Where to stay in Los Olivos

The best hotels

Fess Parker is the smaller, simpler inn: right on Grand Avenue, and some rates include a tasting passport. Mattei's is a full resort, with a pool, firepit, spa and historic cottages. The Los Olivos business association lists just these two in town; the nearest chain hotels are down in Buellton.

Before you book, read our guides to the Inn at Mattei's Tavern (what the $75 resort fee covers) and the Fess Parker Wine Country Inn (free breakfast and tastings).

1. 01

   19rooms

   Fess Parker Wine Country Inn

   19-room inn on Grand Avenue · Los Olivos

   19-room inn on Grand Avenue · Los Olivos

   Fess Parker Wine Country Inn

   The obvious base if you want to park the car and walk. It's a 19-room inn on Grand Avenue, with more than 20 tasting rooms a short stroll away by its own count, a heated pool, a restaurant and bar, and breakfast every morning. The inn doesn't take pets, but Fess Parker's two Wine Country Cabins do.

   Go if you want a fireplace room and tasting rooms you can walk to.

   Getting there

   In the middle of town

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   Go for Pool time · A stroll into town

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   • Heated pool; restaurant and bar on site
   • Some rates include a tasting passport or wine tasting for two
   • Pets not allowed at the inn; the two Wine Country Cabins take dogs up to 35 lb ($100 fee + $250 cleaning deposit)
   • Cancel within 7 days of arrival and you forfeit the full stay

   2860 Grand Avenue, Los Olivos, CA 93441 · 805-688-7788

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2. 02

   Editor's pickAuberge resort in an 1886 stagecoach stop · Los Olivos

   The Inn at Mattei's Tavern

   One Michelin Key 2026 Michelin Guide

   The splurge. Mattei's started as an 1886 stagecoach stop, and Auberge has turned it into a resort with suites, studios and historic cottages set among old palm trees. There's an outdoor pool, a firepit, the Lavender Barn spa and an open-air restaurant, and it's still in town, so you can walk to the tasting rooms.

   Go if it's the splurge weekend.

   Getting there

   Railway Ave, in town

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   Go with The dog

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   Connections The Inn at Mattei's Tavern is an Auberge Collection hotel with a Michelin Key, and The Tavern is its restaurant. Source

   Press One Michelin Key. Michelin Guide, 2026

   • 1886 stagecoach stop, now an Auberge Collection resort
   • Suites, studios and historic cottages
   • Outdoor pool, firepit and Lavender Barn spa
   • Resort fee $75 per room, per night
   • Dog-friendly resort; call for pet fees
   • Advertises longer-stay savings ("Stay Longer for Less")

   2350 Railway Avenue, Los Olivos, CA 93441 · 805-693-2596

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3. 03

   15rooms

   The Ballard Inn

   15-room inn in neighboring Ballard · Ballard

   15-room inn in neighboring Ballard · Ballard

   The Ballard Inn

   If both Los Olivos hotels are full, this is the closest quiet alternative. It's a recently refurbished 15-room inn in the tiny hamlet of Ballard, and some rooms have fireplaces or balconies. You'll need to drive into Los Olivos to taste (2.1 miles, 6 minutes). Breakfast and a daily 4pm wine and cheese hour are included, there's no public restaurant, and dogs are $40 a night.

   Go if you want quiet, a wine and cheese hour and the dog along.

   Getting there

   Drive into Los Olivos

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   • 15 rooms, recently refurbished
   • Room types include fireplace and balcony rooms
   • Dogs $40 per dog, per night

   2436 Baseline Avenue, Ballard, CA 93463 · 805-688-7770

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Walking to tasting rooms

Yes, and that's the main reason to stay here. The Fess Parker inn says more than 20 tasting rooms are a short walk away, and Mattei's is on Railway Avenue, "at the heart of historical Los Olivos." Our Los Olivos wine tasting guide lists the rooms with fees and walk-in rules. The Foxen Canyon Wine Trail starts at the edge of town, but you'll need a driver for that.

