The Resort at Pelican Hill

My husband and I engage in frequent fine dining – and never have we received better service (not even in 3 Michelin starred restaurants such as the French Laundry) as we do from Stephen. The reason I post this in the resort section (I will in the restaurant section as well), is that his service is actually what made us book the resort to stay overnight.
We booked the «Dinner of the Senses» dinner served at the Coliseum cabanas for Valentine’s Day and stayed at the resort this year (just as we did the previous year) strictly to get Stephen again. We frequently stay at 5 star resorts from Four Seasons, Ritz Carlton, St. Regis and Montage all over the country and the world. Honestly, we could have gone anywhere for our Valentine’s trip. However, when we were debating our many options, the service we knew we would receive from Stephen was the ultimate deciding factor.
Our bungalow was beautiful, room service was friendly and efficient, and we were delighted with everything we ate and drank. Gorgeous and relaxing property. Robes are from heaven. Check in was not just timely, but even a little early, which delighted us.
I also want to give a huge shout out to Mr. Cosby, who is in charge of the valet. My husband and I come to Pelican Hill to dine, aside from our two overnight stays, so we have been there many times – I can safely tell Unilocalers, that the friendly, professional and informative greeting we get from Mr. Cosby sets a great tone for the rest of the experience. Seriously – he’s top notch. Stay at Pelican Hill, Dine at Pelican Hill. It’s worth every penny – unless of course you don’t enjoy being treated like royalty.

My newlywed friends stayed here for their wedding night and I wanted to do a few special things for them. I called the Resort, and was transferred to In-​room dining. Nayeli took my call and spent the next twenty minutes making my three requests for my friends happen. She gave me excellent service, and left an amazing impression on me.
After giving me excellent service over to phone I later found out that my three requests were carried out flawlessly, and with the help from Nayeli my friends had a wonderful night, morning, and lunch.
Thank you so much. I will be staying at this resort in the near future purely because of the amazing service I received from Nayeli.
Thank you once again.

Thanks for ruining my father’s birthday and overwhelming us with the complete disaster of an experience from start to finish. Booked my parents an ocean view bungalow as a birthday gift for my dad. We tried to check in at 2:30pm (no room available) but decided to kill time in Coliseum having lunch. We experienced a host of problems such as cold food, missing items and slow service. We all ate at different times. Wandered back to the lobby inquiring about room keys (they promised to call as soon as room ready so my folks could change for pool) and they magically produced the keys sitting there … Uh, wait. The keys were ready and we never received a call letting us know? Got to the room and find the carpet wet around the coffee table and side of bed. Also a coffee bar set-​up but no coffee mugs. My parents are elderly and the series of errors was starting to really stress and exhaust them. Requested to be moved to a room with dry carpet and this triggered an unfortunate set of events including another long wait time, new keys that didn’t work, and luggage that we were told would be moved to new room but no one ever came. We took the time to drop-​off a key for new room for my dad at spa, but they never gave him when he check-​out even though they knew who he was. All told, over 8 calls to management today. What a stressful, horrible «gift» for my parents. Property is gorgeous 5 stars. Service is definitely a 0. Everyone was «apologetic» and seemed very nice but no upgrade offer after all the hassle, no apology for a terrible lunch, no sincere effort to turn things around when it was clear we had experienced a massive failure of service. We were afraid to leave the resort until everything was resolved for my parents and this did not happen until after 7pm! In speaking to a supervisor on the final call, we were offered a $ 100 room credit which we respectfully declined. $ 100 does not begin to address the time wasted calling managers, having room keys that didn’t work, moving our own luggage, multiple service errors at lunch and it certainly doesn’t make up for the time wasted where we should have been simply able to enjoy the resort and celebrate a family birthday.

Truly a beautiful place to stay! I highly recommend to get a ocean view room. The rooms are lag with nice privet decks. The resort is very large and have cars to take you to and from anyplace you would like to go. The one thing that I do have a challenge with is the restaurant Andrea. They will tell you its very good but the service and food is terrible. I will not ding the hotel for that I will just say that they need to do something with the staff and food at that restaurant. The rest of the staff and resort was fantastic.

