The Ritz-Carlton Bacara, Santa Barbara

"This is why I am giving a one star Hello, I don’t usually write reviews and I’m not usually a complainer but I really feel like I must. We stayed here for our anniversary this weekend, we have in the past with the experience being exceptional. This time however not so great. The first night I asked for a fan that stopped working in the middle of the night and we where just too tired to call and wait for another, second night the alarm clock and Bluetooth wasn’t working and we asked for another and that Bluetooth too did not work, we decided not to call about it again. Angel oak meal where fabulous to say the least. But on our last breakfast there I had a glass cup with water and I did not notice the glass was broken at the edge and in fact cut/scrapped my upper lip. I don’t like to complain or make fuss as I don’t like the attention. At the end of our meal I quietly gave the cup to a waitress and showed her the cup and asked her to keep people safe and throw it out, I was told that same morning another customer had a coffee cup with a similar situation. Just would like to let you know so going forward no one else gets hurt. We spent a really good amount so yes we did expect more. It’s been a week and my lip is finally back to normal"

"The hotel is billed as a 5 star resort so I was excited to experience it. The setting is beautiful, although very remote. We stayed four nights which was too long to be in just one place. I would have liked to be closer to Santa Barbara proper to go to museums, shopping and restaurants. The room was quaint but needs refurbishing, not a 5 star room. Staff was friendly but again didn’t give 5 star service, especially housekeeping who did not go out of their way at all. It would be fun for a special one or two night stay if you paid extra for a fancy room. Otherwise, stay in town for a more fun vacation."

"The property itself is pretty nice, more of a Spanish villa vibe on the outside, and inside just a splash of modernness. Valet was the only option for parking, and as you get out they definitely do take the time to greet you. The check in process I won’t rate since there was a large quantity of guests checking in due to several events but it was a bit on the slower side. I would say that the staff in general, actually make a difference in the vibe of making it feel luxury. The greetings, and smiles are genuine, and the attentiveness was better than most higher end hotels we’ve experience. The food in general from room service to the restaurants were a bit underwhelming when you contrast the amazing service you receive. Room service had burgers - was a little dry and under seasoned. The Restauraunt at the top of the hill undercooked my steak twice. The saving grace here was that they actually recognized the mistake and I didn’t have to say anything, and made it right for us. Everything else though was great, they left little notes in our room, went the extra mile and made it feel like unique experience. If the food was a little more up to par this would be an amazing experience. They have a golf course on site, spa (smaller), walking/hiking activities, beach access and tennis."

"The Bacara Ritz Carlton is a great escape from the city. We love that it is doodle-friendly and has beautiful grounds and comfortable spacious hotel rooms. There is so much to explore and activities on property and locally. It takes days to see it all. We love to visit wine country during our stay. Plus, the hotel offers complimentary wine tastings via the concierge. Angel Oak is a wonderful fine dining restaurant. We are grateful they are dog-friendly. The manager is exceptional and ensured our experience was fantastic. The Brunch during holidays is Amazing!!! The spa looks amazing! We are returning in March and I plan to enjoy a service in The Spa."

"Let me start by saying this is a beautiful hotel. The staff is very friendly as well. The rooms are kind of on hills and if you're not in a decent shape could be a little struggle for some people. Golf cart service they offer all the time is extremely convenient. Their weight room is very nice as well and has all the equipment that any advanced person would use. The fireplace in the room and outside of the room is also very nice. However, there are a few problems. One is that they should warn you that when you walk out to the balcony there are these invisible thorns that poke like a cactus and you can barely see them inside your skin and they really hurt. In had several in my feet and several in my legs from the cushions that went through my shorts. The more important complaint is that there was a mouse in my room that I discovered at 2am because I heard something ruffling through boxes and I couldn't sleep for 3 hours. A maintenance guy came the next day and left a glue board in the room but left all the trash from the glue board around the bed. I slept quietly the next night but was sure to find the dead mouse under my bed. I informed them of this but as of yet they have not come and removed the mouse which is kind of a buzz kill for our room. Not once as a manager or anyone from the hotel called us to apologize for the situation, let us know if we want to switch rooms or any other considerate gesture. This made the trip a little sad for my wife and I that hadn't taken a vacation for quite a while."