Pittsburgh Travel Hackers

Alila Ventana Big Sur: A Luxury Retreat Worth Every Point


Does the internet need yet another swooning review of Alila Ventana Big Sur from a points and miles enthusiast? Probably not. Is the internet going to get another swooning review of the Alila Ventana Big Sur? You betcha. 

Tom and I had the opportunity to spend two nights at this resort earlier in November, and it did not disappoint. This is a semi-all inclusive resort on the beautiful California coast where luxury meets outdoorsy. I had become nervous that we had over-hyped this place in our minds (especially when we stopped in Carmel-by-the-Sea and became the only two humans to walk the earth that found it to be crowded and stuffy. I’ll admit, we were hangry). It turned out to be worth all the hype. 

We booked a standard room for two nights for 45,000 Hyatt points per night. This was a spurge for us, but well worth it. We spend around $150 on alcoholic beverages, tips and delivery fees over the course of the weekend, $99 on our car rental (go Tom with the rental car skills!), and around $70 on taxes and fees for our flights, which were booked with points, of course. I’m not sure we could have driven to a nearby Pennsylvania bed and breakfast for the weekend for what we ended up spending on this trip.

We booked the direct flight from PIT to SFO on United. On the way there, I found the flight using Avianca LifeMiles. Both airlines are in the Star Alliance, and you can find United Saver fares on Avianca from time to time. I was quite pleased with 11,000 miles (transferred from Amex to Avianca) plus around $30 in taxes and fees for each ticket. This was the best deal I could find for the day we wanted to travel, and much to my surprise, I was able to book our return flight directly using United for 9,500 points plus $5.60 each. We transferred Chase Ultimate Rewards to United for this flight.

We were overall very happy with being able to fly direct from Pittsburgh to San Francisco and back for 41,000 points plus $71.20. However, if we return to this resort, we will consider flying into San Jose airport. While there is no direct flight, Southwest has routes out of Pittsburgh regularly with one layover, and it puts you 30 minutes closer to Big Sur.

The resort is two hours south of the Bay Area, and is perched on a hill overlooking the Pacific with ocean views out one direction and mountain and forest views to the other. Every inch of the property – from the walking paths to the rooms themselves – smells like a delightful combination of redwood forest, botanicals, and campfire. The soaps and lotions provided in the room will have you asking, “am I in a redwood forest, or am I the redwood forest?” The vibe of this resort is more upscale retreat than fancy hotel. Tom and I are not fancy people, and I hate to admit it, but I was a little bit worried we’d feel out of place here. That ended up being no concern at all, as even while there is lovely attention to detail and every comfort available, it still felt nice and casual. You can keep you hiking boots on the whole time, if you like.

The views, man

Here are some of the details that made this place worth the hype:
– From the moment we stepped on the property, the staff were friendly and
helpful without being over the top.
– All meals were included, and the food was excellent. There is 24 hour room
service available for a $10 delivery charge, one main restaurant  that served
breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and dining at the pool for lunch. You will not go
hungry. On check out they even sent us with  lunch for our ride. Again, all
included.
– It boasts 24-hour amenities like the Social House, the pools, and the
Japanese hot baths.
– Every room has a record player, and there is a pretty fun record collection to
borrow from in the Social House.
– They had coolers, beach chairs, picnic blankets, walking sticks, day packs
and anything else you could think of to borrow to make you adventuring
and recreating simpler.
– There were woodpeckers everywhere – I don’t know why, but we found that
charming after we realized there wasn’t someone hammering on the side of
our building.
– Small details like complimentary reusable water bottles, snacks and drinks in
the room, and a daily complimentary happy hour drink were lovely additions
to the stay.
– We are pretty sure the place was operating at full capacity this weekend, but
we did not feel like there were swarms of people anywhere. It is spread out
enough to make you feel like you are in a more secluded accommodation.

There was never a problem finding a chair at the pool

On top of all of the included amenities, they also ran complimentary programming each day like yoga, meditation, and guided hikes. Additionally, there were really interesting activities like bee-keeping and candle-making for additional fees. There is also a full spa on site with what seemed like reasonable prices, especially taking into account the cost of living in the area. The cost of the services seemed comparable to those of the Pennsylvania resort, Bedford Springs. We chose a grueling but beautiful 8 mile hike rather than getting massages, as is our way. Perhaps next time I will book a massage for after my death march.

If you have interest in splurging with your Hyatt or Chase points, I’d start looking 13 months out when availability opens as the standard award rooms go quickly. We aren’t deep enough into the Hyatt loyalty program to have suite upgrade awards or Globalist status, but this would be a great place to apply those if you have them. Some suites have hot tubs or outdoor showers, and all seem to have a hammock on the porch. All of the rooms, even the standard rooms, have small porches that overlook either the forest or the ocean. My little Explorist status got us upgraded to a deluxe fireplace room, and that was a lovely perk. It was chilly enough in the evening for us to enjoy a fire each night, and the room itself was beautiful and spacious.

We like to be judicious with our points because with five people in the family the cost of flights and hotels adds up quickly. However, I would like to make a motion to reserve 90-135,000 points annually for Tom and Melissa’s Alila fund. We can’t wait to return and hope that Hyatt continues to keep this place the delightful, screaming deal that it is for the points enthusiasts of the world.

Our lovely hideaway

Part of our “hiker’s lunch”

Amazing scenery on the Panorama Trail at Andrew Molera State Park

The room snacks kept multiplying

I may or may not have finished my “hiker’s lunch” in here

24-hr Japanese Hot Baths

Looking forward to another cheers here


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