Sheraton Cerritos Hotel

The Sheraton Cerritos Hotel is conveniently located off of the 91 freeway, and right across the street from the Cerritos Towne Center which includes many shopping, restaurant and entertainment choices such as Wal-Mart, Trader Joe’s, Office Max, Macaroni Grill, Wood Ranch BBQ Grill and an Edwards Theater.

Upon entering the property, there is ample free self-parking which is always a plus since hotels like to overcharge for parking even in remote places.

Entering the hotel is somewhat backwards, as you will walk through the ballrooms in order to get to the front desk.  Upon entering the lobby, which is fairly small, the front desk is to the right.

Although the Front Desk Agent wasn’t overly friendly as he hardly said a word.  I did get upgraded to the Club Level, although there isn’t a Club Lounge in the hotel.  I was also placed into a “Pure Room” which is supposed to “Allergy-Friendly” that also has an in-room air filtration system, which is an air purifier.

Bathroom

Bathroom

Upon entering the room, the bathroom is to the left.  There is ample counter space which is always appreciated.  There is a shower/tub combo.  Although water pressure isn’t all that great, water temperature is excellent with no varying of temperature while taking a shower.

Bedroom

The bedroom is not overly huge, but does have enough space to have a small sitting area with two chairs and a small table.

Desk

The desk is somewhat small, and would be difficult to do any work if papers needed to be spread out.

Dresser & TV

There is a small dresser with flat screen TV.

Air Purifier

The air purifier is about the size of a fairly large paper shredder and can be loud if turned onto high.  There is no central air conditioning, so the air conditioner is fairly loud.

As there is no Club Lounge, I was given a voucher for breakfast.  This allows access for two to the Breakfast Buffet ($15.95) with no substitutions allowed.  The buffet is somewhat limited with eggs, bacon, sausage, oatmeal and congee for hot options.  There are also various cereals, breads, muffins, bagels, yogurt and fruit.  The quality of the hot food is barely passable as the bacon was really greasy.  I would be rather upset if I had to actually pay for the breakfast as a guest.

Despite being fairly close to the freeway, noise was at a minimum.  This is a nice hotel for a one night stay, although not especially close to any freeway.  The hotel seems primarily geared towards people traveling on business, or if wanting to stay the night if seeing a show or concert at the Cerritos Performing Arts Center.

Old Vine Cafe - Costa Mesa, CA

Located in The Camp, the Old Vine Café is a small restaurant located in Costa Mesa with an eclectic menu that is all over the place, in a good way.

In order to avoid long waits on the weekends either arrive early in the morning or later in the day as they do not take reservations.

Inside seating is cozy to say the least.  As this is a small space, tables are located fairly close together.  There is a small seating area outside, consisting of a long counter with a couple of small tables.

Service is warm and pleasant.  All servers are help, and a team atmosphere is readily seen.

Caramel Apple French Toast

The Caramel Apple French Toast is almost dessert like.  It is more like bread pudding, or baked French Toast, than the traditional preparation.  The French Toast is soggy, something that is hard to come by.  Loaded with big chunks of apple, with caramel and chocolate sauces on the side, this dish isn’t as sweet as you would think.

Reuben Omelet

The Reuben Omelet is a take on the Reuben Sandwich.  Enveloped in the soft, fluffy eggs are loads of pastrami, crunchy and acidic sauerkraut and cave aged Gruyere.  I opted to go without the Russian Dressing.  The dish comes complete with a dill pickle on the side, and breakfast potatoes, which could be improved if they were crunchier.

Biscuits & Gravy

The Biscuits and Gravy is a Southern classic.  The biscuit is huge and smothered in homemade white gravy.  On it’s own, the biscuit was somewhat salty and tasted a little “raw”.  The gravy on it’s own is smooth, thick and creamy, just like grandma would make.  Pair them together and this is a pretty solid dish.

With the eclectic menu choices, trying each dish would be a culinary adventure.  Most dishes that I’ve tried are pretty solid, but I do prefer the Blueberry French Toast over the Baked Apple French Toast, and the Reuben Omelet over the BBQ omelet.

Hilton Irvine/Orange County Airport

The Hilton Irvine/Orange County Airport sits directly across the street from the John Wayne Airport.  Although being an airport hotel, it is kept up rather well.  The lobby, although somewhat small is well maintained and has a “fresh” look unlike many airport hotels with drab furnishings and old fading carpeting.

As you enter the hotel, the front desk is located to the left hidden behind several pillars.  The front desk agent was friendly and quickly recognized my Hilton HHonors Gold Status, and noted that my membership number was on file.  He stated that I had been “upgraded to a high floor”, however being on the 5^th floor of a 10 floor hotel is hardly a high floor.  He was presumptuous that I would take breakfast over the point amenity, which I would normally do if I hadn’t had plans the following day.  I was given an internet access code which is complimentary with Hilton Gold status.  I was told that there should be bottles of water in the room that were complimentary, and given a late check-out of 2 PM.

Bathroom

Shower/Tub

Upon entering the room, the bathroom is to the left.  Although not huge it is functional with ample counter space, Peter Thomas Roth amenities and a shower/tub combo.  Water pressure and temperature was good.

There is an in-room coffee maker with The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf coffee which is a welcome change from the usual Starbucks that many hotels now carry.

