Seaway Inn

Friendly and helpful staff. Cute room. Excellent location. All in all, a good value. It is In the right place for a walk to the boardwalk or a walk along the promenade to watch the surfers. Friendly and helpful staff. Cute room. Excellent location. All in all, a good value. It is In the right place for a walk to the boardwalk or a walk along the promenade to watch the surfers.

Our family stayed here over Fourth of July weekend and this was a great central spot to explore Santa Cruz. It is near the Boardwalk, but away from the more rundown hotels and areas. Seaway Inn is right across the street from The Dream Inn, and we stayed in the ocean view family room which had nice open windows with a birds-eye view of the Boardwalk, beach and Santa Cruz Pier. The hotel stay was very pleasant and having free parking while staying in the Santa Cruz area is quite appreciated. It costs quite a bit of money to park anywhere near the Boardwalk. The hotel is a short 5-8 minute walk to the Boardwalk. Our family of 5 slept comfortably here with two Queen beds and a sofa/pull out futon for my 8-year-old son. Check in was easy, the reception employees were both extremely polite and welcoming. If there is not parking in the hotels front lot, they allow guests to park in the back lot shared with other hotels. We never had to park far while staying. Only reason, I didn’t give 5 stars is that the bathroom could use some updates or extra cleaning, but overall it was not of huge importance to us. The location, proximity to Boardwalk and pier, view from the room, free parking and friendly staff make this place a big win if staying in the Santa Cruz area!

Seaway Inn chooses 'business' over customer service. In a blatant and egregious exchange with the manager Inez, this is my experience: My mom called to cancel 3 hours past the '72 hour' cancellation deadline. She was told by the front office clerk that she would check with the manager about not charging her the 1st night fee. Clerk called back several minutes later and said my mom would NOT be charged. I was on speaker phone and heard this live. The next day, the Seaway manager, INEZ, called my mom to tell her she would be charged. My mom told her what the clerk had said and Inez said there was no record of that conversation - so it didn't happen and my mom was LYING. My mom was charged. I live in Santa Cruz and went to the Seaway in person to talk to Inez. The first time I went, the clerk said she wasn't there and I left my number for her to call me. She NEVER called me. I went in person again and Inez was at the front desk. I sat down and recounted the exchange between my mom and the clerk and asked that my mom be refunded. Inez said no - SEAWAY is a BUSINESS and they have a right to charge for cancellations. This is true, however, hotels survive on CUSTOMER SERVICE and reviews. Inez had the authority to issue a refund, SHE CHOSE NOT TO. She chose a short term gain of $250 rather than a REPEAT CUSTOMER that would have spent $1000 EVERY TIME my mom comes to visit me. THIS IS SHORTSIGHTED and when I pointed this out to Inez the conversation got heated. INEZ repeated countless times that Seaway is a business. I said the result of running a HOSPITALITY business in that way is TERRIBLE customer service which will be reflected in online reviews. ADDITIONALLY, this review is based on MORE THAN ONE experience at the Seaway. I have stayed at the Seaway before. The rooms are tiny, the bathroom door did not close all the way, and the sink was very scratched up and clogged and overflowed onto the bathroom floor in the middle of the night. I guess they need every $250 they can get.