Used booking.com 5 minutes before checking in at last minute on a road trip! Very easy check-in w staff! We got in at 7 p.m. and were greeted by friendly staff. Parking is 1st come, 1st serve but there is free parking around the corner close to motel. The room was great for the price $123. Bathroom clean water pressure was good! King size bed was comfortable. Microwave and fridge included. Restaurants were within walking distance. We went bowling after getting a bite to eat. I'd definitely stay again. Self Checkout was kinda cool, a person did pop up on my kiosk, his name was Leo! I laughed and asked if he was real! ( He was and laughed too) Family friendly, pool available no lifeguard on premises. read more

Thank you Mitesh for hospitality. We enjoyed staying . Coffee was great. Hope to stay in the future

The location was terrible, and they still charged for parking there -- which makes no sense. Had we been told about the parking fees upfront, we never would have stayed. The walls were extremely thin, so we could hear everything. The pool was cold. read more

El Castell Motel was excellent for our whole stay. The staff was friendly, welcoming, and very helpful during my stay. The room was clean, comfortable, and well kept. The whole experience was smooth and stress-free. I really appreciated the front desk's great service. I would definitely stay at El Castell Motel again. I would recommend it to anyone looking for a pleasant and comfortable place to stay at an affordable price. read more

Great spot affordable and clean. The staff were amazing and very helpful. My Kids loved the pool and the room was spacious and clean. Refrigerator and microwave were great. We will go back soon. read more

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Staff is so friendly, helpful and professional. This my second time staying here. I will continue to come back. The hotel is near the freeway, restaurants, Costco gas and a Safeway. read more

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This place is awful! I reserved 3 rooms, spent 2k for these. We checked into 1 and the bathtub didn't drain. They told it does within 30 min. Disgusting. So then they gave us a different room and charged $100 more. Literally got no sleep last night. It sounds like a flipping zoo all night!!! . Seriously a party or escort service above us!!! Constant stomping, people coming and going, people hanging outside in running cars and cars periodically honking a set amount of times intermittently. I will not and cannot stay another night. Unfortunately the rest of our party will stay and we will be finding another hotel to stay in for the rest of our visit. read more

El Castell Motel - The backed tub that we were supposed to tolerate and also the reason we got charged and extra charge to move to another room. Wrong! - Hotels Near Me - Monterey, California

Location is very noisy, you can hear the airplane flying overhead. My room is front of the swimming pool, many kids play in the pool very loudly until swimming pool closed. Queen size is not comfortable and squeezing。 read more

This is a good little motel, they have updated the rooms, but it still looks dated outside. But it is a clean and comfy place to stay.

I love this motel. I honestly can't understand a lot of the negative reviews here, or maybe I've just been lucky during all 3 stays we've had? I mean it's a motel, and a cheap one at that. Can't have insanely high expectations of one of the cheapest possible places to stay in this area. Rooms are nice, the ones we've used have always been perfectly clean. The pool, while not heated very high, is still perfectly usable year round and my kid always insists on using it. We love this place. read more

Good location for me but seemed a little sketchy. Lots of trash on the backside. Can't get any closer to the fairgrounds that is for sure!

Me and my partner stayed here for a night. Self check in, parking lot is a bit small but a good amount of spots. I usually choose hotels but we decided to choose this Motel because it was closer to the beach, and the reviews were so good. Not to mention their fair pricing. I'm glad I chose it! Room is clean, bed is comfortable. Could be cleaned a little bit better on certain crevices but you can live! Everything else was great, there was an area with a vending machine and ice machine which we used. There is also a pool, which we did not utilize. Would definitely book again. read more

Instant check-in (in and out of the front office within a minute), dedicated parking lot, indoor pool area attached to a small recreation space with a vending machine, ice machine, and a few tables/seating inside (room key required to enter this area). The room clean and modern, with a fridge, microwave, hair dryer, iron, ironing board, wooden flooring, updated bathroom, bathroom amenities (soap, shampoo, conditioner, lotion), temperature control unit, flat screen TV, outlets near the bedsides, comfy bedding, and pretty much anything and everything you would need for a pleasant stay, at an affordable price. read more

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My partner and I had a super awesome experience here! Great value for its pricing, comfortable bed, and a 10 mins drive to downtown Monterey! Plus it has a very modern feel to it read more

The pool is heated. The rooms are clean. The walls are thin. My small kids were running around and the whole building shook

