La Quinta Inn & Suites by Wyndham Santa Cruz

Getting to the pier, beach, and boardwalk was easy thanks to the location. The motion sensors were a nuisance, though. If you’re sitting in bed, the lights switch off, and a bathroom trip at night means getting blasted with light. A few breakfast details might matter to some people: the cereals were all sweetened, there were no hard boiled eggs, and the only herbal tea was chamomile. None of that affected me, just mentioning it in case it matters to you. We wanted a nice warm drink in the evening, so we brought our own tea. The lobby seemed to have coffee and cold water, and when I asked, they said there was no tea apart from what was in the room, one Keurig green tea, I guess for all of us to share? Parking is prepaid, under the building, and limited. Twice we got the last spot, and both were compact. If you bring a truck, you’ll need to be good at parking!

There’s a pool and gym with good opening hours, and the place is clean with basic amenities. But my view was of the side of the next hotel, and the room had a strange paint or renovation smell. The bed frame immediately sagged when I sat on it. There was no table, and only one chair for a two bed room. Checkout at 11 and check in at 4 leaves a short window to stay. Parking costs $25 a night, which should be included in the price.

We were in room 119 on the first floor near the elevator, right by housekeeping and staff-only rooms. Nobody mentioned that when we were assigned it, and the noise went on constantly. After driving from San Diego exhausted, we didn’t sleep at all. I wouldn’t recommend this hotel if you care about sleep or respectful service. We called the front desk in the morning to ask about switching rooms. After about ten minutes on hold, we were told it might be possible, but we had to leave for an appointment. When we got back around 8 pm and spoke to Jose, the way he responded was the worst part. We said we hadn’t slept, and he told us we should have said something the previous night so they could see about moving us or we could find somewhere else. Then he cut us off and blamed us for not moving sooner. No apology, empathy, or attempt to help. I suggested warning guests about that room or not booking it. Jose said, “That’s just how the hotel was built and nothing can be done about it.” The indifference was unacceptable. We were polite and patient the whole time, and even left a tip because one person’s attitude shouldn’t punish the rest of the staff. We weren’t demanding anything, just asking if a room change might be possible. What upset us was how we were spoken to. Jose comes up repeatedly in Yelp and Google reviews for poor service, and sadly, our experience was exactly the same.

My mom really liked the room, the service, and being just a two minute walk from the Ocean. For the price, I’d recommend the place, especially if they sort out a few small problems. The in room coffee machine could be better, and the Samsung smart TV wasn’t connected to wifi, so aircast and similar features didn’t work. There was also an alarm going off in the middle of the night, around 3-5 am. Luckily it didn’t wake or bother my mom, but waking guests with a false alarm is unacceptable and unconstitutional.