Downtown Santa Barbara

Nice place for walking, checking different boutiques, dining, or do wine tasting. During college season the area is pretty young and happening mixed up with older local crowd. For more follow our instagram @gemislist

Loved the morning walk here! Great architecture and shops. Beautiful palm trees and parks. Can get anything you can think of. Very cute town.

We loved walking around downtown Santa Barbara. Feels like Spain ! They even have a paseo ! The Spanish atmosphere is GREAT we also enjoyed the many shops and restaurants. A definite must do visit on the West Coast.

Downtown Santa Barbara is an absolute gem! The blend of stunning Spanish Colonial architecture, vibrant cultural scene, and picturesque ocean views makes it a perfect destination for a day trip or an extended stay. State Street is bustling with charming shops, fantastic restaurants, and cozy cafes, offering something for everyone. The local wineries and tasting rooms add a delightful touch to the experience. The area is also incredibly walkable, with beautiful parks and historic sites easily accessible. Whether you're exploring the museums, enjoying a beach day, or just strolling through the streets, downtown Santa Barbara offers an unforgettable experience. Highly recommend a visit!

Enjoyed walking through the farmers' market, which stretches for many blocks. Sampled fruits, which were fresh and delicious. The atmosphere was friendly and quietly bustling. The buildings along the street are low (no more than three stories) and predominantly whitewashed with red roofs, so fairly charming in the southern California sun.

Love the water! Very peaceful beach 🏝️ town.

Santa Barbara a beautiful place to visit! Downtown now blocked off from traffic like a large street mall, with shops and restaurants.

The best rose matcha latte ever! Made as is; with oatmilk. So good! I inhaled it.

This was my first time in Santa Barbara, it was beautiful. They have stores, food places, movie theaters, and other shops. Reminded me of third street promenade on Santa Monica. Check it out!!! They have beautiful scenari

It's always a good idea to me to go to downtown Santa Barbara. Always a great day trip idea from LA all year around! Sure, the downtown went (and still is) going through various changes over the years. But it's still a cute, unique area with Spanish inspired architecture, fun vibe, bustling with people shopping, dinning, going to a movie or a show. I love shopping here, browsing, check out the street artists, it's a charming spot.There are hotels near by, cool shopping centers like El Paseo, always lively. I enjoy checking out a Museum, the Santa Barbara Art Museum has elegant exhibits that I keep going back to, Presidio shows you the history of the area and the Historical Museum is a great one to visit, better that I thought, I'd like to visit again! Great coffee shops, nice culinary scene, unique shops, bookstores, cute vegetation and landscaping. The Granada and Arlington Theaters are in the middle of it all! Great holiday decor and spirit, lots of events and activities! A bit of culture and fun, all in a great area of California!

You know, I Do Not Appreciate that I do not see a Security Officer insight. Homless or more like reckless guys on thus this street specifically. One had the audacity to ask me for money, I turned around and said... "No and how dare you disrespect me, a woman, Asking me for money!!!!" #Disturbed! #JustTryingToEnjoyMyIceCream

Actually It was a bit strange we stopped on State street looking for some kids hoodies and some food.... Finally found parking a couple of blocks away..... It was Thursday morning @ 11 am and most of the stores were not open....?? Not sure why.... Most of the Restaurants weren't open either..... I don't know, didn't stick around to find out....we found what we were looking for and a burger then we were out of there....

The city council has ruined State street. You can no longer cruise State Street for restaurants, store's etc. You have to first find a costly parking structure which limits your search for restaurants, stores and theaters to a couple of blocks. Just visited State Street and it was dead except for the homeless population. I can't believe the stores and restaurants aren't complaining since they are empty. The only people using the blocked streets are young people racing their e-bikes.

Always love to take a mini road trip here. Such a beautiful place to visit and relax with all the sceneries. Was so glad I can be able to explore the Downtown Santa Barbara right the night before the lockdown stay home order. There are so many areas in Santa Barbara Downtown includes Paseo Nuevo, a shopping center with tiled courtyards, fountains, and chain retailers. It was wonderful to witness such beautiful places during Christmas season; love the lights. Will always go back anytime.

This is a section of State Street. There are lots of shops, restaurants and bars. A few blocks are closed to traffic. You can walk around, shop, or eat outside at restaurants' tables . The original Habit Burgers is there. Lots to look at and enjoy. The weather was beautiful- sunny day, but not hot.

