viamar

My family and I are planing a summer trip to Southern California. Currently we are booked for a few nights in Laguna Beach, but my husband would really like to get a suite. There aren't a lot of lodgings w/ suites in Laguna, but in Dana Point I found the Doubletree and a Holiday Inn that have suites for around $200.
My question is how do the beaches at Dana Point compare to Laguna? Is the area as nice? Also about how far is Dana Point to Laguna if we decide to stay in Dana Point but drive to Laguna for the beach and maybe dinner? Thanks so much for any help.

Chele60

Both Dana Point and Laguna Beach are nice places, but Dana Point is more of a sailing village. There is like one beach in Dana Point (if you rule out Doheny) and it is right in the middle of the harbor and T I N Y! On the other hand, Laguna, while not having large beaches, has more of them. Plus, Laguna is just a more interesting place to walk around and explore.

The distance between the two cities is minimal. Maybe about a 15 minute drive.

If it were me, I wouldn't bother with the suite and stay in Laguna. Visit the beaches (some you may have a little bit of a trek to - just follow the locals!), stroll the art galleries, and just walk around the center of town. Take a drive and go down to Dana Point and stroll around there, if you like. Both places have good restaurants.

With these two places, when I think "beach" I think Laguna. Dana Point is really more of a harbor town. (But a very pretty one!)

BobbiOh

Laguna Beach, much more to do there and you can pretty much walk all over town.

paula1470

Another vote for Laguna Beach. Besides being more beautiful and having more to do, traffic in the summer between Dana Point and Laguna Beach is horrible. Instead of a 15 minute drive from Laguna back to Dana Point, it could take you 15 minutes just to get through the Laguna downtown area. If you stay in Laguna, you can walk to many things and won't have to worry about the traffic as much.

highflyer

We stayed at the Marriott in Dana Point last month. It's a beautiful hotel with great views and the room we had was huge (2 queen beds plus a queen sleepsofa, desk plus table and chair). We ate in Laguna a couple of times and once at Dana Point. I think the beaches are better in Laguna but in February our heated hotel pool and hot tub were perfect!

ltt

the traffic in summer can be tough. i'd choose laguna just so i wouldn't have to drive much. the beaches in laguna are nice. i have found the surf to be a little rough in this area so just watch if you have little ones. in august, laguna has the pagent of the masters. if you are there during this time the traffic will be even worse but it is suppose to be very good if you wanted to go.
great pizza place right across the street from the main beach.

viamar

Laguna it is!
Thanks so much for the input. I just booked a suite at Casa Laguna. I went over my $200 budget, but it's our anniversery and we're bringing the kids. We have to have a couple of nights of privacy. The price we are paying for our room in San Diego is pretty low so it all balances out.
Does anyone have an opinion on the Casa Laguna? It looks great on-line, but sometimes not so great in person.

Chele60

I live here, so I don't have occasion to stay in the hotels, but I would only caution about which suite you chose. The Casa Laguna is very nice, but most suites face that street you are looking at in the first photo. And that street? It's Pacific Coast Highwy - could get quite noisy as it is a major traffic corridor during the summer.

I appears the Mission Suite or the Capistrano Suite are located in the back (no ocean view, however), but might prove quieter.

And yes, there can be quite a bit of traffic in the evenings. But then, it depends on how sensitive to noise you might be.

Little_Man

Dana Point is nice, but I too would prefer Laguna over the Doubletree or Holiday Inn; even though they're by the beach they're not in a very scenic spot.
If you got a room at the Blue Lantern Inn in Dana Point, though, I'd choose that over Casa Laguna; it's in a wonderful spot of Dana Point.

viamar

Thanks Chele60. I am a little concerned about noise. The front desk person I spoke with booked us in a courtyard suite which he said was quiet. It seems like noise can be an issue at a few of the places on the PCH. I've found that if you put a fan on it drowns out a lot of the traffic noise.
Any other suggestions for Laguna?

GLMDesigns

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