With a stay at Motel Santa Cruz, you'll be centrally located in Santa Cruz, within a 5-minute drive of Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk and Monterey Bay. .This motel is 5.8 mi (9.3 km) from Capitola Beach and 3.1 mi (5 km) from University of California, Santa Cruz.
Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk - 13 min walk - 0.7 miles
Santa Cruz Main Beach - 14 min walk - 0.8 miles
Santa Cruz Wharf - 18 min walk - 1.0 mile
Getting around
Watsonville, CA (WVI-Watsonville Municipal) - 18 min drive
Restaurants
Pizza My Heart - 11 min walk
Jack in the Box - 8 min walk
Pacific Cookie Company - 10 min walk
Woodstock's Pizza Santa Cruz - 10 min walk
The Buttery - 7 min walk
About this property
Motel Santa Cruz
Motel Santa Cruz offers 62 accommodations with air conditioning. Flat-screen televisions come with cable channels.
Bathrooms include shower/tub combinations. Guests can surf the web using the complimentary wireless Internet access.
The recreational activities listed below are available either on site or nearby; fees may apply.
Make yourself at home in one of the 62 air-conditioned rooms featuring flat-screen televisions. Complimentary wireless internet access keeps you connected, and cable programming is available for your entertainment. Bathrooms with shower/tub combinations are provided.
Make use of convenient amenities, which include complimentary wireless internet access and a vending machine.
At Motel Santa Cruz, enjoy a satisfying meal at the restaurant.
Featured amenities include dry cleaning/laundry services, multilingual staff, and laundry facilities. Free self parking is available onsite.
Motel Santa Cruz has a restaurant on site.
Property amenities
Internet
Available in all rooms: Free WiFi
Available in some public areas: Free WiFi
Parking and transportation
Free self parking on site
Food and drink
A restaurant
Family friendly
Laundry facilities
Conveniences
Laundry facilities
Limited-hour front desk
Safe at front desk
Vending machine
Guest services
Dry cleaning/laundry service
Multilingual staff
Accessibility
If you have requests for specific accessibility needs, please contact the property using the information on the reservation confirmation received after booking.
Grab bar near toilet
Upper floors accessible by stairs only
Wheelchair accessibility
Wheelchair accessible (may have limitations)
Wheelchair-accessible path of travel
More
1 building
3 floors
Designated smoking areas
Room amenities
Bedroom
Bedsheets provided
Bathroom
Private bathroom
Shower/bathtub combination
Towels provided
Entertainment
Flat-screen TV with cable channels
More
Air conditioning
Phone
Policies
Check-in
Check-in start time: 3:00 PM; Check-in end time: midnight
Early check-in subject to availability
Early check-in is available for a fee
Minimum check-in age: 18
Check-out
Check-out before 11:00 AM
Contactless check-out available
Late check-out subject to availability
A late check-out fee will be charged
Special check-in instructions
The front desk is open daily from 9:00 AM - midnight
Front desk staffed during limited hours
This property doesn't offer after-hours check-in
Information provided by the property may be translated using automated translation tools
Access methods
Front desk (limited hours)
Pets
Pets allowed for an extra charge of USD 28.00 per pet, per night
Service animals are welcome, and are exempt from fees
Welcoming dogs and cats only
Children and extra beds
Children are welcome
Rollaway/extra beds are not available
Cribs (infant beds) are not available
Property payment types
Important information
Fees
You'll be asked to pay the following charges at the property. Fees may include applicable taxes:
Deposit: USD 200.00 per accommodation, per stay
We have included all charges provided to us by the property.
Optional extras
Pet fee: USD 28.00 per pet, per night
Service animals are exempt from fees
Early check-in is available for a fee (subject to availability)
Late check-out is available for a fee (subject to availability)
The above list may not be comprehensive. Fees and deposits may not include tax and are subject to change.
