Can anyone recommend a modestly priced resort anywhere on coast of California
 

I'm from Toronto, Canada, and I am looking for a nice inn or beach resort in which to spend a week with my son and daughter-in-law and the baby during the latter part of August. They moved to Palm Desert this winter and would like to have a break from the heat in a pretty location on the ocean, not too long a drive from their home in the desert.

Is it possible to find someting nice in the $100.00 range?

You might try the central coast---it is less expensive. I spent much of my childhood at this beach, but I don't know about the inn---it's new. But worth a call:
http://www.avilabeachca.com/march03_01.htm

Not during the summer for $100.00. YOu'd have to at least double that for places here on the central coast for the in season.

You may have a better chance of landing a better rate if you pick mid week and not the weekend. From Palm Desert you may want head a little south on the coast to Carlsbad. There's a couple of nice Best Westerns there you can check out:
www.bestwestern.com (enter in Carlsbad, CA).

Oh, also see the following website which is a good reference for coastal ca:http://www.beachcalifornia.com/index.html

Hi Elaine22..
Best Bang for the buck is the Hotel La Jolla about 2 hours or less from PS and it is under $200 a night and for LJ which is very pricey, I would give it a try..sweeping ocean views..
One of the best beaches is about 3 blocks away..La Jolla Shores
The beaches are so clean and they will have a blast and there still might have some room.. they are going to have to double their budget but in the long run it will be so well worth it!
hotellajolla.com
lajollacove.com
thegrandecolonial.com
ljbtc.com
lajolla.com
lajolla.org
georgesatthecove.com
Wish you all the best!

If you can choose the very last week of August when many schools are already starting up...you may find better rates. And September, when Palm Desert is blazing hot still...even better rates and availability.
Look at lagunariviera.com and seaspritemotel.com They're not "resorts" but are right on the beach. And be careful about "beach resorts"...do your homework...because some call themselves oceanfront but are across a very busy highway from the ocean.

$100 is tough at any time of the year for a nice anything let alone a "resort" - in August practically impossible. And just because many schools have re-opened doesn't mean the last week of August willbe cheaper. rates will not go down untilafter Labor day.

Sorry to bear bad news - but $100 for a nice property on a beach just isn't very realistic. Why not cut the trip back to 3 or 4 days and spend more per night?

We really like the Tides Inn at Bodega Bay. Rooms mid-week start around $149 during summer months. http://www.innatthetides.com/

Good luck with the planning!

I don't think Bodega Bay meets the "not too long a drive from their home in the desert" criteria. That would be a 10 hour drive from Palm Desert.

Oops, missed that point. Thanks for pointing it out, Janisj, but Elaine would probably have recognized it as too far from their home. Sorry, Elaine!

I guess I totally missed the mark in regard to prices. Being from Canada, my perspective of California is that of a winter holiday destination. I just didn't realize that summer is high season too. We will have to adjust our budget accordingly.

Thank you so much for your suggestions and websites. They are very helpful.

Bayou Gal, I kept your Bodega Bay, Inn at the Tides link. As that's a two hr. trip for us (from San Jose). :-)

Elaine, the local Palm Springs newspaper (The Desert Sun) usually runs summer ads for hotels in San Diego and other nearby coastal resorts. They might see a special rate code if they check the ads.