Our group -- two families with four teenagers -- stayed five nights in both units of the Grove Penthouses. We were in the area to meet a third family, staying in Carmel, for a vacation to celebrate a birthday.
The Penthouses offered plenty of room for our two families to be together and to find some quiet places for downtime. The living spaces were beautiful, and the kitchens were very well appointed. The balcony was a great place to enjoy fresh air and views of the bay. The bedrooms and the beds themselves were comfortable too.
Some evenings felt a little warm to me, so we'd open the windows. We did not fiddle with the thermostats. Even though the rental is on a main street in Pacific Grove, the night was quiet enough to sleep with the windows open. In the morning, however -- as early as 4 a.m. -- the sea gulls start their crazy squawking and continue all day. They are soooooo loud and obnoxious! But we're on the bay, so it comes with the territory. The bedrooms helpfully have fans that you can turn on for a breeze and white noise.
A short walk away, on the same street, we found some cute coffee shops and a wacky ice cream shop. The outdoor patio of the English pub was a great place to stop for a crowd-pleasing meal too. We also enjoyed walking to Lovers Point in the evenings. We met some locals, including a neighbor two doors down the street. They were all so nice!
Our group spent lots of time together in Carmel, about 20 min away with traffic. We also kayaked at Moss Landing; hiked at Point Lobos and Palo Corona; visited the Monterey Bay Aquarium and Cannery Row; drove the 17 Mile Drive; and more. The Penthouses were a great location to it all.
Our only hiccup was that we arrived on our first night in the late evening. The property manager advised us to park on the numbered streets. (Parking by the entrance to the rental was never a problem, by the way.) So working under the moonlight and dim street lighting, we parked overnight on a numbered street. But we woke on our first morning to find a parking ticket because we were partially in front of a red curb. We are from out-of-state and unfamiliar with local parking rules. I wish we had known to look carefully for red curbs.
Thank you to the Grove Penthouses. We had a wonderful stay and would definitely return.