THE INNS.

THE B&B's

Blue Dolphin Inn: An occasional drawback to staying in a Santa Barbara bed-and-breakfast is the next-door neighbor. You might have a room in an impressive period home, but your window might face a modern stucco apartment building or a cheap motel - our exact experience in two of the inns we stayed at.

This is not an issue here. The Blue Dolphin's 1920 main house sits next to the historic Fernald Mansion and its expansive grounds. The property is meticulously maintained by the Santa Barbara Historical Society - but never occupied. And the inn's one room that fits our criteria - No. 4, which rents for $125 on weekends - is a second-floor accommodation that directly overlooks this quiet neighborhood through the shading branches of an overhanging tree. The room features a queen bed, vaulted ceiling and good-sized private bath with shower (but no tub).

The Blue Dolphin has other attractive features. Chief among them is a conservatory-like dining room with a towering ceiling and tall banks of windows. The living room is also sunny and inviting, with skylights, a fireplace, white-tile floors, exposed beams, French doors and a player piano (it's fired up during an afternoon wine-and-cheese soiree). The inn has a quiet side patio - though for some reason, guests aren't encouraged to take breakfast out here - and there is a large spa tub at the back of the property.

One major drawback for the Blue Dolphin is its location on busy West Montecito Street, near the city college and access ramps for Highway 101. The street can put up quite a din. But the inn is just a couple of blocks from the beach, State Street and the train station (free pickups are provided).

It also features a tasteful, understated decor. ``Some B&Bs are really frilly and lacy,'' said innkeeper Karena Knabe. ``We try to keep it true to the architecture (Queen Anne Victorian). We're not full of teddy bears and things like that. We don't have a lot of wallpaper. ... We want people to feel at home here. The rooms aren't so prissy that people feel, 'Ooh, ooh, I can't touch,' but at the same time it's not Formica Motel, where it's, 'Let's party.' ''

Secret Garden Inn & Cottages: This property - on Bath Street, just a few blocks' walk from upper State Street - is aptly named. Its most attractive asset is, in fact, its patio out back, planted lushly and afforded privacy by tall hedges.

The inn's most inviting rooms are its cottages, which are tucked into various nooks of that garden, but all of those are priced out of our established range. (If you can bump your budget up to $137.50 nightly, you can get into one of these cottages and enjoy a small veranda).

The Secret Garden has two rooms, Meadlowlark and Bobwhite, that are priced at $121 on weekends. Both are in the main house, which dates to 1905. Neither room can provide the kind of privacy found in the cottages. They open directly onto the inn's common rooms, so if you like to sleep late in the morning, they might not be the best options.

Bobwhite has a clawfoot tub with shower in a bathroom that overlooks the garden. Meadowlark has a generous window that opens onto Bath Street and lets in plenty of afternoon light. Both rooms have the high ceilings common to construction of the era.

If you're looking for a French-Alpine experience, the Secret Garden is for you. Owner Dominique Hannaux, who hails from Annecy in southeastern France, moved here three years ago and still speaks with a delightfully rich accent. She brought a lot of her grandmother's recipes with her, too, she said.

As we walked through a kitchen rich with the smells of artichoke quiche baking for breakfast, Hannaux said, ``We are French people; we love to eat.'' At breakfast, that can mean quiche with bacon, persimmon bread (when the tree in the garden is in season), croissants, clafoutis, poached pears in wine, apple crisp in winter. And when wine, cheese and hors d'oeuvres are laid out at 5 p.m., she makes sure the cheeses are French selections purchased from a Los Angeles importer.

Also, in an effort to ``bring more life to the house during the day,'' Hannaux occasionally stages exhibitions of the work of local artists, and has a tarot reader come in every Friday.

Bath Street Inn: At this 1890s Dutch Colonial Revival house near upper State, we ascended a narrow staircase to the third floor to reach the Wedgwood Room, the only room in the house that fit our criteria (it rents for $125 per night).

A night here revives warm memories of being tucked into bed in an attic room at Grandma's. The queen-size bed just about consumed the room, and the bathroom was a tiny, converted closet (pocket door, pedestal sink, shower only). The room might close in on you if you're inclined to spend long periods of time holed up in it, but who does that on a weekend trip to Santa Barbara?

To increase the brightness of the room, there is a transom window above the door, as well as a south-facing window that picks up ocean breezes (unfortunately, this is the one that overlooks a '60s stucco apartment building).