Dresser/TV

There is a fairly large dresser with a flat screen TV.

Desk

The desk is somewhat small but there is enough space to get work done.  Outlets are easily accessible.  Wifi was fast and reliable.

Sitting Area

There is a small sitting area next to the bed, but having only one chair doesn’t seem to make a lot of sense.

 

Bedroom

The bed is somewhat soft and springy, not the most comfortable bed in the world but not the worst I have slept in.

View?

Unfortunately, I had a poor view of rooftops of an adjacent building and an apartment complex.

Noise from the airport is quite noticeable, so for light sleepers I would recommend some earplugs.

There is also no central air conditioning in the room.  There is an old style in wall unit, which does have a thermostat control on the wall.  This makes for a noisier room, but is on the quieter side for an in wall unit.

Self-parking is a respectable $18 per night, which is in line with many hotels in the area.

The Hilton Irvine/Orange County Airport is a clean, comfortable airport hotel and is a great option if wanting to be extremely close to the airport.

Hyatt Regency Indian Wells Resort & Spa

The Hyatt Regency Indian Wells (formerly known as the Hyatt Grand Champions) is sort of oddly located, as it is right next to the Renaissance Esmeralda Resort & Spa (a Marriott property).  In fact, they share the same entrance with the Hyatt located to the left.

Entrance

The Hyatt Regency Indian Wells boasts two golf courses, three tennis courts and seven swimming pools.

I booked the room using a Virtuoso agent, so benefits included an upgraded room, 4 PM late check-out, free breakfast and a $100 resort credit per stay.  Many of the benefits are redundant with being a Hyatt Diamond member, with the exception of the $100 resort credit, and in this case, the 4 PM late check-out since this does not apply to resorts.

I also used a Hyatt Diamond Suite Upgrade for this stay.  When calling to apply the upgrade I was told that I would either be placed into a Hospitality Suite or an Executive Suite, with the Executive Suite being the nicer of the two.

Upon entering the hotel, the front desk is located to the left.  All Hyatt Diamond and Virtuoso benefits were clearly explained, however when given the welcome letter it stated that I had booked my room through American Express Fine Hotels & Resorts which was clearly wrong, but both include the same benefits.  I was told that the Regency Club was closed during the summer, so I would get an extra 2,500 Gold Passport points.  The $10 self-parking fee is also waived for Diamond Members, but unfortunately there was no discount or waiver of the resort fee.

I inquired about the possibility of a further upgrade, and after speaking with the manager I was upgraded to a 1 bedroom villa.

1 Bedroom Villa

The villas are located away from the main hotel and is in a quieter location.  Transportation to the villas is provided via a golf cart.  In addition, the villas come with butler service.

Guest Bathroom

Upon entering the villa, there is a large entryway with a half bathroom located to the left.  Although spacious, it is not well laid out as there is only a toilet and very small sink that is about the size of a small drinking fountain.

Living Room

Dining Table & Welcome Amenity

Microwave, Fridge, Coffee Maker

Coffee Supplies

The entryway opens up into a large living room with a sofa, three chairs, fireplace, dining room table, microwave, small refrigerator and wet bar.  There is also a coffee maker with pre-ground coffee.  The refrigerator does include complimentary drinks which included 4 bottles of water, a Diet Pepsi, Pepsi and 2 cans of Iced Tea.  There was also a welcome amenity of three pieces of fruit - a tangerine, peach and apple.

Patio

Jacuzzi

There is a large wraparound patio that includes another door to the bedroom.  There is a patio table, chairs and best of all, your own Jacuzzi.  I had a room that overlooked the lake which was quite nice.

Hallway

Before entering the bedroom, there is a hallway with 2 sets of double doors to provide noise insulation from the living room and bedroom.

Bedroom

View to Bathroom

The bedroom is very spacious and includes two chairs, a ceiling fan, and a dresser with flat screen TV.

Bathroom

Bathroom

Shower

Bathtub

Toilet

Dresser

Walk-In Closet

The entrance to the bathroom has no door, and there are plantation shutters that open up from the bathtub.  The bathroom is extremely large with double sinks, a separate shower and bathtub.  There is also a TV in the bathroom.  The toilet is separate from the bathroom area.  There is a dresser in the bathroom area, and best of all a large walk-in closet that is bigger than most standard bedrooms.

Breakfast is in Lantana and offers a buffet or one can order off of the menu.  If choosing the buffet, there is an omelet station, along with the standard eggs, bacon, sausage and potatoes.  There are also pancakes, which are some of the best I’ve ever had.  They are light, fluffy and almost melt in your mouth.  They actually have real maple syrup as well.  Other options include cereal, muffins, bagels, oatmeal, bread, fruit, yogurt and smoked salmon “martinis”.  While the selection is not large, the food is fresh and well prepared.

The only negative experience came at the time of check-out.  The front desk agent was rather inept and not big on customer service.  She was writing in some type of notebook and took a couple minutes before acknowledging me, and kept telling me that she would be with me “in a minute”.  She then took a phone call from a guest, and took off to make him a key, while still telling me that she would be with me “in a minute”.  After finally dealing with the other guest and finishing up with her notebook, she finally got around to helping me.  The whole experience at the time of check-out put a damper on an otherwise marvelous stay.

Despite the flaw at check-out, this is an amazing property and I would not hesitate to stay here again.