The Jabberwock Inn

Stayed here for one night in what I perceive to be the off-​season. Monterey is a cute town, and this Inn is not far from Cannery Row and the aquarium (very touristy area). We arrived and were greeted and given a tour. The house is very interesting and the hosts are very gracious, but I can’t say the B&B life is for me. Since I was trying to travel on a budget, we stayed in the smallest/​cheapest room (Tulgey Wood) which really feels like a bedroom in someone’s house. The bathroom is detached but spacious, with a standing shower. The bedroom and bathroom are locked with the same key. I believe each room has a sleep number bed (ours was a queen), but it wasn’t much use for us since we liked it at 100 (firmest). The Rabbit Hole drinks are a nice touch, as well as the wine reception and cookies in the evening. I just couldn’t shake the feeling of being in someone’s house. I could hear coughing in the next room, as I’m sure they could hear mine. There is something special about staying in a hotel where no one knows your name, or cares, lol.
The next morning, I was served a croissant bread pudding («Phantasmagoria») for breakfast, which I personally found to be… just too much. My partner has food allergies and was served a simple plate of eggs, potatoes and bacon (he was still hungry after eating). As others have said, the Jabberjuice is delicious. The hosts were nice to be aware of dietary restrictions, but I prefer a buffet in a hotel, with a variety of options, where you can eat as much, or as little as you like. The coffee we were served was pretty terrible.
Check out is by 11:00am, so upon check out I was presented with a receipt with a line for «house gratuity.» Not sure what this meant, as I’ve read that for B&Bs you usually don’t tip the owners/​hosts, unless I guess they are doing all the work (which I don’t believe they were). We did what we normally do and left some cash for housekeeping (even though we stayed one night). Not sure I would return, but that’s my personal opinion.

Nicest place I have ever been. The decoration is lovely and service is the best. Breakfast is so delicious. I could live here forever.

This place is absolutely lovely. Adorable detail, very cozy, unique, and has kitschy details and service. You get a full tour upon arrival. They serve a beautiful breakfast, milk and cookies in the evening, wine and appetizers prior to that. You can drink sherry by the handmade chess set and read in the sun porch area.
I would come back here again in a heartbeat!
Thank goodness for Unilocal for helping us choose this place over other local gems. What a unique and fun visit. Thank you!

Well kept, close to the aquarium and the employees who work at this place seem to care about this place as much as the owners. That says something about this business. Breakfast is good and the juice is something special. Tad bit expensive for an inn (knocks down a star), but, it is in Monterey. Stayed in the Toves room which has a decent sized jacuzzi. If that is something you want in your room, go for it.

We had an incredible stay here! The innkeepers were extremely welcoming and knowledgeable. The house is gorgeous and its history is very interesting. The touches of Alice and Wonderland make everything feel magical. The cocktail hour was a great way to start an evening. Breakfast was delicious all 3 mornings of our stay. Would definitely recommend and hope to return again!

What a awesome place, the rooms are beautiful and very clean. The Breakfast was fantastic. We were on our way home from our son’s wedding and picked this place based on the reviews, we were very impressed. The owner and his wife were super friendly as was the entire staff. I am only sad because we only spent the night, but will certainly return for a longer stay!

Not sure why this didn’t post back in 2013 but better late than never:
First time staying here and won’t be the last. A friend recommended this place and it is awesome. Great innkeepers and a blissful experience all around. We recommend the Aquarium and Dinner package they offer.

Such a wonderful oasis. Rick and his daughter Lauren were lovely owners. We had a great time. Enjoyed the breakfast every morning. And a tranquil porch to relax on for wine and cheese in the afternoon. Such a peaceful place. Highly recommend!

This is a must stay in Monterey! Rick and Lauren are awesome hosts. We loved our room with the ocean view, jacuzzi, and tons of light. The communal area is also a lot of fun because we got to meet lots of friendly guests, and had a delicious breakfast in the morning and wine, cheese, and cookies in the afternoon. Thank you!

