The Goodland, a Kimpton Hotel

Something special happens when all of your expectations are completely exceeded. I’m not sure of where I should begin. It was late on a Friday night, and my boyfriend and I were checking in to the hotel. We were greeted by an extremely welcoming concierge, and the cutest little dog. The hotel actually allowed the concierge to bring his dog to work. While checking in, he notified us, that the bar was still open. So we went to our room, dropped our bags off and came to the bar. The bar was such a lively experience. There were a lot of friendly people, great music, and even better bartenders.
From here, our concierge advised us that there was an outdoor fire pit, and jokingly, I asked if they had s’mores. The concierge then excitedly told us that if we went to the fire pit, he would bring us all the supplies. So we went, and we made some new friends and invited them to our little s’mores party!
As the night died down, we went back to our room, and had a real chance to see our room. Each room is complete with such special details. Whoever did the interior design of this place did such a great job. The room comes complete with a unique design, colorful textiles, great art, and a vintage looking record player. Your rooms comes with records, but there are more available at the front desk.
The next morning we had breakfast at the hotel restaurant, and it could not have been more special. The restaurant had a beautiful outdoor seating area. Since we were outside, the weather was perfect. Not only was the atmosphere great, but the staff was extremely helpful and kind. We were able to engage in conversation with any member of the staff. They have done an excellent job of hiring great people.
After some breakfast, we decided that a quick dip in the pool was just what we needed. The pool was extremely clean. There were plenty of pool-​side loungers and towels. Plus, the temperature of the water was perfect!
Overall, if you have the chance, definitely stay at this hotel. They have done such a great job of making you feel special!

Cool place. Not the upscale resort of your dreams but worth a try. Very dog friendly. Good beer selection. Good food in the evening.

The rooms are not well insulated. The windows are single pane. Neighbors were noisy. The room smelled musty. The rooms lacked coffee maker and yet it was listed as an amenity. The staff were not helpful. Much more interested in socializing with each other. Line to check in was long as the second person left after helping someone. The line to check out was long. Only one person on duty. Also, there are additional resort fees on top of your room rates. So not worth it!
We tried the restaurant as well. Food was okay. Service was lacking. Had to keep waving someone down to get refills on coffee and water.

We had a free night from Kimpton Rewards to spend so why not take a mid-​road trip rest just to check out a new location for ourselves?! Caveat: this review might be a touch over influenced by a personal affinity for Country Squires (decorated in Christmas lights and parked in front of the hotel).
We only spent one night here as we passed on through from the bay area to LA over the winter holidays but we’re convinced we’ll be back sooner rather than later. The pool was enticing and while some might find the «motel-​esque» layout a turnoff, I thought it was rather appealing. The in-​room turntable and two record options was a nice touch and the winter season notes all around the hotel were much appreciated — tree decorations, a warm fireplace, sexy fire pit, private spots all over the pool area and restaurant to have a chat over a drink. The bed was a bit firm for me but still comfortable, sprawling, and cozy. Our bathroom was massive — I like a big walk-​in shower.
We had a few drinks and a light meal at the restaurant and although it didn’t stand out as exceptional it was all above average and the atmosphere fun and cozy.
Most annoying bit: linens and other supplies piled up in the middle of the stairwells and one outdoor hallway. This is a nice place! Why would you leave dirty laundry sitting around? And what happened to premium toiletries? I miss the Aveda days. And the carpet. I’m sure they know that the carpet needs to be replaced… right?

