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Ritz-Carlton Hotels

Ritz-Carlton's Ritzy Cancellation Fee

Where: 1 Ritz Carlton Drive [map], Dana Point, CA, United States, 92629

August 21, 2006 at 5:25 PM | 0 Comments

[Note: This screenshot was taken from our reservation confirmation email. The policy is subject to change, although we doubt it.]

Our first impression of the Ritz Carlton in Laguna Niguel is that it's massive. It's a sprawling hotel on top of cliffs that overlook the Pacific Ocean.  Naturally due to the views, it's also a popular wedding destination as there were three weddings in place on the day we checked-in.

The resort recently renovated its public areas such as the bar and the restaurants to capitalize on the ocean views, making it a special place to do lunch or dinner.

But the resort is so massive that's its a maze trying to get to your room. And once you get there, its really not worth the $400 room rate. We did have a partial view of the ocean, but we also had a head-on view of the outdoor massage cabanas. The bathrooms are quite amazing and luxurious as is the bed. But the rest of the place didn't seem that special. The furniture and setup just wasn't quite as nice as we were expecting.

However our view of the place may have been tainted thanks to  a certain hotel policy. What got under our skin about this Ritz Carlton was not only the $400 room rate and the No Pets Allowed policy (have they not been following the pet trend?) and the vague $20 resort fee. Oh and did we mention this place does not even offer wireless access? Nope, they still do the old school ethernet for $9.95 a day.

But back to our initial gripe: What really irked us is the insane cancellation fee charge. If we were to cancel our reservation seven days or less before our arrival date, we would have to pay DOUBLE our room rate.

Since we saw this cancellation fee before we got to the hotel, we have to admit that might have led us to be a little prejudice against the resort and prevented us from truly enjoying it.

Related Stories:
· Ritz Carlton Laguna Niguel reviews [TripAdvisor]