Thank you for the suite upgrade! It is gorgeous and spacious with vaulted wood ceilings, 2 fireplaces, 2 tvs and seating areas, 2 bathrooms and large patio area. Exceptional staycation getaway to celebrate my husband’s birthday. Everyone was friendly and attentive. Appreciate the little extras like complimentary sample desserts at Andreas for dinner and then chocolate covered strawberries delivered to our suite for a late night treat.

I’m super disappointed with our casual visit. First, I have to preface that I have four seasons training so I know standards of service.
My husband and I arrived at the bar after walking around the property at 5:30pm on a Saturday. It was a little crowded but mostly by what seemed to be a big group. There was plenty of space at the bar so we sat there. It took over 10 minutes for the bar tender to acknowledge us. When you want a drink and you see 20 of them going by you — ten minutes is a long time. But when you are 2 feet from someone who is your guest at a fine establishment as this, you are required to make eye contact and at the every least say hello. Didn’t happen.
He finally greeted us, in the most polite way I think this man could — and handed us a menu. We made quick work of the menu and decided what we wanted. Unfortunately another ten minutes went by without a glance in our direction. At this point I was so upset that I made the decision to leave.
Here is what the issue is: the neighboring restaurant servers have to get all of their drinks from the bar. If there is one bartender with an already full bar this will logically make service for EVERYONE slow. A good manager would recognize this and jump behind the bar. The manager just coasted around and concerned herself with the servers. Who all were complaining about the delay in getting drinks. Every person at the bar top was ignored. The group next to us was upset, someone across the bar had to get up and ask a waitress for a drink. It was a mess. Mind you it was a crowd that a delay could easily be tolerated but service would still be handled promptly. But when the bartender is making 6 Shirley temples for the restaurant — something the servers should be capable of making themselves — you’re going to have an issue. The bartender made the decision to allow ticket after ticket consume him and didn’t stop to care for the people in front of him. And he never once asked for help.
Mind you we wanted a beer, the beer fridge was in front of us. It would have taken him 2 seconds to serve us — but we were never even asked.
Knowing that just walking out would not serve the restaurant any understanding of the events that transpired, I approached the Manager and informed her that we had been sitting there — AT THE BAR — in front of the bartender for 20 minutes and had never been asked what we wanted to drink. I explained our disappointment and that we would not be returning. Her response was I can get you anything you want right now. Why now? Because I brought it to your attention? It’s their job to know what is going on in the room without asking. As a guest I knew more about what was happening in the bar than she did — past experience or not.
We decided to not stay there for our anniversary and will not be trying the other establishments at this property due to this experience. Very disappointed!

As an Irvine Company resident, I received an email last week with a special rate– I booked immediately. I’ve always wanted to spend more time at the resort, but usually only went for the restaurants. After spending the weekend here, I have to say it was one of the best experiences I’ve ever had. We were impressed the minute we arrived; EVERYONE from our Valet (Christian A.) to the Concierge, to the Receptionist, was extremely professional, courteous, and genuinely caring.
I will definitely be planning more weekend getaways here, even without promotion.

update: Mistakes happen. Good job Pelican Hill for showing concern and effort to make up for these errors.
I hope to write a review that focuses on the positives for next trip.
previous: First off, this hotel is probably a legitimate 4~5 star experience most of the time. My personal experience however was not. Due to a construction defect and staff negligence, my wife’s toe was cut on a sliding door attachment. When opening a sliding door, it can be reasonably expected that you will not get slashed by a blade attached to the bottom of the door, right? See attached pic. To the hotel’s credit they did send band aids. Not to their credit was their apology of «sorry for the inconvenience.»

