Torch Lite Inn

Mexican owned, overpriced, pubic hairs in both beds and dirty sheets. We complained but did not get the room cleaned. Refused to refund us. There was stuff that looked like semen floating in the pool. They did not make us feel welcome. We had to stay here since everything was sold out. Rip off @$ 250 per night. Go somewhere else. The photos in the advertisements are fake. Shady as heck.

The room was clean when we arrived. It had a fridge and microwave. The walls are very thin. We slept with the tv on every night to tune out the noise. The morning after our arrival the guy from the front office came to our room, knocked and asked, «do you need service today?» We said, not now we are about to leave. He never came and cleaned out room that day and our trashes were overflowing from the two nights we had stayed there. The breakfast was not so great, there was not much to choose from. I don’t think I will return to this place. I rather spend a little more

You should probably fork over a little extra money to stay somewhere nice. We booked this place because it was reasonably priced, the location seemed good, and the pictures online were really nice. Don’t be fooled! The area seems a little rough, we had large stains on both comforters, the room smelled like smoke… and most importantly we were awoken to the sound of someone trying to break in through our window at 2am. The guy got his hand all the way inside before we scared him off. I won’t blame the hotel entirely for the break in, but you’re still probably better off staying somewhere else.

OMG! We stayed in this flea bag on 04/​08/​2016 because I had to find a room via the internet for us to stay in after a concert in Santa Cruz.
Firstly, when we got there, the front desk clerk told me that on top of the $ 129.99 I paid online for the room via Orbitz, that I would have to give them another $ 50 via my credit card for a deposit. I was surprised because by the look of the place I thought we were already overpaying. We were given room #108 or 109. When we got to the room, I noticed that there were dark stains on the bed spread and ink stains on the curtains. I was really upset that we had just put down a $ 50 deposit for this room because it seems to me that I might be billed for the stains that we had not made. I went directly back to front desk and told the desk clerk about the stains. She said we could change rooms if we wanted to and I said ok. She gave me the key to the neighboring room which was 108 or 109. However, upon entering the neighboring room, we smelled the strong odor of marijuana – like someone had just had a huge bakefest in there! I don’t smoke marijuana and I found it extremely offensive so I went back to the front desk and told the young lady working there that we would keep the original room but that we wanted her to note that there were stains on the bedspread and curtains. She said ok.
It is now May 1 and I have checked my mastercard account and the $ 50 deposit charge is on my bill! I called the Torch Lite Inn and asked the manager why we are being charged $ 50 because we left the room in fine condition. I mean, we didn’t make the beds, but everything was still there and we didn’t abuse anything. The manager Sam said that I was being charged for smoking in the room!!! I could not believe it!!! I told him that I do not smoke and neither does my son (who came with me). I told him that is just wrong. Sam said he would credit me the $ 50. I don’t know if I trust him yet. We will see if it happens. If it is credited back to my card I will update this Unilocal entry. But, what a lowdown dirty thing to do to a nice person like me who is respectful and pays her bill and doesn’t trash her room! I am pissed right now. I hope I can calm down enough to go to sleep tonight. Ugh! ARGGGGHHH!
BTW, do not go to this hotel. You will get ripped off. If I could give it 0 stars I would.

Checked in to this hotel at 4pm Saturday all was fine. Put out things away went down to the boardwalk for the day came back go in our room changed and went to dinner. Came back to our room a little after 10pm with my family (4yr and 15yr old) and to our surprise our room key did not work. I went to the front next and no one was at the desk. Lights off and two signs One said no vacancies and another said we’ll be back. I called the office several time and got no answer. So after several phone calls and attempts no luck. At this point we were forced to go across the street and rent another room for $ 225 and 2 very upset children who couldn’t understand why this happened. So for this reason I would never rent a room at this hotel again. I wouldn’t wish this to happen to anyone expressly a family with children it was a transiting situation for my 4 yr most of all she couldn’t understand why this had happened.

