{"id":2177,"date":"2016-04-20T18:30:29","date_gmt":"2016-04-20T18:30:29","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/wearetravelgirls.com\/?p=2177"},"modified":"2025-08-20T20:45:50","modified_gmt":"2025-08-21T03:45:50","slug":"santa-barbara-bucketlist","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wearetravelgirls.com\/santa-barbara-bucketlist\/","title":{"rendered":"SANTA BARBARA BUCKETLIST GUIDE"},"content":{"rendered":"

Santa Barbara is a charming beach town on the Central Coast of California with the Santa Ynez Mountains as a dramatic backdrop against the sparkling pacific ocean. Downtown Santa Barbara offers Mediterranean-style white stucco buildings with red-tile roofs that reflect the city\u2019s Spanish colonial heritage.<\/p>\n

Boutiques and restaurants offering local wines line State Street and the hip downtown Funk Zone area. Sterns Warf and Santa Barbara Pier draw tourists from all over the world who come to enjoy the beauty of Santa Barbara from these whimsical vantage points. <\/p>\n

Santa Barbara or “SB” as the locals call it, is my favorite town, and that is saying a lot considering I’ve traveled across the world to over 70 countries. I went to college at UC Santa Barbara and after graduation, I lived here for over 10 years teaching surf lessons and enjoying this idyllic beach town.<\/p>\n

Santa Barbara is one of the best towns on earth (in my opinion), because it is small, pristine, beautiful, and unpretentious. There are great hotels<\/a> and excellent restaurants, the people are nice – and there is so much to do and see!<\/p>\n

Here’s my Santa Barbara bucketlist guide with all my must-do activities to help you make the most of your visit to this little slice of paradise.<\/p>\n

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Where To Stay In Santa Barbara<\/h2>\n

Before we get into everything there is to do and see in Santa Barbara let’s help you find an awesome hotel.<\/p>\n

All great vacations start with excellent accommodations. There are an array of wonderful hotels to choose from in Santa Barbara – and also some that are awful. To help you make the most of your visit (and ensure you don’t get stuck in a crappy hotel), I’ve rounded up the best hotels in Santa Barbara for every budget. <\/p>\n

You can also check out my Best Hotels In Santa Barbara Guide<\/a> for more information on each hotel listed here.<\/p>\n

Best Luxury Hotels In Santa Barbara<\/h3>\n

These are 6 of the best luxury hotels<\/strong> in Santa Barbara:<\/p>\n