You need to know
Extra-person charges may apply and vary depending on property policy
Government-issued photo identification and a credit card, debit card, or cash deposit may be required at check-in for incidental charges
Special requests are subject to availability upon check-in and may incur additional charges; special requests cannot be guaranteed
This property accepts credit cards; cash is not accepted
Cashless transactions are available
Safety features at this property include a fire extinguisher and a smoke detector
We should mention
This property does not have elevators
Property is also known as
Motel Santa Cruz
Santa Cruz Motel
Motel Santa Cruz Motel
Motel Santa Cruz Santa Cruz
Motel Santa Cruz Motel Santa Cruz
Motel Santa Cruz Reviews
Reviews
5.0
All reviews shown are from real guest experiences. Only travelers who have booked a stay with us can submit a review. We verify reviews according to our guidelines and publish all reviews, positive or negative.
Rating 10 - Excellent. 128 out of 1000 reviews
10 - Excellent
128
Rating 8 - Good. 126 out of 1000 reviews
8 - Good
126
Rating 6 - Okay. 177 out of 1000 reviews
6 - Okay
177
Rating 4 - Poor. 218 out of 1000 reviews
4 - Poor
218
Rating 2 - Terrible. 351 out of 1000 reviews
2 - Terrible
351
5.0/10
Cleanliness
6.0/10
Staff & service
4.6/10
Amenities
4.6/10
Property conditions & facilities
Reviews
Verified
4/10 Poor
Kevin
Feb 16, 2026
Liked: Staff & service
Disliked: Amenities
This place is pretty from the outside and staff is nice but that’s about it. Rooms are tiny, floors are a little dirty, pillows and bed sheets had small stains and walls are very thin. You can hear the traffic and everything going on outside and next door.
Kevin
Stayed 1 night in Feb 2026
Verified
10/10 Excellent
Francisco
Jul 30, 2025
Liked: Staff & service
Great for a short stay and price point.
Francisco
Stayed 2 nights in Jul 2025
Verified
4/10 Poor
Maresa
Feb 17, 2026
Dingy,
Maresa
Stayed 1 night in Feb 2026
Verified
6/10 Okay
Frances
Dec 7, 2025
Liked: Cleanliness
Was an okay stay. Everything worked however they only had one towel and one hand towel in the room.
Frances
Stayed 2 nights in Nov 2025
Verified
2/10 Terrible
Armando
Feb 23, 2026
Disliked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities
Hair in the shower, blood on bed sheets,no room service we didn't get clean sheets or towels all weekend
The LED lights were horrible. Room was not clean. Hair all over. Place not kept up. Nothing looks professional or well kept. I would not chose this place again.
We had a great stay at Motel Santa Cruz, the bed was so comfortable and the staff was very friendly and helpful.The room had refrigerator and microwave and it was walking distance to Beach
It was OK, but the person that was at the front desk was walking around in the evening. I was in my car and I observed him just at the front of my door where my room was at and then walked away, which was super weird because it was already like 9 o’clock at night to get the friend which made me feel safe
The front office staff was friendly and efficient. The rooms were small, but clean. The bathrooms were recently remodeled.
Anastasia
Stayed 2 nights in Jul 2025
Verified
6/10 Okay
Richard
Aug 28, 2025
Disliked: Staff & service
Decent place to stay
The room was small but it was pretty clean with a really hard bed and one wet towel. The only problem we had was the people in and around the hotel. It's about a 3 minute drive to the boardwalk or a 20 minute walk.
Richard
Stayed 1 night in Aug 2025
Verified
2/10 Terrible
Kimberly
Jan 26, 2026
Liked: Staff & service
Disliked: Cleanliness, amenities
Room did not have any extra amenities, no extra toilet paper no extra towels, smelled like smoke even though it was no smoking room. Floors were dirty, made socks black just from walking around the room. Called early around 8am for extra toilet paper and they said that they don’t open until 930.
The staff at Motel Santa Cruz was amazing, and our rooms was clean and comfortable. The room had refrigerator and microwave and it was walking distance to beach