HotelChatter

Highlights of the hotel include The Links at Terranea, a “challenging” 9-hole golf course, The Spa at Terranea, with 25 treatment rooms, three ocean view pools and eight restaurants, bars, and lounges. There’s also a children’s center with interactive programs, several miles of scenic bluff-top trails, and a secluded beach cove.

Though, sure, Terranea is a giant resort that would be hard-pressed to call themselves low-impact with a straight face, we’re glad to hear the resort was developed “with environmental sensitivity... mindful that it might be the last large resort built along the Southern California coast given the lack of large parcels left for development.”

The hotel cites eco-friendly practices like the replanting of 45 trees that are more than 50 years old (after carefully boxing them prior to construction); a series of water-quality systems throughout the property to treat and clean rainwater runoff; more than 600,000 square feet of native habitat areas; access to public transportation and shuttles for guests; and more.

If you book a room by June 28, you can score introductory rates slashed 20 to 50 percent. We found rates as low as $145.