Name: Ocean Gate Inn
Address: Ocean St, 111, Santa Cruz, 95060, US

8/10

Excellent

22 Jul 2026

Carol

No breakfast

10/10

Exceptional

19 Jul 2026

Bj

Clean, nice staff, and close to boardwalk.

Family_with_children

8/10

Excellent

19 Jul 2026

Karin

Thank you very helpful staff . But frequently loud door slamming noises

Self

6/10

Pleasant

28 Jun 2026

Nayeli

It’s smelled like cigarettes. The ac didn’t work so we left the door open on the balcony that helped so much but other than that it’s not bad the pier is 10 walk away

6/10

Pleasant

24 Jun 2026

James

It's ok. Nothing special. Parking spots are very tight as one can see by all the scrapes on the poles next to the spaces. If you want a no frills, just a place to sleep then it will do.

Family

10/10

Exceptional

24 Jun 2026

Vada

The staff were very kind and quick to accommodate my traveling through. They upgraded my room which was great. The building as a whole is old and has some general wear and tear but was well kept. My room was clean and cozy.

Self

10/10

Exceptional

23 Jun 2026

Shayue

The room's got all the amenities.

Self

10/10

Exceptional

20 Jun 2026

Shayue

Being near the river made it perfect for walking and enjoying the scenery, and the transportation options in the area were very convenient.

Self

10/10

Exceptional

20 Jun 2026

Shayue

The front desk staff were friendly, efficient, and very helpful throughout my stay.

Self

4/10

Poor

30 Nov 2025

Drew

Not very nice area and wasn't the cleanest.

Friends_and_family Friends

6/10

Pleasant

29 Nov 2025

Judy

I was upset due to false advertising. This place DOES NOT have a bar or a smoking area. And no vending machines and the elevator did not work.
I’m disabled and the stairs were just to much. Also the bathtub was small and the curtains were too short.

Self

10/10

Exceptional

10 Oct 2025

Cruz

I’ve stayed at Ocean Gate Inn several times when visiting my son at UCSC, and the staff has always been kind and professional. One thing I really appreciate is how they go above and beyond — I’ve arrived as late as 1 a.m., and they’ve called to make sure I was still coming, which shows great customer service.

Sometimes I show up with two cars (mine and my son’s), and the man at the front desk always says it’s fine and never makes a big deal about it. The rooms are clean, it’s in a safe area, and every room even has its own balcony.

It’s honestly one of the best affordable hotels in Santa Cruz. Other places nearby have issues, but here the staff truly cares. I’ve had small maintenance issues in the past, and they were fixed right away. Overall, great people, great service, and a comfortable place to stay!

Leisure

10/10

Exceptional

08 Oct 2025

jennifer

This is my go to hotel when going to Santa Cruz it is a $10 Uber ride from the hotel to the Santa Cruz Beach boardwalk. The hotel is always clean and the staff is extremely friendly. Beds are super comfortable and the rooms are very spacious. Only downfall this trip was the elevator was being maintenance so we had to walk up to the third floor other than that I highly recommend this hotel.

Friends_and_family Family

10/10

Exceptional

07 Sep 2025

Russell

Owner was very pleasant and helpful!

Leisure Partner

10/10

Exceptional

24 Aug 2025

Jonathan

Not bad

Better than expected, but not by much. However excellent service from Bob.

Partner

10/10

Exceptional

04 Aug 2025

Claudia

Walking distance to the beach

Bed comfort excellent. No food on premises.

Friends_and_family Family

4/10

Poor

02 Aug 2025

Christine

The singular staff member was creepy and made me feel uneasy. The back of the hotel over looks private residents who's yards are just packed with literal trash. The walls were dirty and there were unknown dirty splashes on the walls in the bathroom. The only positive thing I have to say is that the rooms themselves were very large .

Leisure Family

10/10

Exceptional

28 Jul 2025

Patricia

Bob gave us great customer service.

10/10

Exceptional

27 Jul 2025

Verified traveler

Great! Very nice staff, very clean :)

Friends_and_family Friends

4/10

Poor

27 Jul 2025

Christine

Elevator not working room on the 4 the floor- loud and noisy

Leisure Friends

6/10

Pleasant

04 Jul 2025

Nicholas

Not the hotel’s fault, but the folks in the room next to me were loud until really late and it made for poor sleep. Otherwise, just an average hotel.

Self

4/10

Poor

02 Jul 2025

Verified traveler

The price was outrageous for what the room looked like! Dirty not kept up. I just can’t believe how people can charge this amount and the place is a dump! It should be clean at the minimum, they should take pride in there property not just for the money!!

