The Sea Ranch Lodge

Just magical. Architecture, environment, food, and overall amazing staff made this an unforgettable experience. Thank you, Sea Ranch.

As we booked the Tarp House at Sea Ranch via the Sea Ranch Lodge, and there is no separate listing for that rental, I am posting this review here. We really wanted to like the Sea Ranch as the concept is great and the location spectacular. Unfortunately, the poor service impacted our stay significantly. After we were told we couldn't check in at 4 PM because propane had to be refilled, we were told we still couldn't check in as there had to be a safety check. We were offered to stay at a different (better) house and when we accepted were told we could stay at the Tarp house as planned (and that the other house wasn't really better). Our group included 3 cyclists who rode 50+ miles a day and I discussed the option of avoiding Hwy 1 and instead using roads inside Sea Ranch and that appeared to not be possible. There appears to be a lot of secrecy in Sea Ranch and we were told only moments before we went there where The Tarp house was located. It turned out, there was literally a 20% incline and miles of hills to get to the house. That would have been great information to have for people on bikes who were already tired. Once we got to the house, we were welcomed by the intense smell of propane gas all around the property. As safety concerns had delayed our check-in, we were concerned about our health, and a person in our group checked on the propane tank and closed an open valve to an attached canister that stood on top of the propane tank next to a cover that clearly wasn't in its place. We reported our concerns to the lobby when we went for dinner at the lodge and were told not to worry that all had been checked. Interesting that first thing in the morning an engineer turned up to check IF everything was indeed ok. Apart from that, the house is an architectural marvel and in a beautiful (if remote from the lodge and ocean) forested hill area. There were 4 BR and one BR turned out to be a very high platform with beds on it, with a vertical ladder going up. The platform was a least 8 feet high, the ceiling so low and the ladder so steep that none of us dared to check it out. I would not let kids sleep up there as they could break their necks falling down (and I am assuming going to the bathroom requires using the ladder. The hot tub in the glasshouse looks cool and the glass tunnel leading there is directly connected to one of the BRs. We didn't end up using it as we didn't want to disturb the couple in the connected BR. The big beautiful Master BR has glass all around. Beautiful forest views. Zero privacy. I wouldn't have cared so much about someone looking in from the forest, but the living room has a window that provides a view into the BR as does the corridor and walkway to the middle porch area. No BLINDS. You do the math. The fireplace seemed nice but wasn't functional as the wood kept falling out onto the floor. I love great design but design over function doesn't work well. Overall, the staff was not very friendly and none of us plans to return. Oh, did I mention we paid $1,400 for one night on a Friday night for the house? I assume Sea Ranch is living off their old glory and looking at other reviews, they don't even bother to respond to complaints.

It is one of the most amazing places in the USA. Don’t forget to visit the building next to it.

One of the best hotels/lodges I’ve ever stayed in. The staff is friendly, location is perfect, and the hotel’ itself is well designed. It’s an architecture and nature lover’s dream.

The view is amazing. Rooms are nice and cozy. Food is good! Very relaxing hotel

Amazing… picturesque!

Great Location on the Sonoma coast cliffs and secluded with privacy for families. The coffee bar cafe was excellent for Breakfast and you could just chill for hours in your thoughts. Rooms were comfy, quiet, and the views were amazing. Trails on the cliffs and bluffs were amazing and there was a beach about 1/4 down the trail with stairs to get down which was amazing. Great place and vibe all around.

Most of everything was great, however I did wish the dinner menu in the main restaurant had more options and more vegan and vegetarian selections as salads was one of the only options. Just fyi, the stairs to our loft in our Deluxe room (Extra loft room option) were a special half-step design which was tricky to go up and down especially in the middle of the night and was extremely inconvenient.