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This beautiful, eco-friendly guest house in the Berkeley Hills is a serene refuge for visitors from around the world. Most guests rent ONE OR TWO ROOMS ONLY*, sharing the house with the innkeeper and enjoying B&B ambiance along with full access to our gorgeous kitchen! There's room for your favorite groceries. Make yourself a cup of Peet's delicious coffee or a pot of tea; some guests make breakfast and are gone for the day; others head out first thing to join family, friends, or local foodies for all their yummy meals; and a lucky few are here when the organic garden harvest is in!
Guests find this haven surprisingly peaceful as well as convenient; we're just a block away from the restaurants and shops in Kensington Village, two miles north of UC Berkeley, and a five-minute drive to the...This beautiful, eco-friendly guest house in the Berkeley Hills is a serene refuge for visitors from around the world. Most guests rent ONE OR TWO ROOMS ONLY*, sharing the house with the innkeeper and enjoying B&B ambiance along with full access to our gorgeous kitchen! There's room for your favorite groceries. Make yourself a cup of Peet's delicious coffee or a pot of tea; some guests make breakfast and are gone for the day; others head out first thing to join family, friends, or local foodies for all their yummy meals; and a lucky few are here when the organic garden harvest is in!
Guests find this haven surprisingly peaceful as well as convenient; we're just a block away from the restaurants and shops in Kensington Village, two miles north of UC Berkeley, and a five-minute drive to the Gourmet Ghetto.
We offer two (occasionally three) sleeping rooms, a stunning kitchen, a view of the GG Bridge on a clear day, a beautiful art collection, and a lovely, restful garden with organic fruit, veggies, and herbs. Since doing a deep green renovation in 2006, we've hosted many grateful guests with chemical and fragrance sensitivities. To accommodate them, we ask that ALL guests refrain from bringing any scented personal care products or we will store them away from the living quarters during your stay. We provide unscented soap, shampoo, conditioner, hair styling lotion, shaving cream, after-shave, and body lotion at no extra charge.
From time to time, the entire home is available for up to 6 guests.*
We've been hosting guests since 2000 — from 25 countries to date! — and are happy to recommend restaurants, offer guidance (for everything from nature walks and sightseeing to massage therapists and realtors), and provide maps of the entire Bay Area.
*The rate on the listing is only for 2 in the Asia Suite, NOT the whole house. The current rates are as follows:
- Asia Suite, $135/nt + $75 cleaning. Queen bed plus ensuite bath. Add $20/nt for a twin Aerobed and $40/nt for a queen Aerobed.
- Library, $110/nt + $50 cleaning. Queen bed, shared bath (in Asia Suite if renting together; hall bath if renting separately).
- Treehouse, $125/nt + $75 cleaning. Queen bed, shared bath.
- Whole house (occasionally available), $400 and up + $250 cleaning. Nightly rate depends on number of guests and dates desired.
You'll find more detailed information at our hillshomestay dot com website.
Tourist License / Licencia de turismo N °: ZCSTR2018-0096
House Rules
Pets not allowedKid friendlyNo smoking
Guests really relax and sleep deeply in this peaceful refuge. Many note the quiet here, despite being so close to all the pleasures of the SF Bay Area!
- Quiet hours are 10 pm-8 am
- Shoes off at the door; bring your own slippers or borrow a pair
- Unscented personal care products only! We provide high-quality, fragrance-free hand & body soap, shampoo, conditioner, shaving cream & aftershave to protect our sensitive guests
- No pets
- No smokers, illegal drugs, or drinking beyond moderation
"We had a delightful time in your lovely and welcoming home! Love the light and airy feeling, and the beautiful views from each window. Each time we walked through the front garden, we noticed a plant or flower we hadn’t seen before! So comfy and pleasant!” When getting to and from, use other streets such Euclid versus Marin that google maps takes you. Kensington Inn, a short walk, is good for a meal, the cheese shop is great for specialty foods and gifts. Plenty of on street parki ping.
Visited May 2016 Traveled with family
Written May 26, 2016. This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
Zosia1
Honolulu, HI1 contribution
Comfort in the City
What a fabulous guest house and host! Terry really took care of us. I had a recent ice skating accident prior to arrival and both of my wrists were in braces. This handicap made travel really challenging for us. Terry saw this and went out of her way to help with all matters. Her home is so welcoming, beautifully appointed and with every comfort addressed. It is conveniently located and in a safe and lovely neighborhood. Thank you, Terry for all that you did to make our stay so wonderful.