I definitely echo other peoples sentiments that this does not hold up anywhere near the Kimpton hotel standard. It’s pretty obvious that they had purchased what I was told used to be a Holiday Inn and tried to re-​vamp it to be more hipster and cool — the area around the hotel (honestly it’s not even really a hotel, it’s like an «upscale motel») is surrounded by other cheap hotels (think motel 6, comfort inn, etc.) and gas stations. They offer free bikes to bike around but there’s not really anything to bike around to. Also because of the setup of the building there’s very little privacy, thin walls, small rooms. I think they try and make it conducive to a social hang type environment which is fine if that’s what you’re into (my boyfriend is) but I usually prefer a quiet room that lets me escape when I’m not wanting to mingle.
I had exactly the same experience as the reviewer Liz below — we came to check in to our room at 5:30 pm on Sunday and was told that our room would not be ready for about another hour. what??? ultimately they were able to get us in within 10 minutes, but it’s pretty ridiculous that showing up that late we had to wait for our room. We got 2 drink tickets as an apology. Same with the pool experience — it was OK, but they slacked on keeping clean towels stocked and picking up random ones left by previous visitors.
Stains on the carpet in our room. Kinda gross.
Bed was super comfy and I probably could have slept all day in it.
I don’t think I saw a cleaning or maintenance cart once while we were staying there.
Even though it was a holiday weekend, both bars/​restaurants are closed all day and open again at 4pm. Kind of annoying and inconvenient when you wake up at 10am and want breakfast but have to go off site to get something.
They offer some great Atelier Bloem products in the bathroom with a sign that you can purchase them at the front desk, yet they don’t have any of these products available. Was pretty bummed as I was prepared to actually pay $ 45 for the lotion only to find out they had none.
My optimistic boyfriend kinda dug the place and said he would stay there again. I would prefer to pay a couple hundred dollars extra and stay at a real hotel. Kimpton is great but this place is very sub-​par for their brand.

We had a blast in this beautiful retro hippy hotel. Upgrades are amazing. Very chic and expensive looking. Dog friendly. Room was clean. Had trouble with check in, room was available about 1.5 hours after check in time, but we were compensated. Bartender was super awesome and friendly and told us about the history of the place. Would def stay here again. I heard it gets crazy in summer so I can’t wait to come back.

Decided on this hotel for a Valentine’s Day weekend getaway and am feeling pretty upset with the way things turned out.
Showed up at 3:30 to check in, didn’t make it into the room until 4:45 or so when it was finished being cleaned (check out is at noon — it took 4 hours and 45 minutes?).
Immediately upon entering the room the overwhelming smell of urine overcame me. The listing for the room I reserved stated ‘hardwood/​parquet floors’ and the room we ended up with had carpet, albeit stained carpet. I have sensitivity to pet dander and felt it would be ok with wood floors, but no! We spoke with the desk who informed us they would send housekeeping and do a more thorough cleaning and give us a reduced rate on the room, since they couldn’t move us. Housekeeping never came, so we went to CVS and bought Febreze candles and some antihistamine eye drops. We never got our nightly rate reduced upon checkout, but they were *kind enough* to give us two free cocktail vouchers for their bar.
Now I’m $ 300 poorer with red nose and eyes, and I spent Valentine’s evening in a room that smelled like dog pee.
Also — there were never any fresh clean towels at the pool, and the dirty ones left behind on chaises went uncollected for hours. Not awesome. Where’s the hospitality, Kimpton?

This hotel used be a beaten down holiday in. Driving up to it was not anything eye catching but was pretty clean and neat. There was not a valet or a bellman to great us. We walked in and the décor was very fun, kind of hippy with a Palm Springs twist. The room was remodeled and nice however some aspects of it were not to my tasting, like the old carpet, a motel smell and a shower without glass door. Overall the service was great and the bar and restaurant were very pretty.

Nice spot. Good price. Very loud though. Could’ve been a special occasion going in there who knows but not a good nights sleep. Other than the loud night it’s a great spot. Really cool. Would stay again.

The reviews on the carpets are all very true. If you are lucky to get the tiled floor then awesome. The shower drained so slowly my husband was afraid it would overflow. The service for the hotel is mediocre at best. A lot of the workers sound completely unintelligent with their use of the word, «like.»
We had breakfast at the restaurant where the food was also mediocre. The waitress was slow and completely unintelligent in every way. She even spilled coffee on my husband and giggled like a five year old afterwards.
It’s a «hippy,» type hotel by décor. However, the slap dash craftsmanship is terrible throughout the place. Next time instead of trying the «new» place I am going to spend the $ 600/​night at the Bacara Resort.

