We stayed at the Howard Johnson Express on our honeymoon. We chose it because it fit our budget and had a kitchen and a fireplace. It was much larger than expected but had a rather weird layout. We had a king suite which inluded a full kitchen, bathroom, living room and bedroom. It was obvious that the bedroom had once been a living room with it's sliding glass doors, fireplace, and extra high ceilings. The suite had three sets of sliding glass doors that opened up to a very large, private deck. The kitchen had all of the essential dining and cookware. Everything was very clean and housekeeping did an excellent job.
The furniture and decor were very dated, which we expected after reading these reviews. The accomodations were comfortable and we enjoyed coming home to our spacious suite each night. The only complaint is that neither of the remote controls worked for either TV. When we notified the front desk we were given new batteries. The batteries weren't the problem and we were told that the person who could fix the remotes was out of town.

We planned to meet friends who were attending a conference at Asilomar so wanted to stay close by in Pacific Grove. This was one of the few properties less than $200 (just barely) per night and we reserved a "king suite". Unfortunately suite doesn't really fit. It is an unusual set-up which is sort of nice. The buildings are tri-plexes with rooms on three floors. We had the top floor in Building #2. The climb wasn't bad and we prefer the top floor. There is even garage type parking for some cars. The design offers high pitched ceilings which is interesting. There is a small patio and ours faced east. The room had a very large closet that has a small fridge and a microwave. The bathroom was big but the shower/tub was tucked back in the corner in a very odd way. Water pressure was awful. There was free internet and TV with DVD player (we never used it) The bed was okay. The breakfast was basic but adequate. Towels were tiny and rough. The place was reasonably clean but there were some water stains on the walls which were less than classy. The worst thing was that it was the hottest weekend in history and the place has no air conditioning! Luckily I brought my own small fan and we slept with the sliding glass door open. The best thing was the fact that it was super close to Asilomar so we did have good visit. But given the choice, I would keep looking and find another place to stay if possible.

The room is not too clean. The blanket had cigarette burns on it even though it's a non-smoking room. Also, the carpet was old. The shower was weak. The upside is that it had a microwave and refrigerator. But it was still pricey for the low quality of the place.

We threebritsabroad can only agree with the most recent reviews of this property.

Doubtless a quiet location, but the buildings need tlc. Flaking paint, dated facilities, gritty carpet, chipped furniture, insufficient towels - and not so cheap that we would say 'what do you expect?'. Not our cup of tea at all.

A word of warning to those with sensitive skins - the sheets are very stiff. One of us came out in a rash which added to the overall discomfort.

We skipped the breakfast and stoked up at First Awakenings - we recommend no more than one pancake unless you have the heartiest of appetites!