After an amazing stay a Santa Barbara’s Mar Monte Hotel, we continued up the Pacific Coast Highway to the town of Pismo Beach, California, where we’d be staying at the Hilton Garden Inn San Luis Obispo/Pismo Beach for one night.
Review: Hilton Garden Inn San Luis Obispo/Pismo Beach
Full Disclosure: We visited this hotel during the pandemic (when resort services were limited).Â
First things first: Don’t let the name fool you, the Hilton Garden Inn San Luis Obispo/Pismo Beach is not located in San Luis Obispo (that’s a 15-20 minute freeway drive North).
It is however located in Pismo Beach, CA, on a bluff just off the 101 highway (diagonally across the freeway from the Pismo Beach Premium Outlets).
It’s about a 10 minute drive to the Pismo Beach Pier.
The Hilton Honors Redemption
On the night of our stay, the nightly rate started at $124 for a “1 King Bed Nonsmoking” room (for a total of $140.99 with taxes and fees included).
I opted to pay with Hilton Honors points which set me back only 20,000 points (which translated to a standard HH redemption rate of .07 CPP).
The Lobby And Check-In
We arrived around 11:30 pm. There was one guy working at the front desk. It appeared was watching youtube or something on his mobile phone. I stood there for about 30 seconds without him looking up once to even acknowledge me.
“Hello” I said. He kind of rolled his eyes and sighed (as if I was interrupting him or something) and said, “Yeah?”.
“I’d like to check-in,” I said before handing him my ID and credit card.
He handed me my room key without saying a word and went right back to watching his phone.
“Excuse me, which way is my room?” I asked.
“Take the elevator, down,” he said curtly as his annoyance grew.
“Where’s the best place to park?” I asked.
“Park anywhere you want,” he said snidely while continuing to look down at his phone.
At that point, I got pissed. The dude was obviously more interested in his phone than doing his job, so I decided to milk the experience for all it was worth.
“Where, exactly is the closest place to park near to my room?”.
“Drive around back”.
“Where is breakfast served tomorrow?”
“There is no breakfast”.
“Do you at least have “grab and go” bags or something?”
“There is no breakfast,” he repeated a second time (which I later found out wasn’t true).
“I’m a Diamond Member, did I get an upgrade or anything?”.
“No”.
“A welcome bag or some water?”.
“No. Anything else? If not, have a great night,” he said dismissively and super-sarcastically.
“It’s going great so far,” I responded sarcastically.
I walked out of the lobby still shocked at the unprofessionalism I just experienced from the guy at the front desk.
I remember thinking, “that guy is a total prick, glad we’re only staying here one night”.
The front desk is on the left
The Parking Lot
The parking lot wrapped around the building, and there seemed to be plenty of parking.
There were even two dedicated parking spots with a sign that read, “Diamond Member Reserved Parking” (they were both occupied).
The Hallway
The “1 King Mobility Accessible w/ Roll In Shower” Room
As soon as I entered the room, I realized the dude at the front desk gave me an accessible room, which was not what I reserved.
There’s nothing wrong with these rooms (and they are sometimes larger), but I always feel uncomfortable using an accessible room when there might be somebody who may actually need one.
It was late, and dealing with the dude at the front desk again wouldn’t get us anywhere, so we decided to just go to sleep and then “get the hell out of there” first thing in the morning.
The Room Entrance
The Bedroom Area
The room seemed itself was dimly lit, with furniture and decor that seemed to be on the “older-side”.
The walls appeared to have a fresh coat of paint and the room was clean and in good condition overall.
The Living Area
The Office Desk Area
Room Amenities
The Bathroom Sink Area (Outside The Bathroom)
The room featured a bathroom sink/vanity area that was outside of the bathroom.
The Neutrogena brand was the toiletry brand of choice.
The Bathroom
The roll-in accessible shower
The Check-Out
Up to this point, we weren’t exactly “thrilled” with our stay, mostly due to the incredibly rude and unprofessional service from the night before.
The plan was to return the keys and then “get the hell out of there”.
I returned my keys to the front desk, thanked the two morning attendants, and began walking away.
Then I heard a, “Sir, I see you are a Diamond Member”.
“Yes?” I replied.
“Well, would you like two bottles of water for the road? As a Diamond Member, you are entitled to two bottles of water per day.”
“Sure, thank you very much, I really appreciate that,” I replied. I grabbed the waters and began walking away a second time.
“Sir, what about your breakfast? As a Diamond Member, you are entitled to two “grab and go” breakfast boxes and some coffee for the road.”
“Really? Sure, thank you very much. I was told [last night] that you didn’t have any breakfast”.
“No sir, it’s just around the corner in the refrigerator, grab two boxes, and the coffee is right there on the table. ”
We actually decided to stay a bit longer in the lobby while we enjoyed our first cup of coffee and admired the view of Pismo Beach.
The “Grand And Go” Breakfast & Coffee Station
The breakfast boxes are there in the refrigerator on the right, center shelf
The coffee station and our coffee and “grab and go” breakfast boxes (on the right)
View From The Lobby Window
The ocean is peeking out from behind the Hilton Garden Inn sign
The Lobby
The Lobby Bar (Closed During The Pandemic)
Walking The Property
The Swimming Pool
The Fitness Room
The Breakfast Area (Closed During The Pandemic)
The Bottom-Line Review: Hilton Garden Inn San Luis Obispo/Pismo Beach
Although things started off very badly, and we were ready to write this place off as “never to return”, the two gentlemen working the front desk in the morning literally changed our whole perception about our stay with their excellent service and friendly attitudes.
Kudos to the two gentlemen working the front desk that morning, their excellent and professional service made a HUGE difference to our guest experience. This was a reminder that one bad apple doesn’t always spoil the bunch.
Overall, the property itself had a good location in Pismo Beach, with easy access to the freeway and nearby shopping, good “standard” hotel rooms, and decent hotel amenities.
As a value brand proposition, the Hilton Garden Inn San Luis Obispo/Pismo Beach is tough to beat for someone looking to stay for a reasonable rate or someone looking to book their stay on points.
Final Rating: 7 out of 10.