Here are some pros from our stay:
1. Customer service during our stay was impeccable. Everyone was SO friendly, and genuinely so. Housekeeping brought us a bottle of Moet to celebrate my husband’s birthday, waitstaff was nice and friendly.
2. The resort is beautiful. The 80 degree pool is amazing. The view from our ocean-​view balcony room (Bungalows, 213) was fantastic and worth every penny.
3. Andrea is so lovely. Please eat their gnocchi. I thought it was better than the risotto, which is also delicious. I enjoyed Andrea’s pasta more than I’ve ever enjoyed any pasta anywhere else, including in Italy.
4. The guys who work at the golf club are REALLY friendly. Big props to David.
5. Love that they have awesome shuttles that take you everywhere you want to go. I cannot emphasize the customer service enough.
6. The body scrub and foot massage I had at the spa (which is so clean, so pretty) were divine. My therapist was so friendly and I really, really enjoyed the experience. My skin is SO soft from the scrub.
7. Food at the other restaurants is also delicious. We really loved the pool restaurant. Beautiful view, great menu options. That steak quesadilla is delish. And the sweet rolls are so scrumptious.
Our experience should have been 5 stars. But I had a few issues that took some time to get resolved, so I initially gave them a 3 star review. However, the staff went out of their way to resolve the issues and make sure I am completely satisfied. So, 5 stars!
Here were my issues, briefly:
1. Bad hair style. The blowdry was greasy and bumpy. I had to have it redone. There was initially some resistance when I asked for a refund or a reduction by the amount I paid to have it redone. At least two managers told me I should have complained sooner. But I persisted and they have agreed to refund me the entire cost of the unfortunate blowdry.
2. Tracking down golf club receipt. David at the golf club handled this issue like a champ.
3. Chasing down my iPad charger that I left in the room. I called less than an hour after I checked out and informed them I had left my charger plugged in. I was promised a call back, did not get one, then when I called, was told that they could not find the charger. However, security eventually called back and told me that although they could not find mine, they would send me a complimentary iPad charger because they had so many lying around from guests that had left theirs. Nice!
And finally, something that I think that management should really consider…
Staff at the other restaurants, while wonderful and so helpful, have not dined at Andrea and are not aware of their menu. My husband and I dined at both the pool and lobby restaurants and when we asked the waitstaff what their recommendations for Andrea were, they confessed they had never eaten there. We were told that staff are allowed to dine at Andrea for a discount on their days off. (Who wants to pay to eat at their place of work on their day off?) I understand that feeding a rotating staff such an amazing menu is not economically efficient and can be difficult to accomplish, but perhaps there could be a food tasting every 4 months for staff to try at least a few bites of the various menu staples. Or, some kind of information provided to staff so that they appear more informed and engaged. And so the resort feels cohesive.
With that said, 5 stars. :)

This is a long overdue review.
When we first came to pelican hill, we were impressed by the overall décor and landscape of the hotel. Decided to sit at the lobby area, got some drinks and enjoyed the view.
We were served fairly quickly by a girl, but right from the start she seemed very nervous. Especially when she bought over the snacks and delivered our drinks.
When she came back the second round with my fathers coffee, she spilled half a cup of hot coffee straight onto my fathers shoes. She apologized and left. We asked for her to bring extra napkins for my father to wipe and clean up. We all were quite upset at that point, not only because we had to ask for the napkins, but because my fathers shoes were now soaked with coffee and we have to absorb the cost of the damage.
There was no offer from a manager or team member to try and remedy the situation, such as (cleaning or sending the shoes out for repair), btw my fathers shoes were not cheap. That’s extremely disappointing coming from a resort like pelican hill that boasts themselves as high class as they are.
Originally thought about having my wedding here but heard from friends that came to inquire about their venue that they have the worst service ever. People were not helpful and rude the entire process.
Well, I have little doubt about that just from the experience we had from above. I wouldn’t trust a hotel with an important day as such if they can’t even take care of an issue as small as a coffee spill.
Basically, one friend had a beautiful wedding at the montage and the other at the ritz.

