Unbound Collection Santa Barbara (MarMonte) REVIEW - MASTER THREAD
#121
Join Date: Mar 2015
Programs: AA Gold, Hilton Diamond, Hyatt Explorist, Marriott Gold
Posts: 161
The hotel was recently sold for $90 million and will undergo a $6 million renovation in summer 2019.
https://www.connect.media/chesapeake-lodging-trust-sells-hyatt-centric-santa-barbara-for-90m/
https://www.connect.media/chesapeake-lodging-trust-sells-hyatt-centric-santa-barbara-for-90m/
#122
Join Date: Nov 2016
Location: Austin, TX
Programs: Delta DM, HHonors Diamond, Marriott Rewards Platinum Elite, Hyatt Globalist
Posts: 1,046
The hotel was recently sold for $90 million and will undergo a $6 million renovation in summer 2019.
https://www.connect.media/chesapeake...rbara-for-90m/
https://www.connect.media/chesapeake...rbara-for-90m/
Last edited by bcosinteno; Oct 16, 2019 at 11:45 am
#125
Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: Washington DC
Programs: BA GLD, AA GLD 1MM, Hyatt Glob, Marriott LT Titanium
Posts: 1,698
Just completed a three night stay here after Christmas. Rates were high and I redeemed points for the stay. I previously visited the hotel in 2015 and found Santa Barbara stunning so wanted to return. A few notes:
- What I recall from my last stay as the main building of the hotel is completely closed for renovation right now (that is, the eastern-most building). Most of the hotel's facilities (e.g. pool, restaurants, etc.) are also closed.
- A temporary lobby is setup in the western-most building. I don't think the lobby has any heat and it was really really cold at most times, I felt awful for the reception staff - who were standing around in winter clothes, scarfs, and hats. If I had to guess it was probably 45-50 degrees in the "lobby" once the sun went down. It was somewhat warmer during the day. The temporary lobby doesn't have any facilities to speak of but there is coffee available in the morning.
- Breakfast is being served in a conference room that, as far as I could tell, also did not have heat. They had one space heater which was completely laughable given the size of the room. My wife ate breakfast each morning fully bundled up in her winter coat, I think my son even kept his winter hat on during breakfast (we were lucky to have traveled here from the northeast so had all of our winter gear with us).
- As far as food - the first day we had the huevos rancheros which I thought were really good. Subsequent days I had the eggs benedict and the avocado toast with poached eggs, both of which were alright. The eggs had been poached really really hard, I'm not sure what type of kitchen setup they have so they may have been pre-poached elsewhere. Given the current situation I wouldn't expect a great breakfast. I remember the breakfast from my last stay being much better, although that was five years ago.
- We were upgraded to a "deluxe" King Room which had a small balcony and overlooked the parking lot. You may be noticing a theme by now, but the room itself also did not have proper heat. The wall-mounted air conditioner could be set to "heat" but I only found that useful if you stood directly in front of it. The hotel had provided a rollaway for our son but he was so cold overnight he had to sleep in between us in bed, which was alright but does illustrate how cold it was. With that said, I am a little more warm-blooded and I slept great in the cold
- With the parking lot view that we had, you can clearly hear the train when it blows its horn. The first night this woke me up twice, however I never heard it after that. I may have been cold enough that I entered into a hibernation.
- The hotel is hosting a free yoga class on Saturday mornings on the lawn in front of the hotel, which my wife enjoyed
- It's wonderful to be able to walk right across the street to the beach and my son had a blast playing on it
- I loved the walk from the hotel into "town" along the water, but it could get old depending on how much you like to walk. We took Amtrak into and out of SBA and that worked well, it's probably a 25 minute walk to the train station and downtown
- One day we went to Carpinteria, just a few miles east of Santa Barbara. We both LOVED it there and agreed if we win the lottery, that is where we will move. I highly recommend a visit
- My wife and I aren't wine drinkers but we love beer, and especially enjoyed Third Window Brewing and Institution Ale Company, and in Carpinteria Island Brewing Company
- I walked up to Habit Burger the night we arrived for a snack and really enjoyed the burger, then it seemed everywhere I went in Santa Barbara people were talking about Habit Burger. It's along similar lines as In-N-Out with a more extensive menu, I recommend it for a casual meal.
