DO NOT STAY HERE, RUN THE OTHER WAY!!! This is truly a "motel" and definitely not worth staying in for any amount of money! First off they have false advertisement on their website by saying that they have coffee makers (only a couple of rooms do) and they won't give you one if you request it. It says it has continental breakfast (which is spelled wrong) and they do NOT. We were told we were getting a kitchenette suite and all we got was a fridge in our room, which was dirty and barely got cold. The shower had MOLD in it, the bathroom floor was dirty, and the screen on the bathroom window was filled with dirt and torn. I don't even want to know when the last time the bedspreads were washed; the carpets were filthy & stained. The sheets aren't even changed every day! We were supposed to get a sofa bed but the bed was broken and the cushions were sunken in the couch so she gave us a roll away bed (that's $15 a day) for free but it was nothing but sleeping on springs and it was so old it was rusted & had cobwebs on it! There was stuff all over the walls and I don't even want to know what it was if you know what I mean! The other screens in the room were also filthy and torn. The deadbolt on the door was broken as if the door had been kicked in. The t.v. was not only old but the speakers were horrible and it was so dirty and dented.
Lastly the owners were just plain weird and creepy! They didn't care what you had to say, they were not accommodating in the least and wouldn't even consider giving us our money back so we had to stay in this nasty motel for the 4 days we booked! We felt like we were staying the the Bates Motel, scary! Seriously even if it's the cheapest place do NOT stay here it is NOT worth ANY amount of money, even with it being "beach front property".

This tiny little icon set on the beach with the smallest deck in front of your room is an interesting sight. With neighbors you had to climb over to get to your room, it was a hoot! It reminded my spouse of an old Jersey Shore motel. The view of the ocean and sunset is calming when you sit on the white plastic chairs just outside your door. The rooms were without frills but the beds were comfortable. No a/c but who needs it when you are at the shoreline with the cool ocean breeze engulfing the room through an open window. The evening was cool so make sure you have a sweater/jacket. We were just steps away from eateries, bars and entertainment. Of course, you are also right on the beach!!! If you need to be pampered, this is not the place for you. If you just want a nice and affordable place to stay just steps away from the ocean, walking distance to everything and a fabulous sunset, go for it!

We had reservations for two nights. upon check in, we were told our room was given to someone else but not to worry we would have an upgrade to a suite instead, manager demaded payments for both nights and now we know why. Once we entered the room we could smell urine and the place was a dump, couch had urine stains, bedspread was filthy and blanket underneath looked and smelled like it had NOT been washed in years, shower had mold and walls were cracked and no toiletries in bathroom, carpet was missing in certain places exposing rusty nails, when we tried to open windows to air out room not only was the window seal moldy and dirty, once we opened the window the screen was so thick with dirt there was no way of even getting a breeze into that room, carpet had not been vacumed at all, Once we complained to the manager that was sitting behind desk w/ her husband she became Irrate and did not want to listen to our complaints, but was sure to express we would not get our MONEY BACK after going back and forth with her about getting our money back at least for one day, she didn't want to hear about it put her hands up yelling and said ( This was not the HILTON and I'm not giving you your money back). We put our bags back in our car and left to find another place to spend the night. Which we found for 1 night having to drive home the next day unable to find a room for 2nd night. This was a very expensive weekend thanks to Dolphins Cove Motel Managers, paid 280.00
dollars for two nights and didn't recieve any services for it, on the following day saturday before heading home we went to outlets and a On -duty police officer heard my conversation on the phone regarding our experience at this dump, and came to me and asked what place I was talking about before I could finish saying the name he finished it for me by saying DOLPHINS Cove in pismo,this police officer went on to say that they are frequently called out to this place for complaints regarding management issues, and the place is known for being a dump and that this place needs to be shut down I informed the officer that I would be contacting the Better business Buereu and the officer informed me to get in line behind everybody else that has stayed there and all had similiar complaints. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!!!!

I don't really understand why people complain about the motel managers (Kathy and Fred). I've spoken to these nice folks at length and found them to be helpful and good people. Now, if you're there to throw a party and/or plan to make a bunch of racket with total disregard to those in rooms around you trying to relax and sleep after 10p, you'll get a knock on the door or possibly get booted. Go somewhere else if you plan on partying until dawn.

I think it's great there's a low tolerance for people who don't follow the ground rules. If you want to relax and enjoy peace and quiet and enjoy a picture perfect view of the ocean outside your door, then this place is for you. It's not Hilton level amenities but it's cozy and a fair price per night. The of the nice things is the motel is located just around all the shops, restaurants and the pier. Just do a Google map search and look at all the shops on the street level. You can walk to pretty much any of the hot spots (that's what we do) and be as rowdy as you want but when you get back to the room, just use common courtesy in keep noise levels to an acceptable level. Great place. Did I mentioned the location is just a few steps from the beach?

I just booked the same room we had last time and will be going there this weekend. Kathy remembered us and didn't even require a credit card to hold the room. If you question the ground rules or think they may not be a fit for you, just call and talk to the owners first. They look out for the best interest of their customers who don't cause trouble.

Piece of trivia: The Dolphin Cove Motel was patroned many times by actor James Dean on many of his road trips. The room he used to stay in can be used if it's available.