Huntington Beach or Santa Barbara?

[SevenSeasLagoon5]

We'll be looking to add 2-3 nights to our upcoming DLR stay. We're traveling with 3 kids , 11 yrs. and under. Want to extend the trip without a long drive. We've narrowed it down to Huntington Beach or Santa Barbara. Any strong opinions either way??

 

[rentayenta]

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[rentayenta]

Huntington Beach is 30 minutes away tops. SB is a few hours away. SB is cooler (temp wise). Both have great Main Sts. SB is more expensive.

 

[skiingfast]

It's a bit of a strange comparison.

If you want a beach goto HB or down to the San Diego beaches.

Or maybe Santa Monica Pier and Venice Beach which will add more than just a beach. Watching sufers and the beach side atmosphere.

 

[SevenSeasLagoon5]

It's a bit of a strange comparison.

If you want a beach goto HB or down to the San Diego beaches.

Or maybe Santa Monica Pier and Venice Beach which will add more than just a beach. Watching sufers and the beach side atmosphere.

San Diego isn't in the mix this trip. Santa Barbara also has beachfront properties.

DH and I have been to SD, SFO. Not picky about type of location, beach or not. Considering HB for Hyatt grounds and a day trip to Catalina. Curious if Santa Barbara is a "better" choice or not. Have heard it's beautiful there as well.

 

[skiingfast]

San Diego isn't in the mix this trip. Santa Barbara also has beachfront properties.

Is it a beach to look at or to play on? The further south you go the warmer it is. The further north you go the more you need a wetsuit.

 

[lcasa]

Seems like a strange choice to me as well. For pure beach play, Huntington is better. Traffic up to SB can take a long time, but the drive up the coast is pretty. SB is a prettier city with a better downtown, but I don't think the beach is quite as good for swimming/playing. Both have beach paths for biking. The resorts right on the beach in SB are fancier than the ones we have across PCH from the beach we have in HB ( although the new-ish Hyatt looks very nice ).

So it all depends on what you're looking for. I'd say SB is better for romance, HB for playing with kids.

 

[SevenSeasLagoon5]

I guess I'm not understanding why this is such a 'strange choice'. You guys are familiar with the area. I am not, which is why I'm asking.

As I said, the beach is not important but we want to be near the water.

In terms of sightseeing, we were wondering which is more "not to be missed"....HB, Catalina OR Santa Barbara.

Thanks so much for the help!

 

[Carmatts]

I would say Santa Barbara is a more postcard like setting than Huntington Beach, but is much further away. HB is about 30 minutes away, SB is more like 2 1/2 hours away depending on traffic.

In terms of feel, HB is Surf City and SB is an upscale neighborhood on the waterfront.

 

[HydroGuy]

I guess I'm not understanding why this is such a 'strange choice'. You guys are familiar with the area. I am not, which is why I'm asking.

As I said, the beach is not important but we want to be near the water.

In terms of sightseeing, we were wondering which is more "not to be missed"....HB, Catalina OR Santa Barbara.

Thanks so much for the help!

I would guess the "strange choice" comment was that you proposed two possibilities that usually do not go together. Sort of like saying "should I go see a baseball game or go to Walmart?" It is hard to answer because they are two different things that one would do for two different reasons.

I lived in Santa Barbara for 5 years. It is beautiful. The drive there - once you are out of LA - is beautiful. But people do not go to SB for beaches. Does it have beaches? Sure. But most people would go to SB to look at the beaches and the ocean setting and not go to the beach - as in walk out into water.

Huntington Beach is more the kind of place people would go because they want to be on the beach and in the water. It is not scenic in the same way SB is.

So in answer to your question here, SB would be a really nice place to drive to - go to the pier and have a meal. Drive State Street. Drive thru Hope Ranch. Maybe drive up into the mountains to Cachuma Lake.

