Estancia Hotel & Spa :

La Jolla has long been one of Los Angeles’ favorite oceanside playgrounds. A two hour drive south Southern California’s ever-growing megalopolis, La Jolla offers luxury vistas with matching prices. The city’s average home price hovers around $2 million, the highest in the nation. 

If La Jolla is too pricey to lay down roots, a weekend visit to Estancia Hotel & Spa is a more than decent alternative.  Opened in 2004, the property just concluded a $4.8 million enhancement mastered by nearby Laguna Beach architect and designer A.C. Atherton.  

Atherton has worked new beauty into the rustic rancho-style architecture and landscaped grounds. The early 1800s-inspired design (low-rise buildings wreathed around common courtyards and patios) now glows with new touches in the 210 guest rooms, pool and spa.

A masculine property that retains great elegance
The 10-acre property is decidedly masculine – from the lobby’s wheeled iron chandelier with flame bulbs, soaring red oak beam ceiling and generous fireplace – to guest rooms’ cream curtains with black and gold stripes. Grooved, white-painted wooden doors complete the look. 

Rooms are styled in peach, tan and beige tones with sculpted carpets, offering warmth and invitation. Spanish tile floors along outside corridors and in lobby areas help augment the rancho style. 

The 3-story property is, yes, masculine as an old style rancho, but not rough. Elegance and ease are woven into numerous details, including poolside cabanas with cooling cabinets for towels. 

Wandering the AAA Four-Diamond property’s landscaped grounds is a delight.  Stands of California Pepper trees and agaves are the first sight upon arrival. The hotel’s interior opens to meandering paths stocked with Euphorbia, Salvia, Aloe, more Agave, Wild Lilac, Kangaroo Paw, Camelias – the list is nearly endless. 

A stand of papyrus crowds a courtyard fountain, just in front of a saltwater pool.  Rocking chairs and loungers are abundant.  It’s difficult to even read a book at Estancia.  You just want to look. 

Alfresco dining with fireplaces and courtyard views
Alfresco dining is available in the more casual Adobe El restaurant and the property’s signature Mustang & Burros.  The latter features a wide Spanish hacienda-style patio backed by a long brick fireplace. I dined on roasted chicken with rosemary on a bed of risotto.  It was simple, and simply delicious. 

Mustang & Burros’ interior fireplace is perfect for the cozy eatery.  But the space unfortunately flows into a bar set with flat panel TVs. The electronic displays, placed high over the bar and pointed directly at the dining area, lend the space an undesirable sports bar feel. 

Estancia also boasts an award-winning spa with saltwater whirlpool, outdoor heated pool, a eucalyptus steam room, seven treatment rooms – and a newly-remolded fitness center. 

Both indoor and outdoor meeting and event space is more than ample: 26,000 square feet, including 15,500 square feet of state-of-the-art IACC certified conference facilities.

Estancia is quite close to Torrey Pines Golf Course, set on coastal cliffs with stunning views of the Pacific Ocean. 

The property in a larger sense, has a storied feel about it – no doubt given its roots that in at least modern times, date to 1948.  That year the Scripps family sold it to Bill and Ruth Black who created Blackhorse farms on the 10 acre property.  

Black was an oilman and banker, and with his wife, operated an equestrian ranch for training young thoroughbreds. 

Final notes: quibbles, mostly about thin walls
Given the chance to quibble about minor sour notes in a property as grand as Estancia, I usually prefer to minimize complaints.  But as beautiful as my stay was, there were a few gaps in both service and surroundings.  

These included an empty hand sanitizer in the gym, missing and broken handles for gym equipment, a broken flange ring that hung around the shower head in my room, an absent greeter at El Adobe restaurant, miscommunication with front desk staff (who interpreted my change in restaurant reservation as a room service reservation resulting in more messages, more calls . . . )  and apparently thin walls. 

Hotel corridor noise for any property can be vexing. I fully appreciate that library-style marms can’t be stationed along hallways, shushing drunken guests. Still, the walls at Estancia seem a bit thinner than most. Especially for rugged rancho-style architecture. Or maybe the guests were drunker that most. It didn’t help that my room was stationed near an end corridor with a heavy door. It opened and closed like a stone tomb. 

On that note, here’s a general notice for hotel guests, worldwide: just because you’re drunk and happy at 2 a.m. does not mean ....