Partner

10/10

Exceptional

29 Jun 2025

Verified traveler

Nice digs

The man on duty was very nice and helpful.

Partner

10/10

Exceptional

16 Jun 2025

Malakai

I enjoyed my stay. place was as expected

8/10

Excellent

15 Jun 2025

allen

It was great stay,view and location

Friends_and_family Friends

8/10

Excellent

05 Apr 2025

David

This property is close to many great attractions in Santa Cruz. It is next to a busy roadway that can be quite noisy during the daytime and evening. It gets more quiet in the middle of the night and early morning. Despite having a slightly dirty floor, out of facial tissues, no ice bucket, and no hand soap in the dispenser at the sink, the staff is very cooperative and took care of all of the issues. I asked about the security of the parking lot and their response was to take everything we can into our room so not exactly a boost of confidence there.

Leisure Partner

10/10

Exceptional

31 Jan 2025

Nicholas

Friendly staff

10/10

Exceptional

26 Jan 2025

gerson

Good

Leisure Self

4/10

Poor

20 Jan 2025

Wararat

We stayed here many times. Convenient, affordable, and nice staff. However, we noticed that the rooms had been remodeled but the quality gets worse: pipe under the sink is clogged so whatever run down the sink comes back up…gross, shower curtain bar falling down so the curtain cannot keep water in the shower area and wet all over the floor, a bed has a piece of metal sticking out to the side that is very hazardous(my leg got scraped by it), a room got very noisy from cars and also other customers. Last night, we were waken up by other customers who yelled at each other at 2:30am. We want to like this place, but our experience with recent stay is very bad.

Leisure Partner

10/10

Exceptional

08 Dec 2024

Trice

I love staying here. They are the sweetest ever

Leisure Self

10/10

Exceptional

30 Nov 2024

gerson

Good

Business Self

10/10

Exceptional

30 Nov 2024

Jennifer

Staff is great, space is safe. A favorite of ours.

Business_and_leisure Partner

6/10

Pleasant

22 Nov 2024

Remy

It was acceptable

The room was comfortable enough but it was a bit dirty and sketchy. Short walk to the boardwalk and a great view of the river though

Partner

10/10

Exceptional

01 Nov 2024

Verified traveler

Consistently Nice

Always comfortable and friendly

Self

10/10

Exceptional

22 Oct 2024

Verified traveler

Kind Managers

Front desk always willing to help you have a safe and comfortable stay. Very kind manager.

Friends_and_family Family

6/10

Pleasant

21 Oct 2024

Sylvester

Room was clean and spacious.

Electrical outlets were not available or did not work correctly, especially around vanity.

Lighting was inadequate to do makeup at bath vanity.
Lighting throughout room was either glaring white or off- there was no reading-level, comfortable lighting available.

There were steel brackets protruding from the bed frame below to out beyond the side walls of the mattress, rough-edged and unprotected, which could easily cut or scratch one's legs or arms severely. I discovered these when I swung my legs out of bed in the morning; luckily, I only brushed lightly across one.

Soap dispensers were oddly and incorrectly mounted near vanity and in shower.

More bath linens would have been useful; the supply was marginal.

Business Self

6/10

Pleasant

13 Oct 2024

Andrew

Nice Inn for the Price

The inn was definitely a little old, and it shows. The shower head in the room we got was slightly coming off the wall. The walls are also very thin, we could hear the people next door speaking loudly and blasting their music.
That said, the room was very comfortable. The room was clean and was tidied up well after we came back for the night of the stay. It has a fridge, a microwave, and a coffee maker. It also is pretty spacious and the shower worked well.
Overall, it's a nice inn for the price. It is a little old, and it isn't maintained the greatest, so there are better options around the area. Check this one out if you want to save some money and don't mind an antiquated building.

Friends_and_family Friends

2/10

Poor

11 Oct 2024

Michelle

Cheap and ok

Partner

10/10

Exceptional

09 Oct 2024

isaias

Would definitely look forward in staying again

Partner

8/10

Excellent

06 Oct 2024

Wanda

Non-nonsense inn, clean, you can feel
It’s old, but maintained and had A/C. Blankets should be changed as there were cigarettes burns ☹️. Overall OK.

