Most Phoenix area residents know that San Diego is an excellent respite from Arizona’s summer heat. However, just over the Coronado Bay Bridge and down The Strand is the 427-room Loews Coronado Bay Resort. It is perfectly situated on a privately owned 15-acre peninsula, with guestrooms strategically perched to maximize views of Coronado Bay, Coronado Bay Bridge, the marina or the property’s expansive pool area. 

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Loews Coronado Bay musts:

• Take a gondola ride and order a fully-stocked, elevated picnic basket from Little Frenchie Cafe
• Try the cocktail, “Backyard Bee,” with Tanqueray gin, lemon, lime, hot honey and cantaloupe syrup at La Cantina, poolside restaurant and bar
• Indulge in the Al Pastor Grilled Octopus with charred pineapple and pistachio guacamole

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Beautiful bay views and luxe rooms

One of the biggest takeaways from Loews Coronado Bay Resort is the openness of everything. Upon entry, guests are greeted by a dramatic floor-to-ceiling open lobby, with a massive double staircase, framed by huge windows that provide dramatic views of Coronado Bay. Walkways from the lobby and leading toward any of the property’s five guestroom buildings are flanked with large windows that flood the lobby and hallways with light and feature views of the Bay, the property’s gardens and multiple pools.

During our stay, we had a king room with full views of The Strand, Coronado Bay and Coronado Bay Bridge. Again, the predominate theme that kept presenting itself was wide open space. In some hotels, room windows won’t even open more than inch or two, but here, each room has a full sliding glass door opening on to a private patio with room to dine, relax and enjoy serene and gorgeous views. Even better, the resort and surrounding areas are incredibly quiet. Even when the resort is at full capacity, it never seems cramped, crowded or noisy. 

Parking is very convenient. On-site valet will take care of your vehicle, or you can self-park directly under the resort’s rooms that provide covered parking not available to the public. If you don’t feel like driving during your stay, the resort offers a complimentary shuttle that runs every 30-minutes into the heart of Downtown Coronado.

Room amenities include toiletries by J.F., including a signature professional hair dryer, two luxury bathrobes, iron, in-room safe, refrigerator, coffeemaker, full-size closet, individual wood hangars, desk, and thematic interiors decorated in hues of seafoam green, sky blue and pops of marigold. 

I’ve stayed in hotels from here to Timbuktu. Loews Coronado Bay Resort has the most comfortable bed and pillows combo I’ve ever had the pleasure of enjoying. Bravo, Loews, and thank you for beautiful nights of perfect sleep, coupled with a gentle ocean breeze that swept through our room at night.

Top-notch service and fitness amenities

The concierge staff goes above and beyond to ensure a guest’s stay is comfortable and full of as many adventures as you’d like. The entire staff is focused on the guest experience. Whether traveling solo, or as a couple or family, there simply is no shortage of fun or relaxing things to do. Every staff member we encountered was friendly, helpful and ready to provide suggestions of things to do in the area. 

The property features three pools and two hot tubs, and a pool concierge provides all the plush towels, sunscreen and anything else for an enjoyable experience. Cabanas are also available for rent.

In-studio or outdoor yoga, a large gym and several pickleball courts are available to guests to keep up on fitness goals. Beachside or bayside walks are just steps from the property and provide an opportunity to explore The Strand and Coronado Bay. If you need an outfit, beach or deck shoes or a stylish hat, t-shirt or sundries, there are a couple of gift shops located right next to the registration desk and concierge.

Dining at Loews Coronado Bay 

There are four distinctive dining options at Loews Coronado Bay Resort — Flavor by Loews Hotels, Lounges, La Cantina and Crown Landing. Flavor by Loews is a convenient stop any time of day. Order up a specialty coffee, tea, hot chocolate or chai drink. 

For breakfast or brunch, there are delectable pastries, muffins, and made-to-order croissant breakfast sandwiches and breakfast burritos. The star of the breakfast menu is the Coronado Island Breakfast Burrito, with organic scrambled egg, bacon, crispy hash browns, pico de gallo, sour cream and avocado tucked into a large fresh tortilla. 

Other grab-and-go food options include croissant sandwiches, poke bowls, sushi rolls, yogurt parfaits and more. Additionally, there are bottled juices, waters and energy drinks, healthy chips, popcorn and protein bars. It’s a convenient way to have breakfast with a view and grab something for lunch or a snack on your way out to discover more of Coronado. Or grab a gelato in the evening before heading to the outdoor patio to enjoy the nighttime views of the Coronado Bay and Bay Bridge. Some thoughtful culinary and wine gifts are also available at Flavor by Loews. 

Indoor and outdoor lounges feature outstanding signature cocktails and noshes, happy hour and the opportunity to lounge marina-side. La Cantina is the poolside restaurant and bar located on the pool terrace. Don’t miss the cocktail, Backyard Bee, with Tanqueray gin, lemon, lime, hot honey and cantaloupe syrup. Very creative, indeed!

