Agave Inn

Santa Barbara


While it’s still just a motel at heart, this property’s ‘Mexican pop meets modern’ motif livens things up with a color palette from a Frida Kahlo painting. Flat-screen TVs, microwaves, mini-fridges and air-conditioning add a welcome level of comfort. Family-sized rooms have a kitchenette and pullout sofa beds. Light breakfast included.

It's a little north of town so a car is a necessity, or good walking shoes.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Santa Barbara attractions

1. Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History

1.09 MILES

The huge whale skeleton by the entrance whets the appetite for the city's natural history museum. The usual dioramas of stuffed animals are on display in…

2. Old Mission Santa Barbara

1.14 MILES

California's ‘Queen of the Missions’ reigns above the city on a hilltop perch more than a mile north of downtown. Its imposing Ionic facade, an…

3. Santa Barbara Botanic Garden

1.75 MILES

Take a soul-satisfying jaunt around this 40-acre botanic garden, devoted to California’s native flora. Miles of partly wheelchair-accessible trails…

4. Karpeles Manuscript Library Museum

2.04 MILES

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5. Santa Barbara Museum of Art

2.05 MILES

This thoughtfully curated, bite-sized art museum displays European and American masters – including Monet, Van Gogh and Degas – along with photography,…

6. Santa Barbara County Courthouse

2.1 MILES

Built in Spanish-Moorish Revival style in 1929, the courthouse features hand-painted ceilings, wrought-iron chandeliers and tiles from Tunisia and Spain…

8. Casa de la Guerra

2.41 MILES

This grand 19th-century colonial adobe home displays Spanish, Mexican and California heritage exhibits. Dating back two centuries, it's been authentically…