The Santa Cruz Youth Hostel, located just up the street from the famous Cowells surf spot and three blocks up from the boardwalk is the nicest hostel I have stayed at by far! Offering not only modern interiors and bathrooms but free access to beach yoga classes, concerts and many more Santa Cruz events. Santa Cruz or Surf City USA is right off of HW17 from San Jose southbound. A city sitting beneath HW 1 and being home to some of the most famous surfing in the world along with producing many pro surfers, Santa Cruz is the perfect town for an adventurous person (or more lol) wanting a weekend get away. As one of my most favorite beach towns, Santa Cruz is sure to impress especially with this wonderful maintained youth hostel.

The Hostel is composed of 7 quaint little cabins in a city park with its very own redwood and beautiful gardens making this place peaceful and blissful experience. They offer many amenities including a laundry, full kitchen, provided towels and sheets, surfboards to borrow, a grill and patio and much more. My favorite detail about this special place is the guitars and other instruments free to jam out with as a part of the appealing 50$ a night stay.

Another awesome feature to the Santa Cruz Youth Hostel is the beautiful gardens and singular Redwood maintained on the grounds. One of the workers is a master gardener and keeps up with all the magnificent landscaping.

The hostel at night illuminates with life and culture as people from all around the world share meals together and cook as a community, sharing stories of their travels, experiences, and plans. Many travelers shared they were traveling up or down the coast of California Booking hostels along the way and traveling by train. These travelers are among some of the nicest people I have met and don’t be surprised if a little chat outside becomes an hour long conversation sharing each others experiences.

The hostel also has surfboards to take out if your looking to dip your feet into the slightly chilly waters. I would recommend Cowells beach for any beginner as the small waves roll in consistently, small enough to not be intimidated yet still very surfable. This beach is totally walkable even carrying a board from the hostel and when your done there are some great coffee shops nearby to kickstart your exploration of the area. Below is my personal surfing favorite for surfing, 38th ave, the Hook, or Jacks, all near the famous Pleasure Point.

When getting out to explore the town, I highly recommend checking out the Capitola village during the day, and Santa Cruz downtown at night. Capitola is slightly south on HW 1 has a small downtown area called the village where weeknight concerts are held right near the water during the summer. Another concert is also held on weeknights a couple miles north at the Crows Nest/ the Harbor.