Santa Barbara - We currently have 3 Santa Barbara vacation homes, condos and villas listed on this page!

Santa Barbara Offers Access to Beach and Mountains

The coastal California city of Santa Barbara should not be confused with Santa Barbara Island, which is located in nearby waters. Although Americans generally think of the California coast as facing west, some sections of the coastline run from east to west rather than north to south, with the result that that coastal cities actually face south. This is the case with Santa Barbara.

The area has a Mediterranean climate and been described as the American Riviera, attracting many tourists to come here to stay in vacation homes in Santa Barbara. Indeed, Santa Barbara is known among Californians for the high quality of its surfing, with many young people who qualify to go to college at the University of California system choosing U.C. Santa Barbara specifically because of its beach access and the predominance of the beach culture. The university actually forms a large part of the culture of this city, offering plays and musical events to the community at large, which numbers some 88,000 people.

Geographically, Santa Barbara is located in a county of the same name, serving as the seat of county government. It lies in between the Pacific coast shoreline and the Santa Ynez Mountains, which rise very steeply on the other side of the city. Beyond these mountains lies the Los Padres National Forest, which possesses several different wilderness areas, some of them remote. Thus, tourists in Santa Barbara can easily enjoy hiking as well as water sports.