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The Official Visiting Santa Barbara Thread


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I'm happy to call Santa Barbara home and will do my best to answer questions about this beautiful city by the sea (and hopefully some other people will jump in too, as I've seen how much that helps other threads).

 

Just off the top of my head, here are some fun things to do in Santa Barbara if your ship calls on our harbor:

 

Take the trolley tour booked through the ship and see all the highlights

Visit the zoo

Visit the Mission (if you ever read Island of the Blue Dolphins, the main character is buried there)

Visit our Courthouse (don't get arrested, just for sightseeing) and if you head to the bell tower you'll have arguably the best view of the city

Walk the Urban Wine Trail

Go eat--there are tons of good restaurants in Santa Barbara, everything except for Ethiopian cuisine as far as I know.

Take a tour to Santa Barbara Wine Country in the Santa Ynez valley (45 minutes away)

 

If I can answer any questions, please post.

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Thanks for starting this thread....great idea.

 

Re the Trolley Tour....Do the ships book the trolley out for the day? I have seen this happen elsewhere (not in the states though). We had thought we could do this on our own, giving us the benefit of hopping off and on, hence spending more time at certain sights.

Jen

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From what I understand, the trolley tour through the ship isn't hop-on hop-off, but it also is reserved for cruise passengers, so there's no chance you'll be stuck waiting at any given stop for an empty seat on the regular trolley. The ship tour runs six trolleys in three different runs and from what I've heard it's booked full most of the time. The regular (non-ship) trolley tour has a pickup spot by Stearns Wharf, but there's a chance you'll end up waiting for a while to get a seat because it is hop-on hop-off.

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You can save money by buying the Santa Barbara Trolley tickets online. If you are buying 2 or more tickets, you will pay $16.50 per person by buying them online. The ship charges anywhere from $35-45 per person for the trolley tour ($45 on our last cruise). The ship's reserved trolleys pick up on Cabrillo Blvd near the Santa Barbara Sea Landing. It is about a 5-minute walk down Cabrillo to Stearn's Wharf where the regular trolley tour picks up at the Dolphin fountain. This is very easy to do on your own.

 

On my last two coastal cruises that stopped in Santa Barbara I looked at the wait for the morning trolleys that pick up at Stearn's Wharf when the ship is in and there was essentially no line. There does not appear to be a problem in getting on the trolley on your own at Stearn's Wharf. Most cruisers do not know that you can do this on your own and so they book the ship's tours and the regular trolleys are going empty.

 

The only disadvantage of buying the tickets online is that you can cancel the Princess trolley tour about 24-48 hours prior to the tour and get your money back. You are stuck with the trolley tickets you buy online if you change your mind at the last minute (although the tickets are good indefinitely so they can be used on a future trip to SB).

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I haven't been down at the wharf for the last few ships that have visited, but I think buying the tickets separately is a good way to save money, as long as you are comfortable finding an alternative way back if you hop-off at a stop and can't find a seat on a later trolley. The early morning trolleys may be empty, but I bet they can fill as the day goes on. Also, as I understand it, if for any reason the ship's course changes and skips Santa Barbara, the tour booked through them will be refunded.

 

Another nice way to see downtown is to take the downtown shuttle (electric) from Stearn's Wharf up State St. It's pretty cheap (50 cents a person) and runs right through the center of Downtown. It doesn't take you as far as the Mission, so if you are heading there you'll be walking uphill a decent distance from the farthest shuttle stop.

 

Also, if you want to visit our zoo, there is an electric shuttle that runs along Cabrillo Blvd. It turns around at the zoo, so it doesn't get much more convenient than getting on the shuttle at the Cabrillo/Bath St. stop and getting off at the zoo. It's also 50 cents per person, so it's a cheap way to get to the zoo.

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Thanks everyone for your input re the trolley, plus the alternative transport options. Great to know the ship doesn't book all the trollies. Best to do this on our own, as cannot see the point if we are unable to get off, and see the sights properly.

Jen

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I have taken the trolley a number of times and never experienced any trouble getting on the next trolley. They only run about half full the vast majority of the time (a few holiday weekends they might go full). The only trolleys I have seen go full consistently are the trolleys reserved by the cruise ships when they come to town.

