Enjoying the American Riviera

Santa Barbara is a beautiful coastal city in Santa Barbara County, California. The city lies between the Santa Ynez Mountains and the Pacific Ocean. Since it has a Mediterranean kind of climate the city has been referred to as the “American Riviera.” Everywhere you look there are amazing things to see like palm-lined beaches and elegant Spanish-style architecture.

The most iconic landmark in the city is Mission Santa Barbara, referred to as the “Queen of the Missions. Most of it was destroyed in a major earthquake in 1925 and was rebuilt in the Spanish Colonial Revival style, It is the only California mission to remain with the Franciscans since the day it was founded in 1786 and a community of Franciscan friars still lives there today. You can take a self-guided tour or a scheduled docent-led tour. Highlights here include its Roman temple facade, the twin towers, and colonial-era art and sculptures. Today it serves as a parish church.

Within the complex is a museum that has artworks from the colonial period and other interesting artifacts. Stroll through the lovely La Huerta Historical Garden with mission-era plants among them citrus, grapes, pomegranates, and prickly pear.

There is also the cemetery for a self-guided tour where many prominent Spaniards were laid to rest as well as 4,000 Chumash Indians. Across the street, you'll find the ruins of the old mission aqueduct, built by the Chumash Indians in 1806.

Finally, there is the fragrant Mission Rose Garden where you can rest and have a picnic.

Stearns Wharf has a dramatic background of the Santa Ynez Mountains. This iconic pier sits at the bottom of State Street in the heart of the waterfront tourist area. The wharf was built in 1872 and was at that time the longest deep-water pier between Los Angeles and San Francisco. Walking here you'll find specialty shops, restaurants, the Sea Center, and one of the two sites of the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History.

Visiting with children it is fun to catch the Lil' Toot Water Taxi from the Santa Barbara Harbor.

Also when in the area keep an eye out for harbor seals.

Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History features interesting displays of the natural history of the area. The museum encompasses two campuses – The Mission Canyon campus sitting among lovely oak woodland along Mission Creek and the Sea Center on Stearns Wharf.

At the entrance to the Mission Canyon campus, you'll be amazed by the life-sized 72-foot blue whale skeleton. Popular exhibits here include displays on the Chumash Indians, the mammal hall, the Gladwin Planetarium with interactive exhibits on space exploration, and the lovely woodland nature trail stretching along the creek. During the summer there is the wonderful Butterflies Alive! exhibit where you can see colorful butterflies up close.

The Sea Center features amazing views over the water. There is a touch tank with a baby shark, sea anemone tentacle, hermit crab, and alien-like jellyfish. There are also other interactive exhibits.

Santa Barbara County Courthouse was completed in 1929 and is a National Historic Landmark. It is an impressive example of the Spanish-Colonial Revival style. You can have amazing views of the city from the clock tower. Inside you'll find tiled corridors, hand-painted ceilings, and wrought-iron chandeliers. Among the other highlights is the Mural Room, telling the history of Santa Barbara. Free docent-guided tours are available.

A beautiful sunken garden surrounds the courthouse with palms and plants from over 25 different countries. Here concerts, community events, and weddings take place. In early August it hosts the Old Spanish Days fiesta celebrations.

For fantastic views take the elevator to the top of the 85-foot El Mirador clock tower.

A great way to see this city is by biking along the waterfront on the Cabrillo Bike Path which stretches between some of the best beaches in Santa Barbara. There are bike rental shops opposite Stearns Wharf, and you can choose among beach cruisers, mountain bikes, Taga bikes, push buggies, Deuce Coupes, pedal go-karts, and scooters.

Santa Barbara has some of the best beaches in Southern California East Beach, and West Beach are favorites with tourists. They stretch in either direction from Stearns Wharf. The beaches are lined with tall palms and have soft sand.

There are also Leadbetter Beach which is a favorite with surfers and the lovely Butterfly Beach in Montecito which is great for picnics.

The Santa Barbara Zoo is located in a lovely setting on a hilltop that overlooks the Pacific Ocean. The zoo has large, open spaces and gardens with palms and native plants. Among the highlights here are the lions, snow leopards, California condors, meerkats, and the western lowland gorilla exhibit. The newest thing at the zoo is the Australian Walkabout with emus, wallabies, and kangaroos. There are interactive experiences for children like feeding barnyard animals. To see the zoo all around you can hop on the zoo train.