Visited December 2015 Traveled as a couple
Written January 4, 2016. This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
Rasha A
Bahrain1 contribution
The greatest asset of staying in this home is its' owner
My husband, my daughter and I stayed here for about 3 weeks in August, 2015. Although we didn't need the chemical free environment and in fact it initially seemed impossible for us to get our rubbish sorted correctly in line with the recycling guidelines practised in the house we ended up appreciating both it and the enviroment-friendly practices. So much so that I actually purchased, for the first time ever, a natural laundry detergent and I seriously considered using dryer balls instead of the usual chemicals laden fabric softeners. I am grateful to Terry for providing us with the information we needed to help us set up our daughter who was an incoming international freshman at UC, Berkeley. She gave very sound advice on a lot of things including the best mattress topper for a university dorm-bed, how to use the BART ( the local train service) and sororities related advice to my daughter. She will take it upon herself to research information on behalf of her guests without them having to ask.
My daughter and I are very close and it was very difficult for me to leave her in a place 8000 miles away from home. Most of all, I am grateful to Terry for her authoritative yet friendly and insightful demeanor which helped ease both my daughter's anxieties and my endless worrying. She took it upon herself to drive both my daughter and I to her university accommodation before the planned move-in date just to help relieve her fears.
When she learnt from my husband that I enjoy going to the theatre and listening to classical music while he doesn't, she arranged for her and I to do both.
It was our first ever experience of sharing a stranger's home. Little did I know that by the end of our stay, saying goodbye to this stranger would feel more like leaving behind a dear family member.
So yes, although I agree with all of the other reviewers that the home is comfortable and very nicely furnished, to me the greatest asset of staying in Terry's house is Terry herself.
Visited August 2015
Written September 10, 2015. This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
Scott S
3 contributions
Terry's home provided a wonderful holding for my friends and me.
Three of my friends and I stayed with Terry while we participated in a spiritual retreat in Berkeley. Her home and her presence provided a wonderful holding for us to return to each evening. I'm very appreciative of the experience.
Visited November 2014 Traveled with friends
Written December 3, 2014. This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
lavienrose1492
Tokyo Prefecture, Japan57 contributions
Heavenly experience !
My husband planned to visit UC Berkeley in August 2014 during which he wanted to spend most of the time in reading and writing at home other than the appointed meeting. As such, our needs were somewhat different from those of other holiday makers and the last minute booking in the holiday season was very difficult among downtown holiday apartments which had been actually fully booked. I eventually found NBHH which is a guesthouse outside the downtown but this turned out to be fortunate of us. Terry was very quick and conscientious in responding to my inquiries before and during our two-week stay which became a heavenly experience for us. We liked her house which is charmingly decorated by her selection of artworks giving peaceful and serene ambience. Terry was quite helpful in providing more-than-expected information as well as attentive in spotting our needs and interests. She booked Chez Panisse for us and spent her time taking us to a local farm, farmer’s market celebration, supermarkets and a picnic concert in San Francisco, each of which could have never been easily accessible for visitors like us. Soon we liked North Berkeley much more than the downtown, because of nice neighborhood, peaceful environment and stunning view of the bay area which we enjoyed like locals. Do I want to return? Yes, indeed, we actually re-booked Terry’s house rescheduling the rest of our itinerary.
Visited August 2014 Traveled as a couple
Written August 21, 2014. This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
MSB1980
Asheville, NC21 contributions
Excellent stay ... highly recommend!
Our stay with Terry was a very pleasant experience. We were in Berkeley looking for an apartment and she was very helpful in our search. She worked closely with us to help identify the best areas to live and what the price range of each area should be. When we found a place to live, she was very helpful with information about where we would could go to furnish our new living space. During our five day stay, she was very friendly and approachable, answering any and all questions we had. She also went above and beyond to help us get rental applications filled and submitted late at night. We highly recommend staying with Terry!