 

If you want to get on and off, do the tour on your own. I recommend getting off at the courthouse, the mission, and the Four Seasons Biltmore/Butterfly Beach. There is also a stop on State Street (the main drag downtown) if you have time.

 

The Waterfront Electric Shuttle is a nice, inexpensive shuttle service that stops about every block along State Street and has several stops along Cabrillo (main waterfront street). It does not go far and it is not a narrated tour of the city. If you want to see the mission, Montecito, and other city highlights you should take the trolley.

Edited by Princess Patches
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The different trolleys and shuttles sound good, we were discussing what to do in Santa Barbara in October. We are not much for wine tasting tours, but if a tour of some kind goes to a winery it's not a real issue. On the hop on hop off trolleys, how long is the loop that it takes? Is it feasable to do the loop and then return to something that looked interesting? Also we were thinking about renting a bike for the two of us, does anyone know if those tours are nice? Any advice is greatly appreciated.

 

Thanks, Scott

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If you pick up the Trolley tour at Stearns Wharf and do one full loop, it's 90 minutes. If you pick it up at any other stop, it's two hours to do the full loop because the trolley waits at Stearns Wharf for 30 minutes.

 

I don't know about all the bike tours, but I do know that Santa Barbara Adventure Co. does a bike tour of the Santa Ynez Valley that includes some wineries. They might have a bike tour around Santa Barbara, but I'm not sure. Also, Wheel Fun rents bikes and might have a bike tour of Santa Barbara. I'll look up both companies tomorrow and see what I can find out.

 

Also, another website that will be helpful to visitors is http://www.cruisesantabarbara.com

 

I'd like to make this thread useful to everybody who visits for their first or 50th time, so I'll post more links to local attractions in the next few days.

 

Finally, to help our visitors, I'd like to start a list of known places with free wifi for those people who don't want to buy Internet minutes on the ship. I'll start posting those places I know of tomorrow (including street addresses and map links) and hopefully some other people can chime in with places I haven't listed. I'll try to keep the list updated on page one of this thread to make it easier to find.

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Wheel Fun has self-guided bike tours which include maps to guide you. Here's a link to their site:

http://www.wheelfunrentalssb.com/scenic-bike-tour.html

 

Also, Santa Barbara Adventure Co. has two bike rides around Santa Barbara and one in Santa Ynez. Here's a link to those tours:

http://www.sbadventureco.com/adventures/bike-tours/

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For those cruisers who wish to catch up on their email or work, here are some of the places that offer free wireless in the Santa Barbara downtown area (based on personal experience and a little research):

 

Amtrak Station

209 State St.

 

Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf

811 State St.

 

Santa Barbara Main Library

40 East Anapamu St.

 

Starbucks

800 State St.

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The different trolleys and shuttles sound good, we were discussing what to do in Santa Barbara in October. We are not much for wine tasting tours, but if a tour of some kind goes to a winery it's not a real issue. On the hop on hop off trolleys, how long is the loop that it takes? Is it feasable to do the loop and then return to something that looked interesting? Also we were thinking about renting a bike for the two of us, does anyone know if those tours are nice? Any advice is greatly appreciated.

 

Thanks, Scott

 

The trolley tickets you buy online or onboard the trolley are good for two consecutuve days. So yes, it is feasible to take the full loop and then return to something that looked interesting if you have time. However, if you buy the trolley tour through the ship then it is just the one loop with no getting on or off and no taking a second loop.

Edited by Princess Patches
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For those cruisers who wish to catch up on their email or work, here are some of the places that offer free wireless in the Santa Barbara downtown area (based on personal experience and a little research):

 

Amtrak Station

209 State St.

 

Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf

811 State St.

 

 

 

Santa Barbara Main Library

40 East Anapamu St.

 

Starbucks

800 State St.

 

These are all great free wifi places. The closest free wifi spot to where the ship tenders drop you off is Sambo's restaurant. You can get a cup of coffee or something and sit there for hours. The tenders let you off at Sea Landing which is at Cabrillo Blvd and Bath Street and Sambo's is directly across the street. It is a one minute walk from the tender dock.

Edited by Princess Patches
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These are all great free wifi places. The closest free wifi spot to where the ship tenders drop you off is Sambo's restaurant. You can get a cup of coffee or something and sit there for hours. The tenders let you off at Sea Landing which is at Cabrillo Blvd and Bath Street and Sambo's is directly across the street. It is a one minute walk from the tender dock.

