outdoor bar and grill


--
 As nice as day one was, the absolute highlight of the weekend was our night at the Monterey Hyatt Regency. I've stayed at this property before, and had an absolutely lovely time and was really excited to go back and take my little sis. If you're ever in for a relaxing weekend in Monterey, stay here.


The Hyatt Regency is located about five miles away from the historic center/downtown area, which means you'll need to drive and park when you venture to the pier or cannery row, but this hotel is more of a destination in and of itself than simply a place to lay your head at night.

What can I say about this place? The pictures on Hyatt's website don't do it justice. And since I didn't take any photos the entire weekend (feeling sick as a dog hinders my artistic inclination, go figure), I can't either. (All photos in this post by Kelly Westover.)

 Wonderful, comfortable bed. I wanted to live in it. Forever.
 When I grow up I want a bathroom like this. It's just so... perfect in every way.

Think: sunrise over a perfectly manicured golf course. Fog rolls through the trees and across the green and the rays of sunlight filter through the clouds, creating an ethereal glow. Sparkling pools and hot tubs and fire pits beckon you to make use of the beautifully landscaped property. When you're tired, comfortable beds with crisp, white down comforters will lull you to sleep... I could go on and on and on. I could easily spend a week vegging at this resort and just enjoying the ambiance.

But I guess I'll have to wait until next time. To quote my sister as we drove away, "Hasta La Vista, Heaven!"



I'd count my mission a success.

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