This review comes with happy tears in my eyes. Our family stayed at the motel during a music festival. Our youngest had his very special Pterodactyl with him, that he really can't sleep without. Pterodactyl somehow got left at the hotel and we didn't realize until we had driven the 4 1/2 hours home. We thought we had lost Teri the pterodactyl for good. .... Then comes the hero to this post, MENFIS, the motel manager! She tracked down Teri, and mailed him home, WITH NEW FRIENDS. She went above and beyond and I cannot thank her enough!! The motel was clean, convenient, etc. but the real star of the place is MENFIS! Thank you read more

El Castell Motel - The MARTINPORTS! - Hotels Near Me - Monterey, California

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Very good value for money. Staff is indeed friendly the motel is in a busy road so expect to hear some traffic noise. read more

El Castell Motel - 1 bedroom suite - Hotels Near Me - Monterey, California

It was a nice little motel. It has been remodeled and was very well done. It had pretty much everything we needed for a simple, fast and easy stay. They have a laundry room on site and a swimming pool. You do have to bring your own soap; no option to buy soap in laundry room. read more

$180 per night in a motel is a lot, but staying in this area is costly and we booked late. For the rest, we were satisfied with our stay. The room was gigantic, the linens clean, the restroom also clean and there were lots of towels, the big TV helped with a toddler and it was surprisingly quiet. Do ask for a room on the second floor on the back. Plenty of parking available. We didn't use their pool, but they have one. The location is convenient, 10 min away from the center of Monterey. There are a few options to eat, including a Denny's within walking distance that opens at 6a for breakfast. If we can't find anything more affordable, we'd return. read more

Zero stars should be an option. We typically stay at Stagecoach Inn in Monterey but with rising prices I decided on El Castell Motel to save money. This was a mistake. Upon checkin we were asked if we had any pets which we didn't. But then they reiterated that pets were not allowed. So either they didn't believe us or didn't remember what they had just asked. When we got inside our room at first it seemed ok. But then we looked around more and kept finding issues. First off the cleanliness... smudge marks on the light fixtures and the thermostat. Dust build up on the bathroom lights and the towel storage area. Bed felt like an air mattress and was super uncomfortable. They provided us with very minimal towels so that seemed inconvenient. Next time we come to Monterey we will just pay the exta $100 a night to get better accommodations. A Best Western or Motel 6 would have been the better bet at this price point. read more

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Stayed for 5 days and was pleasantly surprised with this place. I have to admit I was really nervous due to previous reviews but personally had a great experience. Check in was smooth and the lady who helped us was really nice and gave us a few restaurant recommendations. Room- Small but perfect for two people! The walls are thin so pack some ear plugs. Nice and remodeled. Mini fridge, microwave and coffee marker. They have standard shampoo, conditioner, body wash , hand soap and lotion if you need to pack light. Housekeeping does a great job keeping the place clean, even saw a supervisor going to rooms in between visitors to inspect! Parking- On site and no extra charge which is great Location- This place is great location wise! Close to freeway. Close to all the tourist attractions like Aquarium, cannery row, old fisherman's wharf, fisherman's wharf! read more

The rooms were pretty clean. The room was renovated and it's well maintained. I love how eco friendly it is. Less bottles and the body wash is really good. It doesn't dry up my skin. The water softener really helped as well. There were a couple of minor things that I had to let the front desk know. There were stains on the pillow cover and flat sheets. I had to request for new ones. It wasn't a big deal to me but of course to others it will be. The pool was supposedly heated but when went it was cold. Unless it turns off at a certain time. We don't mind coming back cause the location is really convenient. read more

We decided to book here based on the reviews on hotels.com but truly wish we had looked at Yelp prior to booking. The room itself is not horrendous at best. Everything, including the floor was dusty. The room smelled poorly, I'm assuming from the lack of ventilation and the ac/fan unit not working right. The grounds are not kept nicely, there was trash next to our room the entire time of our stay, and we actually chose to leave a night early and stay somewhere else (though we had paid for the night here). The beds are extremely uncomfortable, we hardly slept while we were there for the 2 nights. Overall, I was disappointed with our stay and would not be able to recommend it to anyone. We tried to call the office to let them know about the ac unit but the phones are not connected. It is a motel, so I knew to be somewhat mindful of that, but based on the reviews we thought we would try it out. It wasn't somewhere we looked forward to getting back to, and we wouldn't stay again. The lady who checked us in was very friendly though, which is the reason I gave it 2 stars. read more