Amazing dog-​friendly hotel! We stayed here New Year’s Eve and there was a slight snafu with our dinner reservations at the restaurant, The Outpost. The front desk manager, Mindy, worked hard with Joe, the restaurant manager, to fix the problem and get us seated somehow. Mindy kept close contact with me throughout the afternoon to ensure we were taken care of and Joe came by to check on us during dinner. There was a bottle of champagne and a handwritten note left in our room to help ring in the New Year too (all the guests checking in that day received it, I think). Wonderful, friendly staff! Fun design! Highly recommended!

We requested a rollaway bed with our reservations months ago– yet when we arrived the did not have one ready. They said they would have one sent to the room right away. 1.5 hours later after checking on the status they said they had found a rollaway bed… but no sheets or blankets. I confirmed the reservation would have a rollaway bed. With three people for the room, this has been very convenient. There is a note in the room saying they will make sure you have what you need «or we will go and get it for you.» I was very frustrated with the lack of service on this issue from a kimpton level hotel.
You have to pay for wifi.
Front desk was exceptionally unhelpful.
Heating broken– very frustrating during El Niño winter.
We were told reservations were full from front desk… Restaurant later told us this was not true (after a lengthy search and drive to an alternate destination).
Location very removed from Santa Barbara, although the website makes them seem quite close.
Bikes were all out during all the times we attempted to check them out.
Overall– décor is great, kitchy and fun… But service is what really makes the difference between good and great. And here the service was really lacking.

I’ve been here twice and aspire to be a regular. Its 50s cool mid century modern motel vibe permeates the air, with many Instagram worthy spots throughout, filter optional. It’s not in Santa Barbara but in the adjacent town of goleta– about a $ 17 – 20 uberx ride north of downtown sb. The room prices tend to account for this, since on average it’s about 100 cheaper than the equivalent room closer to town. They are very dog friendly and don’t charge a pet fee. Resort fee of $ 25 a day covers the free daily wine hour, poolside yoga, work out room and poolside dj.

The vibe in this hotel is super cool… coastal beach chic. I loved our stay here. We had a lower level room which had a huge window that faced the parking area which probably contributed to some noise we heard; people coming in and out and cars leaving. Other than that we had a great stay. We will be back to bring the pups. They would enjoy sitting by the fireplace in the lobby as we enjoy some wine time. They had red and white sponsored wine and brought out some blistered shishito peppers with bonito flakes on top. Delish!

Really enjoyed our stay here, in fact décor wise it has to be my favorite hotel i have stayed at to date!
While not a major 5 star luxury resort, I like the old motel set up for more privacy and easy parking right by your room.
While outside of Santa Barbara you can get to town in less than 10 minutes and get much more for your money here, I did not find anything under $ 200 in SB, so this fit the bill just right for Thanksgiving.
Service was exceptional, we were offered an upgrade to a pool facing room.
Large clean rooms, again love the décor and thought they put into everything.
Loved the pool, firepits, lounge, pretty much everything here!
Not one bad things to say, I recommend this place highly while visiting Santa Barbara!