Walk times by hotel

Five minutes or less to almost everything. From the Fess Parker inn on Grand Avenue, nothing on the list is more than 4 minutes away on foot; from Mattei's on Railway Avenue, nothing is more than 7. The two hotels are about 7 minutes apart. The Ballard Inn is a 6-minute drive (2.1 mi) from the Fess Parker inn, so plan on a car or a driver from there.

For every kitchen's hours by day and real menu prices, see which Los Olivos restaurants are open today.

The Tavern at Mattei's and Felix Feed & Coffee are on Mattei's own grounds at 2350 Railway Avenue. Tasting room hours and booking rules are in our Los Olivos wine tasting guide.

Fess Parker Wine Country Inn

This is the family-run inn at 2860 Grand Avenue, also searched as the Fess Parker Inn or "Fess Parker Wine Country Inn & Spa" (its current amenity list has no spa). It isn't the Santa Barbara beachfront hotel that used to carry the Fess Parker name and has been a Hilton since 2018.

• Rooms: 19 rooms and suites, each with a fireplace. Check-in 3pm, checkout 11am. Rates are for two, and a 3rd or 4th guest is $110 a night each.
• Rates: not published on the inn's site, so price your dates. Expect a 14% county occupancy tax plus $3 and $1.10 per-night tourism fees on top. Select rates include a tasting passport, wine tasting for two or a bottle in the room.
• Included: daily continental breakfast, self-parking, the heated pool, fire pits, a gym, and complimentary tastings at Fess Parker Winery and Epiphany.
• Dining: Nella Kitchen & Bar, from the S.Y. Kitchen team, is on site: 11:30am to 8:45pm (last seating), service animals only.
• Pets: not in the inn. The two Wine Country Cabins take dogs up to 35 lb ($100 non-refundable fee plus a $250 cleaning deposit).
• EV charging: yes, the inn's FAQ says it has EV stations.
• Walk to tasting: more than 20 tasting rooms nearby, by the inn's count, and nothing on our Los Olivos lists is more than 4 minutes on foot (table above).

More detail, including the proposed 18-room expansion, in our Fess Parker Wine Country Inn guide.

The Ballard Inn

This is the Ballard Inn at 2436 Baseline Avenue in Ballard, California, the hamlet between Los Olivos and Solvang. It isn't the Ballard Inn in Seattle's Ballard neighborhood or Ballard's on Block Island. People still search "Ballard Inn & Gathering Table," but that restaurant left the inn: it closed in 2022 and reopened in Solvang as The Gathering Table in 2024.

• Rooms: 15, each a king or a queen. Check-in is after 4pm (early arrival isn't guaranteed), checkout 11am.
• Rates: not published on the inn's site. Rates are for two, plus $25 per extra adult. The inn takes payment for the full stay 7 days before arrival. Cancelling inside 7 days costs one night on a direct booking, and the full stay on a third-party booking.
• Dining: no public restaurant. Guests get a champagne welcome, a chef-made breakfast from 8 to 10am and a wine and cheese hour from 4 to 6pm. Book dinner in Los Olivos or Solvang.
• Pets: dogs welcome at $40 per dog, per night. Don't leave them alone in the room (a $250 fine).
• EV charging: none listed, and there's no public charger in Ballard on the federal locator.
• Walk to tasting: not practical. Los Olivos is 2.1 miles away: 6 minutes by car, 46 minutes on foot.

Room-by-room advice and the bakery across the road are in our Ballard Inn guide.

Los Olivos or Solvang?

Los Olivos is a few streets of tasting rooms and restaurants. It suits couples who mostly want to taste and eat. Solvang has many more hotels at every price, plus bakeries, shops and breakfast places, so it suits families and bigger groups. Leaning toward Solvang? See where to stay in Solvang and Santa Ynez Valley hotels to compare.

