Ellwood Butterfly Preserve and Beach
Magical eucalyptus forest by the beach where monarch butterflies come seasonally.
La Arcada
A Spanish paseo and courtyard with archways, little lights, flags, murals, lifelike statues, and fountains. At night, a magical spot!
Stow Grove Park
A redwood forest that looks like Northern California, with a playground and spacious knolly lawn.
Stearns Wharf, The Pier
The main pier in Santa Barbara, which offers spectacular views and a festive atmosphere!
Santa Barbara City College Cliff Walk
A huge green lawn looking out over the bright blue ocean and Leadbetter Beach.
El Capitan Beach
A wonderful beach framed by rolling hills and meadow-covered cliffs. Great for swimming in summer!
Camino Real Marketplace, Goleta
Sit here on a red brick terrace in the sun and look out on the colored umbrellas and bell tower.
Cabrillo Bike Path and Skater's Point
A popular bike path along the shoreline with bright beach succulents and rows of perfect California palms!
La Mesa Park
A park high above the ocean with lots of shade, cool sea breezes, a eucalyptus grove, and a playground!
Shoreline Park
Peek over the high cliffs at little coves below, look out over Santa Barbara harbor, and sit on a whale's tail!
UCSB Campus, Lagoon, and Beach
A walk past grassy knolls, a shimmering lagoon, and picturesque bluffs above the ocean, all in the vibrant atmosphere of campus!
Padaro Beach Grill, Carpinteria
"Kid-friendly" doesn't even begin to describe how blissful this restaurant is for parents!!
Mission Rose Garden
Picture-perfect rose gardens, below a grassy green hill across the street from where the Santa Barbara Mission stands.
Jelly Bowl Beach, Carpinteria
A secluded beach with golden bluffs, little birds running along the shore, a surfer or two, and forest behind.
Playgrounds Rock Climbing Area
Paradise of boulders and climbable rock wall up in the Santa Ynez mountains.
Santa Claus Lane Beach
A long perfect beach popular with locals! The water stays shallow for ages making it nice for kids!
La Purisima Mission, Lompoc
A salmon-pink mission set among gorgeous countryside with little rooms that transport you to the 1820s.
Alice Keck Park Gardens
A park of exquisite beauty, with flowering trees and a picnic lawn fronting a pond full of turtles and koi.
El Capitan Canyon Concerts
Bonfire to roast marshmallows, fun live music, tons of dancing couples and kids under the stars...
Our Lady of Mt Carmel Church, Montecito
Gorgeous Southwestern-style church in a cute area of Montecito.
El Presidio and Raffour House
A walk amongst Santa Barbara's colonial history and beautiful Spanish-Moorish architecture.
Labyrinth Trail, UCSB
Bluff-top trail full of flowers in the spring. Lovely rugged beach and lagoon below.
Santa Barbara Courthouse
An exceptionally beautiful courthouse, sunken garden, and tower with 360 degree views of Santa Barbara.
Ellwood Bluffs Walk
Stunning views from cliffs above the sea, and a wide expanse of land criss-crossed with trails.
Music Academy of the West, Montecito
Montecito estate with magical gardens, summer-only music school, and year-round concerts.
Summerland Beach and Lookout Park
A curved beach and a clifftop park with playground and picnic tables.
Public Market and Arlington Theater
SB Public Market is a hip indoor space with cafes, and outdoor seating by a Spanish courtyard with views of quaint Victoria Court.
Funk Zone, Santa Barbara
Hip area with wine bars, cafes, and bakeries, where you can sit on a patio surrounded by ivy-covered walls.
Santa Barbara Harbor sea wall walk
Stroll to the end of the breakwater while waves tumble over the sea wall! Sip a pomegranate margarita at an attractive bar!
Coal Oil Point and Sands Beach
A walk along a clifftop to a popular surfing area with gorgeous sand dunes and exotic plants.
Hendry's Beach
A popular beach with families and dog owners. Come for a long walk under beautiful cliffs.
Tomol Interactive Playground, Carpinteria
Modern playground with Chumash Indian huts and canoe, seals and whales to climb, roller slide, rainbow bridge, and bald eagle in a nest.
Solvang town
A Danish-American town that has become a bit of a tourist trap, but is charming nonetheless.
Paseo Nuevo Mall
A pedestrian-only area on State Street with sidewalk cafes, good shopping, and colorful Spanish architecture.
