San Luis Bay Inn At Avila Beach Review (2024)
Want to know what it’s like to stay at San Luis Bay Inn at Avila Beach? We’ve got you covered with everything we experienced during our stay here!
San Luis Bay Inn is a resort just above Avila Beach, along California’s Central Coast.
You can walk down to the beach and all of it’s restaurants and shops and you’re just a short drive away from San Luis Obispo’s local wineries and tasting rooms.
You can see the full walk-through tour on our YouTube Channel.
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San Luis Bay Inn Review
San Luis Bay Inn is a timeshare resort, formerly owned and operated by Diamond Resorts.
Recently, Diamond was bought out by Hilton Grand Vacations, so they are now the new owners of the resort.
If you have a timeshare with Diamond Resorts or HGV Max, you can use your timeshare points to stay here.
It can also be booked through timeshare exchange programs like RCI or Interval.
Additionally, you don’t have to be a timeshare owner to stay here!
Like many timeshares in the US, you can book directly or through your preferred booking platform and pay cash for your stay like you would at any other resort.
Click Here To Book Your San Luis Bay Inn Stay Today!
Room Types
When we stayed at San Luis Bay Inn, we booked a one bedroom.
I pulled some snippets from the video to give you an idea of the room layout.
We love staying in timeshares when we travel because of all of the extra amenities that are in the rooms.
Kitchen
From having a full kitchen to having a separate bedroom, it gives us all of the comforts of home while traveling.
It makes timeshares perfect for work-cations, which is typically how we travel.
Having a full kitchen allows us to cook meals for lunch while we’re working and cook in the evenings to save money on dining out.
As you can see in the photo below, there is a full sized refrigerator and freezer, stove top, oven, microwave, dishwasher, sink, and appliances.
The kitchen comes fully stocked with dishes, cookware, utensils, and most other things you’d need to cook your typical meal.
Living Room
The kitchen opens up into the dining room and living room.
You can see in the photo below that there is a dining table that seats 4, which is also perfect for doubling as a work space during the day.
Bedroom
The bedroom is also a nice size with it’s own tv and a closet.
It connects directly to the bathroom, which you can also access from the kitchen area.
The bedroom also has direct access the balcony as well.
Bathroom
I don’t particularly care for bathrooms that have multiple doors because it makes it more complicated the more people you have, but it was just the two of us this visit.
This bathroom had a nice sized vanity, which made getting ready very easy.
My favorite part of the bathroom though is definitely the jacuzzi bath tub.
Most of our timeshares have one, but every once in awhile we don’t get a room with a tub, which is always disappointing.
So I was very happy to see we had a nice tub in this room.
Room Pricing
When we stayed here, we used our timeshare points.
It was for 2 week nights in May for 1,200 points in a one bedroom.
Usually if you book within 30 days of travel, the points will drop and I believe this was already a discounted rate.
The studios here can be found on weeknights for 400 points or so for 2 nights, just to compare.
With what we paid into our timeshare and factoring in our maintenance fees, our 1,200 point stay was just under $630, or $315 per night, which is WILD.
It’s definitely not a cost effective use of points to stay in the one bedroom, but the studios can be a steal much of the year.
To compare, spending 400 points for a 2 night stay would be the same as $210 for the total stay, or $105 a night.
Now if you’re not a timeshare owner and you book directly or through your preferred booking platform, I’ve seen rooms mostly starting at $150 a night, which is on par with this area of California.
Depending on the day of the week and the time of year, this number can vastly change.
Click Here To Book Your San Luis Bay Inn Stay Today!
Resort Amenities
San Luis Bay Inn has a pool, hot tub, and fitness center, though I haven’t personally used any of them.
The resort has a huge lawn overlooking the ocean with several lawn chairs and lawn games like corn hole.
You’re in walking distance to the ocean though, so that’s really where we spent our time.
Overall Experience
Overall, the location of the resort can’t be beat.
You’re on the ocean in a quiet beach town and you have all the comforts of home with you.