I echo two major themes people have mentioned for nearly a year now:
1) This is a cool hotel… but it still has a way to go to be on par with the Kimpton brand.
2) The floors are still stained.
I realized check in time was cutting it close to an event I had to be at so I called the day before and asked for early check in. Was told to call in the morning. I called in the morning and a dude who COULD NOT CARE LESS IF HE TRIED rattled off that I could show up and try for an early check in OR I could call back and press the number for the front desk. «Can’t you transfer me?» «No». He was terrible. He made this big deal about how packed they were the night before. However, our friends we were traveling with had arrived a day ahead of us and mentioned it was not remotely full. Not cool.
Luckily, we arrived and were able to get a room. And yes, like many others, we walked into a really cool room with REALLY stained carpets. I honestly don’t know understand how a Kimpton branded hotel is letting that go for so long.
Our room was missing the record player but they brought one right to us. The record selection was very *meh*. Hit up some thrift stores, guys, and get more/​better records!
That’s pretty much the worst of it. The staff was, otherwise, incredibly nice and helpful. The «resort fee» feels a little scammy BUT there is a pool table room, fire pits, the pool area is awesome, they provide a LOT more «oh crap I forgot something» items than normal… so I guess I kind of see what they are charging for. But I feel like they just should add it on to the room fee and be upfront about it.
Oh, one more bad… the fitness room was not good. Two treadmills and an elliptical and some hand weights. Boo. That was the worst part for me… there is room for more machines. I wish the fitness space was better.
The pool was where it’s at. It felt like someplace Don Draper would take Meghan for a California vacation. We got to spend some time at the pool and it was great. Weird side note: there was a DJ at the pool in the afternoon. I love music, but I don’t think my friends who had pool front rooms were able to nap much.
Outside the pool are a couple of firepits with seats around them. It was really really nice.
We got a good «winter rate» and I would DEFINITELY stay again in the winter. Santa Barbara winters are notoriously sunny so I would imagine it’s better to stay here in the off season than pay out the butt in the high season. I think I’d feel less positively about the Goodland if I’d paid more.
One thing: a drunk couple came back from their event and argued LOUDLY and DRUNKENLY right outside my room for over and hour, occasionally stomping up to their room above me only to fight about who was leaving and return to the front of my room. They were drunk and the argument was pretty nasty, so I didn’t feel like interrupting… plus I’m nosey and it was certainly interesting! But I did find it odd that for over an hour, well past 1am, they screamed and stomped and slammed doors… and not one staff member approached them. The Goodland has a late check out, so I knew I could recoup my sleep but still… maybe they need some security or something?
(And if the drunk couple ever happens to read this… girl, you can do better. Those names your man was calling you were way over the line and being drunk is no excuse. I hope you straighten that out and he gets his sh*t together or you can happily move on!)

Love, love, love this hotel! The only thing that sucks about it is that The Goodland is not located on the beach, but if you are just coming here for work or something corporate and you want to stay in a unique, upscale environment… This is your spot!
The Goodland is so adorable. There is attention to detail in every nook and cranny here. My hotel room had a record player in it with real records (and they all worked!). The Goodland is a great mixture of hipster meets classy. It’s edgy enough to be über stylish, yet refined enough to attract a higher caliber clientele. I felt like I was staying in a hotel ripped straight out of an Anthropologie clothing magazine. :)
The beds were super cozy and I had plenty of room to relax in my unit. It was not cramped, and it was extremely clean. The housekeepers also left me cute notes every morning telling me to have a great day. I thought that was such a sweet extra touch.
Outpost at the Goodland is the on-​site restaurant, and everything I’ve had from there is delicious. The fried chicken sandwich is ON POINT! And the fresh guacamole is mouth-​watering.
Overall, I had a great time at this hotel! I’ve stayed at so many hotels in Santa Barbara (Bacara, Hyatt, Indigo, & Fess Parker to name a few) and the Goodland ranks right up there with my top choices of the area.

The family really liked this Kimpton. While some people are expecting an ultra lux Kimpton in a beach town. The Goodland delivers a great experience at a fair price. They have converted an old motor lodge into a nice retreat right in Goleta.
Throughout the property, they saved things like the old tile in the lobby and then added a beachy Kimpton feel.
The rooms are spacious enough and the beds are very comfortable. The floors are wood which adds to the clean feeling of the property.
If you have a pool facing 1^st floor room, the outdoor semi private patio adds to the living space making it that much bigger.
One signature of all Kimptons is the restaurant, here it is known as the outpost. Our family dinner, while good was a bit overpriced. Also no full breakfast, while for a beach trip it is fine, but if I am on business travel, I would really miss my Kimpton breakfast.
Last suggestion, install a 30amp EV charger. Or better yet a Tesla station. It would really help with the green cred and would draw in additional EV drivers.