La Cumbre Mall
A pretty mall filled with flower pots and giant sized games, with views of the mountains and plenty of stores for kids!
East Cota Street Architecture
Whimsical masterpiece townhouses of vibrant colors, white-washed curves, and exquisite details, plus a Saturday farmer's market.
Pacific Surfliner Train Ride
It's fun to take your kids on a train ride through town and past the beach.
Chase Palm Park
A remarkably pretty planned park with a stream that runs through it, lots of plants, an imaginative Spanish playground, and whale statues that spout water!
Crushcakes cottage, Goleta
Cute Craftsman cottage with a bakery inside! Sunny outdoor patio with lime tree.
Lane Farms Pumpkin Patch
A nice way to get in the harvest spirit- giant pumpkins of many colors, corn maze, hay rides, farm animals, hay to throw, and display garden.
Waller Park, Santa Maria
Huge park that feels like a retreat in the woods- playgrounds and pond with ducks!
Sheffield Reservoir Walk
Walk in wide open spaces past boulders and flowers with views of historic Spanish-style water reservoir and mountains.
Willowglen Park
A neighborhood park with close-up views of the mountains. large lawn, playground, autumn trees, and bridge over creek to school.
Sunny Fields Playground, Solvang
A wooden castle playground with gingerbread house, medieval towers, slides, bridges, monkey bars, rope bars, swings of all sorts, mist maker, viking ship, windmill, wild west town, rock-climbing wall, and tire swing.
Sunstone Winery, Santa Ynez
An organic winery with mountain views, garden patio, and exquisite Spanish-style cellar.
Chumash Casino and Pow Wow
A bit of Las Vegas in Santa Barbara! Great concerts but smoky casino. Picturesque pow wow each year in Live Oak Park.
Mesa Lane Steps and Edgewater Way Walk
Steep stairs lead down, down, down to a lovely ribbon beach backed by high cliffs.
Isla Vista Town and Beach
Isla Vista is where many UCSB students live, often ten or more in one beach house. It's a lively town where you can see some wacky sights!
Hilda Ray Park
On top of a hill overlooking Santa Barbara, a little playground and some picnic tables!
Hans Christian Andersen Park, Solvang
A beautiful pine-filled park with two playgrounds and a skate park.
Figueroa Mountain Road, Los Olivos
Scenic country road with hills covered in wildflowers and happy cows grazing.
Quicksilver Ranch, Solvang
Farm with miniature horses in a gorgeous setting. Drive by to admire the horses!
Douglas Family Preserve
Sweeping ocean views from high up on the cliffs and a lovely walk where dogs get to run free.
Butterfly Beach
Beautiful beach with dark golden cliffs, a small boardwalk that's romantic at night, and visits by dolphins!
Loreto Plaza
Italian restaurant with delicious gelato, independent bookstore, and excellent French bakery, plus castle tower and view of the mountains.
Rattlesnake Cyn Hike and the Cookie Monster Rock
A beautiful hike above a stream, that leads to Cookie Monster Rock!
Manning Park, Montecito
A green sloped lawn with huge, healthy pines that shade you, picnic areas with hanging vines, and a toddler playground.
Carpinteria Seal Rookery, and Clifftop Walk
In winter, see the harbor seals play below the cliffs. All year, walk the trail above the cliffs.
Santa Barbara Maritime Museum
A maritime museum at Santa Barbara Harbor that keeps kids and adults busy learning for hours!
Preisker Park, Santa Maria
Large park with gazebo beside a lake with a fountain in the middle, pirate ship, manmade river, playground with huge slides, grassy hills galore, and pine trees.
Nojoqui Falls Walk, Solvang
Twenty-minute wooded hike that leads to a high waterfall over mossy walls.
Mission Santa Barbara
Beautiful Spanish-Indian architecture, a chapel, a view of the ocean and rose garden, and a museum.
Santa Barbara Sea Center, Stearns Wharf
Small aquarium with beautiful jellies, touch tanks, and an opening to the sea floor!
Santa Barbara Zoo
Unusual animals, delightful landscaping, stunning views, train ride through forest, and kids' play hill!
El Carro Park, Carpinteria
Gorgeous mountain panorama, playground with four large slides, swings, grassy knolls, and plenty of shade.
Coast Route Bike Path
Bike alongside a bubbling creek, surrounded by tall trees, without the noise or fumes of cars, all the way from Hope Ranch, past Goleta Beach and UCSB, to Isla Vista!
