The Shoal La Jolla Beach

Reviews

• PT

  Paxton Toczko

  4 days ago
  5.0
  We enjoyed our stay at The Shoal La Jolla. Very walkable area, many restaurants nearby and the most perfect beach to watch the sunset + sunrise without overcrowding. It’s about a 35 min walk or 10 minute drive to the main area of La Jolla and where the seals are at. I’d highly recommend this stay. It’s basically a well-run beach motel. Staff was kind, everything was clean and most importantly we felt safe. So many coffee shops close by too!!
• CW

  Cari Williams

  4 days ago
  5.0
  Awesome hotel! Get the room with the couch if you have kids. Works out perfectly. Nice tables outside your room for enjoying coffee or eating takeout. Great for surfers. Can walk to bagel shop and a little grocery store. Quiet area that is mostly residential. More affordable than some other La Jolla options, but very well-appointed, clean, and super friendly staff. Easy, free parking.
• JC

  Judy Cruz

  Aug 10, 2026
  5.0
  I stayed here last year in October with girlfriends. This past weekend I stayed here with my dtr & granddaughter. Their first time in LaJolla. We had a blast! The accommodations were amazing. Love the location. It was a busy area in August, but quiet in the room.
• TW

  tina williams

  Aug 2, 2026
  5.0
  Don’t judge a book by cover. At first, I was little concerned because the pictures don’t quite match what I expected. But the rooms are large, clean comfortable. The staff are friendly and amazing and accommodating. Well worth the money. It’s a great place to stay.
• KC

  Kai Collins

  Jul 23, 2026
  5.0
  I just floated in a pool under the stars next to the Pacific Ocean. I LOVE this place! When you wake up in the morning, you're steps from a fresh cup of coffee and even better, Windansea Beach! No, that's not a typo, that's what the locals call it. "Windansea" The staff are unbelievably kind, courteous, and accommodating. Grey and Tony are the two I may recommend personally for FIVE STAR SERVICE and beyond! The rooms are clean, calm, and welcoming. (I specifically love this big, comfy bed, the tile in the shower, and the teal accent colors.) Everything you need is here, and if not, the staff will find it for you (I presume, since everything I needed was already here and I haven't had to call or walk out to the front desk for a single thing since I arrived!). For further context, my Dad just died and while you don't need to know my entire life story, I was born and raised in this town and I will be 50 next month. When we got the awful news, we rushed "home" during peak Del Mar race season and there weren't any rooms available anywhere. My husband and I were just like, whatever, we need a place to stay, and if we have to spend more money than we've ever spent anywhere, just to "get home", then let's suck it up and do it. This is a family emergency. I got FLEAS at The Inn at Rancho Santa Fe ($900)! The "bold look of Kohler" at the Torrey Pines Hilton ($795) meant the sink didn't drain and nor did the shower! So, while The Shoals may have once been dismissed as "The Travelodge" when I was a kid -- the place for a weary traveler to rest their head for a night -- it's now been entirely renovated, and remains a place for a weary traveler to rest their head. And this very weary traveler needed it so much! The shower is WAY better than the fancy Torrey Pines Hilton, which doesn't drain properly, or where they run sprinklers all night long for the golf course and I slipped and went down HARD trying to take my dog out in the morning, when they tout themselves as 5-star and "eco" and "pet-friendly. Again, I grew up in La Jolla. I deliberately went to college 3,000 miles away to get away from the people here and nonsense like being charged $900 a night for a place that's inadequate. So, take it from a local, who's about to catch the swell coming in down the street at the beach in the morning -- -it's going to be an awesome morning of body surfing -- and even if it weren't, this place has given me a sense of calm amongst the storm. And for that I am truely grateful. Again, you don't need to know my entire life story, but take it from a local who's had eyes on "La Jolla" for her entire life. Don't bother with anywhere else. This is the best! My only wish is that they had a pet-friendly option because I miss my dog right now. Thanks again for the tremendous service. I believe I'd like to extend for as long as I possibly can.