This inn has a lot of the frilly touches that some romance-seekers desire in a B&B, but we found the riotous floral wallpaper, duvet and bed linens a little overwhelming. (Is there a special innkeeper outlet store that carries this stuff?)

The shower produced a few warm-cool-warm surprises - not uncommon with 110-year-old plumbing. The bathroom was stocked with high-grade, fluffy towels.

The room was also scrupulously clean, very comfortable and reasonably quiet.

Old Yacht Club Inn: This place trumpets its distinction as Santa Barbara's first bed-and-breakfast, having opened for business in 1980. Unfortunately, it feels as if it hasn't been upgraded since then.

In the Marbella Room ($110), we found the windows so heavily draped with lace curtains that the light was having difficulty getting in. The floor was carpeted in a dark burgundy, making the tiny room feel smaller still. The ``sitting area'' promised in the brochure turned out to be two chairs against the wall. The phone line was dead. The toilet didn't flush (but I was able to make a quick adjustment in the tank to remedy the problem).

The appeal of the Old Yacht Club is in its historical significance and location. The house was built in 1912 and served briefly as headquarters for the town's yacht club in the 1920s after a savage winter storm destroyed much of the waterfront.

Although its name suggests it sits on the water - perhaps like the Catalina Island Yacht Club, which perches on pilings in Avalon Bay - this inn does not. But it is close - about two blocks from popular East Beach. (The house was moved to its current location in the late '20s.) The inn has beach-cruiser bikes, beach chairs and towels available for guests' use at no charge.

We discovered during the night that the inn is startlingly close to Highway 101. This forced us to close a window we would rather have kept open on a warm evening. Another window looked directly into the room of a motel next door (the occupant favored Miller beer). And it was disappointing to learn that breakfast service did not begin until 8:30 a.m. (most inns serve it at 8 or earlier); a midmorning engagement forced us to miss it entirely.

In a building on the other side of the historic house, the inn also offers the Montecito Room ($120), which is a bit more spacious than the Marbella and has a private entrance.

Glenborough Inn: The guest who opened the front door for us said she'd just checked out of the Garden Room ($110), the only accommodation that the Glenborough has in our category. How was it? ``Cozy,'' was her one-word reply, although she added that she'd thoroughly enjoyed her stay.

The room is on the second floor of the 1906 craftsman bungalow that serves as the main house in the Glenborough's complex of buildings on Bath Street. The Garden Room was found to be very light and sunny, with a cleverly designed tub and shower. The window overlooks the inn's parking area - and, uh, some stray shrubs of the garden, so the name works.

The inn's living room looked to be a nice place to settle in with a book. The Glenborough does not have a dining room; you're expected to take breakfast in your room. Many guests find this to be a delightfully romantic experience, but breakfast in the Garden Room might be a bit too cozy for comfort.

IF YOU GO

BATH STREET INN: 1720 Bath St.; [phone], [phone]; www.bathstreetinn.com.

BEACH HOUSE INN: 320 W. Yanonali St.; [phone]; www.thebeachhouseinn.com.

BLUE DOLPHIN INN: 420 W. Montecito St.; [phone]; www.sbbluedolphininn.com.

GLENBOROUGH INN: 1327 Bath St.; [phone], [phone]; www.glenboroughinn.com.

MONTECITO DEL MAR HOTEL: 316 W. Montecito St.; [phone], [phone]; www.santabarbarahotel316.com.

OLD YACHT CLUB INN: 431 Corona Del Mar Drive; [phone], [phone]; www.oldyachtclubinn.com.

SECRET GARDEN INN & COTTAGES: 1908 Bath St.; [phone]; www.secretgarden.com.

VILLA ROSA: 15 Chapala St.; [phone]

CAPTION(S):

7 photos, box

Photo:

(1 -- 3 -- color) The courtyard pool is a popular gathering spot at the Villa Rosa, right. Wrought-iron four-poster beds are among the inviting fatures of the Montecito del Mar, far right. One of the best attributes of the Blue Dolphin Inn is its conservatory-like dining room, below.

(4) Guests are greeted warmly at the Secret Garden Inn.

(5) A continental breakfast of fresh juice, coffee and pastries is served on the patio of the Secret Garden Inn & Cottages.

(6) With its tasteful decor and location in a quiet residential neighborhood, the blue Dolphin Inn has a lot to recommend it.

(7) Owner Dominique Hannaux travels a brick pathway winding through the lush gardens of her quaint Secret Garden Inn & Cottages, where she delivers breakfast to a visitor.

Andy Holzman/Staff Photographer

Box: IF YOU GO (see text)