I absolutely love California’s Central Coast! We’ve explored most of the Central Coast destinations on separate weekends, but these adventures can be done in one trip if you so choose. This is my pick for the most romantic bed and breakfast on California’s Central Coast.
Avila La Fonda Hotel the Gem of the Central Coast!
In my opinion, this is the most relaxing getaway from LA that’s actually worth the cost. About three hours from LA, nestled right above Santa Barbara and below Morro Bay, lies an absolutely incredible little place called Avila Beach. We stay at the Avila La Fonda. This place is above and beyond! We always have such a relaxing and amazing experience here, and keep going back because we just love it so much!
If you go in the winter months, you’ll get a 30% off winter rate. I’ll let you in on a little secret though. If you go online and purchase a gift card, you’ll get to use the 30% off winter discount on top of the discount of the gift card. Therefore, you’ll get 60% off the room rate! It’s an incredible deal! We always have the hardest time leaving the next day, so stay two nights if you have the time. This place is awesome!
Trip Advisor’s Top 25 Most Romantic Hotels in America
Right after we stayed here the first time, Avila La Fonda got named by Trip Advisor, as one of the top 25 most romantic hotels in America. There’s no question why it made this ranking. It’s incredible, romantic, charming and so relaxing! It’s a block from the beach and such a perfect little getaway. In the summer months the rates double, so definitely try to go in the winter months. Winter runs till the end of March, so you should still have great weather! I prefer the winter months in Avila Beach because the beach gets packed in the summer. In the winter, we normally have the beach to ourselves.
Happy Hour Every Hour!
The Avila La Fonda encourages you to arrive early on the day you check in because they offer so many incredible happy hours every day. The first happy hour is from 12-2 pm. This consists of a full nacho/guacamole bar with my favorite mango salsa, Coronas, and Mexican Coca Cola. All happy hours are served in a cute little room right off of the lobby. There’s a fireplace and endless fresh baked cookies, assorted nuts, fruit, and coffee served 24/7.
Gift Basket and Amenities
Honestly, it will be hard to leave your room once you see it. With that being said, you will need to make it out to see the beauty of this little cozy beach paradise. We stay in the Spa Room, which I recommend because it’s incredible! Once you walk in, you’ll see your gift basket filled with all sorts of awesome goodies & snacks. There are also two adorable take-home wine glasses with the Avila La Fonda logo on them. There’s a scroll in the basket that tells you about all the happy hours and amenities that Avila La Fonda offers. These include the Chocolate Pantry, which is filled with movies, beach chairs, towels, and accessories. All are available to borrow free of charge any time you want!
Spa Suite
The room has a huge jacuzzi in it facing the TV and a wonderful fireplace right in the corner looking onto the bed. This place is so incredibly tranquil. There’s also a cute little patio to cool off on while wearing the comfy fluffy robes they provide. The second you get into the room you’ll want to open a bottle of wine or champagne and hop in the jacuzzi, with the fireplace on and a classic movie playing in the background. However, don’t get so caught up that you forget to make it down for the signature happy hours!
Wine and Hors d’Oeuvres Happy Hour
The next happy hour starts at 5 pm and goes until 7. This happy hour consists of an assortment of hors d’oeuvres and wines from the SLO (San Luis Obispo) coastal wine region. The wines are absolutely amazing. They also tell you where to go to get each of the wines if you want to buy some to take home. The Avila staff may even give you a discount to the different wineries for tastings and purchasing.
Desert Time!
The next happy hour starts between 7 and 8 pm and this is the “nightcap” happy hour. This consists of around five different pies from one of the best bakeries in the area. These pies are insanely delicious and they serve them with yummy vanilla ice cream too! The most fun thing about this happy hour is that they encourage you to take your desserts up to your room to enjoy them with your selection of any movie you can borrow from their collection library.
Breakfast
In the morning you’ll wake up to the smell of fresh-baked croissants, with your choice of chocolate or butter. They are incredible! These are served with fresh-squeezed orange juice and coffee of course! They have cute little trays to put your breakfast on so you can take it up to have breakfast in bed in front of the fire. It’s amazing!
When it comes time to check out, it’s a sad feeling, but you can be happier knowing you have the nacho bar and beer happy hour to enjoy before you leave. Haha!
Avila Beach Boardwalk
The boardwalk along Avila Beach is really adorable with great little bars and restaurants. Pretty much everywhere you go is dog friendly. The beach is dog friendly too, which makes me super happy! We went to have a few glasses of wine at a super cute place called the Pierfront Wine and Brew. You definitely need to walk up and down the beach and look for all the sea lions and otters. They’re all over the SLO coast! The last time we went the otters were twirling around in the waves playing with each other, it was awesome! You may even see a whale or two! They’ve definitely been prevalent there lately!
The Last Pier
Another thing I would recommend is to go down to the Last Pier. There you will see tons of sea lions and otters. They’re either laying in the sun or swimming around picking oysters off pilings. They eat them while swimming on their back. It’s adorable to watch.
There’s a place on this pier called the Olde Porte Fish Market, they have incredible fresh fish, crab, lobster, etc. All their seafood is at market price, so it’s not cheap, but it’s worth it! We bought a few tuna steaks and quite a few filets of halibut, everything is great quality and delicious.
Avila Sea Caves and Secret Coves of the Central Coast!
There are some beautiful sea caves are located a quick 5-minute drive from Avila La Fonda and a little hike down from the cliff once you park. Just put Avila Sea Caves into Google Maps, then ask the locals which trail to take once you get there. If you take the trail to the far left you can make it down to a beautiful clothing-optional beach called Pirate’s Cove Beach! The top of the hike is a perfect place to watch the sunset too! The views here are stunning, so take some wine and enjoy!
Avila Hot Springs
Another amazing thing you can do while in Avila Beach is to go to one of the awesome natural hot springs. There’s one called Sycamore Mineral Springs, here you can reserve your own private springs pool or hot tub filled with mineral water. You can go in alone or with someone, you don’t even need your suit, you can go in naked! It’s available to reserve for $20/person per hour. Call ahead as they do book up quickly.
To Sum it Up for this Central Coast Secret!
This little Central Coast hideaway is one of the most magical little places in California. Avila Beach is an adorable and dynamic beach with sea lions and otters everywhere, whale watching too! The Avila La Fonda is an incredible Bed and Breakfast that fulfills all desires. This place thinks of everything you’d want or need on a special weekend getaway and provides it without asking and sans extra charge. No wonder it’s rated one of America’s Top 25 most romantic hotels by Trip Advisor. I couldn’t agree more!
Another great Avila Beach getaway to checkout is Sycamore Mineral Springs. If you have any questions regarding Avila La Fonda and Avila Beach, let me know, and as always, have a blast when you go!