- Regarding the Zoo, we took our son there and it's certainly pretty, he also enjoyed the Zoo Train. It feels more like a botanic garden that has some zoo elements. I found the California Condor to be one of the more interesting animals on display, I had no idea their wingspan was so massive. In general it doesn't compare to something like the National Zoo but it is a pretty spot to walk around for awhile.
Last edited by River in Sight; Jan 2, 2020 at 9:39 pm
#126
Join Date: Sep 2016
Location: San Francisco, CA
Programs: Flying Blue Platinum, JetBlue Mosaic, Hyatt Globalist, Alaska MVP Gold.
Posts: 1,962
This place is, as River in Sight says kindly in his review before mine, a hard avoid. I'd go as far as to call it one of the worst Hyatts I have stayed in as it stands. What a mess.
#127
Join Date: Oct 2006
Programs: UA: 1K, Hyatt: Diamond
Posts: 65
Recent Fire Damage
Crews Extinguish Fire at Hyatt Hotel on Santa Barbara Waterfront
Would imagine this might delay completion of the renovation.
Would imagine this might delay completion of the renovation.
#128
Join Date: Jan 2015
Programs: Hyatt Diamond; HHonors Dia; Langham Voyager; Marriot & SPG Gold; UA Gold; AA Plat
Posts: 54
Crews Extinguish Fire at Hyatt Hotel on Santa Barbara Waterfront
Would imagine this might delay completion of the renovation.
Would imagine this might delay completion of the renovation.
...but at least it was warm for awhile ;-)
#129
Join Date: Mar 2018
Location: EDI/GLA
Programs: DL 2 MM Unobtainum | UA 1.1MM Gold | MR Bonvoy Titanium
Posts: 2,269
Crews Extinguish Fire at Hyatt Hotel on Santa Barbara Waterfront
Would imagine this might delay completion of the renovation.
Would imagine this might delay completion of the renovation.
It looks much nicer now.
#130
Join Date: Mar 2019
Programs: Alaska MVP Gold, Marriott Titanium Elite, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 31
Mar Monte
This property will officially reopen as Mar Monte Hotel (Unbound) on June 30th. I used 2 free night certs to book a stay for late July and will report back on the property. Curious to see if it remains category 4.
#131
Join Date: Sep 2019
Location: Los Angeles
Programs: Hyatt Globalist, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 4,860
This is considering I had stayed there a week before the fire they recently had. Now if they are or have improved quality significantly it’s possible. But I honestly doubt them being valued at over a Category 4 just comparing them to other beachfront properties like MGH, The Confidante, HR Mission Bay. Especially since Santa Barbara has lost a lot of its luster in recent years. Many stores on state st. have shuttered permanently even pre-COVID. Not to mention a major tourist draw, the fireworks show has been canceled. If I were the property owner I’d definitely want more people to come rather than less. Category 1-4 Certs draw in business, especially with the new Pay My Way feature it makes it much easier to use one then pay cash rates for remaining nights. Most people that do stay end up there for 2 nights minimum, usually on the weekends.
#132
Join Date: Dec 2005
Location: Los Angeles
Programs: WN CP & A-List, National ES
Posts: 164
I’m considering a stay here for the weekend. I just spoke with the front desk. Construction is still going on through August. Pool is open. Guests are only being put in renovated rooms. Construction is Monday through Friday. Not sure if I will go for it or not. My wife had a nice stay at the Hyatt place a few weeks ago but I was hoping for some pool time.
#134
Join Date: Dec 2005
Location: Los Angeles
Programs: WN CP & A-List, National ES
Posts: 164
@kpott - how was your stay? Debating between a night there or the Hyatt Place (Santa Barbara) this coming week on route up to Big Sur...
Thanks!
Thanks!
#135
Join Date: Jul 2004
Posts: 392
Thanks @kpott - I ended up reserving Hyatt Place since it's just a quick overnight anyway and will report back on that. It will be nice to see the Hyatt Centric though once it's fully open and renovated! Reading a few Google reviews from the past week or two it doesn't seem like a great experience yet to stay there... hoping for some updated reviews in here too!