October 2017
Perfect 3 Day Itinerary for Santa Barbara, California
While we spent a lot of time traveling to the San Francisco area, we thought we would give some love to the southern parts of California. We really enjoy Pinot Noir from Santa Barbara region so we allocated three days of a week trip. And boy, what a gorgeous place! Beautiful scenery, tasty food, and exceptional wine- Santa Barbara is the perfect place to visit. When a wine trip in California comes up, often the northern parts of Napa and Sonoma take the headline but do not overlook Santa Barbara for your Pinot wine trip. We found it to be less expensive for wine tastings and much more relaxed. Channel your inner Sideways movie reel and start tasting!
Where to stay?
While you can stay in downtown Santa Barbara, you are most likely going to need a car to explore the surrounding areas so you are not bound to stay there. We chose to stay in Santa Ynez where it was more affordable and included free parking. This ended up being a great location for visiting all the areas.
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What is there to do?
Simply relax. There is no rush in Santa Barbara.
- Take time to enjoy the beach – we visited Hendry’s Beach and it is beautiful!
- Go wine tasting – our favorites were Longoria and Stoplman. Most places have tasting rooms in town which means you can try many different vineyards without driving.
- A day trip to Solvang is definitely worth it for to be transported.
Where to eat?
There are a lot of options and with only three days, it was certainly not enough to sample everything!
- The Hitching Post II is a classic for Santa Barbara and do not miss out on getting their Pinot Noir.
- In Solvang, stop at The Belgian Cafe and Solvang Restaurant.
- If visiting Hendry’s Beach, go to The Boathouse for an incredible ocean view.
- We loved The Wine Merchant and SY Kitchen downtown
Here is a complete itinerary for visiting Santa Barbara in three days!
| Day 0 | Arrive in Santa Barbara |
| Day 1 | Visit the beach Explore downtown Santa Barbara |
| Day 2 | Wine tasting – Longoria Winery – Stolpman Vineyard – Lafond Winery – Melville Winery |
| Day 3 | Solvang Depart |