The Ritz-Carlton Bacara, Santa Barbara

My husband surprised me with a anniversary trip to Santa Barbara. He brought me to this beautiful resort. All the staff, from housekeeping to valet service, has been amazing. It is well maintained and has all the amenities we desired. Only one criticism, the lawn blower’s disturbed us every morning while we were trying to enjoy our coffee on our balcony. We highly recommend this resort.

We were blessed with two days of beautiful weather after arriving in a cold damp marine layer. We were also fortunate enough to have a ground floor ocean front suite which afforded views of the rolling waves at the nearby beach and the Channel Islands off in the distance. The room itself had recently been re-furnished and I’m sure painted, which was nice, but still showed some areas that could have been repaired/fix to enhance the room (missing chain to raise blind, patio door not locking, cables hanging from under the TV), but nothing really major or worth complaining about. I have to say the AI review at the head of all reviews is pretty accurate. Yes, as seniors the paths down to the pools and The Bistro can be quite steep, especially on the return to our room that was in building 2. And yes, you can call for a golf cart to pick you up, but I don’t think we are at that stage yet! Every employee we had interaction with was great, and a credit to the resort/Ritz-Carlton. A special call-out to Mia on the front desk and Philip in the pool bar, who both excelled in customer service. Overall we felt very comfortable and relaxed during our time at the resort, far exceeding expectations we had coming in. In fact we cancelled a dinner reservation in downtown Santa Barbara to eat at the lobby bar on our second night. We didn’t want to break the relaxed feeling by leaving the resort for the hassle of eating off-site. We would love to return one day, which is all you can ask. Yes it is expensive, and they get you with all the add-on, which to be fair all resorts do. $70 parking is particularly galling, but we knew this going in, so can’t complain too much!

This place is an experience in it's own right. The architecture is wonderful, and this presentation extends into the well appointed rooms as well. We got busy and didn't have much time to really explore the grounds and adjacent beach, but plan on being back to do so. Will stay again due to great and friendly service, quiet and comfortable rooms, and location.

I worked with guest relations FAR in advance to plan details for our wedding in Santa Barbara. I ordered a wedding cake thru the pastry department. Upon hotel check in, I gave the front desk our wedding topper to add to the cake. I was told they would make it happen. The next day (still one day before our wedding) I checked with the concierge again, regarding the cake. I was told, they would make sure it happened. The day of the wedding, my fiancé checked again, and was told the cake would be delivered that evening. We never received the cake! Epic fail on the hotels part. Then, I discover that friends had tried to contact the catering department to place an order for wedding treats for us and their messages were never even returned. I called the concierge desk multiple times, and they would not answer the phone. I had to walk all the way to the lobby to get assistance. Now, our room was very nice. Staff was very nice. The property is clearly being renovated and maintained nicely, but service is being grossly overlooked. I normally would not care about a cake, but this was our wedding cake for our special event. It cannot be repeated. Very disappointing.

We had a three night stay last winter to celebrate our anniversary. We've started to make it a tradition to come to the Barbara to celebrate each year. Madison Jordan at the front was incredibly helpful in making a few special requests happen that blew me and me partner away! She went above and beyond to make our experience memorable and relaxing. The customer service was outstanding! They were happy to help with our baggage and getting us to our room. Our room very comfortable and all the amenities were top notch. They even left us a bottle of champagne and strawberries. The food at angel oak was exceptional. We had the peter rolls and filets that were cooked to perfection. The patio also has a gorgeous view. Yvonne Sandbloom at the tasting room was very welcoming. She shared some great recommendations and was more than happy to make a substitution when we asked. The attention to detail and consistency of care really exceeded our expectations. Everyone we talked to was attentive and happy to help. We look forward to coming back this coming year!