The Best Senior Living Communities in Bonita, CA

"It was really nice. I liked the people and the set up. I liked the facilities and the restaurant-type meals. The room was nice and everything was good. The staff was wonderful."

"I toured Ivy Park at Otay Ranch. What happened was, I explained why I was looking for another facility. I was looking for something more affordable. So, the director I met with explained the financial situation with the home and that my friend would need to be assessed for his care and likely it would exceed the amount he was currently paying. I could see the facility, it's very new, and extremely nice, but not affordable. The upkeep, it's immaculate. It's extremely nice. It looked like a high-end hotel. The dining area looked very nice. I don't know what the food was like because I didn't see it, but the dining atmosphere was very nice. It's a spacious facility. The staff was very good and I appreciated that she explained the finances right away. She was very professional."

"I did a full tour of Westmont at San Miguel Ranch and I liked it a lot. It may still be a contender, but the issue is my mother has celiac disease and they can't accommodate gluten-free menus. The staff was very nice and very informative. She answered all my questions. We had a nice tour of the facility. I looked at the deluxe studio and the one-bedroom apartment. The one-bedroom apartment was very nice and that's what we would have gone for there, but the bedroom was a little too small to put a king-sized bed, so my parents would have had to get a new bed to move in. They had nice libraries and sitting areas and a very nice courtyard area."

"Mom moved into Monte Vista Village last year. The grounds are really pretty. It's like Hawaii almost with palm trees and greenery. There's a good amount of activity. The food is good, and the staff is helpful. It's an independent living. She's in a small studio, but it's spacious. It has a good walk-in closet that accommodates at least two dressers, and a stand-up shower with a bench seat. It has a little kitchen app if she wants to cook, but three meals a day are provided in the rent. And it's got a big, spacious, bay window to look out onto the grounds. And really what impressed me a lot too are the maintenance people. If she has a problem, they come quickly and fix it right away. They have exercise classes. They take them once a week on a scenic tour if they'd like to take that. She hasn't partaken in the grocery store, but they'll take them to the grocery store. They have happy hour, I believe, twice a week. They have a few different groups, The Sunshine Ladies. They have a monthly calendar they put out, then they also will go and put up other things weekly on the bulletin board that they add. They have Bible studies on Friday, and they also will take them to church on Sunday. There is an exercise room where they do their exercise classes and it's an auditorium which I've not seen, but I've heard they do movie nights also once a week. They also have a little store that's open a few days a week for the residents to go and purchase things from."

"My parents moved into Sun and Sea Manor. So far, they seem very caring and conscientious about what they are doing. It's been less than a week, but my parents seem to be doing well there. I was there when they were getting served lunch, and they both had salads. I liked what they had. It looked and smelled good. Their room is nice. They have a nice area. I know they have activities. I don't know the staff members well enough. But so far from what I've seen, it's very positive. The director is very, very helpful. Based on what they've done for my parents, it seems like they keep them safe. The facility looks very clean and has no bad smells or anything."

"My brother lives here. They have pretty small rooms. They have two people in a room. It's kind of a residential setting. It is like a small apartment and it is fine. They take care of my brother. So, I'm happy with the work they do. The staff seems really nice and caring. I was a little concerned in the beginning, but now that he's been there a while, I think they try to take care and see to his needs. I saw the food and my brother seemed to like it all right. They have a little small room where they sometimes get together. They got puzzles and a small library."

"I liked Atria Collwood. The rooms were huge. It was a smaller community. They had independent living and assisted living. The girl at the front desk was very helpful. She was where she needed to be, and she was wonderful. She was a good first person to come see. The place was a little bit older, and they didn't have as many openings as most of the other places. The girl said they were at 90% capacity at this point in time. They had two-levels. She showed me the dining room. They had an outdoor dining and grilling place, a little fitness area, courtyard, walking paths, places that residents could just go sit outside, and a library. The staff was very outgoing and very friendly. Everybody said hello, and that was one thing that impressed me. It seems like all the people that work there, all looked professional, neat, very friendly, outgoing, and had smiles on their faces. It just seemed like they enjoy the environment that they were in. I think it takes a special person to be able to work in that sort of environment. They had exercises, a library, and outdoor dining areas. There's a lot of places that you could go outside. The gal showed me a couple rooms that were actually very large and very comparable. The only thing that turned me off on them was she brought me to a room on the second floor and it had like an outside, almost like a common walkway. Anybody that lived on that side would have access to it. When I stepped out there, it looked like the railings needed painting. It looked like it wasn't used very much, and it needed a facelift. That was the only negative thing I would have to say about them."

