Seal Cove Inn At Moss Beach
As promised, I wanted to share some images from our weekend getaway. Our wedding anniversary is actually today, but Emmett & I escaped to the California coast to celebrate over the long holiday weekend. We spent one night in San Francisco at Kelly Wearstler’s Proper Hotel, but I’ve already shared plenty of images from that gorgeous location in this post. While we had delicious food & drinks in the city, the highlight of our weekend was time spent on the coast at a secluded bed & breakfast, called Seal Cove Inn at Moss Beach. The only request I had for our anniversary celebration was weather. It has been a hot, dry summer here in Utah, and I wanted nothing more than cool salty air, fog, a drizzle of rain- anything other than hot sunshine (not the vacation norm, I know). The forecast delivered and it was a lovely weekend! Click through for a peek through my lens…
We planned our weekend getaway far too late, after learning our anniversary fishing trip to Alaska wasn’t going to work out. It proved to be a challenge to find a place that still had availability, given it was a holiday weekend. I stumbled across Seal Cove Inn a few weeks prior and was pleased to learn they had one accommodation left, so I grabbed it! The location, charming cottage exterior, picturesque views, and excellent reviews felt like a win, so Emmett & I made our way to Moss Beach (next to popular Half Moon Bay). It definitely did not disappoint!
I learned during their complementary happy hour (over a glass of local wine), the inn was actually built in the 90’s! I never would’ve guessed. We were those guests who asked a million questions about the home and property. I love learning about history when we travel- especially if it includes design & architecture.
I really enjoyed the simple French style finishes throughout. The aesthetic was very clean, neutral, and traditional, which is something I appreciated- especially given the cohesion to the exterior aesthetic.
The rattan wall sconces were a design highlight for me- as well as the giant windows that allowed ample natural light to flood in, capturing idyllic views of the surrounding scenery.
This charming bed & breakfast honestly felt like the setting from a romance novel, ha… the location, the daily wine hour, fresh baked cookies each afternoon, delicious breakfast, all set in a quiet little town nestled up against the coastline and cypress forest. For us, the landscape and weather made us glad we decided to take the celebratory trip, after all!
Sadly, I didn’t snap any photos of the room we stayed in, but we ended getting the suite because everything else was booked (a happy accident maybe?). I did capture one photo from the space, and that was for my own enjoyment… this vintage work of art. I wanted to remember the frame style! It was so beautifully framed, and was installed in the hallway. Now I’m wishing I would’ve put in the time and effort to take more photographs for the purposes of a blog tour. Although, I think you probably get the gist, after seeing the design in the common areas. Sorry!
The Seal Cove property connects to Fitzgerald Marine Reserve, which is a protected environment and marine sanctuary. It also contains a gorgeous cypress forest, has easy beach access (walkable from the inn), and has plenty of tide pools to explore.
The cove is also ideal for seal watching. It’s a beautiful spot that is open to the public! We hiked and ventured to the beach each day and spent as much time outside as we could, taking in the gorgeous gray weather. It was nice to bust out our boots and jackets. It really has me itching for fall weather, now!
The cypress forest is truly magical… especially in the morning beneath a thick layer of fog. It’s just a few steps away from the inn’s front door.
We used the inn’s complementary cruiser bikes as our transportation (since we flew to CA and didn’t have our car)– which was honestly really fun! We biked to the local distillery, enjoyed the coastal bike trail, and explored the quaint little beach towns- admiring the coastal cottages along the way.
Speaking of the distillery, you know I appreciate a good haunt story, so it was fun to learn that the Moss Beach distillery is actually a historic landmark (it has a unique history during the Prohibition)… and apparently they have a resident ghost. You can read the story here, if you’d like. We didn’t experience The Blue Lady during our quick lunch, haha!
For being just ~30 miles south of San Francisco, I’d definitely visit Seal Cove again! It was easy and quick to get to, but felt like a world away. It was certainly worth escaping the Utah heat and quickly toasting to our wedding anniversary. It’s always nice to get a change of scenery, fresh air, and newfound inspiration- no matter how near or far your travels may take you. I hope you’re all having a great week!
