Santa Barbara Family Trip Recap
The Boathouse at Hendy’s Beach restaurant.
We traveled to Santa Barbara, California over the Fourth of July holiday weekend, and I wanted to quickly recap our trip before I forgot all the details. I’m going review where we stayed, what we did, and where we ate + briefly summarize how it was to travel during COVID (since I got a couple questions about how it went on Instagram!). Overall, the trip was great, and I’m glad we decided to go! Santa Barbara is often referred to as the “American Riviera” and I can see why. Definite Mediterranean vibes with the weather and scenery. Plus, the architecture is stunning!
Santa Barbara Harbor. Bike provided by the Hotel Californian for guests to use as part of the resort fee.
We stayed at the Hotel Californian (view from our balcony in the picture below), which is a relatively new 5-star hotel in Santa Barbara’s downtown “FUNK Zone”. We considered staying at a more resort-style property like The Ritz (we’re big fans of the Ritz brand, but honestly the reviews are pretty hit or miss for this location!), The Four Seasons (but it hasn’t yet reopened post-quarantine), or the new Rosewood Miramar Beach property (I have heard great things about this hotel, and we will probably stay here at some point in the future). Ultimately, we chose the Hotel Californian over the Rosewood mainly because we used credit card points and our points went much further at this property. All we had to pay for was food and the resort fee!
View from our balcony at the Hotel Californian.
Overall, we liked the property. The location is great if you’re looking to be in the heart of downtown. There’s so many great restaurants, wineries, and shops within walking and biking distance. It’s only a block away from the beach and Stearns Wharf. It was decorated by celebrity-designer Martin Lawrence Bullard, so it was beautifully done and had a very hip vibe to it. It didn’t seem like they spared any expense! All the details were very high quality. Also, extremely comfortable bed and excellent air conditioning (very important, haha!).
Only a few minor complaints… the pool is very small. It’s nice, and it has a good view (see image below), but it’s small. There also seemed to be some confusion with the hotel staff regarding housekeeping services. They suspended housekeeping services for COVID-related reasons, which obviously is fine and we completely understood. The only issue is they didn’t communicate that to us. We were told our room would be cleaned every other day, but then no one ever came to empty the trash (diapers!) or refresh the towels. Again… not a huge deal, I just wish this had been communicated at check-in so we could plan accordingly. Last thing… our room was quite small. It was tough to navigate the space once the crib was in there. We actually had to remove some furniture. We had a great view of downtown Santa Barbara and the mountains, though!
The view from the Hotel Californian pool.
Here’s a brief rundown of where we ate:
Finney’s Crafthouse - A gastropub. The menu is what I’d describe as elevated bar food, and everything we tried was delicious! We actually ate here twice. Definitely recommend, family-friendly.
Boat House at Hendry’s Beach - This place is a must visit! It was about a 10-minute drive and sits on it’s own beach. You can walk the beach and have a cocktail while your wait for a table. There’s a dog park nearby, so there are a lot of cute puppies to watch (which Kate loved!). Great spot for brunch and perfect for families.
The Lark - Great date night spot. This was our favorite meal of the trip + excellent cocktails. Really great atmosphere, service, and delicious food.
Goat Tree - Associated with the Hotel Californian (their menu is actually the room service and pool menu). Good breakfast and lunch spot. Good croissant.
Margerum Wine Company Tasting Room - We had a nice time here. The wine was good, and the server did a great job teaching us about the Santa Barbara wine region. There might be better tasting rooms in the area… we sort of just stumbled into this one because of its proximity to the hotel. It was good though!
Oku - Asian cuisine + sushi. Our food was good, but the service was really bad. Once our food started to arrive (it’s tapas style), we never heard from our waiter again. But, it’s a great location with views of the beach.
The Terrace at the Belmond El Encanto Resort - The Belmond (another 5-star resort in the area) was such a stunning property! It’s in the mountains and has views of downtown Santa Barbara and the beach. I recommend going on a clear day to get the full effect (it was a bit hazy while we were there, but still beautiful). The architecture and the grounds were so pretty… perfect landscaping. The food at the restaurant on the terrace was… okay. Not bad by any means but also not great. The service was a bit off, too. However, the atmosphere was wonderful, and it was nice to be up in the mountains for a change of scenery. We had a nice time!
The Lark restaurant.
Desert at The Lark. This was our favorite meal of the trip!
Dinner on the terrace at The Belmond El Encanto.
Below are some additional restaurant recommendations. A couple were given to us by the hotel and the rest are from a friend who’s familiar with the area. Unfortunately, we didn’t get a chance to try any of the below during our trip.
Italian
Tre Lune (more old style, red sauce, etc)
Oleo Limone (if you go get the duck ravioli appetizer)
Mexican
Santo Mezcal (hotel recommendation)
Steaks, seafood, etc.
Lucky’s (fun spot…..great at night)
Carruso’s (at the new Miramar Hotel….book early)
Fishouse (views of the beach, hotel recommendation)
Breakfast/Brunch
Renaud’s Bakery (try the almond croissant)
Sandwiches/Burgers
Brophy Brothers (down on the harbor; famous spot; you can walk all around the harbor and boat area while you wait)
Norton’s Deli - old style, solid
Llama Dog - funky spot, hip, great food
It was definitely a different experience traveling during COVID. We booked back when things seemed to be improving and all airlines were still only booking flights to partial capacity. To be honest, we probably wouldn’t have gone had we waited a few more weeks before booking. A couple days before we were scheduled to leave is when American Airlines announced they would be booking full flights. Shortly thereafter, we got an email telling us our flight would be “crowded” and that we could choose a different flight. We considered canceling altogether (since at this point cases were on the rise in Texas), but it wasn’t quite so simple since we booked both our hotel and flights with points and everything was non-refundable. Not to mention there weren’t any other good flight options. Ultimately, we talked it over, discussed the precautions we’d take, and decided we still felt comfortable going.