Leisure Partner

4/10

Poor

23 Sep 2024

Erika

Room was dirty and old

6/10

Pleasant

17 Sep 2024

David

Clearly this place has been recently remodeled. Everything in the room is clean and new, and the room was fairly spacious. My only complaints are: the lighting is so blindingly white, it's like opening a refrigerator- and no table lamps. The wall sconce lighting is too \"white\" and the charging outlets are on the sconces- how do I plug a phone into that? The other problem is that if you have a lovely balcony view of the boardwalk, and like to open the window to enjoy the breeze at night, be ready for non-stop traffic, guys revving their engines, noisy car radios, etc, all night long. I'd rather pay more and stay on the west side.

Leisure Self

8/10

Excellent

14 Sep 2024

Verified traveler

short walk to Boardwalk...beach

Partner

6/10

Pleasant

08 Sep 2024

Roderick

A little remote from downtown where most restaurants are located.

Leisure Partner

6/10

Pleasant

02 Sep 2024

Brent

Parking was terrible. The common area needs some TLC

Business

6/10

Pleasant

28 Aug 2024

Italo

Housekeeper keep on asking me to say yes if management asked if my room got cleaned up. However, she never cleaned my room.

Business Self

10/10

Exceptional

25 Aug 2024

Henry

Over all really enjoyed staying here very clean

Leisure Self

10/10

Exceptional

22 Aug 2024

Erick Mark

Like location and customer service. Interior of room is new. I did not like there is homeless people living in their car at the parking lot. i saw two cars doing this.

Leisure Friends

6/10

Pleasant

12 Aug 2024

hannah

You get what you pay for. The property is worn and tired but safe enough and reasonably clean. Traffic noise may bother someSince.

Leisure Self

10/10

Exceptional

11 Aug 2024

Damian

Goodtimes

Had an amazing weekend at this hotel staff was excellent room was awesome and it was a decent walking distance to the boardwalk and the price wasn't that bad

Partner

8/10

Excellent

09 Aug 2024

Elliot

Nice staff. Clean room if a bit spartan. TV channel selection is good. Walk to beach/boardwalk is not too far but you have to cross a busy roadway and then walk along it for a block or so before turning toward the beach.

Leisure

8/10

Excellent

07 Aug 2024

Amy

Very good for the price

The place seemed a little sandy when we arrived but perhaps that's inevitable. Cleaners did not replenish the coffee, coffee was pretty bad. (Go to one of the many nice breakfast spots nearby.) But otherwise we had a nice stay here. It's not on the ocean but the walk to boardwalk isn't far. With a car you are close to several other calmer beaches, lots of hiking trails, and downtown. It's at a busy intersection with traffic on two sides, but did quiet down at night. King bed was great. Good service, attentive. Pleasant stay for the price.

Partner

10/10

Exceptional

07 Aug 2024

Aimee

Nice Little Spot

Grey location and value. Somewhat updated and a great value for the area.

10/10

Exceptional

05 Aug 2024

Claudia

Ocean breeze was great

Lovely view of the boardwalk and ocean even though there was a road between the motel and the ocean. Balcony was great and interior decor was well done.

Friends_and_family Family

10/10

Exceptional

04 Aug 2024

Nickie

I stayed in the room that had one king size bed with my two little boys and it got us perfectly. The shower had two different heads which was nice. The balcony patio was an awesome feature. My only complaint is that even though it was a non-smoking room, it still smelled like smoke.

Friends_and_family Family

10/10

Exceptional

03 Aug 2024

Judee

The young man on the front desk cause you’re super nice. Enjoy the conversation with him

10/10

Exceptional

30 Jul 2024

Danny

Staff was friendly stayed 3 nights
I have no complaints :)
The boardwalk was like a 10 minute walk
Definitely worth the stay at oceanGate .

Business_and_leisure Partner

2/10

Poor

27 Jul 2024

Jackie

Didn’t like it

6/10

Pleasant

20 Jul 2024

Todd

Adequate for overnight stay, close to boardwalk

No view

Low score due to very high pricing and noise level of other guests. Thin walls, no security on sight

Very expensive though $200-$300 per night and not even a bar of soap
Fridge, coffee maker and small microwave in room
Airco worked great
Noisy and heavy footed guests all night until 2am
People shooting of fireworks around 12am
Hard to sleep before 2am

Business_and_leisure Self

10/10

Exceptional

19 Jul 2024

William

Great price and location

10/10

Exceptional

17 Jul 2024

Evangeline

Weekend getaway

We had a great time! Location is superb and easy access to the beach and other areas

Friends_and_family Family

6/10

Pleasant

15 Jul 2024

claudia

Nice hotel close by the beach but the beds are not for me other than that it’s ok

Leisure Partner

10/10

Exceptional

07 Jul 2024

carlos

Close to pier. Beautiful balcony view.