It is a far stretch from the DLR area. If you want to be near the water then you can do that at Huntington Beach. But I would suggest Newport Beach would be a more fun place to walk around near the water. You might want to go to the Santa Monica Pier instead. Or Malibu and drive the Pacific Coast Highway. Those are all much nearer to Anaheim than SB. The experiences are all different and scenic in their own ways.

HTH

 

[aristocat65]

I guess I'm not understanding why this is such a 'strange choice'. You guys are familiar with the area. I am not, which is why I'm asking.

As I said, the beach is not important but we want to be near the water.

In terms of sightseeing, we were wondering which is more "not to be missed"....HB, Catalina OR Santa Barbara.

Thanks so much for the help!

I'm not from the the area, but I have been to both and if you're looking for "not to be missed" I'd say Santa Barbara. It is very pretty. As others have said it will also be more expensive, especially near the water. I wish I could comment on Catalina, but I've never been (and always wanted to )

 

[mrswh]

I have not stayed in Santa Barbara, but will say that the Hyatt HB is super fun, especially with kids. I don't think it's the greatest beach on earth (if you were going to San Diego I'd say Coronado is a zillion times better), but we still had a great time there. The Hyatt is very nice and has tons of activities for kids. We were there in the summer so you might want to check their schedule for your dates, but when we were there they had a kite flying class (kids make their own kites and fly them on the beach, also a stunt kite demo by a great guy who owns a kite store at HB pier), sandcastle building (where professionals come with all the tools and expertise and help you build something really cool), and all kinds of other activities - cookie decorating, hair braiding, tattoos, etc. The kids' pool is very nice (as is the adults, though we did not hang out there) and the beach is right across the street (there is a bridge from the property to the beach so you don't have to cross a busy street). There is also a little area with a few shops/restaurants where they have live music and fire pits where you can roast s'mores. We stayed in a Director's Suite (which you can reserve only by calling, it does not show up online) which is great for a family - it's very large with a separate bedroom and a pull out sofa in the living room (we used two rollaways instead). We also were close to the main lobby area and had a beautiful ocean view - I think it was more affordable than getting connecting rooms and definitely more affordable (and closer) than Santa Barbara. This year we opted for the Park Hyatt in Carlsbad instead of HB on the tail end of our Disney trip, and we wish we had just stayed in HB again!

 

[rentayenta]

With little kids, I'd skip Catalina. It's fine for a few beach hours but otherwise it's some touristy things and shopping.

 

[tinkermomma]

I've lived in HB for about 6 mo and SB for 25 years and I concur with a lot of what Hydroguy said. It's a beach town but from a tourism perspective, the beaches are a little more decorative than useful some days because it can get too cool. For example, if you are staying August-October we have gorgeous weather but sadly late spring and early summer not as much the past few years. The wharf is fun but the cross breeze generally means a sweater is a good idea.

If you stay in SB (and that would be my biased vote) you should do a vacation rental. The best hotels are outrageously priced and even the funky ones are. You know it's out of control for example when motel 6 is $180/night. Ha! Ok maybe that's not fair since it is the flagship original and the rooms are actually nice but still... If you insist on staying at a hotel I recommend Fess Parker's Doubletree at the beach as the most child friendly place that still has decent rates. Unfortunately you can end up paying a lot more for a lot less if you're not careful in this town. I do not suggest Bacara since it is built over sacred Indian Burial ground, but that's just me, some people don't care about that kind of thing.

But vacation rentals... They really are nice here. I think it may have something to do with an inordinately high percentage of people having second homes here, but you can find lovely homes for the same or as much as half the typical price of rooms. Anyway... Check out VRBO and you'll see what I mean.

As far as activities, Santa Barbara may or may not be less kid friendly than HB. I don't know. I do know kids love the Wharf, the Harbor, the Zoo which are all down at the beach. Downtown in Paseo Nuevo there is a whodiddly cupcakes where you make you're own which kids really love. Also there is a good Aloha burger joint that my nieces enjoyed very much during their recent visit.

