We are planning a trip up the North CA coast from Sonoma. We will be spending a night in Mendocino, then want to spend another a little further up.

We looked at Ferndale, but didn't really find anything, and like the looks of the Carter House in Eureka, but am concerned because of some of the negative comments on Trip Advisor about the town. Someone mentioned to stay in Arcata instead.

Is Eureka really that bad, and would Ferndale or Arcata be a better overnight?

Ferndale is a "cute" Victorian town. Many travelers seem to like Arcata, but I wasn't very impressed with what I saw of it.

Eureka has quite a few Victorian homes and an appealing shopping district in historic buildins.

Investigate Benbow Inn near Garberville (www.benbowinn.com).

Benbow is a great place to stay in the spring or fall. It gets very hot in July and August.

I stayed in Trinidad and enjoyed it.

Is there anything wrong with Eureka?

Make that a second vote for Trinidad! We just did the northern trip a few weeks ago - used Trinidad as a 3 night base to see all that territory up there in depth. Had researched Eureka, Ferndale, Arcata, etc. None looked very appealing to me. Trinidad on the other hand is a funky little town with a range of nice accomodations near the water and a couple nice restaurants. Also a nice state park (Patrick Point) nearby for accessing beach etc. We had a very nice suite type room at the small, simple, but nicely maintained Trinidad Inn for under $100. It's got its own redwood grove behind it. But there are more upscale lodgings near there as well. I posted a trip report with details a couple weeks ago. ..