J1 Santa Cruz

SherryChem

Has anyone been to Santa Cruz on a J1, if so is it any good? Whats the nightlife like? Are there many summer jobs?

snowyeoghan

Hi SherryChem

I actually moved to SC a few months ago.
I love it here - very chilled, beautiful scenery, great healthy food and friendly locals - very typical California town.

Because of UCSC and Cabrillo College it has a pretty big student population - so no shortage of young folk.

The nightlife is pretty good, but can grow old pretty quick as SC is pretty small - 56,000(SC County is about 250,000). But that can be a good thing getting to know all the regulars.
Also, SF is only an hour and a half away, so if you get tired of the same thing, take trip up there.

Its a very healthy place with a lot of vegans and vegetarians - I think it was named the fifth most healthiest place in the US last year.

I don't know what the summer job situation looks like though…but maybe check out the beach boardwalk for jobs.

I defo recommend SC - but its not for everybody - check out city-data.com for some threads on SC.

Any other Q's about SC just let me know

SherryChem

Thanks so much. Its all very helpful. Do many students stay for the summer? And could you recommend any neighborhoods that are nice to live ( or any areas we should stay away from)

It sounds like such a lovely place but we just want to make sure were making the right decision as we will be staying for 3 months. It would just be great if we could find jobs and somewhere nice to live.

Also if there is anyone who has been on a J1 to Santa Cruz before could they give me any tips or let me know if they had a nice experience?
Thanks.

snowyeoghan

Yeah, SC is a really nice place - and very unique. There's a "Keep Santa Cruz Weird" campaign/movement kinda thing goin on....by the end of your J1, you won't shocked/surprised of anything you see in SC - a couple of days ago I saw a lady walking a chicken on a dog leash.

There are a couple of neighborhoods that I'd recommend:

The West Cliff is nice, gets a lot of students, and close to downtown. Downtown has a good few bars and restaurants. Some people say Downtown is sketchy - I don't believe so.

Seabright is a very nice area - theres a couple of nice places to eat and drink on Seabright Ave, live music in the crepe place on soquel, and Seabright State Beach is right there.

The East Cliff is my fav - but doesn't offer a lot in terms of a social life - a few restaurants on 41st and two (pretty cool) bars on Portola. If your looking for scenery, and a chilled environment east cliff is your spot.

For a J1, I would def recommend the West Cliff. Theres plenty going on there, and your a few minutes walk from the beach, and plenty of opportunity for a good social scene there.

Places to avoid: I would avoid staying near the beach boardwalk/beach flats - seems like gang territory there (It's fine there during the day there though).

Also, I believe a good number of students do stay around for the Summer holding down jobs.

InTheTrees

I lived in Santa Cruz for ten years. Its a beautiful place, really one of the best communities/counties on the california coast I think.

Its known for its hippies and its surfers. There's a big college population that keeps the place young and it has some of the best winter surfing in the us.

Also its only 30 miles from Silicon Valley.

InTheTrees

There's the boadwalk/funfair and main beach at Santa Cruz that really is the main seaside/beach for the whole of Silicon Valley.

Because of its position on the north side of monterey bay, facing south and sheltered by mountains behind it has much more of a southern california climate. Beaches to the north and south are much colder and windswept.

SherryChem

Thanks so much for your help.

Still looking for accommodation though, do you have any tips on cheap accommodation? Or know any good places to stay?:)

D-Generate

I did my J1 in Santa Cruz and had an unbelievable time. I will start off with the fact that you are pretty much guaranteed a job on the Boardwalk if you arrive in early June. There are tonnes of jobs you can take but if you are anyway decent with numbers I advise you to go work in the Cash Control department. It is one of the highest paying positions (a whopping $9.25 at the time!) and you finish at 2:30 each day! Although that being said, you do start around 6:45 which isn't to everyone's taste but to be honest I preferred starting early and finishing early and hitting the beach. Other perks are that you get to drive a golf cart around the boardwalk each morning dropping cash at the stalls so that was good fun.
Other plus points about the boardwalk is that it is a good way to meet other young folks, both Yanks and other J1'ers. A hell of a lot of their employees come from J1s from Bulgaria and they live in apartments just next to the boardwalk, always a good spot to go for parties.

Finding a place to stay in Santa Cruz was tough but not as tough as in places like San Diego or Huntington beach. I would agree with others that you don't want to be staying on the Beach flats though as that is pretty dodgy. West Cliff or East Cliff/Seabright are good spots and also stay away from some places around Ocean St, particularly the corner around Little Caesars. Craigslist as always is your best bet for finding somewhere.

Not too sure if I am allowed recommend pubs to go to....

SherryChem

Thanks so much for all of that, it's great to hear from someone else who has been and enjoyed it.

Yeah we are still currently looking for accommodation in a nice area, where did you stay when your were there? Or would you be able to reccommend anywhere else?

Thank you

Oh and yes we are all 21 so you can reccommend some good places for a beer too

InTheTrees

I remember the cost of housing was High in Santa Cruz.

Possibly the university may rent out dorm rooms during the summer?

Its called UCSC (University of California Santa Cruz), you could try their web site.

Otherwise Craigslist is probably the best bet.

tosg

Hey guys

How did ye get on last summer in Santa cruz, me and a bunch of final years are thinking of headin there on J1 in 2012. Did it work out well for ye last year in terms of accommodation and jobs? We were lookin at santa barbara but it seems like past j1ers have gotten the irish a bad name there. Is this the same in santa cruz? It sounds like a cool place from what i've read here.