Stay At The Cypress Inn
W
hen you’re in Carmel, you feel cosmo, hip, cool and relevant — the vibe is a Berkeley-meets-Aspen kind of thing. It’s such a lovely place to hang and get off the course for a few hours or even a few days. Rick and I stayed at the Cypress Inn, which is a legendary hotel, restaurant and bar that everyone there knows about. It’s been open since 1929 and is a registered historical landmark. Doris Day is the one who really put it on the map, as she owned the Inn and called it home for over 20 years. Some of the world’s elite entertainers and who’s who have been guests there. The Spanish architecture, appointments, furnishings and art deco are all authentic. The relaxed decadence has Doris Day’s fingerprints all over it and there’s endless memorabilia at every turn. The staff treats you like you were checking into a coastal Euro villa somewhere and the outdoor courtyard of Terry’s Lounge has an ever-changing seasonal menu. The fresh seafood, steaks, chops and local greens are something James Beard would give his personal thumbs-up. There’s so many cool hidden pockets to chill out in and the mixology is world-class. We went for broke and enjoyed a tower suite room. To open up the bay windows in the morning and hear the sounds of Carmel-by-the-Sea’s streets waking up and the Pacific’s breakers in the distance shook the slight Scotchon-the-rocks fog right out of my head. Reservations were a breeze; the hotel has other properties in the area, too. Of course, the Inn at Spanish Bay and the Lodge at Pebble Beach would be life-long memories for sure, and you can’t ever go wrong by staying on-property, but it’s nice to meander and see what the coastal towns can offer, too.