Let me start off by saying that this place is as good as everyone says it is. My girlfriend and I spent a few nights here for her birthday, and what a delight it was. We were greeted with warm smiles and friendly company every inch of the inn.
We spent our nights in the Toves room, which included a private garden, a bathroom, a bathtub/​shower, a bottle of sherry, and jelly bellies!
Every day, we met with the other lovely guests that stayed in the inn as we shared in devouring the delicious breakfasts, appetizers, and the Jabber Juice.
Our time here was lovely, the owners and staff were amazingly kind and very warm. The food was absolutely amazing, and the décor of the inn was charming and whimsical. We are definitely coming back to check out the other rooms.

This was my second trip to this darling B&B. I stayed here once while traveling alone 25 years ago (in 1990) when it first opened, and decided to come back with my fiancé as part of my 50^th birthday celebration. This darling «Alive In Wonderland/​Through the Looking Glass» themed Craftsman style home is beautiful beyond belief! Decorated with period piece furniture, you almost don’t want to sit on anything! But the house is so welcoming that you find yourself hunkered down for a game of chess, complete with Alice in Wonderland chess pieces, with a nice cup of tea or a glass of sherry.
The place has not changed much in 25 years, and has actually gotten better! We stayed in the Mome Rath room and it was spectacular! The room is spacious with a private bath and jacuzzi tub, and the most comfortable bed!!! I believe all the rooms have now been updated with their own private baths (not the case 25 years ago!), with the exception of the Tugley Wood room, but it does have it’s own private bath adjacent to the room. The Mome Rath is one of the larger rooms, but the house has so much to offer, including a magical garden with Bocci Ball, that unless you plan on spending your entire stay in your room, the size really doesn’t matter. The rooms have all the amenities, so don’t worry about bringing soap, hairdryers, irons and the such.
Wine, sherry, tea and coffee, along with delicious homemade hors d’oeuvres, are served in the early evening (5:00 — 6:00) on the enclosed sun porch overlooking the Monterey Bay. After a day at the Aquarium, or antique shipping along Cannery Row, it’s a nice respite before you head out for dinner. Upon your return in the evening, fresh baked cookies and milk await you. Don’t forget to check the menu for breakfast — it’s printed backwards on a placard atop the mantle of the dining room fireplace. Just pick it up and look at it through the looking glass!
In the morning, the smell of breakfast wafts up through the grand creaky staircase inviting you to a delicious meal. Breakfast alternates between savory and sweet every other day, and since we stayed two nights, we got to have both! The meal starts off with a pastry or a bowl of fresh fruit and a tall glass of «Jabber Juice» — a smoothy concoction of pineapple and orange juices blended with bananas, fresh oranges, apples and cream of coconut. That alone is like a meal, but don’t fill up on it — the breakfasts are wonderful! The first day we had an Almond Croissant from the local bakery and the Imperial Fiddlesticks — a quiche-​like egg and cheese soufflé topped with a fresh Mango and Avocado Salsa. The second day we had a bowl of fresh berries and fruit topped with yogurt and the Phantasmagoria — Bread Pudding topped with berries in a cream sauce, with a side of smoked Chicken Sausage.
Rick and his darling daughter Lauren were our hosts this trip and they couldn’t be more delightful! I have nothing but good things to say about this B&B, and I give it the highest rating. We are looking forward to coming back — perhaps on our honeymoon!

The «Tulgey Woods» room. If the thought of not having a bathroom in your room scares you, don’t let it. This room was the only one available for our short notice trip. The bathroom situation almost scared my fiancé off until I told her that we still had our own private bathroom, it was just 10ft away. They have a weird little door on the floor called the «rabbit hole» filled with complimentary beverages of all kind. Just finished breakfast, seriously, maybe I don’t get out much but the food was amazing. The view, room and owners were the BEST. This place is based on Alice In Wonderland theme and very tastefully done. I remembered how much i forgot about that story. The nicest owners ever, made us feel at home. Great experience. Thanks Rick and Suzanne, Tony and Emily