For us, the only stressful part of the trip was the airport and plane portion. We did not have a good experience with American Airlines (which is, by the way, the WOAT). The check-in process took forever (because, we were told, of COVID-related complications - like people connecting internationally and every country having different rules, etc.), and we actually missed our first flight. Fortunately, we were flexible so we just pushed our trip out by a day. The next day, we arrived 1 hour and 45 minutes early and we STILL almost missed the flight because of long check-in lines. Hoofing it, we got to the gate right as boarding began. So, if you’re planning to fly anywhere during this time, I recommend arriving at least 2 hours early.
The airports in Austin, Dallas, and Phoenix were much more crowded than I expected, but almost everyone was wearing a mask (although less people seemed to be wearing them at our layover at DFW airport). There was ample hand sanitizer everywhere. We just tried not to touch anything, and when we did we washed our hands. Most people seemed to respect personal space. We did have one interaction with a man who felt the need to tell us about his fervent anti-mask position (no one asked!). My husband witnessed another lady get upset that she couldn’t pay with cash (because “this is America!” - the poor cashier…). People - to put it mildly - definitely seemed on edge!
Once we boarded, we sanitized our seat area (which we actually did pre-COVID, so this isn’t anything new for us!). There was no drink service, but water was served upon request. We noticed less people getting up to use the restroom. On the flight home, one man refused to wear a mask due to his “social anxiety” (umm, k). The flight attendant didn’t force the issue, but shortly thereafter the captain announced over the PA that anyone refusing to wear a mask risked not ever being allowed to fly American Airlines in the future. Basically, it doesn’t seem like American Airlines is forcing customers to wear a mask, but they will blacklist you (at least this is how one airline is handling it).
I’m already a stressed out flyer (I hate flying), and this was definitely a more stressful flying experience than normal. Personally I never felt unsafe, but it’s much more tense than usual out there. If you plan on flying, get yourself in a zen-like state before arriving at the airport. Once we arrived in Santa Barbara, however, I was so glad we came!
As far as staying in a hotel during COVID, we had no issues although I’m sure things are different depending on your location so just ask your hotel what measures they’re taking and make your own judgement call. Our hotel had pretty extreme cleaning measures underway and waited 72 hours after one guest checked-out before booking another guest in that room. I saw hotel staff cleaning handles and elevator buttons several times. Everyone wore masks while indoors and in crowded, outdoor areas. Another measure taken at our hotel was that courtesy items like hair dryers and robes were only available on request. And like I mentioned earlier, housekeeping only serviced rooms upon request.
The day we arrived, California shut down all indoor activities. However, this really wasn’t an issue because the weather in Santa Barbara is perfect so sticking to the outdoors was the plan anyway (this played a big part in our comfort level and is one reason why we didn’t cancel - we planned on being outdoors the whole time, anyway!). Aside from a few shops being closed or “appointment only”, this wasn’t an inconvenience. Restaurants in Santa Barbara had already expanded their outdoor patio spaces after quarantine was lifted previously, so they were prepared. Every restaurant we saw had converted either their parking lots or sidewalk areas into patios. Several restaurants also had mandatory temperature checks before you could enter, and all of them required a mask unless you were seated at your table.
The beach was “closed” but was actually open for “active use only”, meaning you could walk and hang out but you couldn’t set up chairs. There was plenty of space for everyone to keep a safe distance, and this wasn’t much of an inconvenience either. The water was too cold for me, anyway!
In a nutshell, I definitely think it’s possible to travel safely right now. I know this is a controversial opinion as some people are still very much anti-traveling or even anti-leaving the house. And if that’s where you’re at, I think that’s okay! For me personally, at this point it seems coronavirus is here to stay a while, and I think as a society we can start learning to live in this new normal. If you feel comfortable traveling, then you should (wisely and with proper precautions, of course). If you don’t feel comfortable, then don’t! I respect those who choose to travel and those who don’t. We all know the information, and it’s everyone’s personal choice.
Pick a location with good weather that’s outdoor-focused, travel off-peak during the week vs. weekends if possible, choose an area with good access to emergency care and ample hospital capacity. Don’t travel if you have pre-existing conditions or are in close proximity to family at home who are at high-risk. Stay in the U.S. vs. traveling internationally for now (our economy could use the boost, anyway!). Be discerning when choosing your airline, hotel, or rental home. Or road trip it! Take your car or rent an RV and visit a state or national park (side note: as you probably know, we bought an RV - we plan on being in it all of August… more to come on that!). Finally, and I know most people aren’t able to do this, but if you are, consider self-isolating when you get home if you can. We’re sticking close to home for the next 14 days and will only be around people who are well aware that we traveled and are comfortable with being around us.
My point here is that there are decisions you can make to increase your safety if you decide to travel sometime soon. ❤️
Stearns Wharf in the background.
In summary… Santa Barbara is a great town. We had an amazing time on our trip, and I could definitely see us visiting here again in the future. I’m so fortunate we’re in a position to be able to travel - especially now - and I don’t take it for granted.
And if you’re planning a trip to the Santa Barbara area sometime soon, I hope this post was helpful!
XOXO,
Liz