We're Aldo known for our festive farmers market on Sat. and Tues. downtown. I don't know how young your younger two are but if your husband like wineries, the "urban wine trail" is really fun and is a preferable walk anyway to the no man's land that is the first four blocks of State St.

Anyway. SB is pretty awesome when it comes to food too. We have AMAZING restaurants here. And they're even kid friendly. There are quite a few and it depends on your taste so if you want to know more PM me.

Ooh and 15 min south you have Summerland Antique shops and Carpinteria orchid nurseries. 45 min north there is Santa Ynez and Solvang. Abelskivers and Wine. Ha!

Can you tell I love where I live?

 

[SevenSeasLagoon5]

I've lived in HB for about 6 mo and SB for 25 years and I concur with a lot of what Hydroguy said. It's a beach town but from a tourism perspective, the beaches are a little more decorative than useful some days because it can get too cool. For example, if you are staying August-October we have gorgeous weather but sadly late spring and early summer not as much the past few years. The wharf is fun but the cross breeze generally means a sweater is a good idea.

If you stay in SB (and that would be my biased vote) you should do a vacation rental. The best hotels are outrageously priced and even the funky ones are. You know it's out of control for example when motel 6 is $180/night. Ha! Ok maybe that's not fair since it is the flagship original and the rooms are actually nice but still... If you insist on staying at a hotel I recommend Fess Parker's Doubletree at the beach as the most child friendly place that still has decent rates. Unfortunately you can end up paying a lot more for a lot less if you're not careful in this town. I do not suggest Bacara since it is built over sacred Indian Burial ground, but that's just me, some people don't care about that kind of thing.

But vacation rentals... They really are nice here. I think it may have something to do with an inordinately high percentage of people having second homes here, but you can find lovely homes for the same or as much as half the typical price of rooms. Anyway... Check out VRBO and you'll see what I mean.

As far as activities, Santa Barbara may or may not be less kid friendly than HB. I don't know. I do know kids love the Wharf, the Harbor, the Zoo which are all down at the beach. Downtown in Paseo Nuevo there is a whodiddly cupcakes where you make you're own which kids really love. Also there is a good Aloha burger joint that my nieces enjoyed very much during their recent visit.

We're Aldo known for our festive farmers market on Sat. and Tues. downtown. I don't know how young your younger two are but if your husband like wineries, the "urban wine trail" is really fun and is a preferable walk anyway to the no man's land that is the first four blocks of State St.

Anyway. SB is pretty awesome when it comes to food too. We have AMAZING restaurants here. And they're even kid friendly. There are quite a few and it depends on your taste so if you want to know more PM me.

Ooh and 15 min south you have Summerland Antique shops and Carpinteria orchid nurseries. 45 min north there is Santa Ynez and Solvang. Abelskivers and Wine. Ha!

Can you tell I love where I live?

WOW! Thanks for the GREAT info.!!!!! So is the "Urban Wine Trail" withing walking distance off of State St.? Can kids walk with us, or is that a "no-no"?

 

[tinkermomma]

Here is a map of the "trail". Kunin is our favorite, but they're all great.

From the map you see I'll tell you the best way is from the beach to walk up Anacapa (parallel to State St.) and go left on Yananoli. It is so much of a more scenic walk than from the wharf right now 10 years of developers squabbling with what to do with it has left it pretty, eh, un scenic

As far as kids go this is something I would either do using a hotel sitter. You might be able to do one with them in toe, but I really wouldn't recommend it.

 

[ncc1701]

A vote for HB.DH & I have visited both and would gladly go back to either but for the more beach/pool vacation HB
came ahead in our book.
When we were in SB we did the "see the sites" type of trip and also went to wine country.Not the sort of things usually high on the list for children.
In HB we relaxed and hung around the pool.We were at the Hyatt and it is one of the best places we have stayed.
Plus the time in the car going to and from will eat up a good chunk of time if you opt for SB.It took us over 3 hrs.to get from SB to HB on our trip due to traffic once we hit the LA area.