36 Best Hotels in North County and Around, California

The gorgeous, flower-decked 265-acre grounds draw a sophisticated clientele looking for a golf and spa getaway. Public areas throughout the resort are a collection of fountains, pools, and small sitting rooms, where Spanish mission–style sofas and fireplaces invite you to linger with a good book, and guest rooms hold platform beds tucked into corner upholstered banquettes, and great fairway or garden views are visible from private patios or balconies. A spa, complete with a saline pool, holds the ultimate treatment rooms: shuttered and heated garden casitas, where you can relax under the sun to the tune of moving water. Day passes are available to nonresort guests Monday–Thursday. The resort boasts the fine-dining venue, AVANT. Many guests select this property for the public 18-hole championship golf course that has hosted both PGA and LPGA events.

Accommodations in this three-story resort popular with golfers are clean, pleasant, and have mountain or golf-course views from balconies or patios. Perks include a driving range, heated pool, equestrian center, a spa, and two playgrounds. You can dine in the bright and airy Oaks Grill every day but Monday. The Par Lounge is locally popular for lunch and dinner.

At Temecula's largest winery, this resort offers your choice of a private villa or hotel room in the tower building, all surrounded by 38 acres of vineyards. Most guests opt for a villa, each designed for privacy with no common walls or entrances, with sweeping views of mountains and sky from a private patio. Back doors open onto trails that wind through vineyards and orchards, ideal for guests who travel with happy hounds; each dog is welcomed with a "sWag Bag" and owners are treated to wine-tasting tickets. There are hand-painted frescoes, in-room fireplaces, oversize marble bathrooms, and small dining areas. In the tower building, an additional 50 rooms are slightly less private but more affordable than the villas. The resort also has a spa with 22 treatment rooms and a saltwater pool. The resort offers a number of packages that make it a value choice when staying in the Temecula wine country.

Coastal luxury meets Cape Cod practicality at this warm and friendly inn near the beach. Large, well-appointed guest rooms are furnished with king-size pillow-top mattresses, HDTVs, refrigerators, coffeemakers, and microwaves; the amenity fee ($22) includes underground parking, Wi-Fi, fitness center, a breakfast buffet, beach and pool amenities, and milk and cookies in the lobby. The attractive pool keeps kids happy, as does ping pong and playing board games in the library.

Best known for its herd of llamas and goats, this cedar-and-brick inn is decorated with romantic furnishings and offers themed guest rooms with fireplaces and outdoor hot tubs for stargazing. In 2020 a new owner stepped in and renovated rooms with hardwood floors, antique furnishings, footed tubs, and king-size beds. A nod to nature are manzanita handrails along garden pathways and sustainability efforts to make the hotel completely off-grid. From the "Dreamcatcher" room with Navajo decor, to "Shady Lady" designed burlesque style, take your pick from a variety of styles. For more space, request "Willow," which sleeps up to four people.