Visited July 2014 Traveled with family
Written August 11, 2014. This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
Jill O
Lakewood, OH1 contribution
Home Away from Home
A warm, comfortable and welcoming home-away-from-home environment created by an equally warm and gracious owner, Terri....I visit Berkeley 2-3 times a year, have stayed in various places and have found my new second "home" in this lovely hillside spot. Thank you, Terri, for sharing your sacred space and the persimmon chutney was delicious! See you soon.
Visited November 2013
Written December 3, 2013. This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
Gina -:- South Dakota
Nice homestay.
The innkeeper, Terry is friendly and offers helpful travel information. The home is clean and in a nice neighborhood (be prepared to bus, hoof or rent a car, it's up in the hills!) I enjoyed the walk to Bart, the quite retreat and meeting the other guest. Great stay if you are comfortable sharing a kitchen and bath!
Visited October 2012
Written October 11, 2012. This review is the subjective opinion of an individual traveler and not of Tripadvisor LLC nor of its partners. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
Please note that the Asia Suite has a private, en suite bath. When the lower-cost Library and Treehouse, where this guest stayed, are both booked, guests know in advance that they will share a bath. We are exploring adding another!
Written October 11, 2012. This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Duhita Samaiyar -:- Dubai, UAE
A warm,comfortable stay in a beautiful neighbourhood
Our stay at Nbhh was wonderful - truly a home away from home! Terry was like family and did all she could to ensure we had a warm and comfortable experience in every way. She is a great resource and her recommendations regarding all our needs were spot on. Her charming home is located in a beautiful neighbourhood, it was quiet and restful but also has convenient access to UC Berkeley and the Bart.We will certainly be back - it was all I expected and more!
Visited September 2012
Written September 28, 2012. This review is the subjective opinion of an individual traveler and not of Tripadvisor LLC nor of its partners. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
María -:- Madrid, Spain
Pleasant stay!
We stayed here for 16 days in august 2012. The asian Suite and the Library were perfect for the four of us. We had very good days, really pleasant while we arranged the stay of my daughter at the University. The host Terry is fantastic and her hospitability great. She helped us with wathever we needed. Thanks Terry!
The home is very comfortable, very nice furnished and situated in a lovely neighbourhood. It is well comunicated by buses to downtown Berkeley and also there is a short walk to Tilden Park, but it´s better having a car; no problem to park it. House rules include taking your shoes off when entering and using non-sence bath products which was fine with us. We felt welcome to share the kitchen and comun areas with Terry. We were glad having chat with her and watching TV toghether.
Hope to go back soon!
Visited August 2012
Written September 4, 2012. This review is the subjective opinion of an individual traveler and not of Tripadvisor LLC nor of its partners. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
The North Berkeley Hills Homestay is tucked away in a charming residential neighborhood just below beautiful Tilden Park, a block from wonderful restaurants and shops in Kensington Village, one mile from North Berkeley's best shopping street (Solano Avenue), two miles north of UC Berkeley, and a five-minute drive to the Gourmet Ghetto. We are 30-45 minutes from SF and a little more than an hour from Napa, Muir Woods, and other favorite Bay Area sights.
In Tilden Park, you'll find great hiking trails, the Brazil Building, petting zoo, carousel and steam train. It's an easy walk to two AC transit bus routes (#7 and #67), one that goes directly downtown, the other to UC Berkeley, and street parking is plentiful; there are no time limits and no need to move for street sweeping.
There are more Nobel Prize laureates in this zip code and the one next door than anywhere in the world, so even casual conversations here can be very enlightening!
Access
Car not needed
Things to know
Check in / out timings
Check in after 4 PM • Check out by 10 AM
Cancellation policy
100% refund within 24 hours after booking (provided the stay is at least 60 days away).
50% refund* if you cancel at least 8 weeks before check-in
25% refund* if you cancel at least 4 weeks before check-in
No refund available if you cancel thereafter
*Booking fee is excluded from refund amount
Notes from owner
Whole house rates for 1-6 guests (9when available, 14-night minimum stay): $450/nt, 30% discount for 30+ nts
$250 cleaning fee
Asia Suite rates for 1-2 people:
$145/night
$75 cleaning fee
For an additional 1-2 people, add the Library
$115/nt
$50 cleaning fee
A 12% short-term rental tax, required by the City of Berkeley, is added to your total.
About this property
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