Embassy Suites by Hilton Santa Ana Orange County Airport - Santa Ana, California

Aaron T.

I regularly stay at Hilton hotels for work and family vacations. We were excited to spend a week at what looked like a really interesting and lovely Embassy Suite. I will echo some of the other Hilton-loyal reviewers, this is the roughest Embassy Suite hotel we have ever stayed at. We managed just 1 night for our 6 day stay. On the surface, the hotel looks very nice and has some unique attributes. However, the hotel desperately needs a revamp if it is to be brought up to the standards of other Embassy Suites. A few of the issues we saw: stubborn inconsistent wifi, leaky shower faucet, water damaged wall/door in the bathroom, 1 of 2 TVs did not work. The feeling we got was the hotel was perhaps quite a unique and fun hotel in it's hay-day (10+ years ago?) but has since been forgotten about. The one thing holding me back from a 1 star review is the staff. They were hardworking, understanding and attentive.

Update: Since my review, I have received very appropriate and professional responses to my feedback. I really do appreciate the staff's attentiveness and commitment to the customer experience, this is a theme with all Hilton-network hotels in my opinion. Many thanks to the Hilton staff and I hope they will be enabled with a building that is more worthy of their level of service.

Vee C.

I really enjoyed my stay at the Embassy Suites! The hotel has a charming design with unique square and circular balconies. The indoor elevators overlook the lobby, dining area, and bar, making the ride up a fun experience.

Upon arrival, we were welcomed with a complimentary social hour, including two free drinks per person. The hotel is also very dog-friendly—our pup, Joey, even got freshly grilled plain chicken at the bar!

Our two-bedroom suite was cozy, featuring a mini fridge, sink, microwave, TV, and a small dining table with plug-ins. The bedroom had a king-size bed, TV, desk, and a balcony with a lovely seventh-floor view. The bathroom was small but well-equipped with toiletries and a hairdryer.

After happy hour, we relaxed in the heated indoor pool and hot tub, which was a perfect way to unwind. There’s also an adjacent gym with a great view of the pool, making it easy to stay active while enjoying the atmosphere.

Breakfast was another highlight, offering a buffet with made-to-order omelets, scrambled eggs, pancakes, a waffle bar, oatmeal, fruit, yogurt, granola, and more.

The only downside was the bed and pillows, which were quite uncomfortable—flat and worn out. Despite that, the overall experience was great, and I’d stay again (with my own pillow next time!).

Shahar F.

I cannot stress enough how terrible our experience was at Embassy Suites. First of all, the AC was non-existent. Despite it being in the mid-70s outside, our room stayed at a stifling 82-84 degrees the entire time. The hotel has a centralized system and, after multiple requests, they refused to turn it on, leaving us to beg for fans—which we were lucky to receive. It was absolutely unbearable.||The room itself was in dire need of maintenance. The towels were frayed and almost had holes in them, and the bathroom smelled like mold. To make things worse, we found hair in the tub and shower that definitely wasn’t ours. The sheets were stained, and nothing in the room seemed to have been properly cleaned or maintained.||On top of all that, the front desk staff was rude and dismissive. We are Diamond Elite Hilton members, so we expected a certain level of service, but instead, we got nothing—no apologies, no compensation, absolutely nothing. To top it off, the front gate only worked sporadically, letting us out every third or fourth time we tried to leave.||The only decent thing were the made to order omelets by one gentleman - he was funny, kind and made a great omelette! ||It’s beyond disappointing to be treated like this, especially as loyal Hilton members. This experience was unacceptable and I would not recommend this hotel to anyone.

Dan K.

Read the reviews and save yourself a miserable experience! I had read many recent negative reviews, but decided to stay with my 4-night reservation. Needless to say, I requested, and was granted, early checkout after just one night. The staff is doing their very best, but are fighting a losing battle. This hotel is in bad shape, and should just shut down for months for refurbishing. No washcloths anywhere in the hotel, 3/5 elevators out of order, parking gates rarely work, rooms are musty and have unexplainable stains (see photo). I checked into my first room, and entered only to discover an industrial carpet dryer running in the bedroom, and the sliding door wide open. Nope! Went back downstairs, and was given a new room. Again, entered to find sliding door wide open ( enter all bugs). It was late, and I was tired from a long day of travel, so I settled for it. Breakfast in the AM was meh at best, as they were out of almost everything. There are much better options just 5 minutes away- pay a little extra and be comfortable.

Brian B.

Seems like the place is falling apart.
The pool drains don't work well. Flooded the lobby.
My shower faucet leaks.
Maintenance guys were working on stuff quite loudly during breakfast.
There was leftover candy on the floor when we checked in.
One of the elevators never worked. The other two stopped working as we were trying to get a group down from their rooms.
Front desk service was hit and miss, depending on their English skills.
The parking lot is not very busy friendly.
Apparently the hotel staff did block off a place for our bus to park, but the communication was lacking and we missed it.
Breakfast was great each day.
The beds were comfortable and clean.

Jeff P.

A property in decline. I have stayed here before but this property has lost some of its cleanliness and attention to detail. Advertised that it had an airport shuttle, but no shuttle available. No thermostat in the room, sign on the door stated HVAC system is only turned on when temperatures were below 55 or above 70. I had to open the window for several hours to get cooler fresh air. No hand towels available, only bath towels. Breakfast was good, nice workout area. Very few dining choices in the area but close to John Wayne airport. I moved out after 1 night instead of the 3 I planned.

Steve H.

First, I am very sparing with negative reviews. Of the hundreds I've done there has only been a handful of less than 4 stars. But this deserves some feedback. ||The hotel in general has not been well maintained. Obvious signs of aging, water damage, mildew on windows, etc. ||Upon check-in my room key would not work. So I hauled my suitcases from the 9th floor to the desk. In short, I had to make FOUR trips up and down with suitcases! After 3 different room attempts and 4 trips, I finally got into a room. By now I was aggravated and hot.||Surprise! The air conditioned to all rooms is shut off if the outside temp is below 70. Despite it being 79 in the room you cannot turn on the ac. So I was able to open the window which made it incredibly loud from the freeway right outside. The window edges were filthy and moldy. Lots of trash right outside on a landing. ||The room was 3/5. Furniture shows its age. Sheets had small tears. Bathroom has lots of repaired water damage to drywall. Shower curtain old and missing buttons. No wash clothes. Shower head and sink handles just looked old and stained. ||The bed was just ok. Not the typical Embassy Suites mattress. The pillows definitely were not nearly as good as what Hilton normally provides. I was very disappointed as I usually love their pillows. ||The staff were very friendly and helpful with my initial issues. They seemed very overworked and stressed. I voiced my concerns to an employee that night and he rolled his eyes and said he hears these complaints all the time and the hotel needs a lot of improvement. ||You can tell this hotel was probably incredible at one time. But it is long overdue for some improvements. ||There is another Embassy Suites not far from here. I've stayed at that one and it is way better. I highly suggest choosing that one.

Meagan M.

As soon as you enter you feel like you're in a luxury hotel. We had great service while we were "checked in" but after we checked out we were no longer allowed to use the restroom in the downstairs lobby. We were literally just customers, it's not like we walked in off the streets... The made to order breakfast is alright, but it's only omelets they're making. It would have been better if they offered made to order French Toast... There is a hotel shuttle, but you can basically forget about it for the pickup portion because no one at the front desk ever answers the call. (Side note the La Quinta behind the Embassy not only offers a shuttle but will pay for an Uber to get you from the airport to their hotel) Overall I'd probably stay here again if the price was right. Beds were very comfortable, we enjoyed the indoor pool, and the on-site restaurant.