My partner and I live in Oakland, and decided last minute to find a relaxed getaway in the woods to chill out. In summary, Zia's guesthouse was comfortable and cozy, and Zia and Chris were excellent hosts.
THE SPACE:
The guesthouse is so charming! It had everything we needed -- a comfortable and cozy bed (WOW that comforter is fluffy),
There is no bathroom in the guesthouse, and you have to walk through a (gorgeous) garden to get to the main house to use the bathroom. Zia was very communicative about this in the posting and in our messaging, so this was no problem at all. Furthermore, the bathroom in the house is lovely and had everything (and more) that we might need.
There is a lovely deck and patio, and one of the mornings, I woke up to do some yoga on the patio under the trees. Perfect.
THE HOSTS:
Zia is wonderful. She was so thoughtful and communicate throughout the whole process -- I felt like we were friends before I even got there! Chris is also super friendly. They both struck a great balance between giving us the space we needed, but being around and friendly when my partner and I had energy to chat.
Even though my partner and I forgot about the option for an ice chest, Zia thoughtfully provided it for us, and it was full of (organic!) fruit and yogurt. I happened to bring granola. Together it made for a fabulous breakfast both mornings! She also had outfitted the kitchenette with an assortment of coffee and tea that we appreciated.
THE LOCATION:
Great! I specifically wanted to NOT be hear constant traffic (check), to be able to look out at redwood trees from bed (check), and to be off the beaten path and thus close to lots of great nature excursions (check!). This satisfied all of those things. And yet, it still was not difficult to make it into Santa Cruz when we wanted to! It's a short drive, and the roads there are beautiful and fun to drive.
My only complaint -- I wish I could've hung out with their cat Wallace more. :)