We were very lucky that Merritt had a last minute opening on July 4th, as we were trying to escape San Francisco for a night. Merritt had a cancellation, and wrote us while we were on the road confirming our stay. Merritt is chill and friendly and he has nice ranch-style, beach town digs. We got in later in the day and were scrambling to find a restaurant open past 9pm. I'm vegan, which can make this more challenging. Merritt suggested a place that was open until midnight, and we ended up there for a late dinner. It was very tasty and had a fun vibe. We then headed back, and decided on going for a walk to the water, which is only a block away. It was super nice to be able to do that. The bed and linens were quite comfortable and everything was tidy. Didn't get a chance to take advantage of the backyard because we left early, but there is a screen door that opens right into the fenced-in yard. Quaint Santa Cruz neighborhood. I'm sure it's normally quiet, but since it was the 4th of July, there were of course kids lighting off fireworks. Can't escape that! In the morning, Merritt told us about a really tasty bakery / coffee shop (of course, I can't remember any of the names now). They had vegan baked goods and excellent coffee, which were perfect for the drive back to SF. No TV, so you might want to bring your computer. There is WiFi so you can watch Netflix on your laptop if you have one. We didn't bring ours and wished we had, though we were plenty tired when we got back from the beach. We had a pleasant little adventure and stay, overall.