My fiancé and I were on our way home from a road trip to Southern CA and decided to stay the evening in Monterey, since we do not get out that way often. After a long search, we found the Jabberwock Inn and decided to give it a shot. We reserved with Suzanne who gave us a lock combination to get the key when we got there.
We didn’t arrive to Monterey until about 845 but when we did, there was an envelope and letter from the owners, Suzanne and Rick welcoming us. We were easily able to access the key and walked right in. The house is simply adorable with everything you could possibly need. Water, tea, cookies waiting for when we got in. For those that like to partake in a libation now and then, there is a place called «The Rabbithole» that has water, juice, soda, beer and wine available to any guest. Suzanne and Rick thought of everything, thry even provide robes for you to walk to and from the bathroom. It is a detached bathroom but was only down the hall. As for the Tugley room, it was small and quaint, the perfect size for us with a lovely ocean view.
Please note, if you are looking to party /​stay up all night or if you are a loud person in general, this is not the place for you. The house is old so naturally the walls are thin.
In the AM, Rick and Suzanne greeted us with tea, coffee and an amazing pinnacle/​orange juice slush. For breakfast, a tasty almond croissant and «Imperial Fiddlesticks» … egg cheese soufflé with mango, corn, tomato, avacado salsa. Simply to die for.
We highly recommend this B&B. We will definately come back some day.

Where do I start…
My husband and I decided to go on a quiet honeymoon together. After a long search, we found the Jabberwock inn. I am so glad we did.
As we arrived, we saw there was private parking in the garden area, which beat the sidewalk. We were first greeted by Charice (sp) who gave us a tour of the house and a little history. She was very nice, wish I could’ve spoke to her again before a we left.
We stayed at the Borgove, which had a nice view of the ocean. It’s very close to cannery row, which allowed us to have a nice walk everywhere.
The next day we met the owners Rick and Suzanne. They were so nice and definitely knew how to make us feel right at home. The breakfasts were very good both days we were there. I felt guilty having extra glasses of jabberjuice because it was so good. The house has a great vibe! Thanks for making our honeymoon and first B&B a great experience!

My boyfriend and I stayed at the Jabberwock for a weekend away in March. We couldn’t have asked for a better place and a greater experience. Everyone we encountered, guests and staff, were so courteous and nice and it really did feel like a little home away from home. We had a lot of fun exploring the place, there is so much character and detail all around the entire inn, inside and outside! The bocce ball court is a nice touch, especially with the beautiful Monterey weather. And definitely can’t complain about the proximity to Cannery Row… maybe two blocks away? That hill on the return trip can be a doozy though!
We stayed in Toves because there’s nothing I love more than a jacuzzi tub… what a perfect room. The bed has one of those remote controls where each person can adjust his or her side of the bed — I couldn’t figure out the most comfortable sleep number but that’s no one’s fault but my own haha. I loved that there was a little dish of jelly beans, too. It’s the small details that make it so special!
The food was also delicious! Although we missed breakfast because of a late night out, the appetizers (potstickers to die for, seriously), wine, and cookies the night before were so delicious. That’s right, cookies and milk are left out in the evening in case you need a late night snack!
Moral of the story, if you’re looking for an amazing place to stay in Monterey then stop searching and just book a room here. You won’t regret it! We will definitely be back again.

Back for a second stay! Love the location — so close to everything downtown and a great view of the bay from the third floor rooms! Delicious breakfast: !yrrebelffuts and really good coffee.
New innkeepers Rick and Suzanne are
wonderful and have kept the Alice energy alive!
Looking forward to staying again!

