Family-friendly vacation rentals in Santa Cruz County

This is our favorite place to stay in Santa Cruz. There are little markets walking distance, some restaurants but the best part is the ocean is right there 2minute walk! Also, if the ocean is too cold for us adults to get in, the house has a jacuzzi for us to enjoy in the evening. In the mornings, I enjoy sitting on the balcony listening to the birds and smelling the ocean breeze while I enjoy my hot cup of coffee. Great place to take the family. The host is very responsive.

Sun was very helpful and communicative. Sun’s place is a short drive to some lovely beaches, close to a nice park, and centrally located for all the activities we had planned. We had 4 young kids with us (ages: 1, 3, 6, and 9), and it was very family and kid-friendly. Would recommend highly!

Tranquility Base…surely lived up to its name. So comfortable, so charming we felt like a part of the forest. The whole place had so much personality we felt right at home Magical and enchanting getaway Highly recommended We’ll be back

What a beautiful and relaxing short stay we had at Sea Otter Cottage! From soaking in the soothing hot tub to playing in the charming garden, every moment was delightful. Our 5-year-old loved exploring the lovely surroundings, the toys in the house and we truly felt at home in this cozy, welcoming house. Thank you so much for sharing your wonderful space with us—we will cherish the memories made here and hope to return at some point!

Annie was a great host and the place was exactly as described and just what we needed for a relaxing beach getaway. We loved the hot tub in the backyard and the beach cottage feel of the place. Thank you for hosting us!

Erin and all other Co-Host’s were certainly kind and helpful. The place was beautiful and the decoration made it feel like home. Our stay was wonderful and we cannot wait to do it again!

This is a very nice home in a great location. We had a lot of fun!

Joyce’s place was clean and had a really great location. We thought we were right on the Cliff so that was kind of a bummer to have a house in front of our ocean view. But the place was really nice, and very clean! The space was really cool and had great decoration. Beds were comfortable. Kids were happy. We loved playing in the hot tub and in the garden in the backyard.

Perfect place to stay. Great for kiddos with a park across the street. Beach, boardwalk, shops and restaurants are all close by. We loved our stay here!!

Thank you for the local recommendations. We tried several restaurants on the list and all were great. The local access to Zils Beach was a highlight so thanks for making sure we knew about it!

I would give 10 stars if I could! This tiny cute cabin is located in a very beautiful working farm, very quiet, calm and relaxing, and it’s only a 10 minute drive from Los Gatos in the Bay Area. Totally recommend it.

Sarah’s house was beautiful- clean and lots of room. There was enough space for us to be together and space for alone time. There were 8 of us. Sarah had made some recommendations for dinners and places to go. We did try a couple of them and the Mexican restaurant and ice cream place was delicious . We had one issue with hot water and Sarah responded immediately and issue was resolved in a timely manner. The house was a little farther from Santa Cruz than we were used to but it only took 20 minutes get there. The area where the house was located was quiet and close to the ocean. We genuinely loved our time in Aptos. Would stay again .

Ms. Jane was a great host. The space was a perfect size and had a personal entrance for guest. Also Ms. Jane communicated with and responded with in the hour of our message. The location was ideal for us. We had easy access to Santa Cuz, San Fran, Monterey and Big Sur. We would recommend our own family and friends.

Rolando’s place is very clean and spacious, the neighborhood is very quiet, and it’s very close to shopping centers and malls—just a 10-minute walk. I highly recommend Rolando’s place. If I visit San Jose again, his place will be my first choice

Very peaceful and great place to stay

Laura’s place was spot on for our short stay. Beach was a stones throw away, which is where the kids wanted to spend their time. The place was perfect, it was clean, spacious, and well equipped. Detailed instructions for the apartment to go alongside the stay and useful local information.

We had a wonderful short getaway at Sue’s place! The condo is just steps from the beach, pool, and jacuzzi. Falling asleep to the sound of the waves was relaxing, and the ocean breeze was very refreshing. It was exactly what we needed to reset and recharge. Everything was just as described, and we would stay here again! Thank you, Sue!

The lodging is in the back, in a garden and near the swimming pool and tennis court. The backdrop is beautiful, and the host and hostess were friendly and accommodating. There is privacy and the area offers much in terms of restaurants and shopping. The internet is broadband, so one can work in the lodging. Amy and Lou are wonderful people----worthy of friendship in any circumstance.

Himani has been very responsive to answer all questions and give good local recommendations. More importantly, the living area is well designed that you can stay so comfortable as like your home. You won’t feel cold to take shower during midnight and the comfortability of the bed is so great. It’s a very comfortable stay. I recommended this place well suited for family travel.

EJ and Nancy have such a lovely property. We easily felt we had our own space. You can tell that they've been doing this for years, and have a great way of making everything comfortable for guests. Our two kids had space to spread out, the playground is not directly next to the front door of the apartment, but you can see it through the yard's trees & hear them more or less within ear shot. Kitchen was amply supplied and set up, & there are plenty of storage spaces and creature comforts to make the stay feel like home. Beds were comfortable & clean, super comfortable pillows. The unit itself doesn't get a ton of natural light, but to be expected in redwoods. The hosts were incredibly friendly, welcoming, and helpful, we had a nice time chatting with them. Wonderful hosts, they felt like family. Their little dog is so so sweet and friendly as well, my kids loved the dog. Great location, easy to get to surrounding areas and Santa Cruz proper. Would return!

Staying at Seascape was the perfect kid-friendly vacation. The pool was easy to access from our condo and the views were beautiful. The condo's set-up with two bedrooms and bathrooms upstairs and a half bath downstairs was great for our family of 5. The private beach was beautiful - we saw otters, whales, and my son found two perfect sand dollars walking down the beach. It was a little bit of a trek to get down to the beach with three little kids and all the beach gear, but once we were there no one wanted to leave. Several near-by restaurants were delicious, especially the newly opened Dos Pescados. It was fairly easy to get into Santa Cruz too, but we did have to time traffic or it would double the drive time (to almost 45 minutes).

Wonderful place in a wonderful environment. We had an excellent time with the kids, very nice pool, beaches close by and in the middle of the nice green hills of California

This place was truly a gem! The wall of windows and the balcony to watch the ocean is perfection. We even saw a few seals from the balcony! The condo is clean, comfortable, and spacious. Well set up for relaxing! We felt at home- it is well appointed with everything you could need with instructions on where to find things. The location was perfect- within steps of the beach and great restaurants, easy drive to Monterey, Santa Cruz, etc. A new favorite spot for us to visit! Thanks for the hospitality!

Amazing property!!! So so awesome! My family felt right at home. So close to the beach and heated pools. Power west is amazing company. !!!