Lodging

Making connections and enjoying off-the-mat time with other Aikidoists is one of the great pleasures of attending a multi-day retreat. The Japanese word for retreat, Gasshuku, literally means "lodging together."

Very important note: Out-of-town Retreat participants are responsible for arranging their own lodging during the Retreat.

There is no lodging available at the Civic, so please investigate your other options and do make reservations EARLY! Santa Cruz is a popular summer vacation destination.  Reserve ASAP!  Thank you.

Various lodging options are available to retreat attendees from out-of-town - vacation rentals, hotels & motels, B&B's, and the Santa Cruz Youth Hostel. Convenient to public transport and all-day parking facilities, the Civic will be easy to get to for locals and out of town visitors alike. Below are a range of options for lodging during the retreat.

Please Note: For all lodging options, it is vital to reserve early, as beautiful Santa Cruz fills up in summer with vacationers.

Hotels & Motels

Bayfront Inn 325 Pacific Ave. (831) 423-856

Beach Street Inn and Suites 125 Beach St. (831) 423-3031

Beachview Inn 50 Front St. (831) 426-3575

Best Western, The All Suites 500 Ocean St. (831) 458-9898

Capri Motel 337 Riverside Ave. (831) 426-4611

Coastview Inn 301 Beach St. (831) 426-0420

Continental Inn 414 Ocean St. (831) 429-1221

Edgewater Beach Inn and Suites 525 Second St. (831) 448-0888

Holiday Inn Express 1410 Ocean St. (831) 466-9100

Hotel Solares 600 Riverside Ave., (831) 458-9600

Hyatt Place 407 Broadway. (844) 680-6921

The Islander Motel 522 Ocean St. (831) 426-7766

Motel Santa Cruz 370 Ocean St., (831) 458-9220

Ocean Gate Inn 111 Ocean St. (831) 429-8244

Ocean Pacific Lodge 301 Pacific Ave. (831) 457-1234

Oceana Inn 525 Ocean St., (831) 426-2300

Pacific Inn 330 Ocean St., (831) 425-3722

Hotel Paradox 611 Ocean St. (831) 425-7100

Riverside Inn & Suites 505 Riverside Ave. (831) 426-2899

Salt Air Lodge 510 Liebrandt Ave., (831) 423-6020

Super 8 by Wyndham 338 Riverside Ave. (831) 426-3707

Torch Lite Inn 500 Riverside Ave., (831) 426-7575

WEST SIDE (not shown on map)

Hampton Inn Santa Cruz West 2424 Mission St. (831) 316-3500

Mission Inn 2250 Mission St. (831) 425-5455

Sea & Sand Inn 201 W. Cliff Dr. (831) 427-3400

Seaway Inn 176 W. Cliff Dr. (831) 471-9004

Vacation Rentals

The bad news is that being a vacation destination, hotels & motels in Santa Cruz are very expensive in the summertime - especially on the weekends (they almost double in price). The good news is that being a vacation destination, Santa Cruz has a lot of vacation rental homes & condos! Most are significantly less expensive than a hotel (especially when filled to capacity) - and you have a kitchen. Our own search of www.vrbo.com turned up rentals that can house as many as 16 people to ones that are designed for 2 or 3. We suggest that you book as soon as you can, because vacation rental calendars do fill up quickly! Westside Santa Cruz or Seabright area will be the most convenient to downtown (10 minutes or less), but anywhere in the area will be fairly close. From Santa Cruz heading south (nearest to farthest), the areas likely to have rentals are: Twin Lakes, Pleasure Point, Opal Cliffs, Capitola, New Brighton, Seacliff, Rio del Mar, La Selva Beach. These are all coastal - if you can find something inland (Live Oak, Soquel, or in the San Lorenzo Valley) it may be less expensive.

Meals

Dining options are varied: Within walking distance of the Civic are many excellent cafes & restaurants of all price levels, a Trader Joe's and a health food store. Please see https://downtownsantacruz.com/discover/eat for restaurants and other useful locations within easy walking distance of the Civic.

Transportation

The two closest airports to Santa Cruz are San Jose International [SJC] (30 miles) and San Francisco International [SFO] (75 miles). There are two shuttle services that will pick you up at the airport and take you right to your lodging or the retreat. They both pick up passengers at San Jose and San Francisco airports.

Early Bird Airport Shuttle (831) 462-3933 www.earlybirdairportshuttle.com
Private door-to-door service, $80 to/from San Jose Airport and $120 to/from San Francisco Airport.

Santa Cruz Shuttles (831) 421-9883 www.santacruzshuttles.com
They offer door-to-door service within the City of Santa Cruz for $115 to/from San Jose Airport and $145 to/from San Francisco Airport. Prices shown are for 1-4 people; group sizes of 5-10 people will be $25 extra charge.

Public Transportation

Using public transportation to/from either airport is a little more complicated and a lot less expensive than the shuttle services. You can use "Get Directions" in Google Maps, and select the bus icon. Once you are in Santa Cruz, the bus station is about a 10 minute walk to the Civic Center and 15 minutes to the Aikido of Santa Cruz dojo.

From San Francisco Airport, the most direct route is to take BART to Caltrain, then Caltrain to the San Jose Diridon Station. From the Diridon station you catch the Highway 17 express to Santa Cruz. Transit time is about 3 hours -- less, if you get a Caltrain Express train (vs. under two hours driving).

From San Jose Airport, Terminal B, take the #22 bus to the Santa Clara & Montgomery. From there it is a 3 minute walk to the San Jose Diridon Caltrain station. From there take the Highway 17 express to Santa Cruz. Transit time is about 2 hours (vs. one hour driving).

Dojo Slumber Party!

As part of our financial aid program, there is a limited number of scholarships for out of town participants to stay for free at Aikido of Santa Cruz. The dojo is just a few blocks from the Civic (we also have showers and a kitchen). Please fill out the scholarship application form by clicking here if you are interested in this option. Scholarships are available for Aikidoists attending the full retreat.

Bed & Breakfast

Hind’s House 529 Chestnum St. (831) 423-0423
Inexpensive B & B, minimum stay is one week; one block from the Civic

Babbling Brook Inn 1025 Laurel St. (831) 427-2437
Upscale downtown B & B, 0.7 mi from Civic

Santa Cruz Youth Hostel

Rates start at $40 per night — some beds may be reserved, some held for chance travelers. See www.hi-santacruz.org for more information. Five minutes from Civic.

Parking

A limited number of parking passes at the Civic Center are available for $30. Please see the registration page for more information.

Several all-day parking lots are within walking distance. Rates are typically $1.25 / hour up to max $10 / day. See this map for parking suggestions. (Please note that “Lot 6” shown on the map is reserved for people with the Retreat parking pass mentioned above.)