Leisure Partner

8/10

Excellent

07 Jul 2024

Verified traveler

Great experience and clean room!

Self

8/10

Excellent

04 Jul 2024

Christopher

Aging property with new upgrades

Was worried when I read some bad pre-pandemic reviews. However there was new flooring, furniture, new bathtub/shower walls, sink/mirror. Some aging features (mostly walls and baseboards). Coastal motels take a lot of abuse. Spaces were clean. Balcony was a nice addition. Good tv selections including HBO. Good place to crash, but if you want something nicer expect to pay double elsewhere.

Friends_and_family Family

10/10

Exceptional

28 Jun 2024

Curtis

It was nice

Leisure Friends

4/10

Poor

23 Jun 2024

Amy

If you're gonna charge $300 for one night, make sure there are shower supplies. And maybe don't be rude when someone calls to ask for said supplies. If i was interested in driving back to 103° weather without a proper shower, i would've opted to camp on the beach.

Also, the 3rd floor door to the outside doesn't lock so we woke up to two homeless people sleeping in the hall.

Leisure Family

10/10

Exceptional

06 Jun 2024

Damon

Clean and quiet

Business

8/10

Excellent

02 Jun 2024

Thomas

It was nice enough for the night

Leisure Friends

6/10

Pleasant

28 May 2024

Michelle

Good location and value compared to other hotels in area. Decent bed. Towels were raggedy. The walls are thin so water and snoring from other rooms heard and location is on a high traffic street (E. Cliff) that is so noisy at all hours with motorcycles, buses and other traffic that make it hard to sleep.

Leisure Partner

10/10

Exceptional

28 May 2024

Eric

Great value, simple and no frills.

8/10

Excellent

27 May 2024

Blake

Good distance from the boardwalk, they have cameras on the parking spaces so I felt very reassured about not having my windows broken either.

Leisure Partner

4/10

Poor

27 May 2024

Carolina

When I got to the inn, the receptionist guy was so nice and explained everything to me so well. When I got to the elevator it was a bit suspicious, meaning it looked as if it was outdated and I was very afraid I would get stuck in it, but it worked well. The room was \"clean\", but not mopped or cleaned thoroughly. The baseboards had dust, the bed sheets had stained, FYI bring your own, the restroom was clean and the sink as well. The balcony glass was dirty and the balcony itself had dust and was stained. There was one mirror above a table and that had streaks as if you were going to clean and sprayed but forgot to clean it so it dried wet. My last night at the inn, we kept getting the smell of weed, extremely strong smell, probably our next door neighbors. Overall the beds were very uncomfortable and we found a roach when it was time to tidy up and head home. Will not be booking here again.

Leisure Family

10/10

Exceptional

27 May 2024

Joscelyn

The staff was all super nice! Price amazing. View amazing! Updated and honestly really nice I don’t understand why so many negative reviews

Business Partner

10/10

Exceptional

21 May 2024

Verified traveler

Very nice stay

Kind management

Self

8/10

Excellent

12 May 2024

Michael

This was adequate for a couple of nights stay.

10/10

Exceptional

11 May 2024

Michelle

Loved my room here and super friendly staff

Business Self

10/10

Exceptional

11 May 2024

Arwen

We have stayed at Ocean Gate many times and have never had a problem. The staff there has always been great.

10/10

Exceptional

09 May 2024

Gregorio

Staff was very friendly and the room was very clean 10/10

Leisure Partner

10/10

Exceptional

04 May 2024

Kody

Was an excellent stay, manager and front desk clerk were both were kind and very helpful, parking was awesome, clean inside and out. Balcony was an awesome view and we were a happy family!

8/10

Excellent

04 May 2024

Patrick

Great location. Spacious room. Easy walk to the boardwalk. Slight whiff of left over smoke even though a non-smoking room. Plenty of parking but the spots are a bit narrow. Not great for a large/wide vehicle.

Self

8/10

Excellent

24 Apr 2024

Brookelyn

They need a vending machine

Leisure Partner

2/10

Poor

23 Apr 2024

Brian

Super nice desk folks, but meth heads are sleeping in the stairwells, the floors are so dirty when you get in the shower you visibly see the dirt run off, walls are sticky, TV remote was absolutely disgusting. Too many homeless are pulling their quarters and dollars to stay there because it is one of the lesser expensive spots. But sketch.

