Cabrillo Inn at the Beach — Hotel in Santa Barbara

My husband and I stayed in a second floor, ocean-view room at the Cabrillo Inn in late June. About the only positive thing I could say about the room is that it was shelter.

The manager or attendant who help us is odd. He snapped at my husband when my husband asked him if he could use a bathroom while we were checking in. He then made fun of us for having taken the train to Santa Barbara. He is the type of person I would be happy if I never had to deal with him ever again.

The hotel uses old-school keys, not key cards. We had only one key for our room. Guests are charged $60.00 if the key is lost.

The hotel has a very small and very old freight elevator. It works fine but it will not hold more than three adults with standard-sized suitcases. If you have an extended stroller or are in a wheelchair, you probably will fill up the entire elevator car by yourself.

Our room had no A/C, no coffee pot, no microwave, no ironing board, no hair dryer, no laundry bag. Two floor fans were provided in the room but were very noisy when being used. We used them sparingly in the afternoon but not overnight as we did not want to disturb our neighbors. And, thankfully, our neighbors had the same consideration: they used the fans during the day but not at night.

There is no continental breakfast nor is there coffee onsite. But there are excellent dining opportunities next door to the hotel and across the street. The bar soap provided by the hotel is waxy and coat your hands and body in a waxy film.

The ceiling in our room is covered by two metal patches to hide lord knows what on the ceiling. The floor is bumpy and, in a few spots in the room, it is squeaky and soft. The thin carpet is completely worn out near the sliding door.

Our bathroom door required force to shut properly. The shower doors need to be man-handled to slide open and shut. The doors make an obnoxious scraping sound when used. An elderly person or young child will need help using the shower doors.

The phone is located on the table past the foot of the bed. It’s not convenient.

The property needs a lot of work. The front of the hotel has a dead garden that runs parallel to the public sidewalk along Cabrillo Avenue. It’s an eyesore. Then there is a bit of a gap within the property that has cleaning supplies, old furniture, etc., that is visible to folks staying at the hotel. A tarp should be placed over this area as it is an eyesore to anyone who comes across it.

Yet, I did find some things to like about the hotel. Our bathroom was large. The room and bathroom were very clean. And the swimming pool was heated and clean. We really enjoyed the pool.

If all you need is a place to rest your head, indoor plumbing, hot and cold running water, and if you do not care about customer service, stay here. If you want anything more than that, I’d suggest you find somewhere...

Stayed here in Oct 2023. We were running late coming in from Los Angeles and would arrive after the office closed. The night manager made it extremely worry free to check in with a special after hours protocol. The manager was very patient in explaining details as to our options where to park and how to get into our room despite the office being closed. Since we were running late he was kind enough to offer us a late check out in advance.

The room we had which faced the ocean on the second level was very clean and maintained well. We had 2 comfortable queen size beds, free wifi. The room may not be very modern but as I said ours was clean and kept up well. *I've seen people complained about the prices but you got to remember you ARE staying in Santa Barbara, you are across the street from the BEACH in a nice area. Depending on which events may be happening in Santa Barbara (ex: film festival) rates will increase the room price and That's all properties here. That's just how this industry goes so stop complaining please or do a rental further uptown or in Goleta. The property itself was nice, well maintained. Lots of outdoor lounging / sitting chairs throughout the property to soak up the early morning mist or sun (pending on the weather) or enjoy a beautiful sunset.Your not far from what makes Santa Barbara fun and exciting. Stearns Wharf is only 1.5 miles away. Volleyball courts are about a block away on East Beach. State street shopping right across the street from the entrance to Starrns Wharf. You have the cool Funk Zone as well and so many other cool things like the Santa Barbara zoo.

We enjoyed our stay here at Cabrillo Inn at the Beach and would like to thank the owners for the fanrastic staff they have and the upkeep of this property. Are we coming...

I'm giving this 3 stars vs. 2 only because they do several things very well. Getting to the negative - you need to be aware that MOST of the rooms are not as advertised on their website. We paid for the King Ocean View and didn't get ANY ocean view. The photo also shows a lovely sitting area - nope we got nothing. We were told its simply a "class" of room. What does that mean??? I wanted what the photo shows or they should CLEARLY tell you that's not the case. The first room they assigned us to was AWFUL. It smelled funky and extremely dark. Luckily we moved to another room - same layout but was brighter. We've stayed here before and never ran into this. I don't think we were given the same class of room. Very misleading. I know hotels do this somewhat but I've never seen it SO different from the photos. On the plus - breakfast is quite nice and lots to pick from. They constantly replenish which is nice. Location is great. Ocean just across the street and near the Pier. If you're into a nice walk, State Street is close by as well. There's also a market within a few blocks should you want snacks, drinks etc. Hair dryer - remember you need to go to the front desk to request one. No big deal, just plan ahead. Price - for the location its good. Staff is very good as well. Rooms are a bit outdated but again, consider the price and everything you can get, this property is pretty good. Just be aware of the rooms - some are great - and that's why we were so disappointed. We booked this class of room before but have always gotten a room as we expected. There is also a great apartment that they have across the street. If you've got a group you might ask about this. If staying for a number of days, the suite might be very nice to have all that room and...