Overlooking La Jolla Cove and the sky-blue Pacific Ocean, it’s easy to comprehend how La Valencia Hotel took its inspiration from the resorts lining the Mediterranean Sea. Walk toward “the Jewel of La Jolla,” as La Valencia is known, and you pass the colonnade flanking the palm-shaded patio before entering the lobby. Don’t be surprised if you become immediately drawn from the lobby into the lounge; its hand-painted ceiling and spectacular floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the ocean have a way of luring guests in.

With such epic oceanic surroundings, you’ll understand how this small inn became the town’s social nexus, but don’t let this reputation imply that the hotel doesn’t offer privacy. Many of Hollywood’s biggest stars—including Greta Garbo and John Gilbert, Ramon Navarro, Chaplin and Groucho Marx, the Talmadge sisters, Lillian Gish and Mary Pickford—have retreated to La Valencia to escape the glare of stardom’s spotlight.

The hotel and each of the 116 guest rooms and suites are richly appointed with rare furnishings, exquisite Spanish mosaics and hand-painted murals and ceilings. Little has changed at the hotel since it opened in 1926, save the construction of the lavish gold-and-blue-domed tower, which was utilized as a civil defense lookout during World War II.  And, in 2000, La Valencia added 15 ocean villas, the ultimate in luxe escape, offering complete butler service, ocean-facing patios and fireplaces. Simply put, La Valencia provides a much-needed oasis in Southern California, far enough from the mayhem of Los Angeles and San Diego, but close enough to easily return to it when the need or desire arises.

The hotel's distinctive tower was used as a civil defense lookout during World War II.

Original Property Opened: 1926

Rate Range:
Single/Double: $300.00 to $650.00
Specialty/Suites: $775.00 to $3,500