La Costa Resort and Spa in Carlsbad, California

If you want to surprise your father on his 65th birthday and treat him to an all expenses paid night at a famous spa with a round of golf at the supposedly exquisite course, then La Costa Resort and Spa in Carlsbad, California is NOT for you.  First of all, after all the work I'd put into faxing the credit authorization form from a Kinko's in Santa Fe, New Mexico, when my Dad went to check-in at La Costa, they STILL took an imprint of his credit card.  Not only did they do that,  they even showed him how much the stay would cost!  A whopping $830.00 USD!!!  For that kind of money, I would expect the Front Desk staff to be a little bit more competent when doing their job and seeing the notes on the account as having the stay been paid for by someone else.  The golf course was apparently not as nice as the municipal golf course Torrey Pines, in Del Mar, California.  That was another big disappointment.  The only saving grace was the nice room they had overlooking the golf course.   At the end of the stay, my Dad's credit card was charged---and so was mine!  When this was discovered 2 days later, I asked to speak to the manager of the Front Desk, who apologized and remedied the double charge.  He also offered to comp my next meal there (without alcohol---what kind of meal is that without any alcohol?) as his apologetic gesture.  I'm sorry, but for $830.00, I could've done a lot more things for my Dad, like send him a couple plane tickets to Toronto, or anywhere for that matter.  He could've stayed at a Four Seasons Hotel for a couple of nights, not just 1 night with a so-so round of golf.  The end result of this is NEVER go to the La Costa Resort and Spa.  It is not good value and it has terrible service.  2 thumbs all the way down.