Arrived on Saturday evening at 6:30 PM to be told that my Visa had been declined earlier in the morning. Apparently they put your card through in the morning of your arrival. I had be using the card all day so couldn't figure out what the problem was. I had booked the hotel 2 -3 months ago for a two night stay as part of a California trip. What was more infuriating is that the woman at the desk refused to let me use a phone to call Visa or use the computer to find other accommodations. She wasn't even sure where I should go to get help! Eventually I ended up at the Marriott in Monterey where I was allowed to use the concierge's computer to find that the closest available accommodations was an hour's drive away in San Jose. When I contacted Visa they told me that the woman had entered the wrong expiration date on the card! I hope all the Howard Johnson's aren't like that. The place looked nice from the outside. Be careful not to run over a deer.

We are travelling with two teenagers and the best accomodation we could get was this one with the king bed and two twins. The only real drawbacks are the slightly cramped quarters and only one bathroom for the four of us. Whatever you see on the internet site is what you get. Relative to every other accomodation around it is pretty good. The location is quiet as it is in a residential neighbourhood but, access to all streets and downtown, fishermans wharf, cannery row and all the other tourist attractions is fast and easy. The breakfast is decent as it offers the usual bagels, danishes, frozen waffles, cereals. Some apples, no other types of fruit is a drawback. Overall, a pleasant place to stay.

For a two room suite, the price was great. The hotel is located in a very quiet area of Pacific Grove and it's close to Asilomar so you can walk to the beach. However, the two room suite (one King, two twins) was very small. The closet was about three linear feet. There was one tiny round table with one chair, so it was difficult to eat or play cards in the room. We did have a small balcony and a wet bar (not a kitchenette, as advertised). The rooms that the hotel promoted as renovated were still very outdated. The parking was pretty tight and the front desk was very unhelpful. Our room wasn't ready at check in time and we had to wait an extra hour to check in. Then, after one night we were asked to change rooms to a "renovated" room. It was a hassle to move four people, but we obliged (after having to hang around and wait for the other guest to vacate and for the room to be cleaned). Unfortunately the room was just as tiny and out dated as the other room. When we asked the manager if he would consider doing something for us due to the hassle, he told us we were getting a good room rate already. However, we were getting the same rate that anyone going on-line through Howard Johnson would pay. The new room we were moved to was next door to a room being renovated. The work began at 7:30 am each day and the crew worked until 7 pm. When we contacted the front desk, they said that the crew woudln't start until 9 am the next day. No apology was offered. Of course, work started at 7:30 am the next day. I was very disappointed in the desk staff and the manager.

It is a beautiful location. they could not find our reservation on their computer. resolved that went to our room, and the inside hallway leading to our room smelled very bad, like curry. the managers apartment was right below our room. well, the manager and friends partied untill after 2am, keeping us awake. and when we complained about it would not admit or take resposibility. This location is too great to be sooo mismanaged.
do your self a favor and stay somewhere else, i wish i had.