Yes, stay here! El Castell is very much a Honda, and not a Ferrari. But just because it's not a Ferrari, does not mean it should be overlooked! El Castell is very clean, has nicely updated rooms, very affordable, is in a convenient location, and has super nice staff. This is where you stay if you want a clean place to lay your head for very reasonable prices. I stayed here 3 nights while in the area on business and it served that purpose beautifully. Now, if you want to get away to Monterey for a romantic weekend, then maybe you should spend the 500 dollars a night on the high end hotels. But for just about anything and everything else, El Castell has you covered like a trusty Honda. Hope this helps! read more

People and their reviews on here are trippin. This motel was perfect. Updated, fresh and clean. Just look at my pictures. Feb 2021 I was skeptical at first too when my boyfriend booked this room; almost mortified that we were coming here but the reviews on Yelp and the reviews on Trip Advisor are totally opposite of each other. It's weird to see so many wishy washy reviews. We'll stay here again without a doubt. read more

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This motel was a great deal. Convenient, not too far from things with a mini fridge, microwave, coffee maker and individual heater/ac per room. If you're a light sleeper I would bring ear plugs planes would occasionally fly by and make a ruckus. The indoor pool is nice if that's something you want to do. Convenient parking. The rooms are non smoking read more

The room is a little on the small side, but for two people, it works well. The bed is firm but not so firm as to be a problem. We were both able to sleep well on it. The overall room looks to be mostly clean however we did find a red spot (possible blood or nail polish not sure which) on the bottom of the bathroom door and some old stains on the bed linens. The hotel is located off busy Fremont Street but somehow is very quiet at night, which we loved! We would definitely stay here again when visiting the area. read more

It's clean, comfortable and a good value except for one thing. This motel sits very near the end of the Monterey airport runway. Its not a very busy airport but you should be prepared to hear commercial flights every now and then between the hours of about 5am and 8 pm. read more

I was a little hesitant to book a "motel", but for one night we gave it a shot. Glad we did, it was inexpensive for a one bedroom for my BF and our two kids (10 & 11). The front desk woman was friendly and inviting as well as the housekeeper. The kids loved the "indoor" pool. People are complaining it is covered but not fully enclosed, BUT it was perfectly fine for the kids to swim in a warm pool in the middle of March. They loved it and it was a great time killer before dinner. They layout of the one bedroom was a bit odd with the bedroom having the two queen beds in there while the "parents" bed was in the front with the living area. But worked out perfect for us four. For a quick trip to the aquarium this place is perfect! read more

Very clean room without frills. Plan ahead - bring your own food if you are traveling with kids. Room did have a small fridge, freezer and microwave. Room did not put a huge dent in our pocketbook and was within minutes by car of wharf, Dennis the menace park, cannery row and the aquarium. Black bear dinner is a couple of blocks pat hotel. Check in was smooth and she was very pleasant. read more

Do not stay here! Found cockroaches in our room when we first walked in. Literally walked in the room saw cockroaches, broken AC and other gross shit and walked out we asked for a refund because we were not going to take the chance of going to another room and it being as gross as the first. Staff was disrespectful blaming us for putting bugs in the room! Tell me why would I travel 3 hours at night to put bugs in the room and then not want to stay there and rush to find another hotel to stay at. Anyways the girl at the front was lier and disrespectful. read more

El Castell Motel - Bugs - Hotels Near Me - Monterey, California

I wanted to give this a budget 4 stars but it really is a solid 3 stars. After writing my review I think I have to drop my review to 2 stars in hopes that this place steps up there game a little. Nothing really wrong with the place but had enough bad to counteract the goods. The rooms are large and updated for an older motel. The rooms come with a decent sized mini refrigerator and small microwave. The rooms are clean and nice. The housekeepers definitely lack an eye for details. Almost every towel we had, contained 1 big black hair on them. This is a big gross pet peeve of mine. How much effort does it take to make sure there are no hairs on the bed sheets or towels. I even got pool towels from the office and found a big long hair on one! The pillow case might have had dried blood stains on it. One of the main reasons we got this hotel was for the indoor pool. We have a daughter that we can't keep away from water and I knew that Monetary is not known for being a hot area... Unfortunately the pool room only has 3 walls so all the heat leaves the room and pool!!! The pool was frigid and the best way to deal with it was jump in get out and freeze yourself and then the water felt better. Don't get this place if you are determining to stay at a place with a heated pool. Also some disrespectful guests must have gotten into the pool after going to the beach because there was a ton of sand in the pool. The grossest thing was on our first night we went to the pool and there was a big clump of hair floating in the pool like someone emptied there brush in the pool. The following day we revised the pool and there was still a clump of hair floating in the pool. I don't know if it was the same one but I ended up fishing it out with the pool net because I didn't want my daughter swimming next to it. This place has the ability to be a budget 4 star motel but falls short on a cold pool and hair infested linens! read more

