The OC Beach Scene

The Sunday Spot Check heads north! I just got back from visiting some friends at my alma mater of UCSB, so I thought it would only be fitting for me to review some of my favorite Santa Barbara beaches for this week’s Sunday Spot Check! For those of you who have already visited Santa Barbara, you already know that this beautiful seaside town has some of the nicest beaches in the state! For those who haven’t, this short overview really doesn’t do justice to the miles of pristine coastline that Santa Barbara has to offer; however, I hope it inspires you to make the short trip north soon! While most visitors to Santa Barbara never make it out of the State Street/Stearn’s Wharf area, I encourage you (especially those surfers out there) to do some exploring on your next trip to the area! Below, you’ll find my take on some of the best beaches in Santa Barbara County.

Goleta/IV: While the working class town of Goleta, just north of Santa Barbara, may lack the ornate Spanish architecture and palm-lined streets of its neighbor to the south, for my money, it has some of the nicest, best preserved beaches in the county. While Santa Barbara city beaches can get crowded in the summertime, the always-empty Goleta shoreline provides a great escape from the hustle and bustle of this tourist hotspot. Sands Beach, at the north end of student-dominated Isla Vista, not only offers a seemingly endless expanse of untouched sand, it also provides fun, fairly consistent waves in an otherwise swell-starved region. There are also several fun, occasionally epic point breaks in the Goleta/IV area; however, truly good days at these spots are few and far between, and are always punctuated by thick, student-speckled crowds.

Santa Barbara (Downtown): If you’re looking for the classic California beach experience (think pier, boardwalk, beautifully groomed white sand), then head downtown to the Stearn’s Wharf area. With world-class shopping, great food, and bike/board rental shops all located within close proximity, the wide, sandy beaches of downtown Santa Barbara offer plenty of entertainment for the whole family. If you’re a surfer, checkout Leadbetter Beach, situated just north of the marina and across from Santa Barbara City College. This is a quirky, sometimes challenging righthand pointbreak that, when the conditions are right, can be a lot of fun on a longboard.

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