And putting up a Do Not Disturb sign on the knob doesn't stop the knocking

Business Partner

6/10

Pleasant

22 Apr 2024

Enrique

It needs an upgrade on the rooms and technically

Business_and_leisure Partner

10/10

Exceptional

16 Apr 2024

Andrew

Excellent room and overall experience

Excellent zero issues was pretty darn quiet, beautiful view of the boardwalk from the balcony, nice large over 300 square foot room, wooden floors, as much coffee as you wanted just go ask for more bags in the lobby, you can walk down the street to 2 markets, A Little Caesars pizza, a 7-eleven, and your about a 10-minute walk to the boardwalk and maybe a 15-minute walk to downtown. Nice roomy covered parking I mean absolutely worth the extremely low cost. Anyone complaining about this motel needs to just pay more then for something with more accommodations, but if you just want a nice room that's clean has parking a nice view and in a pretty nice location well then stay here!

Partner

2/10

Poor

30 Mar 2024

Johnathan

I had to fix my key the time I stayed at this hotel and the first room after I walk out of the room. I couldn’t go back in asking the person on duty she’s not happy and it’s wasn’t something we wanted but she made its my fault her lock isn’t working properly

Leisure Partner

10/10

Exceptional

04 Mar 2024

Peter

If the noise wasnt so loud from the streets it would have been a better rating but overall was great.

Business_and_leisure Self

6/10

Pleasant

25 Feb 2024

Annabelle

The property is somewhat near the Boardwalk however, you have to take like a mile walk. The staff was friendly and informative about the area. The Inn was remodeled. TV, wifi, movies accessible. The room is clean but their towels are dirty and old. Need to replace. Same as their bedsheets. Had a lipstick mark and tearing to pieces. Replace what is needed to be replaced. Thanks

Leisure Family

8/10

Excellent

19 Feb 2024

Rudy

Great stay. Would definitely stay again

4/10

Poor

14 Jan 2024

Brooke

Very dirty. No hot water. Blow dryer didnt work. Floors were disgusting. Very noisy couldn't sleep. Will not be back

6/10

Pleasant

19 Nov 2023

Edgar

Old

This place had a lot of potential, but needs an upgrade! The elevator feels extremely unsafe. You literally walk into a closet that somehow moves up and down!
The room was a bit dingy, the restroom door wouldn't latch without having to slam the door! The trashcan in the room had cigarette butts... it was a non-smoking room!
Then... morning came and the blinds did nothing! The sunlight came through almost as if nothing was covering the window. We had no choice, but to get up around 7am.
I don't know if I'll stay here again...

Friends_and_family Family

10/10

Exceptional

18 Nov 2023

Trice

I love this place

Business_and_leisure Partner

8/10

Excellent

13 Nov 2023

Evelyn

The office was great in working with us for early check-in. Staff was nice. Room was a usual hotel room. The only negative was my feet were nasty after walking on the floor and had to wash again before putting shoes back on.

Leisure Family

2/10

Poor

12 Nov 2023

gregorio

Nothing about the place was liked, this hotel was so dirty and filthy. There was mold in the bath tub and the room smelled like cigarettes! Also room service came and made the bed but took all the towels didn’t replace them or the papers for the restroom. It was really noisy and there was people yelling 2 and 3 am. Bad place

10/10

Exceptional

06 Nov 2023

Shiela

We got a room change and the toom we got to stay in had a view of the Boardwalk

Leisure Family

10/10

Exceptional

04 Nov 2023

Josie

Great for your money, very clean and very nice employees

Leisure Friends

8/10

Excellent

27 Oct 2023

Thomas

I've read a lot of reviews saying this is the worst possible hotel ever. It is a cheap hotel, that is certainly true, but it is far from being the worst in the world. It's about what you would expect for the price.

I got a room here because of the location, I was only using it as a place to sleep after a concert. The mattress was very firm, there was a stain on the duvet, and it certainly wasn't a Hilton or Marriott. But I also didn't find anything particularly dangerous or threatening about the hotel, I did not see drug deals or prostitutes or people stealing from cars or anything like this that other people have described. I did not try to turn on the television so I don't know anything about that. I also did not inspect anything with a UV light, I'm not that paranoid.

So yeah, if you're looking for minimal basic hotel in a convenient location this will do the job. I would stay here again if I was coming to a concert in Santa Cruz again.

Leisure Self

2/10

Poor

14 Oct 2023

RYUHEI

Did not appreciate that kid was districting during check in

8/10

Excellent

11 Oct 2023

Soudabeh

Old towels better to be replaced . Thanks

Leisure Family