Pacifica Suites Hotel, Goleta

Nestled in a tranquil green setting in Goleta, CA, a few miles out of Santa Barbara proper, the Pacifica Suites hotel offers a resort type luxury getaway with all the old world charm of the Wine Country with wide open impeccably maintained grounds, spacious living quarters and all the trappings that come with a modern hotel.

The hotel has only suites, and no single rooms. The onus here is on personalized service to each guest, with an attention to detail unmatched by most Santa Barbara hotels, let alone any of the nearby Goleta hotels and Inns. Every morning, the kitchen prepares a complimentary breakfast of eggs, bacon, sausage and pancakes for each guest, made to order according to your needs and preferences. During Happy Hours, the hotel offers a selection of first class wines for the Fireside Winery, one of the oldest and finest Wineries in the area.

For impromptu meetings in a casual or discreet setting, the hotel offers use of the Fireside room next to the main lobby, and for more formal meetings or conferences, the next door Sexton House, a dated landmark building fully restored for use by the hotel, is made available to guests. Additonally the hotel offers free parking, use of a full service gym, outdoor heated swimming pool with lounge chairs set pool side, and a casual cafe and common patio for dining.

The 87 suites at the Pacifica Suites hotel all feature seperate living rooms and bedrooms with plantation style shutters, and a private patio overlooking the Santa Ynez Mountains, the hotel grounds or a pool side view.

Each suite is equipped with two televisions with cable and a DVD, complimentary wi-fi internet, free local calls, coffee maker, refrigirator with bottled water, in room safe, iron & ironing board, and a private bath with a seperate dressing area and hairdryer. Room rates start at $179. If you book for 4 nights, you can get a special rate of $152 per night, along with complimentary passes to the nearby Spectrum Fitness Center.

Info: 5490 Hollister Avenue Santa Barbara CA 93111; (800) 338-6722; http://www.pacificasuites.com/; Photos courtesy & copyrights - Pacifica Hotel Company

Svendsgaard's Danish Lodge, Solvang

Solvang, CA is a funny place. Originally settled by Danish immigrants, it still feels like you wandered into a countryside nook of Denmark when you enter this California Wine Country town. Photo of Solvang, CA by 5000! via Flickr.

You'll find Danish diners offering pastries and bagels, Danish stores and hotels and houses and windmills and just about everything, even the names of all the people and the businesses, are straight out of a Danish telephone book. Solvang is located in the Santa Ynez Valley, just outside Santa Barbara, so it doesn't get too many people who want to stay here more than a day or so. The main attraction in Solvang is the Danish Village, which is more like a Denmark theme park.


Even so, there might be some visitors who don't want to put up in the tourist traps better known as Santa Barbara hotels. For such travelers, hotels in Solvang offer a peaceful enclave or getaway at relatively lower prices than you would pay for a hotel with comparable amenities and services in Santa Barbara. Svendsgaard's Danish Lodge, located at the corner of Mission Drive and Alisal Road, is one of these hotels, which looks like its been picked up out of the Danish countryside and placed in Solvang. The quaint exterior, with sqaure box windows facing out on to the street and the neatly paved pathways are nothing like any other hotel, anywhere in California.

The 48 guest rooms, including 18 suites with gas fireplaces, are well equipped with the usual amenities, including refrigirators, cable TV with HBO, in-room coffee, iron & ironing board and hairdryers. The lodge serves a complimentary breakfast in the lobby for its guests each morning, with an assortment of Danish pastries, bagels, fresh juice and hot coffee. There's also a heated swimming pool and a jacuzzi. The rooms are pretty neat and spacious and comfortable, if not very luxurious. Room rates start at $74 during weekdays and $99 during weekends.

Info: 1711 Mission Drive Solvang CA 93463; (800) 733-875; www.svendsgaardslodge.com