Having a full kitchen, separate bedroom, balcony overlooking the ocean, and being just a few minutes walk from the beach and boardwalk, is just the perfect getaway.
However, if we were to go again, we would book a studio to better use our points.
Click Here To Book Your San Luis Bay Inn Stay Today!
Resources For Planning Your Trip To Avila Beach
If you need help planning your trip to Avila Beach, we have a guide to all the best things to do in Avila Beach.
More Of Our Favorite Central California Coast Places To Stay
Here are more of our favorite places to stay in the Central California coast region, including Santa Barbara and Solvang.
Castillo Inn at the Beach (Santa Barbara)
This small inn blocks from the beach is just outside of downtown Santa Barbara.
It’s centrally located to everything and much more affordable than the bigger resorts in the area.
Tent Camping at Cachuma Lake Recreation Area
Cachuma Lake is just outside of Santa Barbara and Solvang.
It’s probably the cheapest way to stay in this area.
This campground has all the amenities you need and they are right on the lake.
More Of Our Favorite California Hotels & Resorts
Here are more of our favorite places to stay all over California.
Palm Canyon Resort – Palm Springs, California
Palm Canyon Resort is the premiere timeshare resort in Palm Springs.
We love staying here for fun stay-cations every so often because it’s always discounted within 30-60 days or less of travel.
They have a great pool with a hot tub and water slides built into the rocks.
Riviera Beach & Shores Resort – Capistrano Beach, CA
Riviera Beach & Shores Resort is an oceanfront property near the southern tip of Orange County, California.
It’s in a quiet area of the beach with hardly anybody else around.
We like coming down here for a few days at a time to enjoy the views and the peace and quiet.
Riviera Oaks Racquet Club – Ramona, California
Ramona, California is a small town about 40 miles northeast from San Diego.
It’s in a rural area that has a newly growing wine region, making for a great laid back resort experience.
WorldMark Indio
WorldMark Indio is in a suburb on the outskirts of the Greater Palm Springs area.
We love this resort for it’s pool with a lazy river and how spacious the rooms are.
It’s also way more affordable than the simple hotel rooms in Palm Springs, while also having more amenities like a full kitchen.
You can see a full walk-through of the one bedroom on our YouTube Channel and the 4 bedroom Grand Villa walk-through.
WorldMark Angels Camp (Northern California)
Angels Camp is in Northern California’s gold country near Yosemite National Park.
The WorldMark resort here is like a rustic mountain lodge, complete with cozy fireplaces in each unit.
We love staying up there to unplug and enjoy nature.
You can check out a full walk-through of their one bedroom rooms on our YouTube channel.
WorldMark Big Bear
WorldMark Big Bear is located in the mountains just outside of LA and Orange County.
It’s a great mountain getaway whether you want to enjoy the lake in the Summer or skiing in the Winter.
You can see a full walk-through of our one bedroom at this resort on our YouTube Channel.
Disney Vacation Club Villas at Disneyland Hotel
The DVC Villas at Disneyland Hotel are brand new and beautiful!
They have their own private pool and hot tub deck separate from the main resort pool (which you can also use too).
Our room was themed to Princess and the Frog.
Stallion Springs Resort (Tehachapi, CA)
This is a hidden gem that we wish we could’ve stayed in longer.
This area has so many more things to do than you’d think and we absolutely loved it.
Welk Resorts San Diego
This resort is actually near the mountains outside of San Diego in Escondido.
It’s a quiet area, so it’s perfect for a weekend getaway where you just stay at the resort the whole time.
Beverly Wilshire
This is the iconic hotel in Beverly Hills from Pretty Woman.
It’s one of those places where you should splurge at least once to stay here.
Harrah’s Resort Southern California
Harrah’s is a casino resort near Welk Resorts in Escondido.
Their pool has a lazy river and they have one of the newest Hell’s Kitchen locations!
We love to use our Caesar’s Rewards for discounted stays here.
Club Quarters San Francisco
Club Quarters is centrally located between the Transamerica Pyramid and the Embarcadero District.
