Really nice hotel! Merced needed this and downtown to boot now they need to open the restaurant and improve on the coffee shop ! When you order a coffee freshly made it should come to you hot not Luke warm read more

Awesome ambiance and service at The Courtyard, food will hopefully improve with practice. Tips on food The caesar had so much radicchio it was very strong flavored. Great chicken with it. Ceviche did not taste good and was sweet which is unusual and not good. Chips with it were very heavy and over fried. Would be better with bread or maybe light chips. Guac would be better with lighter chips that aren't so heavy fried. Chicken wings had too sweet and heavy of sauce. Would be good to add an item or two for kids as neither location at the hotel have, not even a kids menu but just an item that could work for kids. Ambiance and having a location like this in Merced - 5 stars plus, food is not 4 stars yet. Managers can check out food in Turlock at Bistro 234 or First and Main so that these restaurants at El Capitan are a success. read more

Our son was in town visiting for his birthday weekend and wanted to stay one night at the newly opened hotel. Gathered in the courtyard for a drink and the service was terrible. Our waitress I believe her name was Alexas, made a mistake on our tab and charged me for the wrong check and was so rude about it. She was talking bad about us to the bartender right in front of us. She never came to refill our waters. When another person jointed our party she never asked them for their order. We left to order food at the Mainzer and wow was the service so much better than what Alexas provided. So unfortunate for such a beautiful ambiance to have such terrible service. But all the other staff was extremely friendly! read more

We recently stayed at the El Capitan Hotel in Merced. Staff were so friendly and helpful. The hotel has Valet parking that helps out tremendously since parking around the hotel is at a minimal. The rooms are clean and the bed, oh so comfortable. The bar, the food.... Excellent. If you're looking for a little night life around the hotel, it's there as well. If you're traveling through Merced along the 99, and feeling little tired. Stop by, you'll thank me. read more

Lovely room and staff. Dog friendly is a huge plus and the ability to communicate through WhatsApp is super helpful. The decor is really well done too read more

This place is amazing! It has the cleanest rooms and the decorations are One of a kind. they have pour over coffee in each room, as well as the comfiest bathrobes and a hottest showers! the attention to detail that they have taken in each room is unbelievable. I will definitely stay here again can recommend it to anyone who wants to get away and feel pampered. read more

The hotel is clean and nice. The staffs are very friendly. Valet parking is free and convenient. Self-parking is easy as well. Those are the 2 stars. On the other side, the room did not look like what we saw on the photos. We booked a standard King. Didn't have the sofa. The bathroom was small, and didn't have the fancy makeup area like in the photos. It's super noisy all the time due to the trains. Adding to that, the next door people started the party right at midnight with very loud music. The receiptionist apologized for the noise, which was not her fault. She offered us some reward points for the uncomfortable experience, which was nice, although still haven't received any to my account. Updated: We got the offered reward as promised. 5 stars for the staffs. 3 stars for the rooms. Overall 4. read more

Positively one of the most enjoyable stays at a hotel. In every way, the staff were helpful, kind, courteous, including the bus boy I had; I chose to not use Valet svce. (I'm 75 and so far still have ability to lift and drag and push out of and into my car, and park my car). No pool, but a very lovely courtyard with plenty of tables and chairs, foliage, white tiny strung lights, a fountain; no microwave in rooms, but have one very nice restaurant, and one very nice cafe that serve the most delicious meals. Rainbird is the restaurant; Native Son is the Cafe-Bar. The price for the poshness of this hotel is amazingly completely reasonable. The room size (I was traveling alone) was perfect; very comfortable bed; everything worked properly (except for ME, 68 DEGREES IS STILL A BIT TOO WARM - I prefer cooler in a room, but they hadn't yet adjusted the air conditioning for warmer weather); lighting in rm. a bit dim for my taste...just one overhead light on ceiling and it was just when you walk in close to the door; Refrigerator worked; loved the "nostalgic old-time telephone" that worked; and the "1950's record turntable" that worked; also appreciated the amount of wall electrical outlets in the room, for my "always bring with me" electrical fan, my digital camera, my cell phone. Very large TV ; just wished there had been more Cable channels but I made due. My total experience at this hotel, for its posh-ness vs. price was better than excellent. read more

