Delightful Decadent Escape. Until recently, seaside sun seekers had zero options for a five-star hotel in Malibu. Pacific Coast getaway on ‘Billionaire Beach’ changed dramatically a few years ago with the opening of The Malibu Beach Inn. I meandered down the coast via LAX to Malibu enroute to my Catholic girl’s school gathering on Catalina Island. I’m not certain if it is more complex to wrap up work before an escape or the frenzy of a return and catching up after a few days away. In any event, I was so looking forward to cocooning while ‘camped’ right on the shore. Malibu Beach inn is a petite gem on the famed stretch of beach.

Malibu Beach Inn has 47 rooms and suites, each with a private balcony, all perched oceanfront above the sea on exclusive Carbon Beach. Once a surf side motel, this petite jewel was transformed under a full renovation, cozy Scandinavian style rooms are furnished with a fireplace, chic custom furniture in subtle tones of blue and grey, the ultimate in comfort providing an amazing view of the sparkling sea. My private balcony on the third-floor corner suite had vistas of the south facing beach and the Malibu Pier. There are a couple of larger suites with a living room and separate bedroom. The bathrooms are streamlined in pale tan and white tones and contain the definitive loo, with blinking lights, acknowledging your presence…i.e. the vital Toto appliance. I’m surprised it didn’t speak my name.

Service – Staff at your beck and call, casual as a beach hotel should be, but efficient and friendly. A late afternoon beach stroll left me soaked by a random wave, the staff found a laundry service in Santa Monica who would fetch my laundry, the extra effort was truly appreciated. Everyone I encountered was extremely helpful and knowledgeable with suggestions for day trips by car or by foot.

Snug indoor cocktail lounge and cozy dining room, but the ‘must dine’ location is on the cantilevered curved oceanfront terrace. Heaters and shade umbrellas perched for your pleasure, wooly blankets flung at a moment’s notice. If you must leave, Nobu is a two-minute amble, the Malibu outpost of Soho House is minutes away by foot. Malibu Pier is a short stroll away, offering casual dining and a couple of trendy gift shops. Personally, I wouldn’t leave the hotel, the dining is terrific! The Malibu Pier is near the wildly popular Surfrider Beach, where Gidget frolicked and surfed with Moondoggie, surely you remember this trivia?

The Daily Wave, the guest news-sheet suggests beach yoga, mountain hikes, horseback riding or Malibu wine safari outings, or a visit to the nearby Getty Museum.  Weather report, a high tide schedule, your daily horoscope, pithy quotes and local movies times – all the essentials fit to print! Complimentary passes to the Malibu Fitness Center are available, scrumptious chocolate chip cookies baked every afternoon, just pop into the small lobby piled with Assouline art books. Welcoming generosity practiced in each department.

The hotel art collection is bright and whimsical, all nodding to the decisive message: you are on vacation, chill, savor the moment and embrace the soothing ambiance. Pieces of the owner’s personal collection include a few Jasper John lithographs; and the iconic Poppy pieces by Donald Sultan which animate the restaurant. I love a property that takes time to create a small guest catalog describing their art; details do make a difference!

Beach – the vital private walk, this marvelous stretch of the Coast Hwy is home to some of the most notable movers and shakers and although California beaches are designated as public, you won’t encounter many walkers. A grand stretch of walkable beach is the picture-perfect sunrise and sunset workout. Beach staff place loungers, supply towels and serve cocktails and snacks from an exclusive Beach menu on the sand. Umbrellas toted to shade you if requested. The surf is very swimmable, and for a Northern Californian raised on the Southern California beaches, the temperature was divine. One of the locals told me it was too cold for swimming, ha, try dipping a toe into the Northern California Ocean, it was sublime!

Dining – I arrived to enjoy a decadent late lunch of local One Gun Ranch Caesar and spicy prawns although the description of the juicy Steak Salad with creek stone flat iron, roasted tomato, arugula, avocado, sprinkled with a mustard vinaigrette, was very tempting! Bread was noticeably not offered, bowing to the diets of the uber healthy clientele. Carbon Beach Club restaurant within the hotel has an extensive dinner menu as well, brimming with fresh fish and garden-fresh vegetables including Charred Asparagus cocoa agrodolce, sprinkled with fried Marcona Almonds, whole herbs and an organic egg. Reviews mention multiple local stars that dine; I’m not too tuned into these peeps…

The ideal secluded escape; unplug, tote a massive book, snooze under an umbrella on the sand loungers in the afternoons, amble downstairs to a delicious feast and fall asleep to the soothing surf…wake up, repeat and indulge in hours of beach walks.

If you need to unplug and you relish beach ambling, ocean swimming, and delish dining this is the picture-perfect location.

Ring me, perhaps I will join you. I will return, highly recommend!

Effortless, relaxed and laid back. In a word, Scrumptious! Cocoon on Carbon Beach at the Malibu Beach Inn.