When we were scheduling our girl's trip to Palm Springs and Palm Desert, I knew that I wanted to extend my trip, I just didn't know where. I remembered that one of my favorite bloggers, Gaby Dalkin, is a total California girl so I went to the travel section on her blog and found the Ojai Valley Inn. As soon as it came up on the screen I knew THIS was where I wanted to go and fortunately one of my friends was totally in to join me there.
After dropping our friends off at the Palm Springs airport, we grabbed a rental car and headed North! The drive was easy, and even the traffic around LA was not as heavy as we thought it could be. Before we knew it we were passing Ventura, CA, and getting closer to the Ojai exit. A short 20 min drive and we were pulling up to the Ojai Valley Inn. As soon as we arrived we were greeted by some of the amazing Ojai Valley Inn staff and headed to check-in. Literally, within minutes we were headed to our room to settle in!
As soon as we entered our room we knew we were somewhere truly special. The room was filled with so many surprises and special touches we were giddy with excitement! After getting unpacked we decided to head to dinner at Jimmy's Pub. The pub's menu has a nice variety of food and drinks so it seemed like the perfect place for dinner! We promptly ordered drinks and appetizers and little did we know, the drinks we both ordered on this first night would become our go-to drinks for our entire stay! For me, it was the Lavender Lemonade and my friend's drink of choice was the Watering Hole. The food at Jimmy's Pub was awesome and the service was excellent, night one was a total success!
The next morning we woke up, ate breakfast, and immediately headed to our day at the Ojai Valley Inn, Spa Ojai! Spa Ojai is world-renowned and was recently remodeled, and let me tell you, it is gorgeous! After our tour, we headed to the locker room and then were on our way to the spa's private pool and hot tub to begin our day of total relaxation! We then decided to try out one of the infrared saunas and before our treatments, we relaxed in the quiet room! The quiet room was amazing, I mean, the whole place is, but I think every home needs a quiet room.
Our treatments were epic! I had a CBD Body Scrub and Massage and my girlfriend had an Orange Blossom Body Wrap and Massage! After our treatments, we headed to the Spa Cafe' for lunch which offers such a fun and refreshing menu! Back for a little more relaxation at the spa and some light shopping at the Spa Boutique and we decided to end the day relaxing by Indigo pool. The backdrop of Indigo Pool is views of the valley and is simply breathtaking, it is almost impossible to do anything other than, just be.
The next day we explore the City of Ojai and found it to be more wonderful than we could have imagined. The Spanish Colonial-style buildings and the streets lined with specialty shops and restaurants all owned by locals made our day in town so much fun!
Our first stop was Bart's Books which we were told was a must both online and at the Inn. Bart's Books is an outdoor bookstore that offers over 130,000 books for guests to browse all while enjoying the fresh California sunshine. For this bookworm, it was like a dream come true!
Next up was honey-tasting at the Heavenly Honey Company! We tasted Sage Honey, Lavender Honey, Avocado Blossom Honey, and more. To hear the store's owner share her family's story and offer that personal connection made our tasting so much more special. I am thankful for Ojai's commitment to locally-owned businesses.
Many shops later we were at our last stop of the day, The Crystal Corner! Located at the corner of N. Ventura St. and W. Matilija St. the Crystal Corner offers a huge variety of crystals, books, tumbled stones, and more! Voted the "Best in Ojai," we truly enjoyed our time in the shop!
For those who have not heard of Ojai, California, it was originally settled by the Chumash Indians more than 10,000 years ago. The Chumash believed the valley held mystical powers that magnify energy and exudes peaceful sacredness. The valley is unusually positioned in the mountain range that runs East to West and its geology is inlaid with quartz that harnesses that energy and sends it running through the veins of the mountains sending all the positive energy into the valley.
The energy in the Ojai Valley is undeniable and the magical moments are all around you, the most magical of these moments is known as, The Pink Moment. The Pink Moment draws thousands of visitors to the valley every year, as the sun fades behind the Topatopa bluffs the sky casts a beautiful shad pink across the bluffs for several minutes that pass in what feels like mere seconds. It is simply one word, spectacular!
I wholeheartedly can not wait to go back to the Ojai Valley Inn and as I am sure you guessed, I highly recommend it. So, if you are looking for what seems to be a truly magical place, with phenomenal people, spectacular food, and exceptional spa services, and looking to experience The Pink Moment then you need to book your stay asap!
If you know me, you know I love flying out of Manhattan, KS (MHK) airport, and this trip was no exception. After a quick layover in Dallas, the airport options to fly into are LAX or the Santa Barbara Airport, depending on traffic these two destinations are 1-2 hours away from Ojai, CA!