CENTRAL CALIFORNIA | WEEKEND GETAWAYS
Sweet, affordable places to sleep in Santa Barbara
What's not to love about Santa Barbara? Except maybe the lodging rates, which means a weekend getaway can cost a pretty penny.
What to do in Santa Barbara, Calif.
Santa Barbara wine country picnic
The challenge to the Travel staff: Find nice hotels, good restaurants and enjoyable activities without breaking the budget. So we ate, we slept, we played, all in the name of research. Here's where we stayed and what we liked and disliked.
BRISAS DEL MAR, INN AT THE BEACH
223 Castillo St., 93101; (800) 468-1988 or (805) 966-2219; www.brisasdelmarinn.com
This hotel has probably never looked better. In a 2003 renovation of this 1958 complex (formerly the Tropicana Inn & Suites), the owners gave the place a pleasant modmed feel -- you know, sleekly modern, yet Mediterranean enough to sport the requisite Santa Barbara red-tile roofing and Spanish colonial flourishes. The tile work is colorful. A fountain tinkles out front, and a stucco stairwell curves gracefully skyward. Inside, you'll find upscale Mission and French Country furniture, linens and wallpaper. (The owners also run four other local hotels.) Kids are welcome, and the smallish pool is good for splashing, less so for laps.
Price: $155.68, including tax, for a room with a king-size bed. Rates run $132 to $366, depending on room and season. Auto club or AARP discounts of 10%. Two-night minimum for Saturday arrivals. Cancellation up to 48 hours before arrival.
Parking: Free.
Amenities: Thirty-one rooms; 16 have kitchens. (Three "penthouse" suites have fireplaces too.) Air conditioning. HBO. Free wireless Internet access. DVD players in rooms, and a free library of 600 DVDs. Continental breakfast included, along with wine and cheese and cookies in the evening. Pool, whirlpool, exercise room and a couple of decks for lounging or sunbathing.
Pros: Most rooms are set far back from the street, and the interiors are very comfortable. Staff was friendly. Upstairs suites have nice views of palms and mountains. And it's an easy walk to the train station and the shops of State Street.
Cons: Name notwithstanding, it's not at the beach; it's two long blocks away. Also, once you step past the design flourishes in front, you see that most rooms are arrayed around an automotive void: a sunken parking lot that must have seemed a great idea in 1958. The current owners' beautification efforts are impressive, but the neighbors haven't caught on yet: There's a bland apartment building on one side, a Chevron station on the other. And you hear the trains' horns as they pass. I liked that, but sopewo. You know, some people won't.
--Chris Reynolds
1620 State St.; (805) 963-1355,
The price is right at this hipster motel-in-the-making on the northern end of State Street. It's not a luxury hotel, but it's more than you would expect for midweek rates that start at $69. And the staff is friendly too.
Chris Sewell and his girlfriend, Kenny Osehan, who leased the two-story structure three years ago, have been remaking it ever since. Most of the 16 rooms have new tile baths and mod, minimalist furniture. The rest, while plainly furnished, sport nice touches such as art photos and, in upstairs rooms, hand-crafted origami mobiles.
Price: $89.60, including tax, for a room with a queen-size bed. (I was upgraded to a king-bedded room upon check-in. I did not identify myself as a reporter. Sewell said he made the switch to accommodate another guest.) Rates are $69 to $129 midweek and $95 to $249 on weekends, depending on the date. Two-night minimums on some summer weekends.
Parking: 16 spaces.
Amenities: Sixteen rooms, all with cable TV, phone, heat, air conditioning and either a shower or shower-tub; some have a microwave or small refrigerator. Small sun deck with lounge chairs. Coffee, tea, fruit and pastries in the morning. Free cruiser bikes if you ask early enough; there are only four.
Pros: Helpful staff. Spotless, comfy bed. Artistic vibe. Near Alameda Park, with a playground, and Alice Keck Park Memorial Garden, with a pond and nature trails.
Cons: About 11/2 miles from the beach and two blocks from the last stop of the Downtown Waterfront Shuttle. Exterior, motel-type access to rooms. Thin bath towels. Spotty maintenance. (In my room, the closet rod was rusty, the microwave's glass plate was missing and the shower lacked a soap dish.) Some street noise.
-- Jane Engle
433 W. Montecito St.; (805) 963-7851; or (800) 626-1986, www.innbytheharbor.com.
About the most glaring thing at this two-story motel is that it's not "by the harbor." In fact, it's not even next to the harbor but three blocks north facing busy Montecito Street. My small room held a queen-size bed and was jammed with country pine furniture -- with two people you might be forced to do-si-do around each other -- but opened to a pleasantly landscaped central courtyard with a pool and a whirlpool. If you seek quiet, ask for a room away from the road in the back, which abuts Pershing Park.
Price: $155.23, including tax, for a room with a queen-sized bed. Auto club or and AARP discounts of 10%.
Parking: Free.
Amenities: 42 nonsmoking rooms, two suites with kitchens. Free wireless access and Internet access in the lobby. Pool, whirlpool, laundry and exercise room.
Pros: Comfortable beds and pleasing country décor. DVD player (and HBO) and movies available from sister property, Las Brisas, next door. Microwave and refrigerator. Walkable to downtown on quiet residential streets, harbor and State Street. Good variety of continental breakfast choices (included in rate): cereal, fresh fruit, boiled eggs, toast, bagels and muffins. Wine and cheese in the evening, and milk and cookies at night.
Cons: Not near the harbor and faces a street with heavy traffic. Rooms, last renovated in 1999, show some signs of wear: yellowing plastic hair dryer, rust on hinges. Close to rail tracks, so you'll hear the train whistles blowing as they pass.
--Vani Rangachar
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