Oceana Santa Monica Review: Santa Monica, CA

After a $30 million renovation, the Oceana Santa Monica has joined Hilton’s boutique luxury portfolio as part of LXR Hotels & Resorts. The property features 70 impeccably designed suites with custom high-end furnishings, a private restaurant and bar, an intimate pool and lounge area, a fitness studio, and a rooftop bar with Pacific Ocean views. It’s definitely the most intimate and luxurious hotel in Santa Monica.

I recently spent three nights here with my family and several of my kids’ friends, and we loved every minute of it.

Here is my review of our three-night stay.

Oceana Santa Monica Location

The Oceana is located on Ocean Avenue in the heart of Santa Monica, overlooking the Pacific Ocean and Santa Monica Beach. Within a couple of blocks of the hotel are the boutique shops and cafes on Montana Avenue, the Santa Monica Pier, and the 3rd Street Promenade. If you want to have access to everything in Santa Monica, yet want a little bit of privacy, this is the perfect location.

Lobby

The lobby is a smaller, two-story space meant to feel like a living room with a seating area, fireplace, and glass doors opening up to Ocean Avenue on one side and the pool and lounge area on the other.

Oceana Santa Monica Rooms

There are only 70 suites on the property, all of which are large, unique, and distinctive, with an attention to detail and level of quality I have rarely seen.

Everything was thought through to the smallest detail, including the wallpaper inside of the closets, which was complementary, yet different from the wallpaper in the rest of the room. Rarely will you ever find attention paid to the interior of a closet, but they definitely did, which highlights the level of quality and attention to detail paid during this impeccable renovation.

The four-poster beds are outfitted with comfortable and luxurious Frette Linens. The floors have hand-tufted rugs from Nepal and the bathrooms feel like a spa with beautifully designed Italian marble laid in a herringbone pattern. Seriously, the level of design, thoughtfulness, and detail that went into these rooms was off the charts!

Restaurant and Bars at Oceana Santa Monica

There is one primary restaurant on the property, Sandpiper, which is exclusively for guests of the hotel and serves breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

The Veranda is the name of the poolside dining experience, which is essentially the same restaurant and menu as Sandpiper but served in the open-air pool dining area, or can be brought to your chaise lounge right next to the pool.

We at breakfast and lunch here every day and the food was great. The chicken sandwich is a standout and may be the best I have ever had!

Finally, there is a rooftop bar and lounge area, called Sunset Terrace, on the third floor overlooking the Pacific Ocean. It’s a great spot to relax and have a cocktail as the sun sets before you head out for dinner.

Oceana Santa Monica Amenities

The hotel is built around the pool, which has very comfortable lounge chairs, day beds, olive trees, and a seating/dining area with a fire pit. The pool is fairly small (similar to the Alila Marea), so you may have a hard time getting some chairs during prime season, but we had no issues during our stay.

In addition to the pool, there’s a state-of-the-art fitness center and a full-service spa. From the spa, you can schedule yoga classes, a personal trainer, surfing lessons, etc…

Oceana Santa Monica Hotel Review – Points and Elite Status

Now that Oceana Santa Monica has joined LXR Hotels, you can book your stay using Hilton Honors points and free night certificates. Hilton doesn’t publish an award chart, but rooms start at 95,000 points per night. If you choose to use your points, you can also get a fifth night free and won’t have to pay the hotel’s daily resort fee.

Regarding Hilton’s elite status, the benefits are great! I have Hilton Diamond status and was given a room upgrade and free breakfast for all three rooms I booked during my stay.

Conclusion: Would I stay here again?

I would highly recommend this hotel to anyone wanting to stay in the Santa Monica area. The service was outstanding, the employees were friendly, the location is great and the quality and level of design is as good as I have seen anywhere.

That said, there are only 70 suites, so it appeals to travelers who prefer boutique hotels to return to Santa Monica, I will stay here. No doubt about it!