The rooms are clean, the location is perfect for going anywhere in arcata and the staff is very friendly. Some of the rooms are dated but that's the whole point of the hotel. We plan on staying whenever in arcata.

Hotel Arcata is an historic building on a corner across from the Arcata Plaza. The downstairs of the building includes one of the best Japanese/Sushi restaurants I have ever experienced, as well as some shops with local goods. Arcata only allows local businesses, so you will get a real flavor of the community just by walking this area.
It is not elegance in the modern style, and the street corner can be noisy, but it is clean, safe, and moderately priced. Parking can be difficult in this busy area, and there is no garage.

We stayed in this historic hotel while visiting Arcata for a wedding. It is old, but we live in an old house and enjoy old buildings. The bed was comfortable, and we liked the overall feel of the place. The shower was great -- a large shower head with great water pressure. Everything was clean. The room was a good size, although the bathroom was small. There was a sink in the room, not the bathroom, which was a little odd, but not too inconvenient.

The staff were quite friendly, although not as helpful as we would have liked at check-in. We were told that they were all out of parking passes, and we would have to find a place to park where we did not need one. Since we had just arrived from out of town after 10:30 at night, we had no idea what to do. We ended up parking in a municipal lot several blocks away and putting the hotel's business card on the dashboard. Fortunately, when we went back in the morning, our car was still there and had not been towed. We were able to get a parking pass for subsequent nights.

The neighborhood is not quiet -- lots of bars on the square, and plenty of loud people outside the bars until the wee hours. We were on the side of the hotel not facing the square, and could still hear the noise. On Saturday morning, we enjoyed the farmer's market in the square, which started at the civilized hour of 9:30 am.

There was continental breakfast (rolls and coffee) available in the lobby, but we opted to walk down the street to a cafe for breakfast instead.

Overall, it was a pretty good experience, but if you are not used to old buildings or are bothered by noise outside, it might not be the best choice.

We like historic hotels but not the high prices associated with historic properties so when we were able to book a standard king room for $99.00 we were Pleased. When we checked in and went to our room, however, we were disappointed because our room had no view. The front desk clerk gave us a king suite for $23.00 more overlooking the city plaza, well worth the extra $24.00. King bed, one and a half bathrooms, a living room with a big couch, two TVs, and a comfortable king bed. Did I mention the great view of the city plaza? WiFi with a strong signal. Newer elevator. Well worth the price. We got a permit to park on the street close to the hotel.