Hubby and I had a staycation at The Goodland in Goleta and it was just the little getaway that we needed. This is a quaint property with a gorgeous surf and rustic aesthetic. Compared to other Kimpton properties, some may feel that the rooms are not up to par with the brand but I’d have to disagree. For the price point, the Goodland hits the mark. It does not pretend to be it’s fancier sister property, The Canary, and it does not need to be in order for guests to have a great experience. The rooms were clean, well-​designed and the bed was very, very comfortable. Our room was on the lower floor facing the pool with a perfect patio appointed with two cozy chairs. We enjoyed our Inner Circle welcome amenity on the patio as we took in the warm breeze; thoroughly relaxing.
The next morning I enjoyed a complimentary yoga class out by the pool. Breakfast at the Outpost was yummy! Try the breakfast sandwich or the grain risotto for a healthy dish. Dinner was just okay. The only thing really memorable about it were the Korean Pork Buns, delicious!
We absolutely loved the bar! Both of the them! Play pool (Goodland you need new pool sticks), lounge in comfy seating areas with friends or sit in the outdoor area looking at the pool. The wine hour included a tasty cocktail, which was a nice treat.
Yes, the walls of the rooms are a little thin. We could hear our neighbor cough, laugh and/​or listen to music. Aside from that there isn’t really anything constructive that I can think of based on our experience. I would definitely return for another staycation or recommend this to folks that want to save a little money or be away from the hub bub of SB.

I can’t really complain all too much about my stay at the Goodland because I had a pretty awesome experience staying here yesterday. While I experienced some slight kinks, which is normal for any new hotel, all the other great positive aspects of this hotel made my experience a great one.
I would describe the Goodland Hotel as a renovated strip motel updated with all the proper furnishings and amenities you’d expect of a Kimpton hotel. From afar the building itself reminds you of a bMotel 6 with two floors of rooms arranged in a circular building fashion, surrounding a large pool below, and with the hum, crackles, and hums of the in-​room, facing-​outward air conditioning units. As I have always learned… never judge a book by its cover, otherwise you’ll miss the good «stuff» inside. Read on…
First off I must comment that the staff who work here are super friendly, energetic, and young… Maybe it’s the Southern California weather or something. But whatever the case may be, I did value the positive, vibrant attitude exemplified by their employees. In particular, one helpful staff member, Mindy, who was very sweet, cheerful, and helpful.
I stayed in a one king bedroom on the second floor overlooking the view. When I first checked in, I thought… Oh great it’s probably going to be super noisy with all the kids in the pool. Well, as all people know… kids have to go to sleep, so having a pool view room is actually relatively quiet at night. The room was very spacious and was well appointed with furniture that gave off a retro California beach (motel) feel — such as the record disk player, which I used during my stay. In addition, the bathroom was pretty spacious and was accompanied by the herbaceous-​smelling (they’ve grown on me) Bigelow toiletries. All in all, pretty luxurious accommodations in what might look like a cheap motel. But looks can be deceiving.
One of my minor complaints about my room was that the walls were kind of thin, and I could hear next door conversations if people were talking loudly. In particular, adjacent rooms can be connected through a connecting-​door. The one room I was staying in seemed to have flimsy hinges, so any time the adjacent room would close or open their front room door (causing their room to shake), it would cause the connecting door in my room to shake too. My solution to this was to place something heavy against the connecting door so it wouldn’t shake or rattle. Minor complaint… Everything else was good.
I also wanted to add that the Goodland was the first Kimpton in which I used their swimming pool facilities. The pool is nice and is heated, however it may not be warm enough for a swim on a cold evening. I checked out the gym facilities, which were pretty typical – cardio machines with some weights and a large room for possible yoga or stretching.
My one night stay here was good enough to get a glimpse of what the hotel offers. Since I’ve known the Kimpton to be a solid hotel brand, I always have high expectations for any Kimpton I visit (new or old). Needless to say, my expectations were met!
Thank for showing me a good time, Goodland. Hopefully you guys can fix some of those connecting door hinges!