My kind of town...Santa Barbara is!
Written: Aug 19 '02
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Beautiful scenery and ideal climate!
Cons: on the expensive side...
The Bottom Line: This city is one of a kind! If you ever get the chance to visit here, you won't be disappointed!
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| gaelkm's Full Review: Santa Barbara |
This review is being written for those who would like to travel to Santa Barbara from the eyes of a resident.
Who, by now, hasn’t heard of Santa Barbara? Santa Barbara is one of the most popular places in the USA for travel destinations. When you come to California, you go to San Diego, to Los Angeles, to San Francisco and to Santa Barbara. They even had a soap opera back in the 1980’s called “Santa Barbara!”
Santa Barbara is called the "American Riviera" and for good reason. It is all about climate here.
This is one of the few places on earth that you do not need air conditioning. Very rarely is it necessary to use air conditioning in this area. Just don’t need it! Heaters are on in the wintertime, but even the coldest of days isn’t bad at all! (If people here complain about how cold it is, it’s just because they’re spoiled!)
Ok, now that the climate issue is settled, let me move on. We have established that the climate is one of the biggest reasons why Santa Barbara is so desirable. Where else can you go in June or July and be cool? The style here is casual. Bring along a sweater for the evening time.
Santa Barbara is situated between the Santa Ynez Mountains and the Pacific Ocean. You don’t even really need a car to get around, because there is so much to see within walking distance of the downtown area. (Buses and trolleys are available though and the trolley drivers have lots of history and anecdotes to tell!)
There is so much to see and do in Santa Barbara. The downtown is quite charming, with tons of shops, boutiques, outdoor cafes, movie theaters, etc., although on weekends it is very crowded! There are over 400 restaurants in the Santa Barbara County area, so you can see there is something for everyone’s taste! The lovely Courthouse consists of Spanish style architecture with a tower offering a panoramic view of the city!
There are also numerous hotels and motels and beds & breakfasts in every price range. New to Santa Barbara is the Bacara Resort, which caters to the rich and famous. We have everything here from the famous El Encanto, (where JFK & Jackie stayed on their honeymoon), to the Four Seasons Biltmore on down to the original, very first Motel 6!
Santa Barbara is well known for it’s high costs. Real estate is sky high here. Real estate purchases in this city appeal to celebrities and movie stars. The wealthy call Santa Barbara home. Over the years, yours truly has even spotted a few celebs at downtown restaurants on weeknights when restaurants are less crowded. (Oprah Winfrey recently purchased a home here, just a little getaway place, for about 20 million.)
You might be interested in learning that there is a large university here, the University of California, Santa Barbara with over 20,000 students, as well as an excellent junior college, Santa Barbara City College. Both campuses overlook the ocean and have break-taking views and excellent curriculum!
There are parks galore here, a bird refuge, a botanical garden and, of course, the Santa Barbara Mission. Fr. Junipero Serra, and the Franciscan friars, back in the late 1700’s came here and built this Mission. It is known as the “Queen of the Missions” and is something not to be missed. Across from the mission is the Rose Garden, featuring numerous varieties of roses.
Richard Henry Dana, in his book “Two Years Before the Mast” describes how he sailed to Santa Barbara when it consisted only of Spanish speaking and the Chumash Indian people. He saw the beauty of this region even then in it’s natural state.
I couldn’t be complete if I didn’t say something about the beaches here. One of the reasons why Santa Barbara stays so cool and balmy when much of the rest of California is scorching is because (and you can look on the map if you don’t believe me) the beaches face south, not west like most of the rest of California. The beaches here are beautiful, make for gorgeous sunsets and romantic walks at low tide. Santa Barbara is one of the most popular places in the country to get married too. (another is Hawaii). There is also Stearns Wharf in downtown Santa Barbara, a great place to take a walk out on, with shops and restaurants (and ‘validated’ parking) located at the end of the wharf.
Surrey bikes are available for rent to ride along the long and beautiful bike path that runs along the ocean on one side and East Beach Park on the other. I've seen many families enjoy these bikes built for 4! Also adjacent to East Beach is the weekend Arts and Crafts show. Parasailing, sailboating, hang-gliding, kayaking, tide pooling, rollerblading, fishing, and whale watching are all part of the lifestyle here.
Santa Barbara also boasts a wonderful Art Museum and a great Natural History Museum. The theaters here attract a wide array of venues. In the spring, there is the Independent Film Festival, which also attracts many celebrities and is usually sold out.
Farmer’s Market’s sets up three times each week; State Street, the main drag, closes down several blocks, just to sell fresh produce.
There are lots of bookstores for the book lover to peruse, a wonderful library, as well as symphonies and plays for those who love the theater.
Annually, people enjoy weekly various Ethnic Festivals (Irish, Greek, French) throughout the summer at Oak Park.
One can savor the food, culture, dance, jewelry, and books of that particular weekend! My favorite is the Irish festival. Every year in June, I try to go to see Irish dancing, sample Guinness Stout, and hear traditional Irish music.
The Big Dog Parade is also held in June, and the Fiesta Parade, which is a celebration of “Old Spanish Days” in Santa Barbara and happens the first weekend of each August, the annual Summer Solstice Parade (held, well, every Summer Solstice, around June 20), “I Madonnari” (beautiful Italian chalk paintings) at the Mission each Memorial Day, Children’s Christmas Parade, the Lemon Festival and Avocado Festival, both held in October. Let’s see, did I leave out any fruits or vegetables we don’t celebrate? There is also the Orchid Show, which takes place in March and last, but not least, the Harbor Parade of Lights in which boats are decorated with Christmas lights and parade around the Harbor! It’s a sight to see, done in California style!
The downtown is in the style of Spanish architecture complete with tile rooftops and adobe buildings (which was a concentrated effort when the town was destroyed by earthquake back in 1925…up until that time the downtown was a mish-mash of style and design). There is an old Spanish Presidio, and El Cuartel, which is the oldest existing adobe and which also was recently restored in the center of the downtown and is now preserved for sightseeing as an important part of Santa Barbara’s history.
Golf courses: don’t worry, there are plenty of golf courses for the golf enthusiast and the courses views are breathtaking too. Even the municipal golf course is gorgeous!
Both on the north and south sides of Santa Barbara are some of the best campsites you can find. Many families stake out their spots along the ocean bluffs. El Capitan and Carpinteria State Beaches are just two that are very popular.
North of Santa Barbara is the Santa Ynez Valley, which is becoming world-renowned for some of the best grapes grown for wines available. (Fellow Epinionator 4-1-1 has thoroughly reviewed some of the wonderful wines that come from the Santa Ynez Valley.)
Santa Barbara is located approximately one and a half hours north of Los Angeles along the 101 freeway.
For more information: please contact the Santa Barbara Chamber of Commerce at:
www.sbchamber.org
or the Santa Barbara Visitor’s Bureau at:
www.santabarbaraCA.com
Hope you enjoy and have fun!
NOTE: I was born and raised in the Midwest, (in or near the cities of Cleveland, Chicago and Philadelphia), but for the past 20 years, I have called the Santa Barbara area "home", but until I just "wrote it all down", I didn’t realize just how much there is to do here.
Recommended:
Yes
Best Suited For: Couples
Best Time to Travel Here: Anytime
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