Hope Ranch Scenic Drive
A drive along roads lined with hundreds of canary palms, through an old oak forest, past a clifftop lookout, amongst multimillion-dollar homes.
River View Park, Buellton
Highly planned park with great landscaping and curvy paths plus two super playgrounds!
Gorilla Playground, UCSB campus
Playground with three gorilla sculptures kids can climb, twisty slide, many stepping stones, steering wheels, bouncing bridge, and rope climby.
Guadalupe Dunes, Santa Maria
Wild, windswept dunes where the set of the Ten Commandments lays mysteriously buried.
Lompoc Flowers, Town, and Beach
Summertime flower fields, mountains, rocket launches, a beach (often closed), and a wonderful mission.
Santa Maria Town Center Indoor Mall
Indoor mall with Claire's, Macy's, Journeys shoe store, trampoline and arcade places, and a movie theater. Cars for kids.
Girsh Park
A large grassy park with rows of flowers, a playground with rock arch to climb, and sports fields.
Saint Raphael Church, Goleta
A sweet place to stop to light a candle with your child and say a prayer of thanks.
South Coast Railroad Museum, Goleta
A ton of fun for kids on family days- steam and diesel engine rides, two model railroad exhibits with tiny towns of Santa Barbara and Goleta, and hand caboose.
Santa Barbara Natural History Museum
A small museum set in a Spanish-style building by a creek, with a netted garden of 1,000 butterflies in the summer.
Susan Quinlan Doll & Teddy Bear Museum
Museum with thousands of dolls and teddy bears arranged beautifully in glass display cases. Some delight you with memories from your childhood!
Toro Canyon Park
A rugged wilderness area in a canyon, with rows upon rows of picnic tables for large gatherings.
Tucker's Grove and nearby Greek Church
A popular playground for little kids, with shady picnic areas. Nearby at a Greek Church, pretend you're on an island in Greece...
Rocky Nook Park
Wooded park with lots of private picnic areas, a playground, a flowing creek, wonderful boulders for kids to climb, and a short hike.
Santa Barbara Heights
A drive over Santa Barbara Heights affords stunning views of the ocean when southbound, or spectular views of downtown, the riviera, and the Santa Ynez mountains when northbound.
Escondido Park
Small neighborhood park with eucalyptus trees, a short trail, views of mountains and valley, toddler playground, and spiffy basketball court among the greenery.
Elings Park
Hilltop park with sunny memorial walk, soccer fields, offleash hikes, and a small playground.
Carpinteria Beach and the Tar Pits
Listen to the ocean's roar, and take in the fun festive atmosphere at Carpinteria Beach!
West Campus Trail, Goleta
Trail that leads onto Ellwood Bluffs from UCSB's West Campus family housing.
Casa del Herrero, Montecito
House built in 1925, with pretty garden. Only possible to see it on a very long docent-led tour.
East Manning Park, Montecito
Lovely mountain views, a large picnic area, sand volleyball, and new space-age playground.
Bella Vista Park, Goleta
Neighborhood park shaped like a bowl with playground, forest, wooden bridges, and winding paths.
Santa Barbara Museum of Art
A small gem of a gallery, with masterpieces by Monet, Rousseau, Picasso, and Chagall, and an impressive Asian art collection.
First Crossing Picnic Area, SY River
A rugged, grassy area below impressive cliffs, with BBQs and room to roam.
Calle Barquero Park
Gorgeous recessed park with a large playground beside meadows and a eucalyptus forest in a suburban neighborhood.
Oak Park, Santa Barbara
A wonderfully shady park used for festivals, with a nice playground with net climby and a summer wading pool for little kids.
Leadbetter Beach
A crescent-shaped beach with rock pools, yellow and white cliffs, and surfers riding small waves near to shore.
Oso Flaco Lake and Dunes, Santa Maria
Wooden boardwalk leading over a lake, past wildflowers, and to large dunes.
Moreton Bay Fig Tree, Santa Barbara train station
130 year old tree, with gorgeous big roots, which provides 16,000 sq feet of shade!
Andree Clark Bird Refuge, or The Lagoon
Bike riding around this lagoon, with its backdrop of the mountains and the Montecito Country Club, is bliss! Note: Stinky since the drought.
San Marcos Foothills Preserve
Amazing sweeping views on this walk, but dangerous hidden gopher holes.