Ranch Motel

Okay okay. So it was Friday the 13^th when we landed in Tehachapi around midnight when this happened which may or may not matter– but I specifically remember seeing completely different reviews about this place in doing some research on the road. It has different pictures, and was reviewed as a «cute mom and pop» place. The pictures weren’t that clear, but it seemed clean and simple. Perfect, we just need to sleep and hit the road in the morning. Done and done. We get there and, although the office had a creepy buzzing light tiny room vibe going, a sweet man came out to greet us. He seemed as unaware about the place as we did. He explained that ownership just changed hands yesterday and that it was «cash only, $ 70» while the systems get switched. Kind of weird… but alright, we’re sleepy and just want be done with the day. He gives us the keys for the room and we make our way across the dark wide field since there was no other driveway up front. We arrive in what looks like a jail cell with a few doilies if they were allowed in the vicinity. There was a ring of white powder on the floor and a jar of something weird by it. We are too freaked out to look since I was focused on the eerie door with no door handle just across me. The room was hot and stuffy– the heater has been running and it was a 70 degree night. There’s no other way to air out the room besides leaving the windows open– and having an experience with some man rando wiggling his way through my window while I was sleeping a few years back has left me pretty scarred and paranoid. As my boyfriend and I contemplate if we are going to stay, we pull back the sheets on the creaky bed to at least lay down and mull over our options. We find black wax all over the top sheet and all I could think about was how perfect the scenario played out on Friday the 13^th, nice one universe. We were both jeebed out to the point were we just fled in the night without looking back.
Two stars only for the sweet man that maybe has no idea what he just got himself into. He was even surprised when he opened the door, which is kinda funny, but what can you do. If you’re in for a 70 dollar thrill, I’d say go for it.

Response to Antonella B. review:
First of all, our motel is very clean. You had ants in your room because you had food crumbs and spilt coffee all over your room and furniture. Why do you think you are the only one’s to complain about ants! Secondly, after your first stay we asked that you keep the food mess picked up because you left the room a terrible mess. If you would learn to respect other people’s property, maybe you would have a better experience.

This place doesn’t even deserve a one star first the price is not worth it for the room we got, when we got in the room there were ants we complained the lady just rolled her eyes at us that was management !!! Then once we woke up there were ants everywhere we had to clean the room up are selves we paid 76.00 when the last time it was 60.00 totally not worth it we will never stay here again

This place is very basic, but it is clean and peaceful. Lawn chairs have been added since an earlier review, and the open field across the street and nursery next door give it a kind of quaint bucolic feeling, tucked away on a side street away from downtown Tehachapi and the noise of the train. No coffee makers or hot water for tea inside the rooms, but there is early morning coffee served in the tiny management office. Does come with microwave and fridge. The married couple who were managing the place, Jason and Nicole, were helpful and pleasant.
I would definitely stay here again, and the price is right for a budget conscious traveler.

I was raised in Tehachapi and always heard about this place — the comments were always negative. However, recently I was home for a short visit and needed a place to stay that was within walking distance to a nearby wedding. This place was fine — yes, it’s older, but the bed was comfortable and the room was clean. The only recommendations I would have for the owners would to be to put in ceiling fans, add black-​out curtains, and put a table and chair on the front lawn. Overall, not a bad place for a quick night sleep.

We ended up in Tehachapi one dark night, a good few years ago now. I was a little concerned with recommending another one of these Old Skool motels that I love for us to stay in, after a horrendous experience we had in a similarly old and cool motel in Reno, that turned out to be 90% tweaker and one tourist family (us, and we escaped it at midnight).
The Ranch Motel, in my memory, was clean, cheap, and near enough to Downtown Tehachapi to walk there. The cowboy dude running the place was suitably reticent. I hate the «Chatty Cathy» motel staff type. We left with our privacy intact.

My review is based on a stay from 4 yrs ago so I’m not sure if they have made any greatly needed changes.
When checking in no joke a hills have eyes looking character came to the window and rang me up giving me my key but he wasn’t too talkative. First thing I noticed was this place hadn’t been touched up in 20+ yrs which was fine since it was super cheap. The hugest issue and I mean «Huge» issue was when I pulled back the bed sheets and saw pubic hairs which says the cleaning staff didn’t even turn the sheets.
I understand they are running a low cost Motel but at least clean the sheets! Another thing was around 7am I heard someone in the room behind ours getting ready for school or work and blasting music by J-​Lo which sucked cuzz it was J-​Lo and it was coming right thru the bathroom wall like they were paper thin.
Note:This place must rent out the whole back side not visible from the street to persons that don’t have an apartment or permanent residence because the back is full of junky cars and people hanging around.
Me and my wife personally try to find the comedic side of everything in life but the pubes, Hills have eyes guy and butt load of residents on the other side literally makes this place the worst place we have ever stayed at. It was super embarrassed to me since I grew up in Tehachapi and my wife thought she was gonna die that night since all the creepers from the backside were walked around like zombies and the lock on the door wasn’t working too great.
Stay here if you only have $ 40 or go to another place in the $ 100 range with free wifi and breakfast.
3 stars because of the pubes, wacky lock on door and zombie people living on the backside.

Interesting spot. It’s old and kinda divey, but if you’re not expecting too much it’s a nice place to spend a couple nights. The shower was pretty bad, but other than that the room was quite comfortable. Nice lawn out front.
It’s a couple blocks off Main Street, and thus away from the noise of the freight trains coming through at all hours.
Cheap and kinda charming in its own way.

Um no. There was a problem with the lock and I got a different key. After I’m in my room, I see the door jam is broken like someone tried to bust down the door.
Someone tagged the headboard which made me feel creepy. I don’t need much in the way of hotel rooms but this place is not good.

haha, this place is something interesting. If you want to stay somewhere that you can barter the price down and get a room for cheap go here. it ain’t a 4 seasons, but its better then the park. Ive been twice and the staff were very nice and catered to my needs, but like I said, its on the lower end of what one would expect from a Motel, thats what I kinda like about it though. In my opinion it is safe (both for your car and personally), which is very nice.

Why oh WHY isn’t a zero star rating allowed!!! I mean… NO…Hell to the NO with this place. It looks like it might have been ‘quaint’ quite a few years back, but it is a dirty little sh^&%olé now! The bathroom looked liked a ding dang ol’ gas station rest stop forgotten about for years and years and forget about the smelly rest of the room and the dirtiness. The woman working there and the one guest I saw both looked like they were hooked on something awful. BAD BAD BAD. Stay AWAY! Tehachapi is a weird little place, but this piece of it is just n a s t y !