This was a wonderful surprise hotel in Merced. The room was clean and had wonderful amenities. I loved the record player and the herbal tea with teapot was an amazing way to end my long day of travels. Complimentary valet was a total bonus. The kind staff was fantastic. Will be staying again and again. read more

I spent about two nights staycationing here at the El Capitan Hotel. I gotta say, this has to be one of the best and beautiful hotels in Town. Front Desk are so friendly. Always ask if you need anything upon returning back upstairs to your room. Love the historical side, where I stayed. I'm sure glad they preserved the Old Vintage El Capitan Hotel Sign. Totally worth my staycation. read more

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Lovely hotel and a welcome addition to the Central Valley. Staff went above and beyond from the free valet parking to the checkout. Look forward to staying there again when weather isn't so hot to take advantage of the courtyard and other facilities. read more

This hotel is one of the nicest we've stayed in awhile. The design is marvelous and the staff is so welcoming. A MUST stay!!!

Hotel is very nice aesthetically , however the walls are paper thin. You could hear everyone's conversations, tv's and radios.

This is for the courtyard, we did not stay at the hotel itself. We came here to celebrate a friend finishing her PhD at UCM. It was semi crowded (about half full). We brought her a nice cake to celebrate and was initially charged 5$, annoying but fine. Fast forward to a night of literally having to wave the waitress over several times because it had been about 30 min of waiting to get our orders taken, the drinks were so watered down by the time they got to us, there was almost no ice. All of this is annoying but fine, not enough to write a review about. BUT the kicker was turns out at the end when we were paying for a group of 5, we were charged 5$ A SLICE of our OWN CAKE?! 25$ to bring our own cake in. Im sorry what? I will NOT be returning here ever. read more

Where to start. The place isn't worth the money. The hotel doesn't have anyway for you to get snacks or food to your room in the evening. The "store" closes at 6pm and not so much as a vending machine on site. The hotel restaurant is to expensive for what you get. $350 for a meal you ate in 10 bites. Not exaggerating. I guess that's a "food experience". Well, the food experience was crap. Noisy surroundings and a front desk staff that can care less if your happy. On top of that, we are here for a funeral. It is on Saturday. We booked several weeks ago. But, several people didn't book immediately and miraculously the hotel would only book Friday night and Saturday night together. No one night reservation. What a gouging technique that was. This is why we are Marriott members. read more

Just got asked to leave after Pride event because we were just too gay for the hotel, the customer service lady had us ejected. The restaurant refused to serve my trans friends. So much for progress. -1 rating read more

When you initially go into the hotel there's a small bar, cute but obviously my colleague and I dined at the courtyard, which is super aesthetic. We ordered drinks, myself a mijito although I was a bit disappointed by the drink since traditionally the mint leaves aren't supposed to be whole. Any who, drinks were okay but the guacamole was terrible. Chipotles guac is sooooo much better, the guac at the courtyard was super basic and just seemed like avocados were mashed up with no salt. The guac had no other seasoning nor tomatoes or onion. I'd say check it out for the ambiance and perhaps one drink, but other than that would not go back! read more

My daughter and I had the pleasure of staying here last weekend, and it was fantastic. Our room was clean and beautiful. The staff was friendly and made us feel welcome the moment we walked in. The Courtyard is an amazing place to have drinks and snacks before we went and had the BEST dinner at the adjoiNing restaurant - The Mainzer, and Native Sun was the perfect place to grab a latte before starting our day. Overall, I highly recommend this hotel! read more

Native Son Restaurant has a casual nice atmosphere with sidewalk dining. The hotel staff went above and beyond to welcome us. They were kind professional and attentive. The food was great. I'm excited we have a great eating option. The ports Elko sandwich, salad and cucumber margarita were all excellent! read more