An exciting thing to do is to take a whale-watching cruise and watch humpback whales jumping from the ocean. Over 27 species of whales and dolphins swim in the Santa Barbara Channel and the best time to see them is from May to November as humpback and blue whales feed here, and gray whales migrate along the Santa Barbara coast on their northern and southern migration. Other wildlife here are dolphins, sea lions, and orcas.

MOXI The Wolf Museum of Exploration and Innovation is housed in a beautiful Spanish Colonial-style building. The museum has amazing hands-on indoor and outdoor exhibits on three floors with themes like Light, Speed, Interactive Media, Fantastic Forces, and the Sky Garden. 3D printers create objects at the Innovation Workshop. You can walk up to the rooftop deck for awesome views over the city. The museum also hosts summer camps, after-school classes, and adult- theme nights.

The Santa Barbara Museum of Art has an impressive collection of artwork with over 27,000 works. The museum is best known for its collection of Claude Monet paintings, classical antiquities, 19th- and 20th-century American and European artworks, contemporary American paintings, Asian art, and photography. As you enter the museum you'll see the Portrait of Mexico Today from 1932, a mural by David Alfaro Siqueiros. The museum also hosts traveling exhibits and has a children's gallery with interactive displays. There is a cafe and museum store on site.

The best shopping in Santa Barbara is downtown on State Street at the Spanish-style Paseo Nuevo, an outdoor shopping mall with potted palms and fountains. There are paved walkways lined with boutiques, big-name chain stores, and alfresco cafes.

You can walk along State Street and browse at specialty shops, antique stores, and boutiques. Then relax at the cafes and restaurants.

On Tuesdays, this is where you'll find the Santa Barbara Farmers Market with fresh, locally grown produce.

A nice place for a stroll is at the Santa Barbara Harbor where you can see harbor seals, watch boats bobbing on the water, and enjoy fresh-caught seafood along the waterfront.

The Santa Barbara Maritime Museum on the waterfront has interesting exhibits on surfing, Channel Island rances, Chumash Indians, and more. You can see antique equipment and exhibits on military history and model ships. There are changing exhibits, and the Munger Theater has maritime-related movies and documentaries. For children, there are scavenger hunts, a working periscope, and other interactive exhibits. You can get some fantastic views from the top-floor viewing deck.

The Santa Barbara Funk Zone has boutique shops, galleries, street art, tasting rooms, and some of the best restaurants, cafes, and entertainment venues in the city There is also a vibrant nightlife scene here.

Lotusland has been called one of the most beautiful gardens in the world. It is located in Montecito, about ten minutes from downtown Santa Barbara. The last to contribute to this amazing botanical collection was the famous Polish opera singer Madame Ganna Walska, and the gardens are located on Walska's estate. There are sculptural agaves, contorted cactuses, and spiky cycads. The former swimming pool has lotus flowers. Among the highlights here are the Blue Garden, Palm Garden, Japanese Garden, and Theater Garden, with a collection of antique stone figures from France. Guided tours are available.

Santa Barbara Botanic Garden has a natural woodland with lovely views of the mountains and ocean. Paths will take you through pine-scented woodland, and the garden has 1,000 types of plants and trees native to California. Among the highlights are the historic Mission Dam and aqueduct, built in 1807 to funnel water to the Santa Barbara Mission, a redwood grove, a wildflower meadow, and a Japanese teahouse and garden. A part of the garden has been designated a Santa Barbara County Historic Landmark.

El Presidio de Santa Barbara State Historic Site is located in the middle of downtown Santa Barbara. This military settlement was founded by the Spaniards in 1782. Two of the fort's original adobe buildings are still standing – El Cuartel and the Canedo Adobe. Tours are available from the visitor center with exhibits on the history of the Presidio.

You can take a self-guided tour of the reconstructed Chapel, Comandancia, and Padre's Quarters, see the reconstructed rooms that once housed the Presidio's Lieutenant, the two-story observation tower, and a lovely heritage garden with plants like prickly pear and grapes. Behind the north wing are the Whittaker orchards from the 1940s and the archaeological site of the Presidio outer defense wall.

El Paseo seems like a small Spanish village right in downtown Santa Barbara. The buildings were built in the Spanish Colonial Revival style, and there are many shops, restaurants, and galleries built around the historic Casa de La Guerra adobe, listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The commander of El Presidio de Santa Barbara, Jose de la Guerra, built the adobe. Guided tours are available, and it is one of the venues for the annual Old Spanish Days Festival events.