Thank you Starrs, good list. I did visit Nepenthe but the gloom meant I could not see a thing and so I am going back for sure.

I've booked Santa Barbara (West Beach Inn), and Cambria (Castle Inn). You are not kidding about prices. These look comfy but no frills and the Santa Barbara one is more than I have spent at Hilton Midtown in NYC. But the locations look great and free parking.

Now to march up the coast. Monterey Peninsula next. If I stay in Pacific Grove (for example) and simply do not move hotels but visit Santa Cruz etc - even multiple days for different things to Santa Cruz - would I want to pull my hair out? I am thinking maybe I should do that, and just drive to Santa Cruz/Redwoods from Pacific Grove area.

You should be fine commuting to Santa Cruz but do keep in mind that commuter traffic is awful. Just time it correctly and you should be fine. There is a poster on the TripAdvisor forum who lives near Santa Cruz who could help you with the exact traffic times.

thank you so much for your guidance!

I am really looking forward to my stay in Cambria. Do you know Castle Inn and if so what do you think of it?

I just booked my PG lodging for three nights. A Victorian home converted to an Inn (owned by Kirkwood Collection).

Santa Barbara is the most expensive lodging so far.

I personally would not use PG as a base for Santa Cruz/Capitola/Henry Cowell. If you don't hit traffic it will be a 90 minute drive to Henry Cowell. So about 3 hours drive time just for the redwood park, then you'd have to do another 2.5 hour drive PG > Santa Cruz > Capitols > PG the next day. When you add the stops you'd have two very long days back to back. (and if you hit traffic - even longer) Stay in PG or nearby for that area -- stay Santa Cruz or nearby for the things in that area. Will save you a TON of hassle.


And be prepared for gloom at Nepenthe again -- depends on the fog situation. Especially if it is hot inland - then the fog/gloom is even worse. Heat wave in the central Valley causes an inversion and draws in cold air/fog along the coast.

I've never stayed in Cambria as it's an easy drive from home, but all of the hotels on Moonstone Beach are super cute. You'll be right next door to Moonstone Beach Bar & Grill. Nearby (walking distance) is the Sea Chest, a very popular restaurant that does not take reservations. People start lining up around 5:00 and bring chairs and wine and hang out until they get a table.

The shops and other restaurants in Cambria are across the highway. The town has a west end and east end shopping areas. A favorite restaurant in Cambria is Robin's. It has a great outdoor seating area and if you're traveling by yourself, you'll feel fine eating there alone. Everyone raves about Lynn's in Cambria but it's not really my kind of food and I'm not a pie person, and that's what they're famous for.

If you want an easy and beautiful stroll along the ocean cliffs, do not miss Fiscalini Ranch Preserve. The Bluff Trail is the easiest and most scenic.

Hi Janis, what you say makes complete sense and I am girding my loins. But, after thought, I'm not "as" interested in spending time in Santa Cruz as I am in staying put for a few days and not re-packing etc. I will have two full days to explore with those three nights, so I'm OK with using one for Henry Cowell. It's also the case that the day I leave Pacific Grove I am heading in that direction for my final two nights of the trip which means I could visit Henry Cowell on that journey north - I'll have all day to go from PG to my final stop and both SC and Henry Cowell are on the way.

I am currently mulling Half Moon Bay as my final two nights and the journey from PG to HMB will pass by Henry Cowell.

Once I book my final two nights, my hotels are done. I'm very pleased with what I've found so far.

Austin Traveler, Jean, Madam, Suze, thank you so much for the tips. They help a lot.

2 nights Santa Barbara booked
3 nights Cambria - 2 are booked, one extra night is open and might be same Inn or might be Paso Robles or might be up the coast. I left it open but will decide today/tomorrow and finalize.
3 nights Pacific Grove booked
2 nights ?? Half Moon Bay ?? need to book. seems like a good compromise commute to the airport early the morning I leave. A pretty place to be my final night and a 30-45 minute drive to SFO car rental drop off early the next morning.

OK, now I finalized. I called Castle Inn and booked night 3 for that stay.

Final two nights are Half Moon Bay Lodge.

All booked for ten nights. Very pleased with my choices. They are all well located and look lovely.

We stayed at the Half Moon Bay Lodge and really enjoyed our stay there as it was clean and comfortable, nice breakfast included and nice pool area. I don't recall that it was an especially long ride to the airport. As I said earlier it was sunny and hot and there was a lot of local traffic and beachgoers when we went out for dinner and so parking was a premium.