"Why we love it: ANantucket-style nook with delicious breakfast, free bikes, and Dana Point Harbor views The Highlights: - Fireplaces and jetted tubs in each room - Complimentary breakfast, wine hour, and cookies every day - The small spa offering massages and reflexology The Review: Built in 1990, the intimate Blue Lantern Inn sits on a harbor bluff, offering fabulous Pacific views from almost every window. Be prepared for classic seaside elegance, from louvered windows and wicker furniture to subtle nautical motifs like seashell-screened pillows and white-and-turquoise armchairs. Each of the 29 guest rooms has a jetted tub and sitting area, complete with a marble-encased fireplace. Other grace notes include free soft drinks, in-room Keurigs, and high-speed internet. For the best view, splurge on Room 301, on the highest floor. It comes with truffles, a bottle of sparkling wine, and a telescope to hopefully catch the whale migrations (grays from November to April, and blues from May to November). Never one to nickel-and-dime guests, the Blue Lantern loans out bicycles and doesn’t charge for the gym or on-site parking. It also offers complimentary breakfast with delicacies like artichoke quiche and honey-buttermilk muffins, as well as an exceptional wine reception each afternoon with savoryhors d’oeuvreslike asparagus spears and stuffed mushrooms wrapped with prosciutto. For those with a sweeter tooth, the Inn puts fresh-baked cookies in the sunroom at 3 p.m. each day. Grab one of those and then head to the small on-site spa, where you can continue the indulgence with an herbal-infusion massage."
