Marea Sol Hotel - Santa Cruz, California

Kathryn G.

Our stay was last minute and Dennis was the absolute best checking us in. He was so patient and kind with our hangup (we booked through Expedia). Literally the best experience checking into a hotel. The room was extremely clean and we had a great view of the waves! Thanks again Dennis, you’re the best!

Ksenya B.

This hotel is wonderful with the most excellent possible location. We came for 1 day and ended up staying for 2 more. 24/7 someone was on site and staff was super welcoming and helpful. Super clean 4 story building with gorgeous ocean view rooftop patio. We stayed on the 3rd floor with partial ocean view. There was a construction across the street, but we were out basically all day and it wasn't bothering us. Had the most wonderful time and definitely will be coming back. Strongly recommend this place.

Jonathon M.

Okay, here is my in depth review.

1. All the rooms for the hotel face northerly with windows facing the construction across the way. This is nothing the hotel can help. Rooms with the lowest numbers on the floor (201-204 example) have the full window ocean view. The views are not the reason to stay at this hotel though.

2. They have a mini fridge, it's enough for very small takeout and to cool a couple of drinks. I think an important to state this since it's not mentioned this on the Google review site.

3. The distance to the boardwalk, beach and wharf is simply incredible. This is the reason to stay here. It is walking distance from everything. You can wake up, grab a coffee from their downstairs cafe, and within 45 seconds your toes are in sand. Need to use the bathroom while on the beach? just head back to the room, literally 2 minutes away.

4. Parking: okay so the other reviews did a good job complaining but they did a poor job of explaining the situation. There are TWO parking lots, one to the north and one to the south. Parking is tight, but the issue isn't so much with parking. Yes it can be a squeeze to get out once you park, but the REAL issue is maneuvering once you're in the parking lot. There is only space for ONE vehicle at a time. If you are leaving the hotel and another car is coming into the hotel , someone will need to back up. We suggest always backing into your spot for ease of leaving the hotel. However, I've seen big ford f350 trucks park in the spots next to full size SUVs and they fit.

5. The noise. Okay, so many reviews give a poor rating for the construction noise as if it's the hotels fault. There is a lot of construction going on for sure, but they start work at 7am and the windows do an EXCELLENT job at damping out the sound. We woke at 630 every morning for our stay and we tested the noise. It's not at all bad with the window closed. The noise from other residents are not anything more than what one would expect from a multi level hotel.

6. The bathroom has a barn door. If I could give any REAL feedback to the hotel for something they should consider fixing is the barn door they utilize for the bathroom. While it's a nice way to conserve space and looks great, the air gap between wall and door is pretty big. It could be awkward hearing your partner make bathroom noises or the light they shines out in the middle of the night. This could be solved by installing some simple weather stripping around the doorway of the bathroom.

7. The vibe of the boardwalk changes from middle of the week to end of the week. If you're looking for a quiet time, middle of the week. If you're looking for fun, then end of the week/weekend.

8. There is one elevator at the east end of the building and two stairwells on the west and east side of the building.

9. The staff are all incredible. They are very clear with the charges so there are no surprises.

10. The rooms are new and clean. The beds are on the stiffer side but comfy. There is a wash station for cleaning off before entering the building near the west stairway.

Morgan T.

We had an amazing stay. Came for my bf’s little brother and my boyfriends bday this weekend. Our hotel room was veryyy clean and beautiful. They even cleaned it each day when we were gone which was nice I know some hotels don’t. We had a 2 bed with living room partial view upgraded thank you to the staff! It’s right across the street from the boardwalk which made it really convenient. The staff are friendly. There is a cafe downstairs with coffee and baked goods. Private parking (25 a night). Lots of stuff to walk too since it’s by the boardwalk. The only thing I would say is a hotel is being built next door, but it says it will be done this spring. We faced it with a partial ocean view, but we came on the weekend so construction wasn’t going on until today(Monday) when we left. We still didn’t really hear it though, if you come on the weekend it won’t bother or you could request the other side. We will definelty be coming back. 🙂

Kelly

I stayed at Marae Sol for two nights and had a free upgrade to a two room suite. Being just across the street from the beach, I loved being lulled to sleep by the sounds of the waves and catching the sunrise from the balcony. There is also roof access on the 4th floor for better views of the beach. The rooms were spacious and clean, beds were comfy, and I appreciated the plant based amenities. Jon at the front desk was incredibly accommodating and funny too.

Savvy R.

Everything about this place was spectacular! Tyla was sweet and upgraded us for our special trip. Our TV remote didn't work, it was quickly resolved. We had an ocean view with balcony. There is construction across the street, but they don't work weekends or nights. The cafe downstairs was very convenient for breakfast. The location is fantastic, 2 min walk to the Boardwalk ticket window. Highly recommend, would definitely stay here again.

K D.

Be very, very, very careful booking this hotel through a third-party site. The descriptions that the hotel has placed on their third-party listings are different than the descriptions and categories of rooms on their own website- and of course, the prices are different So if you book an ocean view room on a third-party site, you may get a confirmation for a standard room from the hotel That’s what happened to me. And when the hotel was contacted to point out the discrepancy, their solution was to ask me to pay over $500 additional to get the ocean view that I had booked on the third-party site. Apparently, they have errors In their listings that need to be corrected, and until they do that, they will make the customer pay for their mistake. To be clear, I have the entire chat transcript saved that documents the third-party site going back-and-forth with the hotel, trying to straighten this out and shaking me down for an additional $500, with no success.

Hillary C.

Myself and my friend stayed there for one night! The room was absolutely gorgeous and the service was even better! John was so friendly and went above and beyond to help us during our stay! It’s right next to the boardwalk as well so it’s the perfect location!