On business or visiting -- this hotel is in a good location to get to Carmel, the Wharf or any other destination. We have been staying here for years and the rooms have been updated. Well Trained employees, Customer service friendly, knowledgeable of area and what is most important is they have very clean rooms. Employees, location and service is of excellence. read more

First motel review. This place must have remodeled for sure. My room doesn't look like the other reviews at all. Just look at the pics I post because they seriously don't do this place justice. And for the price compared to other places that have worse cleanliness/quality, it's amazing. Like you could literally open the door and a bug can get in. We don't know how long that other person who gave that cockaroach review had the door open for lol. The staff is friendly and the parking is abundant. The rooms are very well thought out as well. Wow, very nice. I'm very impressived. read more

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Needed a room for two on our weekend trip to Monterey. The post covid room rates for a couple of nights was outrageous at all of the motels we normally stay at close to the beach and Cannery Row areas. We moved our search further into Monterey up on Fremont St. The El Castell Motel was the most reasonably priced, so we checked in for a couple of nights. We were pleasantly surprised at the cleanliness of the outside, and inside condition of the place. The rooms appear to have been recently updated, and the staff were friendly and helpful. A quick dip in the indoor pool was a relaxing way to end the day! read more

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The room was really really clean and feels new. Parking was a bit awkward to park into, but not a challenge. Location is okay - close to Monterey and everything, but in a semi-shady neighborhood...but still feels safe enough. The price is right - which is why most everyone here stayed. I was pretty pleased with the place until my neighbors came back at night. There were some pretty weird noises that sounded like a werewolf howling, baby crying, and banging noises... Maybe a couple's intense midnight workout in bed and throwing furniture? I didn't call in because I kept wishfully thinking it'd be over soon. I also wasn't sure if there was even anyone at the reception that late at night as it's a motel. It ended up about 1.5-2 hours later. The people then left around 1 am....what a bizarre night. So...sound insulation is a problem. Not too bad if your neighbors aren't weird...but maybe the crowd this place attracts with the price range is like this? I mentioned it to the front desk when I checked out, but it was more of a "ok whatever." I'll probably pay a bit more next time to stay somewhere else. read more

I've stayed here many times throughout the years and have been very happy. But this year made me decide to NEVER come back. They have bed bugs!!!!!!! It may look extremely clean but it's what you can't see that will ruin your trip! Both my young boys and myself woke up with so many bites on us!!!! They did give us a discount...but wouldn't completely refund us like they should have!!and even admitted to knowing about the problem!!! Makes me sick! Definitely will be staying somewhere else on our next trip to Monterey. read more

El Castell Motel - That's just one spot! They where all over my body!! - Hotels Near Me - Monterey, California

Pros Economical Great Shower...hot water and good water pressure Great A/C and Heather Lighting is good Each room comes with hangers, iron, ironing board, microwave, and fridge Service is good Great location! Close to Carmel, Point Lobos, Monterey, 17 Mile Drive? and Pacific Grove Cons You can hear your neighbors, people walking outside, and the airplanes leaving the airport Door does not shut completely on the bottom, which lets sound in Floor in the bathroom is cracked read more

TL;DR: Club music is poppin, Motel room is a rockin. If you're sensitive to music don't stay here. This is a good reminder to book your hotels in advance. Booked here without knowing it was the same weekend as the Monterey Marathon. Most of the hotels were booked and I didn't want to spend $400. Check in was easy. Parking was weird, but there was space. Inside, we did a quick inspection and the motel room appeared clean and looked redone. My GF mentioned that she heard music. I noticed it too and said maybe it's someone in the other room. We soon left to explore Monterey and go to dinner. After dinner at the Monterey Fish House (within walking distance) we went back and tried to relax. My GF mentioned the music again and I went to investigate and noticed that it wasn't coming from another room, but the club next door. The music was pretty good lots of R&B. I asked the staff of the club next door and they said that the music ends about 1 AM. I asked the hotel management if they could do anything and they said that the hotel was full and that they would call the police. I doubt that they did since they have so many complaints. read more

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I had going to this motel for years since 2002 and I never been disappointed with the rooms and service. Am I still going there..?? Absolutely..!! Thank you read more