A Great Hide-A-Way Downtown Santa Barbara and other Santa Barbara, CA Hotel/Accommodation Reviews

For Valentine's Day we headed up the coast to The Glenborough Inn Bed & Breakfast. Built in the "Craftsman" style, this charming B & B was delightful.

We stayed in the "La Grande Suite." It consisted of a parlour with a fireplace, and the bedroom with yet another fireplace and a four poster bed.

This is a romantic get away, although there is a suite on the properties that can accomodate a family or several people traveling together. The other rooms and suites were very pretty and ranged in price from $134.00 to $319.00 USD.

This B & B is perfect for those people who avoid going to them because of early morning breakfast with other guests. Breakfast is served in the privacy of your room! Pick a time, put on your spa robes and right on time a delicious breakfast is at your door. But for those who wish to, you can choose communal dining, I just wouldn't expect too many guests.

One note though, several of the lamps did not have working bulbs and the seal around the window air conditioning unit leaked cold air. These are little things I think should have been taken care of, especially given the cost of the room.

Unique Qualities: The very fact that this B & B is spread out over Bath Street is great. Our suite was actually down the street from the main house, this gave us a wonderful sense of seclusion.

We had a coffepot, refrigerator, coffee, tea and hot chocolate stocked in our room. Breakfast was delivered directly to our room at the time we specified. The telephone in the room provided free local calls so we were able to access the internet for no charge (we used our dial up service).

The bathrobes were made from microfiber and were terry-cloth lined; light weight yet very warm. This was needed because we had to walk down the street (2 doors) to the main house to use the jacuzzi.

We took a jacuzzi under the stars with the lovely fragrance of night blooming jasmine in the air. The jacuzzi was enclosed behind a redwood fence for privacy. I liked the fact that there was a signup sheet for its use so there were no conflicts.

All in all the stay was relaxing and the setting quite charming. The inn does offer discounted room rates Sunday through Thursday provided there are no holidays or speical events booked.

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Theme: Bed and Breakfast
Comparison: about average
Prices: US$180 and up  » Currency Converter
Phone: 805 966 0589
Address: 1327 Bath Street Santa Barbara, CA
Directions: Exit Carrillo from the 101 freeway, head East to Bath Street, head North. The Inn is on the left hand side between Victoria and Sola
Website: http://www.glenboroughinn.com

This place was a lot of fun. For my husband's birthday I took him to El Capitan Canyon.

We originally were suppose to have a safari tent but were upgraded to a Canyon Queen cabin which to my husband's absolute delight had a sleeping loft.

All the cabins and tents come with linens, towels and extra bedding. If you plan to cook you need to bring cooking supplies (cabins do have microwaves and small refrigerators)
Each site has a fire pit and a picnic table.

The cabins have ensuite bath and toilet facilities.

This was such fun, we roasted marshmellows and hot dogs over our firepit. Kept vigil for a persistent skunk who wanted to invade our picnic area. We were able to clearly view the Perseid's meteor shower.

This is an experience not to be missed. Pampered camping is what I call it.

Rates vary for the cabins and the safari tents. Mid week prices are more affordable and note that summer is considered high season. We had an introductory rate for our night's stay which was reasonable especially since it was summer (August).

Unique Qualities: It feels like "Out of Africa." You can actually rent safari tents which are canvas flap tents built on raised wooden decks. The tents all have beautiful queen size beds and are outfitted with electricity. The bathouses are well within walking distance.

The Canyon has a "No car in the canyon" policy so shuttles run from 8am to 10pm. The use of bicycles is strongly encouraged.

There is a "no pet" policy as well.

The beach is a good hike away but well worth it.

For those who do not wish to cook you can buy your meals at the Canyon Market and Deli. They have everything there from matches to roasting sticks to bug repellant to snacks of all kind.

They had a lovely gift shop where one could purchase candles, sweatshirts, cards and music. My husband bought me a very cool walking stick which I use a lot.

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Theme: Hotel
Comparison: about average

Phone: 805 685 3887
Address: 11560 Calle Real, Santa Barbara, CA 93117
Directions: Far west end of Santa Barbara off the 101 freeway.
Website: http://www.elcapitancanyon.com
Other Contact: 866 352 2729 toll free

We stayed up at this B & B for Valentine's 2003. We were in the "Oriole" room which was a room with it's own spa on the patio.

Parking is behind the Inn which is good because parking in this neighborhood is at a premium!

If the inn is at near capacity the indoor dining room cannot not accomodate all the guests, lucky for us the day we were there it was sunny so we ate out on the patio. But Valentine's Day is in winter and it can get quite cold and rainy so I suspect this could pose a problem at some point.

There are several local restaurants within walking distance. My husband's favorite: Derf's Cafe It is sort of a pub like atmosphere but still okay for the family. In summer months you can sit out on the deck and eat.

Unique Qualities: This is a Pet Friendly Inn which they restrict to cottages with the wooden decks.

The jacuzzi on our patio was an outstanding feature, quite romantic.

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Theme: Bed and Breakfast
Comparison: about average
Prices: US$180 and up  » Currency Converter
Phone: 805 687 2300
Address: 1908 Bath St, Santa Barbara, CA 93101
Website: http://www.secretgarden.com