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Travel guide
Santa Barbara
4 days · 8 things to do
Best time to go: April to June and September to October
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Welcome
Santa Barbara, in a few days
A city of 88,000 people squeezed between the Santa Ynez Mountains and the Pacific, rebuilt entirely in Spanish Colonial style after the 1925 earthquake: white walls, red tiles, patios and a Franciscan mission from 1786. 45 minutes away lie the pinot noir vineyards of the Santa Ynez Valley; offshore, the wild islands of a national park reached by boat.
- Day by day
- D1 Day 1 3 things
- D2 Day 2 3 things
- D3 Day 3 1 thing
- D4 Day 4 1 thing
- Worth sorting before you go
- Words that help
- The practical page
- Packing checklist
The trip
Day by day
Map of the sights (numbers follow the suggested order). It prints with the base map.
D1
Day 1
3 things to do · at your own pace
- Morning · Santa Barbara County Courthouse free · about 1 hA working courthouse completed in 1929, one of the finest public buildings in the country, with Andalusian arcades, painted ceilings, the Mural Room and a clock tower giving 360-degree views.
- Afternoon · Funk Zone free · 2 to 3 hA former warehouse district between the freeway and the beach, now the heart of the Urban Wine Trail, with some twenty winery tasting rooms, murals, breweries and galleries.
- Late afternoon · Old Mission Santa Barbara · about 1 h 30The tenth of California's 21 Franciscan missions, founded in 1786, with a twin-towered church of 1820, a small museum, a cemetery where thousands of Chumash lie and gardens overlooking the ocean.
🛏️ Where to sleep · Kimpton Canary Hotel ↗ · All places to stay by budget →€330 a night
D2
Day 2
3 things to do · at your own pace
- Morning · Stearns Wharf free · about 1 hThe oldest working wharf in California, built in 1872 at the foot of State Street, lined with seafood restaurants and offering views of the bay, the mountains and the islands.
- Afternoon · Lotusland · about 2 hThe 15-hectare Montecito garden created from 1941 by the Polish opera singer Ganna Walska, a series of themed gardens with spectacular cacti and succulents, visited by reservation only.
- Late afternoon · Inspiration Point free · 2 to 3 hA rocky lookout in the Santa Ynez Mountains, 5.6 km round trip from Tunnel Road, climbing through chaparral to sandstone slabs with views over the city, the coast and the islands.
🛏️ Where to sleep · Kimpton Canary Hotel ↗€330 a night
D3
Day 3
1 thing to do · at your own pace
- All day · Solvang and the Santa Ynez Valley free · a full dayA valley of ranches, oaks and dozens of wineries made famous by Sideways, with the Danish town of Solvang, founded in 1911, its windmills and bakeries, and the 1804 Mission Santa Inés.
🛏️ Where to sleep · Kimpton Canary Hotel ↗€330 a night
D4
Day 4
1 thing to do · at your own pace
- All day · Channel Islands National Park · a full dayFive wild islands with no roads or hotels, reached by boat from Ventura, where Santa Cruz offers cliff trails, sea caves to explore by kayak and the island fox found nowhere else.
Before you go
Worth sorting before you go
📶 eSIM data
Online the moment you land, no roaming bill.
Get one · Holafly
Online the moment you land, no roaming bill.
Get one · Holafly
🛡️ Travel insurance
Health, luggage, cancellation.
Cover it · Ekta
Health, luggage, cancellation.
Cover it · Ekta
💳 Fee-free card
Pay at the real rate, with no exchange markup.
Open one · Revolut
Pay at the real rate, with no exchange markup.
Open one · Revolut
🚐 Airport transfer
A private car at a fixed price from the moment you land.
Book it · GetTransfer
A private car at a fixed price from the moment you land.
Book it · GetTransfer
Some links are partner links: we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you.
Good to know
Flavours & local habits
🍽️ Worth tasting
- Burgers and barbecue: brisket and ribs cooked low and slow, done differently in every state.
- Clam chowder in a sourdough bread bowl: the classic lunch on the San Francisco waterfront.
- Mexican food: tacos from a truck in Los Angeles, a Mission burrito in San Francisco.
- Pancakes and weekend brunch: a national habit, generous to the point of excess.
- Craft beer, and California wine from Napa and Sonoma.
⚠️ Best avoided
- Tipping is not optional: add 15 to 20% in restaurants and bars.
- Prices on menus and in shops exclude sales tax, which is added at the till.
- Do not plan more than four or five hours of driving a day: the distances are larger than they look on the map.
- Never travel without health insurance. A night in hospital can cost thousands of dollars.
- In summer, do not hike down into the Grand Canyon in the heat of the day: the climb back out is where people get into trouble.
Getting by
Words that help
🗣️ English is the main language here, so there is nothing to learn by heart.
The essentials
The practical page
CurrencyUS dollar (USD, $)
BudgetAbout €235 a day, mid-range
Best seasonApril to June and September to October
PlugA/B · 120V
Tap waterSafe to drink
Tipping15 to 20%, expected
Emergency911
EntryUK, Australian and most EU passports need an ESTA, applied for online before departure, for stays of up to 90 days; a few EU countries sit outside the Visa Waiver Program and need a full visa. Canadians need neither, only a passport. Anyone who has been to Cuba since January 2021 cannot use an ESTA and must apply for a visa.
HealthNo vaccination required. Keep tetanus, diphtheria and polio up to date; hepatitis A is worth considering if you eat well off the tourist trail. In the desert parks, the heat is the real risk.
Scan to open this guide online, always up to date.
https://offwegooo.com/en/guides/santa-barbara
Don't forget
Packing checklist
Have a good trip.
Guide made on offwegooo.com · Photos via Pexels · Details are indicative, check before you leave.