The staff at the El Capitan Hotel is spot on. Everyone from the Valet, Front Desk, Bartenders, Servers, Bellhops, Room Service and Maintenance Staff were patient, professional, understanding and real. *deep breath! The hotel is beautifully restored to offer that vintage vibe with a new age facelift. The Bars & Restaurants are perfectly placed inside and around the hotel. My wife and I stayed for just one day but would absolutely stay here again and every other time we visit Merced. Bravo! El Capitan. A wonderful gem in the heart of Merced. read more

The people that work at this hotel are so rude and unprofessional. Worst service in the bar area. The waitress / bartender needs to come off her high horse. You work and live in Merced Ca. Sad. read more

Room was big and had great amenities. Perfect place to stay for a visit or special occasion.

The cafe/bar/coffee shop in the hotel is a relaxing pleasant atmosphere! Had a coffee there today and the server Julio was absolutely wonderful!! He made a blended coffee for me with oat milk that tasted great! He went above and beyond to give customer satisfaction! Much appreciated! I also recommend a tour of the lobby and common areas of the hotel which has wonderful local art displayed! read more

We were there one night only, on Sunday. It seemed odd that our room, small though comfortable, was tucked next to a staircase -- the place was empty. They didn't need to give us the "last room" room. That said, it was clean, the bed was comfortable, hot water was always hot, etc. In other words the baseline things that make or break a stay were definitely on the "make" side, though there were a few minor hiccups. For example there were hand towels and bath towels, but no washcloths. Weird, right? And, though there was a mini-fridge, there was no microwave. Strange, yes? If we returned to Merced it's probable we'd stay again - after discussing washcloths and microwaves while booking. Also, here's a tip: Anyone planning to stay for the first time - there is free parking but you need to know that the parking garage is all the way around the block. Best first time entry into is from 18th Street, look for the sign. Then, until you have a room key, you'll need to walk completely around the block to the Lobby Entrance on Main Street. Either that or pay $15/day Valet parking (not free). Finally, there are many restaurants and coffee shops nearby, so the location is excellent. read more

disappointed and annoyed over parking issues. we chose to self park and we're given bad instructions on how to find a spot in the garage. when only valet spots were available my husband walked 10 minutes back to the hotel who said he would have to go back and move the car or he would be towed or charged $15.00. Updating this post after completing our stay . The overnight was quite noisy with a live band across the street that kept us up til 1 am. The front desk apologized but said it was not on their property...not clear what noise ordinances are locally . We we offered a comped breakfast which was a reasonable accommodation. Latte was lovely . Breakfast was pleasant.. read more

Visiting my family who recently moved to Merced. They have dogs and my husband is allergic so we decided to stay at the El Capitan. I have to say I was impressed! The staff was very friendly and helpful. The rooms were clean and the beds were comfy. A huge plus...no fee for valet at the time of our visit. We will be staying again! One suggestion though...possibly put complete shower doors on the walk in showers. The water got all over and part of my was cold while in the shower. (lol) read more

Loved, loved, LOVED this hotel! I'm from the area and have always struggled finding a hotel to stay at. I couldn't wait for this hotel to open. Before my recent stay over Christmas, my family and I would book a hotel in Fresno...not the most convenient since my family is in Merced. We chose Fresno since we didn't have the best experience at another hotel in Merced. Now I'm pretty excited that I have a hotel in Merced to book! Downtown Merced has a very special place in my heart and this hotel is a perfect fit. The decor is amazing, the rooms were sparkling clean, beds were comfortable, the room was quiet, and the staff was very friendly. I do concur with another review that stated there wasn't an area to park for check-in, which is pretty inconvenient. Luckily, we didn't have much luggage. However, I would consider it pretty minor issue in comparison with the rest of our stay. We didn't dine at Native Son but we did walk to the Mainzer for breakfast (another great venue with pretty good food). We will definitely stay here again. I really hope Hyatt ensures the quality of the hotel stays at its current level read more