My good experience at this Inn has been trumped by the poor attitude & lack of customer service provided when attempting to get back a cash deposit I accidentally left town w/​out getting back.
I immediately called the office and was told there was nothing management could do, short of my return back– which was a inconvenience seeing as I had already drove most the way back home. Management did assure me that the money would go no where and would sit until I could return to get it. This was Nov. 1^st, 2^nd & also the 5^th of 2015. With each phone call I was assured and so I informed management that I’d be returning in some months to come.
On Apr. 5^th I called the business to inform them of who I was and that I would be coming down to Santa Cruz for the day to enjoy the beach & that I would also love it if the $ 100 deposit I left last time would be refunded to me. The employee, Sam, was anything but helpful. Instead rushed me off the phone because he «was busy».
I returned the call less than 12hrs later. Hoping to get the help I had been looking for. Instead, I got Sam again & he pretended to be someone else as he likely pretended to help look for the deposit however said the deposit was not there and that I must’ve gotten it already. Informing him I did not because I hadn’t gone down there, which was the only way I was told I’d be able to get the deposit back.
Sam then yelled at me that I was harassing him and that he would call the police on me if I continued to call. This was truly sad and disheartening to me because, as a customer trying to ask questions so that I may get this deposit money back, left me w/​little options aside from contacting gov. agencies to file a formal complaint w/​him and w/​Torch Lite Inn.
I would never return here because the business and the ethics used reminds me of a saying «My way or the highway». As a customer never have I been confronted w/​such utter rude inconsideration and threats to call police where my polite and kind attitude was met & received in such a way. I was flabbergasted and shocked.
The management at torch lite inn aren’t professional and likely felt the deposit was good as theirs since it was initially left behind. I was lied to when I was assured by management that I would be able to return to get my money and then told I would have the police called on me if I continued to call or to return to the place in question.
I’ve since contacted BBB, filed a formal complaint w/​the Trade Commission as w/​for the State Consumer Protection Agency concerning the matter.
Lastly, I’ll note that anyone visiting this hotel should not use cash. Instead opt to pay everything solely by card transaction so that a record is kept to prevent having to acquire reimbursed cash funds for the deposit. Because you could possibly have your money stolen by someone here.

Made a reservation at 5:58 pm for the next day. Daughter fell sick. Cancelled reservation at 11:57 pm. Torch Lite refused to refund for the cancellation. There were other vacancies, so clearly my cancellation did not prevent them from making other business. Greed and poor customer service. I won’t be using them in the future.

Stayed one night after booking on
and check in was quick. From the outside, the place isn’t too appealing but inside was a lot better. They had a granite shower surround and looked like they updated the décor. The tv had Comcast cable, which was a nice amenity. The room also had a little refrigerator and microwave. There was a typical continental breakfast they served from 7−9am that had cereal, toast, English muffins, packaged pastries, juice, and coffee. Not bad for the price I had paid and with a close location to the beach and downtown area. Checking out was quick as well. I’m glad they don’t charge for parking as well.

We called to book a room for one night during the Clam Chowder Cook Off. When we arrived the manager put us in a room with one king bed, when we clarified and confirmed over the phone that we wanted two beds. My bf goes back down to fix the problem and the guy insists we have to pay ten dollars more, which makes no sense because we had already booked and paid for a double bed room. When my bf arrives back in the one bed room, the manager calls us on the phone and says if we use the room he would DOUBLE CHARGE us. How outrageous is this?! It was his fault that he put us in the wrong room and he threatens to charge us. We go back online to check prices of the rooms and the hotel is now «sold out». We obviously know it is not because there were rooms for them to move us around in. Did he really go and mark his hotel sold out so we can’t dispute the ten dollar charge?!
Overall, the manger/​owner (Sam) is money hungry and does not care about his guests. It is not our fault he did not confirm the room correctly when we clearly stated we wanted 2 beds. Then he has the nerve to charge us extra and threaten to double charge us for HIS mistake. Oh and I forgot to mention our circuit blew in the bathroom and we called it in. No one fixed it and we ended up getting ready and using the toilet in the dark.
We will never be coming back here. The rooms are decent though and the location is nice, but it is not worth dealing with people who do not know how to work in the hospitality industry.

