Carmel Valley Ranch, in The Unbound Collection by Hyatt

Amazing, well-kept, clean, and beautiful property and experience! Would absolutely return and recommend to friend and family!

Horrible experience. Room service told me to leave my food outside at night after done eating and press the button that signals I’m done with the dinner. I did just that but no one came to pick up the dishes outside my door. Later that evening several hours later, I needed something from my car and there were large raccoons right outside my door. Essentially trapping me inside my room. So I just stayed inside. When I woke up I looked outside and still no one had picked up my dinner from the night before. I would have been fine leaving the dishes inside. Secondly I turned on the fireplace and several hours later my wife was complaining of a headache because the fireplace was leaking gas. When I brought it up to the front desk it seemed as though they didn’t care and offered me 5000 loyalty points. Great!!!

CVR was highly recommended to my by my cousin as we were going on vacation for the first time with our two very young kids (just turned 2 and 4). Booked room 3 months before arriving and requested the following items to be in the room (sofa bed made up with blankets/pillows, set of 2 bowls/plates/utensils, starry night projector, ice). Also requested early 3 pm check in but was told to call that morning as there were no guarantees. Fast forward to arriving. We got there right at 4pm which was standard check in. The room was not ready and we were told we would get a text when it was ready. Decided to go to river ranch pool since kids were antsy/hungry after being in car for 3.5 hours. Ordered food from river ranch around 445pm. Got a text just before 530pm that the room was ready. Food took a while to come and we had to change it to a to go order since room was finally ready. When back to lodge for room key. When we got into our room, the sofa bed was not set up (still in couch form), prior guests clothes were in drawer, sticky window toys on ground by sliding door, cushion on deck had something spilled all over it, and table had food residue on it. Had to go back to lodge to share this info and request someone come help us. Sat at the table to have dinner and my husband's salad was missing the dressing/cheese/bacon. At breakfast the next morning we ran into some friends traveling with their two little kids. The host asked us if we wanted to sit together and I said sure if there's a big enough table or we can just sit next to them. She said no problem that they had a large table. We did the buffet. We were surprised to see a 20% "large party fee" added to the check. If we had known we definitely wouldn't have sat together. Other disappointing thing was the major lack of vegetables/fruit with the river ranch and clubhouse. I don't think any of us got a vegetable or fruit unless we ordered a side of it the entire 3 nights. please offer vegetables/fruit as an alternative to french fries with everything. They were also out of 3 items we tried to order while staying there. The good - the resort itself is gorgeous. We loved the s'mores at night. Such a great offering. We also loved the organic garden tour and feeding the chickens. That was super fun for my kids. We also did the Little Ranchers which was a highlight of our stay. Salvador was wonderful with the kids and it was overall a super fun experience. I hope our experience was just a blip, but for the price of the rooms you'd expect the room to be set up as requested (I called a week before and a day before to confirm everything), more fruit/veggie options with the meals, and for them not to be out of so many items. I also had to ask about 4 times for a set of bowls and plates to be sent to the room, we finally got them the night before we left.

The crowds and being woken early to a screaming baby was the opposite of what we hoped for our trip. We wanted to sleep in, relax and get serviced when needed. There was never enough staff and our relaxation was disrupted by the lack of preference in placing older couples next to a room with a young baby. We might as well have been in the same room.

Our stay at Carmel Valley Ranch was absolutely incredible, and the standout was the amazing team—Chef Andrew, Pastry Chef Molly, and Salvador. Dining at Valley Kitchen was a highlight of our trip. Chef Andrew’s farm-to-table cuisine was fresh, flavorful, and beautifully prepared. Every dish felt thoughtful and elevated. Pastry Chef Molly’s desserts were stunning—creative, unique, and absolutely delicious. Salvador made our experience even more special by introducing us to the sweetest baby goats on the ranch—such a memorable and personal touch. What truly sets this team apart is their passion, pride, and genuine hospitality. They made us feel so welcomed and cared for—like VIPs from start to finish. We are so grateful for this experience and would absolutely return just because of them. They made our stay unforgettable.

We love CVR and it's one of our favorite semi-local stays. It's proximity to Monterey and Carmel is excellent, and we love that it provides for a large, beautiful, and peaceful property that is very dog-friendly as well. The amenities are very nice, rooms are comfortable, and the spa is lovely. Taking a break at the adults-only pool is a perfect refresher, as well: love that it's centrally located. All the staff are helpful, friendly, and patient. The activities are always a hit --- with both the adults and children in our travel groups! We've had a picnic with their mini-donkeys, we've done the Little Ranchers for kiddos, A Bee's Life (educational and interesting), and the Organic Farm meet & greet (feeding chickens was a hit). I think most families are great and most people respectful, but it would enhance the experience for everyone if there were more stern instructions for the parents whose kids are not being gentle with the animals or fail to follow the rules (i.e. parents should be advised that the staff can remove participants if they do not follow staff instructions, and the staff should actually remove those participants). Nevertheless, this is probably less of a criticism of the Activities and more so of the participants.

