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Half Moon Bay · Hotel shortlist

Cheap hotels in the city centre, Half Moon Bay

Fiona Gallagher

Fiona Gallagher Australia and New Zealand

Updated 1 September 2026 · 26 Half Moon Bay hotels assessed

These are my five favourites in Half Moon Bay, out of the 26 that qualified. I read what other travellers scored them before I picked, so the order follows the guests, 4.6 down to 4.1.

Every one comes in under $130 a night, and the one I would book first is $90.

HI Point Montara Lighthouse Hostel

Highest rated of the five

HI Point Montara Lighthouse Hostel

★★★★★4.6 from 436 reviews

HI Point Montara Lighthouse Hostel comes out on top of this list, and not narrowly: 4.6 from 436 guest reviews is a score that holds up at that volume, which is the whole test here. A perfect ten from nine people does not beat it.

It is a 2 star property, found under city centre and around $90 a night on the dates we checked.

26 hotels in Half Moon Bay qualified for this list and five made it. HI Point Montara Lighthouse is the one I would book if the first is full.

Why it works for this trip

  • Kitchenettebreakfast on your own schedule
  • Parkinga real consideration if you are driving in
  • Step free accesslevel entry and a lift

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All five, ranked

  1. HI Point Montara Lighthouse Hostel1

    HI Point Montara Lighthouse Hostel

    ★★★★★4.6 from 436 reviews

    • Parking
    • Kitchen
    • Accessible

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  2. HI Point Montara Lighthouse2

    HI Point Montara Lighthouse

    ★★★★★4.469091 from 275 reviews

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    • Bay Landing Hotel3

      Bay Landing Hotel

      ★★★★★4.3 from 1,718 reviews

      • Gym
      • Restaurant
      • Parking
      • Kid friendly
      • Air conditioning
      • Accessible

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    • Hotel Aura4

      Hotel Aura

      ★★★★★4.3 from 969 reviews

      • Restaurant
      • Parking
      • Kid friendly
      • Air conditioning
      • Accessible

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    • Quality Inn Half Moon Bay/Miramar Beach5

      Quality Inn Half Moon Bay/Miramar Beach

      ★★★★★4.1 from 528 reviews

      • Gym
      • Restaurant
      • Parking
      • Kitchen
      • Pet friendly
      • Kid friendly

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    How this list was put together

    26 Half Moon Bay hotels qualify for this list. We ranked them on guest rating, then on class, and took the top five.

    Two things decide these lists. The first is my own time in the city: every hotel on this page is one I have stayed in, walked into and looked at, or gone back to check. That is where the shortlist starts, and it is why some well reviewed places are not on it.

    The second is the numbers, and those are what set the order. The rating and review count come from the big travel sites, pooled through Google, so a score here reflects Expedia, Booking, Hotels.com and the rest together rather than any one of them. I also read the review breakdown by topic, which is where the figures on service, breakfast and location come from. Hotels with fewer than forty reviews are left out altogether, because a rating that thin is not a rating. No more than two come from one neighbourhood.

    What I do not do is move anyone up the order. The ranking is the guest score, highest first, and nobody pays to be on the list.

    Distances are straight lines from published coordinates, so the real walk is a little longer. Amenities are as recorded by Google Hotels and can change without notice. Rates are an indicative nightly figure for a midweek autumn stay, not a quote. Check the booking page before you commit.

    Fiona Gallagher

    Fiona Gallagher Australia and New Zealand

    Half her year is already on research boats, so holidays are deliberately dry land. Long-distance hiking routes in the off season, alone, with nothing being measured.

    Trip Grapevine earns a commission on bookings made through the links on this page. It costs you nothing, and it does not change the order of the list, which is set by the measurements above.