Santa Barbara, CA hotels

BRISAS DEL MAR, INN AT THE BEACH
223 Castillo St., 93101; (800) 468-1988 or (805) 966-2219; www.brisasdelmarinn.com


This hotel has probably never looked better. In a 2003 renovation of this 1958 complex (formerly the Tropicana Inn & Suites), the owners gave the place a pleasant "modmed" feel -- sleekly modern, yet Mediterranean enough to sport the requisite Santa Barbara red-tile roofing and Spanish colonial flourishes.