THE RITZ-CARLTON BACARA, SANTA BARBARA

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4.0

Very good

2,805 reviews

Location

Cleanliness

Service

Value

Certificate of Excellence

Along the bluffs and beaches of the Gaviota Coast lies The Ritz-Carlton Bacara, Santa Barbara, a resort of stunning natural beauty and relaxed luxury. With 78 acres of oceanfront property, including two miles of natural beach, our Santa Barbara, California resort offers an expansive sun-drenched setting with endless vistas of sea and sky. Our resort features innovative and artful design that is in keeping with the intimacy and aesthetics of a Mediterranean village. Unwind at an award-winning 42,000-square-foot spa and fitness center or relax beside one of three zero-edge swimming pools and 26 private cabanas. The resort's 358 newly-renovated guestrooms and signature suites artfully infuse luxurious interiors with modern technologies for a true sense of comfort. Additional resort amenities include a new oceanfront restaurant, Angel Oak, four Har-Tru clay tennis courts, a Foley wine tasting room, and the adjacent Sandpiper Golf Club.

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Property amenities

Parking

Free internet

Pool

Fitness Centre with Gym / Workout Room

Bar / lounge

Tennis court

Babysitting

Children Activities (Kid / Family Friendly)

Wifi

Public wifi

Paid wifi

Internet

Sauna

Pool / beach towels

Pool with view

Adult pool

Outdoor pool

Heated pool

Restaurant

Breakfast available

Breakfast buffet

Poolside bar

Kids club

Pets Allowed ( Dog / Pet Friendly )

Banquet room

Meeting rooms

Spa

Couples massage

Facial treatments

Massage

Concierge

Gift shop

Non-smoking hotel

Outdoor fireplace

Dry cleaning

Laundry service

Room features

Ocean view

Non-smoking rooms

Suites

Family rooms

Air conditioning

Housekeeping

Minibar

Flatscreen TV

Private balcony

Room service

Safe

Refrigerator

On-demand films

Good to know

HOTEL CLASS

HOTEL STYLE

Business

Family

Hotel links

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Special Offer:Save up to 20% on stays

Hotel deals

Location

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Contact

8301 Hollister Ave, Goleta, CA 93117-2474

00 1 805-968-0100

Getting there

Santa Barbara Airport7 kmSee all flights

Santa Maria Public Airport72 kmSee all flights

Car HireSee all Goleta car hire

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Nearby restaurants

The Habit Burger Grill

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Nearby attractions

Goleta Beach

168 reviews

8.5 kmBeaches

Goleta Butterfly Grove

80 reviews

2.4 kmNature & Wildlife Areas

The Cube Escape Rooms

7.2 kmBodies of Water

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2,805Reviews28Q+A100Room tips

Beautiful grounds and amenities; superb staff

Hard to fault the arrival at this property. My third visit over the course of several years, relaxation greeted me with Michael at the Bonvoy check-in desk who immediately offered me a glass of champagne. He acknowledged my status, looked for an upgrade; alas none were available, but he assured me that I was in a great room. I inquired about Concierge Level upgrades. (Although Bonvoy Platinum levels and above receive complementary club access at other Marriott properties, Ritz-Carlton charges a fee for all levels.) The newly published charge is $200/night for double occupancy. (formerly $75/person or $150/night). I inquired if the dinner hour was still in service-he affirmed that it was open until 7:30 PM, so I signed for the additional charge. Although there are multiple golf carts and valets available to whisk you around the property, I had driven from Los Angeles in rush hour so was happy to stretch my legs and walk to my room. At first I was dismayed to learn that my room, a 1 bedroom garden view suite was on the 1st level (Room 9-103). (It is rare that I accept a room on the ground floor.) However, upon entering it, I realized that Michael was correct-it is a great room! The real bonus is that instead of balconies you have patios and it abuts the pool, so the two furnished patios are very private with your own grassy area and garden. (Most of the other patios and balconies are open to the walkways and paths.) The room itself was spacious and as advertised with 2 full bathrooms and a fireplace in the living room. After dropping my bags, I headed back up to the club and was greeted by Mary, who told me she had already received a call from Michael and was expecting me for dinner. She was joined by Todd and together, they could not have been more helpful. My husband and kids joined me and we had a lot of fun discovering the different treats they had laid out (milk and white chocolate fondue! brussels sprouts and bacon skewers!) for dinner and dessert. Finally we hit the pool before turning in for the night. The rooms are showing a little wear and tear with some marks on the walls, etc. but the beds and linens are still comfortable and they put a ton of towels and slippers and robes in our room which is always nice. This is a great property to relax and spend some time at. As other reviews have noted, it is far from town, but that is part of the magic-it's more of a nature resort retreat. I would highly recommend upgrading to the club lounge: elegant food presentations, champagne, wine and beer included and warm, personal service. Continues to be a great property for a fun getaway (family and/or couples). We will return!…

Date of stay: October 2019

Location

Service

Sleep Quality

Room Tip: Garden views vary widely-try to get a room at a building close to the ocean. Room 9-103 has a...

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Heaven

Absolutely lovely property. Had a beautiful suite with a fireplace and 2 balconies. Spacious and superbly appointed. Loved our visit there. Nice, private swimming pool. Very relaxing. Much nicer since Ritz Carlton took it over.