Found this hotel on
for a decent price. We checked in around 8 p.m., the receptionist/​manager didn’t let us into the lobby. Gave us our room key. We unpacked and headed up to the room. It was a decent room, but there was a large 2 foot by 3 foot wet spot by the desk. I called the front office to let them know, he seemed unconcerned but did offer a new room. It wasn’t that big of a deal to us, we just didn’t want to be charged for damage. We should have taken the offer to move rooms…
We were on the second floor and our neighbor seemed to have a lot of sketchy guests. From the time we got to our room all the way until 2 a.m. we had his «guests» knocking on our door looking for Tony. I’m assuming Tony was a drug dealer because there was a lot of foot traffic in and out of his room. Around 2:30 am a group of women visited his room and decided to party. My fiancé and I didn’t sleep at all. I almost considered calling the police several times.
On top of that the ceiling had cobwebs and the blinds were dirty.
When we checked out, we told the manager about our awful experience, hoping he would offer a refund or discount. He seemed relatively unconcerned about our poor experience. I will be contacting
about this hotel.

We are a big fan of this super affordable place a few blocks from the boardwalk — had a solid complimentary continental breakfast.
This place is NO FRILLS ! The pool was very clean and the staff average friendly’ish.
Want better then go pay FOUR times the rate along the sea front for crappier rooms.
The room was very clean and the bed was firm and comfortable — like any inn or motel, there’s never enough towels. Bathroom was HUGE.

fair enough! We stayed on a Sunday, so I believe I paid a fair price for our hotel room.
First, this is not a hotel, this is not a fancy hotel, this is like a motel. Do not expect expensive products or amazingly soft towels.
About the room: The furniture was all new, the sheets could be thicker and one of them seemed to be stained, but they were clean. I saw the lady cleaning the room, but our bathroom had hair in the tub and the bathroom wall could use a deep cleaning.
My advice to the hotel, change the carpet for floors because the carpet is disgusting, it smells. At least wash them, not vacuum it, wash it! Our room smelled like smoke, really strong, it kind of went away a couple of hours later. It was nice to have fridge, coffee machine and microwave. Something else, please take the time to clean the hair dryer, it was full of lint.
About the hotel: It is in the main street, there will be noise and traffic, I like the location, close to the boardwalk and close to downtown. The pool was clean and warm enough to chill for a couple of hours. The reception girl was polite and she was nice enough to recommend a restaurant when I asked, she changed us from one room to another because the refrigerator in the first room was making a noise. The guy who checked us out did not even said good morning, people, service is the key. The wi-​fi did not work for us.
About the breakfast: Do not expect real food. We found coffee, milk, OJ, and english muffins. Nutella, PB and Jelly. It is enough to start the day. To the Hotel: You could have at least three kinds of bread, sandwich white, wheat and english muffins? Safeway sales the sandwich bread for 1 $. Also, I noticed there were yogurts but just a couple, and there were none by the time we thought about eating one. It would be nice to have instant oatmeal.

Service is terrible. Rooms stink. Dirty. Possible Bed Bugs! No breakfast as promised. Manager is very rude. Manager is lazy and didn’t care about anything. He was a total jerk. Avoid the Torch Lite Inn!

This place is a total dive and way over priced. We arrived around 5 pm on a Saturday. We had booked a room for two queens and they gave us a room with a King. They were fully booked so they gave us a crappie roll away and $ 20 back through Expedia. Broken window, dirty linens and no soap in the room. AC clanged all night. Very loud traffic noise and paper thin walls.
We changed rooms the next night and the room was filthy as was the first room. AC really loud again and the tub didn’t drain well. Breakfast is a joke. This place is on the main drag to the Boardwalk so traffic is a zoo. The manager illegally grilled my husband about his service dog and admitted he didn’t know anything about the federal ADA laws. We can recommend nothing about this place. Stay at a chain/​recognized name. Skip this dump.
Part 2: Found a charge on my credit card for $ 50 from this place 8 days after checking out. I called and talked to Sam. He claimed the charge was for smoking in the room. No one in our group smokes. There were cigarette butts in the planter on the balcony that house keeping failed to clean up but they were not from us. I spent 20 minutes cleaning the room with Clorox wipes the room was so filthy. There was trash on the floor house keeping missed that I also cleaned up. I asked Expedia to call and explained the problem with the reservation and wanted to find out about the $ 20 refund we were promised. They talked to Sam and he lied and said they offered to find us a room in a different hotel. That never happened! He suggested we check out but never offered to find us another place. While talking to Expedia he threatened to charge us additional fees for allegedly putting us in a higher level grade room. WTF? We were put in a room with 2 double beds as we should have been the first night. I will be filing a complaint with the County.