When it’s time for dinner, look no further than Crown Landing at Loews Coronado Bay. Featuring a menu with seafood, steak, and chicken, one of the appealing aspects of Crown Landing is the constant rotation of culinary selections. 

On the night of our dinner, we enjoyed jumbo shrimp with house made cocktail sauce, Baja seared tuna with a citrus ponzu sauce, salsa macha and crispy shallots and al pastor grilled octopus with charred pineapple and pistachio guacamole. The variety of seafood appetizers coupled with creative recipes was fantastic.

The Ora King Salmon entrée was exceptional and was served with farro, dried apricot almonds and apricot glaze drizzled with an orange hollandaise sauce. The steak frites is considered one of the “Loews Classics” entrees and includes a hearty New York steak with an incredible 60-hour demi-glace, served with crispy fries and arugula. Other entrees during our stay included seafood linguini, beef short ribs and basil pesto casarecce. If dining during early evening hours, be sure to ask for a table that faces out toward the waterfront cays. You won’t be disappointed!

The culinary staff also beautifully incorporates herbs, citrus and other produce that is grown in the on-site gardens that can be enjoyed during a stroll around the property. The four unique gardens provide the four dining options at Loews Coronado with lemons, oranges, persimmons, strawberries, rosemary and other seasonal fruits, vegetables, herbs and more. 

Sea Spa serenity

The on-property Sea Spa offers the chance to enjoy a variety of luxury spa treatments without having to travel to the interior of Coronado. Services include massages, facials, full hair services for men and women, nail and make-up services and special occasion styling.

Ride in an authentic gondola

The Gondola Company port is located only five minutes from Loews and offers the experience of discovering the Coronado Cays canals and marina area. The scenic Coronado Cays are flocked with multi-million-dollar seaside homes and mansions that boast a wide variety of compelling architectural styles. Most of the homeowners’ boats are on display in their dockside “garages,” and range in style from open-bough cruisers, huge sailboats and catamarans to massive houseboats. One stately home, rumored to have been on the market for $47 million, boasted a whopping 12,000-square-feet home and the best views of Coronado Bay. 

A special picnic basket service to accompany our gondola ride arrived from Little Frenchie Cafe, located in Downtown Coronado. Our Vin et Fromage basket was packed full of charcuterie, dried fruits, baguettes, butter and jam, pate, chocolate truffles, madeleines and a full-size bottle of cabernet sauvignon.

All of that deliciousness was tucked into a charming picnic basket, along with cloth napkins, a convenient serving tray, silverware, a bottle opener and plastic glasses. It was the perfect way to enjoy the gondola ride and certainly enough for us to consider it dinner. A variety of picnic baskets are available for many kinds of Coronado excursions.  

As our gondola wound in and out of the residential-adjacent waterways our knowledgeable gondolier provided fun stories, trivia and all Coronado-centric information we wanted. This incredibly fun and insightful Gondola Company tour might be one of Coronado’s best kept secrets, so don’t miss the opportunity to take a gondola ride for two, or a group of up to six passengers — and enjoy a cruise with or without a singing gondolier.

Rounding out an exciting trip…

The Coronado Tasting Room is located in nearby Coronado Ferry Center. The easily accessible spot provides comprehensive tastings of wines, craft whiskies and the creme de la creme of Spanish olive oils and balsamic vinegars, vomFass. The staff is incredibly knowledgeable about all of their products, and you can easily lose yourself in a wonderland of exceptional tastings. We found a few outstanding whiskeys to bring back with us to commemorate our fun trip. 

Coronado Historical Museum features a visual deep dive of discovery surrounding the recent $550+ million renovation of the iconic Hotel del Coronado. There are also many other fun Coronado-centric artifacts, and it is easy to spend a few hours learning the history of Coronado. 

LAMB’S Players Theatre is located along Orange Street in the iconic Spreckels Building in Coronado and is currently in its 54^th year. “The Golden Age of the Album” will be performing through September 14. Catching a fun performance in one of the most beautiful buildings is worth your time. 

If you have free time in the evening, go to Coronado Ferry Landing, take the ferry over to Downtown San Diego and enjoy a concert at Rady Shell at Jacobs Park. There is a variety of programming from R&B and classical pianists to nationally known acts like Earth, Wind & Fire, Maren Morris and comedian John Mulaney. Rady Shell is also the performing home of the San Diego Symphony Orchestra.

Silver Strand State Beach is a short walk from the Loews Coronado Bay Resort. It’s the perfect place to walk the beach at sunrise or sunset or just enjoy the weather. Loews has a beachfront attendant that provides hotel guests with beach towels, umbrellas, chairs and sunscreen. They truly thought of everything. 

For reservations and additional information about this gem-of-a-resort, visit Loews Coronado Bay Resort.