When we stayed here we were able to walk everywhere we wanted to go including the wharf area.
Our Favorite Hilton Vacation Club Timeshare Resorts In The US
We’ve been timeshare owners for several years now and we’re on a mission to stay at every property at least once.
Since we’ve purchased our timeshare, Diamond has been bought by Hilton Grand Vacations.
Most of these resorts will really only change in management, except for Marquis Villas Resort in Palm Springs, which permanently closed.
These are our favorites so far.
Ka’anapali Beach Club – Maui
Ka’anapali Beach Club is located on Maui and is one of the most coveted of all of Diamond’s properties.
It’s in a great location, just down the road from Lahaina.
Plus, we enjoyed having the full kitchen, jacuzzi tub, and our beautiful ocean view.
Polo Towers – Las Vegas, Nevada
Polo Towers is right on the Las Vegas Strip, across from The Cosmopolitan.
We love the central location of this resort, as well as having a full kitchen because most Vegas hotels today have their fridge full of drinks that have insane mark ups, making them un-useable for yourself.
We’ve stayed in a variety of room types here over the years including a Two Bedroom, Studio Efficiency, and 1 Bedroom Accessible Room.
Historic Powhatan Resort – Williamsburg, Virginia
We absolutely loved staying at this resort in Williamsburg.
It was one of our more affordable timeshare visits and the unit had everything we needed.
We had just a One Bedroom, but it was 3 stories and set up like a townhome.
The first floor was the entrance, the second floor had a kitchen, dining room, full bathroom, bedroom with en-suite bathroom, and laundry.
Then the top floor was like a converted loft or attic with a tv, couch, and coffee table.
Varsity Clubs of America – Tucson, Arizona
This resort is the only place we stay in Tucson and we drive through here A LOT on our frequent road trips.
If you book within 30 days of your visit it’s pretty cheap.
We love the pool and hot tub here because it usually stays warm enough in the evenings to enjoy both.
It’s a quieter, no frills place and it’s right in the middle of town, centrally located to everything in Tucson.
The One Bedroom units are perfect with their full kitchen, jacuzzi tub, and dining table.
Grande Villas Resort – Orlando, Florida
Grande Villas is just outside of Disney Springs, so it is conveniently located to all things Disney!
There is an on-site pizza & deli restaurant, full bar, and Starbucks coffee too.
The tub is really the highlight of the room though.
Cypress Pointe – Orlando
Cypress Pointe is another Hilton resort and it is actually right across the street from the Grande Villas resort!
The studio rooms here are unique in that they are more like a honeymoon suite and they are so affordable considering they are right outside of Disney Springs.
The Suites at Fall Creek – Branson, Missouri
We love Diamond’s resort in Branson.
It’s set back along a creek, hence the name, so it’s a quite woodsy experience just outside of town.
It’s still close enough to everything too.
What we loved about this room was the counter space in the kitchen, the screened in porch, and the open layout of the room.
The One Bedroom layout here could easily be the equivalent of a real one bedroom apartment.
Mystic Dunes Resort – Orlando, Florida
Mystic Dunes is one of the Diamond timeshares that really has a resort vibe, but the setting of being in Orlando, Florida probably plays a big part in that.
It’s just south of Disney World, with easy access to the parks.
The rooms are spacious and well kept, with just about every amenity when you stay in a one bedroom.
Bell Rock Inn – Sedona, Arizona
Bell Rock Inn is a timeshare resort just South of the city center of Sedona.
It’s an older, smaller property, but it’s the most effective use of timeshare points.
Our stay was the equivalent of only about $65 a night!
Conclusion: San Luis Bay Inn Review
San Luis Bay Inn is the perfect beach resort if you’re looking for a quiet getaway.
You can walk down into town for shopping, restaurants, wine tasting, and to enjoy the ocean.
It’s the perfect home base for visiting the Central Coast of California.
If you find yourself a little further south toward the Santa Barbara area, check out Cachuma Lake if you like camping or Castillo Inn at the Beach to stay in town.