This is not a hotel star rating but an experience rating at a 3 star hotel.
Weekday late afternoon Check-​In was non-​social business, not hospitality, but not rude either.
Is less than a mile, a 10 minute walk to downtown Santa Cruz shops and Boardwalk is close also, but surrounding area sketchy, you interpret. Local beach rif raff outside the property in parking lot, digging in the trash but for the most part seemingly harmless. Guests were friendly and we’re mostly families or young international travelers, in my observation.
Rooms: Worn furnishings were clean, softish beds. Bathroom very clean. Overall inside room presentation deserves a well done to housekeeping.
The amenities: shampoo, soap shower cap, in room coffee, hair dryer, iron and board, WiFi, Cable TV. Most rooms face a pretty little blue pool area. And for upstairs there is a small bistro seating area.
Simple continental breakfast self service in a nice poolside room. Bring local fresh fruit if you like for breakfast because apparently sometimes they have, sometimes they don’t.

Let me start by saying if not for the staff Id give this place three stars. But a staff drives a business and creates experiences so you can’t operate in a vacuum. we paid $ 130 a night in May 2015 just so you know and booked through
The rooms are decent– clean and updated with a mini fridge and a bathtub. The cot we paid $ 25 for was better than I expected. The wifi was good and the parking situation looked just fine. The AC didnt really work. Could not find a Do Not Disturb sign for whatever reason.
The pool isnt heated but wasnt cold. We were playing frisbee and with a lil bouncy gel ball in the pool area laughing and having fun when the owner/​manager (a middle aged indian guy) came out and yelled at us about the «no ball» policy and threatened to call the police on us. Damn dude, calm down.
Overall it was decent and a good value but a lil customer service would go a lonnng way.

Glad I chose this place. Rooms are updated. The colors they used kinda reminds me of calmness. The bathroom was huge. Air conditioner worked great. Full cable and flat screen TV. Good size room. I have to say I was surprised and impressed with the continental breakfast that was included. I think its the best ive come across so far. They have an apple & Orange juice machine, milk, coffee… variety of yoplait yougurts… cereals. thomas brand english muffins and potatoe bread… bananas & mandarin oranges. oatmeal…danish pastries. They even had nutella… I was a happy camper.

This is the very first review I’ve ever been inclined to write. If I can save just one person from staying here, I’ve done my duty in life.
I brought my son on a spontaneous over-​night after finding out this joint has a «heated pool». We basically came to Santa Cruz for this reason. Anyhow, he dove into the pool, and he came up looking like he was electrocuted. This kid can swim in the ocean without batting an eyelash. So no swimming in the pool (that was covered in dead bugs and had trash around it anyway).
The room smelled horrible when we entered so we kept the door open for a couple of hours. I even went and bought a scented candle to help us out. Finally after takings a shower, I walked onto the carpet and it was very wet. The whole thing. That must be the smell. Asked to me moved to another room. Rolled eyes and sighs, she gave me another one to check out, but it also had wet carpet. So here I sit in this stinky room, not believing that this place is even worth the mere $ 60 I paid for it.
Don’t do it.

I needed a last minute 3 night reservation at an inexpensive hotel and found this location through Travelosity for $ 62/​night (Fri., Sat. & Sun). I booked it then jumped over to Unilocal to check out the reviews. Oh no, I thought after reading them.
But… Upon checkin I was pleasantly surprised.
The room was very clean, did not smell musty, had a refrigerator & microwave & lots of clean towels. Even the continental breakfast was surprising; a refrigerator full of yogurt, fresh fruit, English muffins, Danish, cereals, milk, juices, hot cocoa, & a coffee/​espresso machine.
I was expecting a crap hotel based on the many reviews but did not find it to be as stated.
If I were visiting Santa Cruz for pleasure I may choose a different hotel but this motel was clean (my big requirement) & I was safe.
It suited my needs just fine.

Aside from it being within walking distance to downtown area, and Boardwalk, there were not many good things about this hotel. –Very limited parking. Most customers had to park in the street.
–Rooms were musty and sheets smelled of urine.
–Short window for breakfast: 7−9am.
–Late check-​in
–Rude and unapologetic staff when we had a problem
I will take My business elsewhere and pay the extra bucks.