Rent Casa del Barco and Vacation Just Steps from Twin Lake State Beach
866-492-8430
Restaurants Within Walking Distance
- Crow's Nest Restaurant. Winner of the Santa Cruz Good Times best restaurant and best place to take guests awards (and many others). Stunning views, ample wine list, delicious seafood, steaks, pasta and salads (Menu). And superb nightly entertainment in the upstairs Breakwater Bar, including great bands, stand-up comedy, and trivia contests.
- Aldo's Restaurant.
A fun trip on the free water taxi leads you to a great breakfast or
lunch on Aldo's outdoor deck where you can watch the sailboats, fishing
boats, and kayaks glide by (Menu). Dog-Friendly
- Trinideli has a great
sandwich and breakfast menu,
and shares a doorfront with The Kind Grind, where you can get wonderful
coffee and pastries. With outdoor tables right on the sand by the
harbor
entrance and volleyball courts, there's plenty to see while you relax
and enjoy your meal. Dog-friendly
- Rosa's Rosticeria. Latin food and great margaritas (or so we've heard).
- Cafe el Palomar. A Santa Cruz tradition, this new location with beach side seating opened in Spring 2005 in the new Harbor building.
- Harbor Cafe. American food served in a nautical setting; indoor and heated outdoor seating. Live music.
- Harbor Deli &
Taqueria. A delicious authentic Mexican restaurant, with
American menu items as well. Very casual, low prices, good food.
- Star Bene. Serving pasta, seafood, and italian fare for lunch and dinner. Indoor and patio seating.
We usually walk to these too, but they're a little further. It's such a rich area, there are too many restaurants to list...but here are a few of our favorites.
- Seabright
Brewery. A favorite after the Wednesday boat races. Seabright brews
their own beer onsite, has a great menu of burgers, salads, appetizers
and other general pub food. Weekly entertainment;
indoor and outdoor seating. Free WiFi. Dog-Friendly
- Java Junction.
A local favorite, with great coffee, pastries, and free WiFi. Dog-Friendly
- Aloha Island Grill.
- Sunny Cove Cafe. Open for breakfast and lunch.
- Black's Beach Cafe. This popular local bistro is open for dinner, and breakfast and lunch on the weekends.
- Costa Brava,
Seabright. A fun taco bar spin off from the main fancy
restaurant downtown.
- And all the restaurants on the wharf are only 1.1 mile from Casa del Barco!
Santa Cruz Activities Within Walking Distance
There's so much to do within walking distance of Casa del Barco you may never need your car. Water, sand, nature and harbor activities will fill your days, and at night you can cozy up in front of the fireplace, or venture down to the beach to use the fire pits at the beach and devour your s'more kit in the sand while enjoying the waves and beach air.
- Watch the Wednesday night boat races as you enjoy dinner in the dining room.
- Kayaking in the ocean you can ride small waves and often see otters or dolphins. For a more peaceful experience you can birdwatch while kyaking in Schwann Lake. Kayak rentals and kayak tours available in the harbor (walking distance) at the Kayak Connection.
- Birding. The Santa Cruz bird club notes that Schwann Lake and Twin Lakes State Beach are fun sites for birdwatching in Santa Cruz. You might spy anything from elegant herons and egrets, to forest hawks and woodpeckers. In fact there is great birdwatching in the greater Santa Cruz area.
- Surfing and Boogie
Boarding. A favorite local activity. Many of our neighbors are
ardent surfers. We provide you with two boogie boards in case you want
to test the waters.
- Fishing. Anglers catch perch right off the beach in the winter. A bait shop in the Harbor has all the daily details about fishing conditions and boat trips.
- Sailing. The Chardonnay II is a huge sailboat that runs tours multiple times each day around the bay. Definitely worth doing.
- Tennis.
Courts are right across the street from the Harbor Cafe.
- Activities, walks and hikes at the Harbor could keep you busy.
- Free harbor water taxi runs Weekends and Holidays, 11 am - 6 pm, from mid-May through September.
- Indoor Rock
Climbing at the Pacific Edge Climbing Gym.
- Official Twin Lakes State Beach web site.
- According the other state parks web site, Twin Lakes is one of the warmest beaches in the area.
Activities Worth Driving To
Although you could happily spend your vacation within the three block radius surrounding Casa del Barco, there are a few things in the greater Santa Cruz area that are worth seeing if you feel like venturing out.
- Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk.
We often walk to the boardwalk...it's less than a mile by foot! (It's a
two mile trip by car.)
- Roaring Camp Railroad's Redwood
Express. Ride up
into the mountains for a picturesque lunch in the woods.
- Natural Bridges State Park (especially in winter when the monarch butterflies are in residence).
- Shakespeare Santa Cruz. A great annual summer production by UC Santa Cruz. We think it's better than the Ashland festival.
- Cabrillo Annual Festival of Contemporary Music in August.
- Open Studios Art Tours;
three weekends in October.
- Award winning local wineries, many with public tasting rooms.
Photos
We hate to brag, but the sunsets highlighting the lighthouse and sailboats can be magnificent. Summer and winter you'll often notice professional photographers set up amongst the lovers and families who stroll down to watch the sun set.
Professional night photos of Walton lighthouse.
Stunning dawn photo of the Walton lighthouse.
Here are some winter photos of Twin Lakes beach we took ourselves. Send us yours and we'll add them to our pages.
Web Cams & Weather
Harbor web cam (five different views)
Harbor boat launch web cam. (Watch the construction currently underway, and due to be done in April.)
Harbor entrance cam at the Crow's Nest restaurant
Santa Cruz tide chart.
Check the current weather.
Reservations and Information: Mignon or Patrick at 866-492-8430; or info@santa-cruz-vacation-rentals.com