Spent five days here for work last week. Beautiful, amazing and lived up to the 5-​star resort service it touts. From check-​in to check-​out, the staff was extremely accommodating and gracious.
Stayed in a 4 –bedroom villa– more than enough room for the week to «live» comfortably. The place was clean, private, and spacious, For the villas– my favorite feature was probably the huge master bath and bed (more than enough space to lay out all my cosmetics (there’s a lot!) and then also the veranda overlooking the Pacific Ocean. Foggy most mornings, but by mid-​day, it was gorgeous!
The resort itself was fabulous for our meetings. The pool was amazing, the views breathtaking, restaurants quick and with delicious eats.
Must come back for leisure soon and enjoy the full spectrum of it all!
Thank you!

Service was extremely unacceptable, food was horrible and they lost my keys on top of everything when I valet my car. This was a place I go to on a monthly basis. Never again will I visit Pelican from the last experience. We had dinner reservations and they sat us 1 hour late. The bill was over $ 600 for horrible service. I’m sad that the place I once loved turned out to be this way.
Don’t waste your time or money!

I took my boyfriend here for a bungalow stay once as a surprise, and it was so fabulous he took his whole family and I on a 3 bedroom villa vacation!
Here’s a review of the villas:
They are gorgeous and wonderfully appointed. There’s everything you need to just kick back or to cook your own gourmet meals. Villeroy Boch plates, nice stemware etc. The master + double bed room both have luxurious soaking tubs, and the single queen bedroom has only a standup shower, but everything felt well spaced out and luxurious.
The villas also have a full washer + dryer (as well as detergent) and I love how you only need your room key to access the garage area. Also loved the extra spacious backyard which included a full table and two lounging chairs. They also throw in extra perks like turn down service and dish washing (oops). I also loved spending time in the gym, which is full of wonderfully plush towels + cool cucumber spa water.
Service here, needless to say is incredible. Everyone refers to you by name, holds open doors and treats you with the utmost respect. Michelle (Melissa?) in the Villa Concierge is also AMAZING. She pulled a Christmas Miracle which I can’t delve too deep in to… but let’s say I was almost in tears with what she could help me arrange last minute. Pelican Hill is truly the most unique and sophisticated, yet laid back resort I have ever been to.
As far as general hotel perks go: definitely, definitely hang out in the pools. They’re heated and it’s amazing. Also the shower gel makes the most INCREDIBLE bubble bath in the world. Use it.
Only complaints:
Super late checkin: For the price people are paying, to ask them to check in after 5PM is atrocious. That’s more than half the day gone already? It was already night time by the time we could go to our villa.
«Butler»: This is the part I thought was kind of meeeehhhh. You never even see them around? What is it that they do? Meh.
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If you were like me and were torn between The Montage, The Ritz or Pelican, definitely go Pelican. You can always stay at your cookie cutter St. Regis hotel anywhere in the world, but Pelican Hill is incredibly unique.

I normally don’t review hotels on Unilocal,but after staying here about a half a dozen times while visiting So. Cal I feel that I should give it a quick review. Everything about this place from their ‘smaller’ bungalows to their huge villas is nice. The rooms are what you expect in this level hotel and the service is usually spot on.
The one thing worth pointing out to those that may not know, this is a huge complex almost requiring you to drive (or call for their small golf carts) to get to the central area where the pool, gym, spa, and restaurants are. If that’s not your style of hotel, then don’t stay here!
If you’re planning a one-​time visit, then I’d say to go for the ocean view as the patios are very nice and the view is worth it.

Tucked away in the hills of Tuscany, Italy… no not really BUT sure looks like it and feels like it but even better, even more luxurious, more decadent in the world all by it self. The resort is absolutely magnificent, surrounded by private mansions on the hills with cypress trees on one side and glorious Pacific Ocean with the purest air on the other, it is picture perfect with manicured lawns, golf courses, excellent restaurants, breathtaking vistas of the ocean, gorgeous accommodations and above and beyond customer service. Top notch in every way. Magical 4 days stay! Highly highly recommend especially this time of the year where there is not too many tourists and you can have most of the resort to yourself.

