I come to Davis the way a lot of parents do. I ride the Amtrak Capitol Corridor in, I walk where I can, and I plan the whole weekend around campus. I have also paid the event weekend rate here. Davis hotel prices climb fast on the big university weekends, and rooms around $300 a night happen in this town. I learned to book early and to pick location before anything else.
Davis helps with that choice. The town has a small set of hotels, and most of them sit in two areas. A few sit right on campus or at the edge of campus. The rest sit in and around downtown, close to restaurants, the farmers market, and the train station. Five hotels cover the large majority of parent trips, and this guide walks through each one.
Davis has limited hotel supply and a university calendar that fills it. Move-in in September, Parent and Family Weekend in the fall, admitted student days in the spring, Picnic Day in April, and commencement in June all push demand into the same small group of rooms. Regular weekends fill too, around conferences, sports, and events at the Mondavi Center.
Location does most of the work in your decision:
One more point from experience: cancellation terms matter on these trips. Student plans change. Book a rate you can cancel or move when you can, and check the terms again in the confirmation email.
Address: 173 Old Davis Road Extension, Davis, CA 95616
Setting: On the UC Davis grounds, adjacent to the UC Davis Conference Center and across from the Mondavi Center for the Performing Arts.
This hotel has the strongest campus location on the list. Hyatt lists the property on the southeast side of campus, and the Arboretum sits close behind it. Parents coming for a Mondavi performance, a conference, or a campus tour on the south side of campus have the shortest walks here.
Rooms at Hyatt Place properties run large, with room to spread out after a day on campus. The property lists an outdoor pool and a 24 hour fitness center among its amenities.
Good fit for: Parents who want to stay on campus, attend a Mondavi Center event, and keep the car parked.
Address: 234 D Street, Davis, CA 95616
Setting: Downtown Davis, at 3rd and D Streets, in the walkable downtown district.
Palm Court puts you in the middle of downtown. Best Western describes the property as steps from UC Davis, the Davis Farmers Market, and the Mondavi Center, and the walk to the edge of campus is short from D Street. Restaurants, coffee, and shops fill the blocks around the hotel, and Cafe Bernardo sits inside the property.
The hotel is small and suite oriented. AAA lists 27 units, and Best Western lists suites with in room refrigerators and free Wi-Fi, with select rooms offering balconies. Parking uses a garage with limited spaces, per the property description.
Good fit for: Parents who want downtown dinners and a short walk to campus, and who plan to spend evenings in town with their student.
Address: 245 1st Street, Davis, CA 95616
Setting: Edge of downtown, along 1st Street, within walking distance of UC Davis and downtown restaurants.
Aggie Inn is part of the Ascend Hotel Collection from Choice Hotels. The property has 33 guest rooms, and AAA describes it as quiet, with a few cottage style suites with patios. Some rooms include kitchens, per AAA, and the property lists a fitness center.
I like this one for parents who want a smaller place. The scale feels calmer than a large chain hotel, and downtown is right there for breakfast and dinner. The cottages can suit a family that wants extra room across a longer stay.
Good fit for: Parents who prefer a small, quiet property near downtown, and families who want a cottage style suite.
Address: 123 B Street, Davis, CA 95616
Setting: Downtown Davis, close to restaurants and about 0.6 kilometers from the Davis Amtrak station, per lodging listings for the property.
A note on the name first: the property lists today as Best Western University Lodge. Older UC Davis pages call it University Lodge, and the two names refer to this same B Street hotel.
University Lodge is the straightforward downtown option. AAA lists 52 units across 2 stories with exterior corridors, and some rooms with kitchens. Lodging listings for the property include a pool and hot tub among the amenities. The location does the heavy lifting here. Campus, downtown, and the train station all sit within an easy walk.
Good fit for: Parents who want a practical downtown room with a short walk to the train.
Address: 1771 Research Park Drive, Davis, CA
Setting: Off Richards Boulevard, adjacent to Interstate 80, on the southwest side of Davis.
Full honesty first, because this guide only works if it levels with you: La Quinta is not great. The property feels outdated, and it sits at the low end of the Davis hotel spectrum. I rank it last among the five Davis hotels in this guide. Families pick it for price and location on weekends when the better rooms are gone, and expectations should match that.
The location does have real uses. Kayak lists the property about 0.4 miles from the Davis Amtrak station and about 1 mile from the UC Davis Conference Center. Drivers get easy Interstate 80 access, and train riders get a short walk or a quick ride from the station.
Lodging listings for the property include an outdoor pool and a hot tub. Check the current listing for breakfast and parking terms before you book. Check current prices for your dates too, since event weekends change the picture fast, and add this property to your first search when the downtown and campus rooms fill.
Good fit for: A short stay where price comes first, parents driving in on Interstate 80, and families who plan to spend their days on campus and downtown and mainly need a place to sleep.
I ride the Capitol Corridor, so the train shapes how I think about hotels here. The Davis station sits at 840 2nd Street in downtown Davis. Capitol Corridor lists downtown as a 2 minute walk from the station and UC Davis as a 10 minute walk, about 0.5 miles. The Mondavi Center is about 1 mile from the station.
That geography gives train riders three workable bases:
For the weekend itself, Davis rewards walking and biking. Campus, downtown, and the Arboretum connect on flat streets and paths, and most parent plans (tour, game, performance, dinner) sit inside that walkable core.
My rule is simple. As soon as I know the date, I book the room.
Prices follow the same pattern. Calm weekends price in a normal range for a college town, and the big weekends push Davis rooms toward that $300 a night mark I have paid. A lower price in an overflow town can still cost you time and a drive each day, so compare the full picture for your plans.
Sold out happens here, and nearby towns save the trip. All three options below need a car, and each one keeps you within a short drive of campus. Our full guide to landing in an overflow town walks through the whole playbook.
Woodland sits north of Davis on Highway 113. A Woodland hotel listing from Trip.com places one property 12.2 miles from UC Davis, and that distance gives you the right scale for the drive. Woodland has its own downtown with restaurants, and its hotels give you a second set of prices to compare for event weekends.
Dixon sits west of Davis along Interstate 80, about 8 miles from UC Davis, per Motel 6 and Expedia area guides. Dixon is the closest overflow town on this list, and its hotels cluster near the freeway. This is the first place I check when Davis fills, since the drive back into Davis for an early campus start stays short.
West Sacramento sits east of Davis along Interstate 80. Mapsof lists the drive at about 12.7 miles and about 15 minutes in normal conditions, and rideshare estimates run closer to 20 minutes. West Sacramento and the Sacramento side of the river give you the largest hotel supply in this area, plus Yolobus service between West Sacramento and Davis. Traffic on the causeway can slow the drive at peak times, so leave extra time for morning events.
Start with Davis, and start early. Pick campus side if your weekend centers on the Mondavi Center, a conference, or a south campus tour. Pick downtown if your weekend centers on dinners, the farmers market, and the train. Hold a cancellable rate when plans can move.
If Davis shows sold out or the prices sting, go to Dixon first, then Woodland, then West Sacramento, and plan the drive into campus each day.
I keep coming back because the trip itself is easy once the room is sorted. The train drops me downtown, campus is a short walk away, and the weekend can focus on my student. A good hotel choice makes that possible, and booking it early is the whole trick.