For our 10 year wedding anniversary, my hubby and I decided to go all out and celebrate over the course of 3 days. Our anniversary fell on the 19^th and on the 20^th, we headed to the Jabberwock Inn, leaving early in the morning so we could get to the spa first and come here completely relaxed.
Upon checking in around 3pm, we were warmly greeted by Suzzanne and then Rick, the owners and given a brief tour and then shown to our rooms. We stayed in the Toves as we wanted a jetted tub and a little out door area. Unfortunately, we weren’t able to make much use of it as we couldn’t get the water to run warmer than luke warm and it had started raining heavily that day so we didn’t get to even sit in our private garden area, although it was still quite cute. We also seemed to be missing a robe as there was only one but by the time we noticed, there was no one to ask for the other one since everyone had left by that time.
Growing up, I loved fairy tales and I loved Alice In Wonderland and so I thought it would be fun to experience a themed hotel but with a cozier and more personal feel. Jabberwock definitely meets those expectations. We had a lovely evening chat with the owners over evening appetizers. There were also cookies and milk served before bedtime, although, all of them contained nuts so I had to miss out :(
In the morning, we were served a delicious brunch which was basically bread pudding with raisons, berries and vanilla angaise. We had a side of fruit and a delicious smoothie, that they traditionally serve, called «jabberjuice» and coincidently, it also won a local smoothie contest.
Overall, the Inn is adorable and everywhere you turn there’s a reference to the theme, including characters, clocks, games, books and names of food and drink. Owner told us a story in the evening that the third floor had a room that once housed the original owner and guests would see a lady dressed in a wedding dress appear. Fortunately, she did not end up making any appearances this time but that could have also been due to the fact that we were staying on the main floor.
The garden area is breathtaking as are the views and it really does feel like your «home» away from home. We were really sad to be leaving so soon but Suzanne, was nice enough to help us map a route to go see 17 mile drive and told us where to stop, we got tickets to Monterey Bay Aquarium with a two day pass for the price of one day and ended up buying two of their «jabberwock» coffee mugs.
Overall, it’s a friendly, warm and cozy place to stay if visiting, unfortunately, a bit pricey to splurge for more than one night. Due to the fact that we splurged on a such a special occasion, my only disappointed was that we were unable to really use the tub and that there were no nut free cookies. :(Other than that, we hope to come back in the near future, hopefully, for our next anniversary and try another room.
I highly recommend that if you do come, to get the most out of your experience, especially, if you’re only able to afford one night is to plan all your activities before checking in and get there right around 3pm so you have time to explore and spend time in your room. Stay for appetizers, head out to dinner and be back in time for some milk and cookies and board games and puzzles, or a nice conversation with fellow guests. :)

My wife and I stayed in the Borogrove room
In August. This was our first foray into the world of B&Bs and we enjoyed it. It is so much more homey-​feeling than a hotel, it is quieter, and just overall more relaxed.
Rick and Susanne were very gracious hosts and they have a top-​notch establishment here. The location is perfect — perched atop a hill just off the main drag by cannery row. Close enough to the touristy area and the bustling nightlife-​friendly downtown, but far enough to not be bothered by the noise or commotion of so many people coming and going. You could easily call this your home base as you get lost around town or you could never leave the grounds, and you would still enjoy your trip — it is that beautiful.

This was an anniversary gift to my husband for our anniversary in August. We both could not have been more pleased with this choice. Rick and Suzanne provide a great relaxing experience. They were very accommodating, sharing their expertise on the Monterey area.
This was our very first experience at a bed and breakfast. I’m so happy that I made this choice. The Jabberwock Inn is a whimsical, unique, lovely experience, made even more personal by Rick and Suzanne and their staff.
I can’t wait to go back!
Thank you so much for making our week-​end get away so wonderful!

BELIEVE THE HYPE! I sure was sucked into this charming B&B by fellow Unilocalers’ reviews. And gladly sucked i was! We have never stayed at a B&B; when we travel, we stay at your run-​of-​the-​mill hotels. The main draw for me here was that this place cost slightly less than the nice hotels around the area AND it included breakfast, an afternoon reception, and milk and cookies :) so this was a no-​brainer for me. Later I discovered that they have alcohol laying around the house and in our room. Am I in heaven?!
I booked a room last minute so luckily there was room for us and I also got to take advantage of the last minute special online. We got the smallest room but contrary to another review, it was enough room for us, and we had no qualms about using our private bathroom down the hall. While on the topic of the hall, there was also a mini fridge across the way complete with refreshing waters and sodas. Not your thing? There’s brandy in the room. NOW YOU’RE TALKING. Haha did they purposely do that, to have Brandy «Sittin Up in [Your] Room?» Haha ok stupid joke… I must confess I’m a mess…
The reception at 5 was DELICIOUS. Those deviled eggs… o my gad. I could have had the whole platter to myself. It was pretty embarrassing that we enjoyed the snacks so much we made it a dinner. HAHA WHOOPS! Seriously though, I guess our mommies don’t make home cookin’ for us enough because we loved the snacks a little too much. We chatted quite awhile with a couple, and the lady was getting quite drunk. Pretty entertaining. The rest of the evening was low key because I had an early conference to go to, so we hung out in the charming living room. It had such a peaceful atmosphere.
In the morning we had a delicious breakfast and I had to be on my way. I wish i could have enjoyed it more. Since my conference was for the whole morning, they were very understanding in giving us a late check out. That helped me A LOT. I really appreciate it.
I am so glad I picked this place over a traditional hotel stay. We loved the personal touches, yummy food, charming atmosphere and great owners!