"I went to tour Grossmont Gardens. They're very friendly staff. They're very attentive to the time of the appointment. They're very free with showing me the grounds and the apartments. I got a very good impression overall. It's comforting and it is truly independent living. The residents have a lot of freedom to make their own decisions. The meals are included, and it seems like a nice menu. The snacks and buffet are pretty much available throughout the day for a lighter fare. I didn't taste any of the food, so I don't know what it tastes like, but it was a very nice dining area setting. They offer continuum care. They have other facilities for memory care and for advancement in age or condition depending on what the resident needs."

"After almost 50 years in the same home, and many heart to heart discussions, it was time for my folks to move into a senior community. They needed more support than living on their own offered. Waterford Terrace in La Mesa impressed us from the moment we turned into the entrance, and my folks felt comfortable at once. It is truly gracious, as the name suggests, and they now call it home. In a nutshell....the grounds are always well maintained and lovely with many trees, shrubs and flowers. The management team is extremely supportive, knowledgeable, and responds quickly to any resident concerns. The staff is incredibly friendly and go out of their way to help the residents. And the wide variety of activities offered, the movie theater, and the fitness center, are second to none. There is something for everyone. My folks have now been living at Waterford for almost a year and tell me often how safe they feel, how pleased they are with their choice, and how much they enjoy the location. Thank you, Waterford Terrace management and staff, for making my folks feel at home from the day they moved in. "

"Westmont is newly constructed. The rooms are excellent and well-equipped. The common areas are inviting and friendly. The staff members are informative, cooperative and enthusiastic. It is located near a hospital and it overlooks the park. We ate there and the food was excellent. They have the usual menu supplemented by daily specials."

"We considered the Montera. The only reason we didn't choose it was because when I told them that my husband and I are still independent ( although my husband has been diagnosed with mild dementia), they wanted us to pay an additional $600 for his medical dispensation. I do all the ordering and I take care of that because I'm still able, so I think that was a high price for something that's very minimal work. The building was well-kept. It is not new, but it's very clean, and the residents are very courteous and friendly, even the staff. I even got close to Connie, who was my contact person, and explained to her that it just seemed the $600 price was too steep for dispersing his medication. We are not rich and we are relying on our retirement. We tried their meals and it was good. We had spaghetti during lunchtime and even got a dessert."

"I moved in to St. Paul's Manor. The food is sometimes OK, sometimes good, and sometimes not the best, so it varies. I love the rooms and the people. I have a large studio which has plenty for me and my little dog. They accept pets, and they have lots of social activities like meet and greet for new people who move in, which is really nice. They have a lounge that you can go to all day long and read the newspaper and look at photo albums. It's less expensive, but the higher you go up the floors, it gets expensive. You can get studios or 1-bedroom apartments. "

"I visited Right Choice Senior Living, and then I also spoke to the owner on the phone. The owner, for some reason, didn't know that I was going to be there, so he wasn't there. One of the caregivers assisted me. The tour was good. I liked it. Edgar was the caregiver, and he seemed to be very attentive to each resident. Each resident wasn't tied to a strict schedule. The residents could go outdoors if they wanted, but no gym or library that I was shown."

"I had an excellent tour of Solstice Senior Living at El Cajon. The woman who walked me through had only been there for a week, so she didn't know all the answers to the questions, but they had the administrator who had been there for 12 years. He filled me in on other things and was very helpful, but they didn't follow up with me. They said they were gonna send me an email and they didn't, but I told them I wasn't planning to move in right away, maybe that's why. We toured both the one and two-bedroom. Some of the two bedrooms had the same price as their one-bedroom, depending on where your room is. Some of them have nice balconies and one has a fountain. Pretty much they're out in the shade, so the apartments were nice. They have special deals for the two-bedroom ones, like $400 off on what the normal price is when you're moving in for your first year, so that was pretty good. The administrator scheduled a private lunch with me and it was in a special dining room, which was very nice. The food was excellent. I met the chef and they were having a Cinco de Mayo party, so there's Mexican food, but every day they have different choices of food like a shrimp salad with six huge shrimps, which I had, and then they had soup, cottage cheese, and jello. They gave me a churro for dessert and it was great. I was very impressed. The facilities are nice but it's an older facility built in the late 80s, so they're doing a lot of upgrades to it."