We stayed here for 4 nights this past long weekend and had an absolutely wonderful time.
The rooms — HUGE! We stayed in an ocean view bungalow and it was just wonderful. The rooms were extremely spacious, the bed as well as the couch and the chairs were extremely comfortable, and the best part was the amazing balcony which had a perfect amount of space for lounging around and reading a book while looking out at the ocean.
The pool — The pool was extremely nice. I greatly appreciated the attendants that got our chairs set up for us and covered. The view was great and the whole ambiance was good. Also loved the pool floats! When we were there on Tuesday though they were seriously understaffed from a drinks serving perspective — clearly not the end of the world but eventually we did just give up. Their loss! Also, it was surprising that there was only 1 pool (for us Bungalow guests) at the resort. These days, most resorts I stay at have an adults only pool, which is nice so you don’t have to deal with children. They certainly have the space, so it was a little surprising.
The service — Absolutely wonderful. It was like I was back in Texas — everywhere I was walking around the staff were so friendly and always said hello and asked how they could help. This extended to the phone where everyone who answered the phone was exceptionally kind. The drivers, valet, concierge, front desk, etc etc etc, all of the staff were wonderful.
The food — I’ll write individual reviews of each of the restaurants on their pages, but overall I would say the food is good. I enjoyed it, but given the prices I expected it to be even better than it was. Not really surprising though — I would be shocked if I didn’t have that same thing to say for ever resort restaurant I’ve ever eaten at.
The spa — I love massages and get a massage literally everywhere we stay that has a spa. While this was probably the most I have ever paid for a massage (yes, it was more expensive than the Fontainebleau in Miami), it was also probably the best massage I’ve ever had. The masseuse was exceptional and I would definitely return. The rest of the spa was very standard — almost shockingly so — when you consider Terranea down the street has a spa pool, spa restaurant, spa outdoor area, etc. Definitely room for improvement on that front.
Overall, we had an absolutely wonderful experience — the room and the service really just blew us away, and we just loved the view, walking around, it was all really great. Definitely recommend!

I’ve heard so many great things about the golf course here and I can finally say that I’ve played here.
A client was in town for a visit and suggested we head out for a round of golf. I couldn’t think of a better place to suggest in the OC area than Pelican Hill. Picturesque views
of the California coast with stereotypical Californian weather. It really couldn’t get any better than this!
We walked up from self parking and were quickly greeted by a staff member taking our clubs over to our carts while we went inside the pro shop to check in. Walked outside to see our clubs in the cart waiting for us. While we waited for a friend to arrive, we hit the range. One complaint was that the range was on astro turf vs. real grass as with other high end golf courses. I prefer to practice on real grass but I understand the maintenance issues involved with offering a driving range w/​real grass especially with our drought.
Since we made last minute reservations, we opted for the south course since it would allow us to play at a leisurely pace not to mention the fact that there were no open times on the north for us to book. Though the south course had just opened a few days prior it was still in pristine condition
. Minus a few greens that still showed signs of being aerated, we couldn’t complain with the amazing weather and spectacular views. The marhsall was super friendly and even helped find a friends lost 8 iron on hole #6’s tee box, while the group behind us said they never saw it… weird seeing that they were also playing from the blue tee box? Needless to say, service was spectacular though the group behind us definitely didn’t show any common golf etiquette.
Will definitely be back for another round, perhaps on the north course!

Our first time here, unfortunately we got to check in little late, the traffic from LA was horrible, staff was very nice they got us checked in, we got situated and they had a shuttle service to take us for our dinner reservation. The room is outstanding, few upgrades would not hurt for an upscale resort like this, the shower head is horrible, you need to run around in the shower to get wet, the TV is too small for the size of the room. Front desk did not mention anything about Internet, wifi no comment at all, which is ok, but it would of been nice to have the info. Either way I would definitely come back and maybe other rooms will be different.