 

I never noticed they have free WiFi--when DW and I go to Sambos we're with our dog, so we sit outside on the patio. For visitors, Sambos is a lovely restaurant, and on a nice day, you get a gentle breeze from the ocean which makes sitting there quite nice.

 

Princess, since you're a local too, maybe you and I can recommend some restaurants for visitors. Here are some of my favorites:

 

Arch Rock Fish

608 Anacapa

Excellent food and ambiance

 

Enterprise Fish Co.

225 State St.

Great food (lots of fish options), lots of tables

 

Carlitos Cafe

1324 State St.

Delicious Mexican food, big portions

 

El Paseo

813 Anacapa St.

Good margaritas, good Mexican food

 

Pascucci

729 State St.

Very popular Italian restaurant, usually very crowded for dinner.

 

Casa Blanca Restaurant

330 State St.

The Mexican food and drinks are good and the prices are decent.

 

If anybody is looking for specific kinds of food, I'm happy to recommend something. The places I listed above are mid-range in price and ambiance, so if you want less-expensive or more upscale there are plenty of options in Downtown.

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Yes, they definitely have free wifi at Sambo's. You do not see many people on their laptops there because most go for the great, inexpensive breakfasts and the free ocean views.

 

I agree with your restaurant picks. I would add Brophy's, which is a short stroll from the tender dock. It has wonderful ocean, city, and harbor views and the food is terrific and reasonably priced (get a table outside for the view). They have the best clam chowder I have ever tasted and I have tasted a few. I also love Palazzio in the 1000 block of State Street for Italian food (get 1/2 orders here because a full order will serve a family of four).

Edited by Princess Patches
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Yes, they definitely have free wifi at Sambo's. You do not see many people on their laptops there because most go for the great, inexpensive breakfasts and the free ocean views.

 

I agree with your restaurant picks. I would add Brophy's, which is a short stroll from the tender dock. It has wonderful ocean, city, and harbor views and the food is terrific and reasonably priced (get a table outside for the view). They have the best clam chowder I have ever tasted and I have tasted a few. I also love Palazzio in the 1000 block of State Street for Italian food (get 1/2 orders here because a full order will serve a family of four).

 

Palazzio is a great choice, especially for families looking to feed an army of teenagers. The garlic rolls fresh from the oven remind me of this Italian place in Pacific Palisades that my grandparents used to order from. I haven't tried the Brophy's clam chowder yet, but now it's top on my list. Also, if you like Arch Rock, Travelzoo sometimes has lunch or dinner deals similar to Groupon and today the deal is available again. We enjoyed the dinner last time and will pick either it or lunch this time.

Travelzoo Deal

Edited by SBAnt
Garlic Rolls!
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The garlic rolls at Palazzio are to die for (and complimentary too)! Arch Rock is relatively new and I have not tried it yet, but a couple of family members went there a few months ago and are still raving about it. I will try it soon. Thanks for the Travelzoo deal.

 

What Italian place in the Palisades? I went to Pali High and am trying to think of the restaurant you are referring too.

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The garlic rolls at Palazzio are to die for (and complimentary too)! Arch Rock is relatively new and I have not tried it yet, but a couple of family members went there a few months ago and are still raving about it. I will try it soon. Thanks for the Travelzoo deal.

 

What Italian place in the Palisades? I went to Pali High and am trying to think of the restaurant you are referring too.

 

Vittorios, which to this day has the best garlic knots I can remember, was my grandparents' favorite. You went to Pali High? DW went to SaMo and I did Junior Guards at Will Rogers beach, so that whole area is near and dear to my heart.

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Vittorios, which to this day has the best garlic knots I can remember, was my grandparents' favorite. You went to Pali High? DW went to SaMo and I did Junior Guards at Will Rogers beach, so that whole area is near and dear to my heart.

 

I know Vittorio's just past Pali a ways on a little street off Sunset. They have the best pizza. Somehow I missed trying their garlic rolls. I will try them next time I am there visiting family. Thanks for the tip. Yes, I grew up in that area and went to Revere and Pali. I love it down there, but I have to admit I love Santa Barbara even more!

Edited by Princess Patches
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