Vacation rentals

A few. The Grand Chalet (grandchalet2830.com, 805-729-1445) is a family-run rental for up to four adults. It has a queen bedroom, a queen sofa bed, a kitchen, a smoker BBQ and an upstairs terrace with mountain views, and check-in is self-service. Its site doesn't publish a street address. Fess Parker's two Wine Country Cabins are the other option, and they take dogs up to 35 lb. For more dog-friendly stays, see dog-friendly Solvang. Los Olivos is unincorporated, so county permit rules apply to any house rental; see vacation rental rules by town.

When rates are lowest

Neither hotel posts nightly rates, but the busy dates are easy to spot. The Santa Barbara Vintners advise booking several months ahead for holiday and festival weekends (the Vintners Festival is typically in October) and for the busy summer season. If your dates are flexible, avoid those. Mattei's advertises a "Stay Longer for Less" offer of up to 30% off longer stays, but adds a $75 nightly resort fee. When you compare totals, Fess Parker adds a 14% county occupancy tax plus small per-night tourism fees to the room rate, and if you cancel within seven days of arrival you forfeit the whole stay, taxes included.

Don’t miss

• The Fess Parker inn takes no pets, but its two Wine Country Cabins take dogs up to 35 lb. source

You might also like

• The Ballard Inn · about 6 min drive (2.1 mi). The 15-room fallback when both Los Olivos hotels are full. Tip: Wine and cheese hour 4–6pm, included. Official site · source
• Bar Le Côte · about 0.1 miles, walkable. Michelin-listed seafood a short walk from both hotels. Tip: Book on OpenTable; closed Monday and Tuesday. Official site · source
• Stolpman Vineyards · about 0 miles, walkable. A cult-label tasting room on Alamo Pintado Avenue. Tip: $25 tasting; reservations strongly encouraged. Official site · source

Drive times are without traffic.

EV charging

The federal station locator lists no public charger in Los Olivos or Ballard. Fess Parker Wine Country Inn says on its FAQ that it has EV stations, so ask about plug type when you book. The nearest fast charging is the Santa Ynez Supercharger on Highway 154 or Electrify America in Solvang. See the valley EV charging map.

Good to know

Can you walk to tasting rooms from Los Olivos hotels? Yes. Every tasting room and restaurant on our Los Olivos lists is within 4 minutes on foot of the Fess Parker inn and 7 minutes of Mattei's. The Ballard Inn, in neighboring Ballard, is a 6-minute drive.

Quick answers

What is the best hotel in Los Olivos?

There are only two: the 19-room Fess Parker Wine Country Inn on Grand Avenue (breakfast included, heated pool) and The Inn at Mattei's Tavern, an Auberge resort built around an 1886 stagecoach stop. Choose Fess Parker for a simple, central inn, and Mattei's for a splurge with a pool, spa and cottages.

Is there a luxury or Auberge hotel in Los Olivos?

Yes. The Inn at Mattei's Tavern is an Auberge Collection resort, built around an 1886 stagecoach stop, with suites, studios and historic cottages, an outdoor pool and the Lavender Barn spa.

Which Los Olivos hotels have a pool?

Both of them. Fess Parker Wine Country Inn has a heated pool, and The Inn at Mattei's Tavern has an outdoor pool with a firepit.

Is Los Olivos or Solvang better to stay?

Stay in Los Olivos for a small, quiet town where you can walk between tasting rooms. Stay in Solvang if you want far more hotels, bakeries and restaurants, and a wider range of prices.

Are there vacation rentals in Los Olivos?

A few. The Grand Chalet is a family-run rental for up to four adults, with a kitchen and an upstairs terrace, and you book it through its own site. Fess Parker also rents two Wine Country Cabins, which take dogs up to 35 lb.

Is the Ballard Inn in Los Olivos?

Next door. It is in Ballard, a hamlet 2.1 miles south of Los Olivos (6 minutes by car), not in Seattle's Ballard neighborhood.

Do Los Olivos hotels allow dogs?

The Fess Parker inn doesn't, but its two Wine Country Cabins take dogs up to 35 lb, for a $100 non-refundable fee plus a $250 cleaning deposit. The Inn at Mattei's Tavern calls itself a dog-friendly resort but doesn't post its pet fees, so call before you book.