Second visit was as magical as the first. This property is gorgeous and rooms and activities are perfect for our family. We will be back!

We checked in at 5:30 PM and immediately found our room filled with an overwhelming chemical fragrance—so strong it was uninhabitable. Within seconds, I felt lightheaded and couldn’t breathe properly. I called the front desk and was told I would receive a call back. No one responded. Instead, after 30 minutes, a housekeeper was sent to spray even more fragrance into the room, making an already unsafe situation worse. This made it clear no one had even listened to our complaint. When I called again, I was told they could “run an ozone machine” in the room. That response was both inappropriate and alarming. We had just completed a 15 hour drive and arrived exhausted—there is no excuse for placing guests into a room that requires chemical treatment to be breathable after check-in. I made it clear we could not wait indefinitely and needed an immediate solution, especially since we cannot drive after dark due to a vision limitation. Despite this, by 7 PM we still had no room. The manager continued to stall, then attempted to move us into a lower-quality room at the same price—after we had already been sitting outside in the cold for over an hour. No apology, no compensation, no accountability. In fact when I raised my voice to show I was angry I was immediately tone corrected, he was rude and refused to take any sort of responsibility, acting like this was completely normal and to be expected. In the end, we were left outside for approximately three hours with no viable solution, until after sunset, when we were told there were no rooms available at all. At that point, we were effectively stranded and forced to accept whatever was offered. This was a complete failure of basic hospitality and safety. Our vacation was disrupted and ultimately ruined. We were left with no real choice but to cut our trip short and drive home the next morning. This situation was entirely preventable and handled with a level of disregard that is unacceptable.

We came for a birthday using the am ex FHR promo and loved exploring the gardens and apiary , vineyards , did yoga on the platform, golf, hiked the huff and puff and horseshoe loops, stopped by the hilltop coral and pickle ball at river ranch .. wonderful 70s style golf club w 4 distinct housing areas .. close enough to downtown Carmel without all the people and congestion, enjoyed the soaking tub on patio.. immensely but we paid extra for that. We did a henry tasting and had a nice sav blanc by estancia at check in. Loved seeing all the lovely dogs on site. Many families .. nice breakfast buffet and coffee shop..spent a whole day at pool and spa which was great. The large suite was nice but we didn’t need or use all that space . Would say the tub controls and hook are not well placed.. and the water heater is on HOT so be careful when u use or have your partner help you so you can maneuver . Whole property is likely ready for a facelift, rooms are granite , and travertine vibe..loved the fireplace and views and privacy. There is house shuttle if you don’t want to hike back to your suite .. we saw turkey and many deer , loved the organic garden and bees .. what fun . My husband booked a couples massage upon arrival.. we called from the road and no one answered phone to confirm an earlier check in so we could settle before the spa, when we arrived we had to hustle only for some confused massage folks to leas us to a room up from the pool ? NO spa open, 25% discount? Eeck my husband did not like that. It turned out fine, but he wanted to lounge at spa /steam /pool. I was hoping for cold plunge or mineral bath All afternoon day of arrival and relax.. he called personally and no one mentioned the fact that the spa was under renovation. That felt a little sneaky. Not about the cost as much as the time to relax. We have stayed at Pebble, Spanish bay and casa palmera, Monterey spots and many comparable Hawai’i/napa /santa Barbara/ojai spots, I would say this is family focused .. a bit chaotic w all the dogs and families albeit inclusive. Gold course is lightly played so that’s excellent. Stanley ranch auberge similar feel and amenities , calmer , quieter , more dining options.. at same price point w over the top spa .. Carmel valley ranch is a beautiful valley w incredible sunrises and sunset, patio baths lovely, miles and miles to explore …but you are going to que for breakfast and the spa could be under renovation. Non ambulatory folks will be driving a lot .

The main part (lodge) and property grounds are beautiful and amazing. We had a less than expected experience especially compared to the other hotel we stayed at nearby. The hotel was busy and I received a text the morning of check in that our room would be ready by 4 but that it would be busy. we arrived after 4pm and the room was still not ready. We had to wait awhile and got into the room after 6pm. I was told that it took a little longer because the room was being inspected. Well, the bedding (rollaway and sofa bed) were dirty. The sofa bed linens had not been changed at all and there were dead insects in the roll away (could have been from transport). We were given a food credit for the delay in the check in which was nice. However, with the issue with the dirty room coupled with loyalty status I would have appreciated an offer to upgrade us. Our room floor was dirty and every time my family walked barefoot our feet would turn black. The shower head was a regular head attached to the ceiling and the shower water ran into the toilet area adjacent to the shower (toilet area is surrounded by clear glass door????- that is a really bad design). The staff were very friendly, but despite the nice staff and the beautiful grounds, I would not recommend this property based on lack of cleanliness for such a high award category.