Date of stay: September 2019

Value

Rooms

Service

Trip type: Travelled on business

Not deserving of the Ritz name

So, a valet hit my parked car back during my stay in September. They mentioned nothing at checkout (you'd think they'd at least wipe the parking charges off, but nope!). Not what I'd expect from something that carries the Ritz name. They claimed they had forwarded it onto corporate, and they would be reaching out to me to deal with the claim. I never heard from them, so I called corporate. Claim was never filed. Claim number that was given to me was not the format that was used by their claims department (they have no idea what number they gave me). So not only did I pay for this whole experience over the weekend, but now I'm left paying the own damage on my car, because the management at Bacara doesn't seem to want to pay this claim. Just a horrible experience. As a long-time Plat from SPG, this whole experience has soured me. …

Date of stay: September 2019

Beautiful Grounds/Far from Town/Spotty Service

We had high expectations for this resort. We were in Villa 6 which had an obscured view of the pool from the balcony. Which we enjoyed. The room was nice, but not spectacular. When we arrived the front desk only had one person at the desk and 3 others milling behind not helping despite a queue. Once we were assisted, Michael was great and let us know our room was not ready and checked our bags. We went to the bistro to get a bite to eat and waited a long time for the hostess to seat us. Again it just seemed strange that the service was not more prompt or attentive. The wait staff at the Bistro was great and our keys were delivered to the restaurant which was a nice touch. Once we arrived in our room, tired from traveling we hoped to rest before dinner but our bed was missing the bottom sheet. We called the front desk and were assured housekeeping would take care of it immediately. It was more than an hour and a repeat request via the tablet before our bed was made up properly. Then the next day housekeeping took our robe away and did not replace it or the complementary tea for the in room coffee/tea maker. Just inconsistent service. In addition, I was bitten by some kind of insect and broke out in horrible hives (can’t blame the hotel for my allergy, but the bugs that started the allergy came from the resort). Overall we were expecting to be blown away by the service and quality of the resort. Instead were a bit underwhelmed. Found it to be Ok but nothing special.…

Date of stay: September 2019Trip type: Travelled on business

Thank you for choosing to stay at The Ritz-Carlton Bacara and giving us your detailed observations. We very much appreciate your positive comments about the resort in general and some of your service experiences . Please accept our sincere apologies for the inconsistencies you encountered. I have shared your comments with our leadership team for them to review and to take action. I hope you are feeling better and your hives have subsided. We look forward to have the opportunity to welcome you back in the near future

Disappointed

This was my first stay at this location, however not my first Ritz Carlton stay. There were numerous service issues during my stay and an indifference at check out, where the employee made the concerns I raised my fault. To start when I got to my room the first issue was housekeeping left no toilet paper and the roll holder on the toilet tank. A bellman went to find paper from another room when I mentioned the issue when my luggage was delivered. Later that same day I wanted to order room service and the tablet in the room was a nice detail with my name on the cover page. Although the information wasn’t up to date referring to Spring Spa Specials in late summer. The menu was abbreviated, I later discovered a different menu on the TV. When my order was delivered the salmon I ordered with my salad was missing. The delivery person ran off to retrieve the missing salmon. It wasn’t until after nine pm when someone came knocking for turndown service, which I turned away. Now for day two. I returned to my room around 3:00 pm thinking my room would be made up, to find it wasn’t. I was planning to get read for a dinner and hoping the room would be attended to, thinking I would wait on my patio I discovered multiple mosquitoes so I needed to wait in my room. Housekeeping didn’t arrive until after 4:00 pm and others in my Villa were having the same issue. When I raised this concern at departure I was asked if I had requested an early service for my room as the standard was between 9 am to noon. This obviously didn’t explain the 4 hour delay. Others in my business group experienced similar issues such as no soap, damp musty smells in their room, a gift that was coordinated and paid to be delivered to all guests were delivered late for some and at least one person ever received their gift. Last of all I called ahead for a bellman to take my luggage and for my car from valet. After a lengthy check out due to my raising concerns and hearing how it was my fault, I had to wait another 10+ minutes for my car to be delivered. Not impressed with this stay. …

Date of stay: August 2019Trip type: Travelled on business

Providing the highest level of service is very important to us and we sincerely apologize for the issues with your stay. Kindly contact Morgan Melanson at 805-968-0100 so we may assist you further and regain your confidence.

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Why would Titanium members be expected to pay for the Lounge as this is normally a perk.... we've never paid before? If your room is upgraded is the Lounge then free?

We are Titanium members and we didn't get any perks. No room upgrade, no lounge.

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I have 3 quick questions, if someone can answer:- 1. Is the beach clean? Is it clean to take a bathe? 2. Are the king balcony rooms look and feel dated? 3. If other options are available, should i consider this hotel?

I would not say the rooms look dated. They are in a Spanish colonial/mediterranean style which is fairly timeless and they are lovely. The view is phenomenal. The beach was nice, but YES TARBALLS. Might be other nicer beaches in the area to swim in. And yes, consider other options. Santa Barbara has lots of nice places to stay, both north and south of this hotel. Even some "glamping" options (El Capitan) which are fun. There are actually some nice hotels in which to stay in downtown, too. Have a look at the Kimpton Canary. So fun and right in downtown. We stayed there and walked to all kinds of restaurants and the beach. I liked it better than the R-C.

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We are travelling from Los Angeles by train. Can anyone tell me the closest station to the hotel. Also what is the best way to get from the station to the hotel. Thanks

Get off on Santa Barbara Amtrak station. Then take a Lyft or Uber which is 9 miles up north from the train station which will cost you around $20.00.

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Can you hear people in neighboring rooms? Especially people walking above?

I never experienced anything that sort, it was perfectly private

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How many levels is this resort? How many pools does this resort have? How many restaurants does this resort have?

3 pools - Cabana pool, Resort pool and spa pool. 4 story level each villa has an elevator. 3 restaurants - Angel Oak very high end dinner restaurant, Bistro good for breakfast and lunch. Bacara Bar good for lunch and dinner as well.

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