As with all brick and mortar shopping areas, especially right now during the COVID-19 pandemic, the fortunes wax and wane. Retail shops sometimes struggle to find the right mix of merchandise to entice shoppers and stay in business. Downtown Santa Barbara keeps reinventing itself, so in recent years the experience of visiting changes fairly rapidly. Macy's failed at Paseo Nuevo, a blow to that mall. Still, a variety of dining spots and specialty retail stores keep it going, and they recently completed a landscaping refresh. For now the downtown area of State Street is a giant pedestrian zone, allowing the restaurants to move their indoor dining rooms out on to the sidewalk and spill out on to the street. Along with the largely Mediterranean architecture, the vibe feels European and convivial. Many of the restaurants added planters with interesting flowers, bushes, small palms, or other visual enhancements to the spaces. We almost always browse the hat shop, wander through Marshall's or Cost Plus World Market, often have a dessert at Andersen's, and mix it up for other experiences depending on the day. Our teen grandson has pronounced it a fun place to go - high praise.

Lots of fun stuff to do. Everyone is very friendly! I had a great time just meandering the street, checking out all the shops, bars and restaurants. Very convenient and a close walk from our hotel, which was beachfront.

This review is for the 1st Thursday of the month downtown Santa Barbara. On the first Thursday of each month, participating galleries and cultural arts venues are open from 5-8pm offering the public free access to art in a fun and social environment. The art work was amazing. Wine and cheese was provided at a couple of the galleries I attended and everyone was friendly and welcoming. Wear comfortable shoes and be prepared to walk, the galleries are at various location in downtown Santa Barbara.

Lots of fun stores and restaurants, cute walkable downtown area. The negative is that they dont have alot of bathrooms for people! We walked into a Starbucks to buy a drink and use the bathroom and it was closed! Not sure why. The part I didnt like was the strong smell of urine on the sidewalks, I smelt while walking around. Hold your nose!! Honestly the smell made me want to leave.

Need restrooms in downtown Santa Barbara. We left early because there was no place to go.

Excellent place to shop and see beautiful architecture. You can spend two days here and not see every store. The down town runs for several miles. They have shuttles and buses that take you to key downtown parts. A huge area to cover walking wise. The Downtown has great restaurants and shopping. The shopping is everything from your typical mall shops to mom and pop shops. Part of the Down Town encompasses the Funk Zone, a artistic area with many galleries and wine tasting stops. I did not go to the Funk Zone on this vacation I stuck mostly to the downtown. If you are going to the Downtown I highly recommend doing The Taste Of Santa Barbara tour. You will get a good feel of the history of the architecture,the best of the wines, stores and food available at the downtown. The downtown is a big part of seeing Santa Barbara......

Downtown Santa Barbara is a nice gem filled with tons of places for shopping and dining!! I first came here 10 years ago and have memories of seeing a gross lady streaking.. it was quite disturbing!! She could have been a regular person or a bum who knows. Since then I still associate this memory, but then again remember this place is filled with locals and tourists so that was just a random experience haha. Of course every downtown part of a community will have there fair share of weirdos so just avoid them. So when coming down here, the main part is along State St. Parking is reasonable and convenient as there is a parking garage nearby. -beautiful outdoor shopping center -perfect for strolls -not too far from the coast -retailers include Macy's, Nordstrom, Victoria's Secret, Starbucks, Coffee Bean, boutiques, and big selection of eateries etc

Most big cities you mention going downtown, it's not exactly an exciting experience. This is not the case with downtown Santa Barbara especially State Street. It's got all the charm of a little beachside community and all the big names that you might see in Beverly Hills. The only problem I have ever run into has been shopping, there are garages around but even on a weekday afternoon it's hard to find street parking. Heck, there's even a Habit downtown...can't get much better than that. :0)

My hometown and I love it. We have the free 1 Thursday every month where you get to experience local art galleries to the electric shuttle which only costs 50 cents (25 cents if you have the MTD medical mobility pass). The shuttle on State Street will take you all the way to the wharf. Stores varies from a small Clare's where you can have your ears pierced or buy costume jewelry to Saks OFF 5th. A must visit is the outdoor Paseo Nuevo shopping center. There is a See's Candy, which gives you a free piece of their heavenly chocolate at the counter with or without a purchase. I always stop by to pick up a couple of their Bordeaux: chocolate, maple with sprinkles. There are a number of boutiques and it's anchored with large Macy's and Nordstroms. There are a number of bars and Soho, a music venue which offers varied styles of music. The art museum is a visual treat. Among other pieces it features Picasso and Degas as well as sculptures I could look at for a quarter of an hour. There are multiple movie theaters, although the Arlington stands out. The ceiling has small lights representing a night sky. It features Dolby Sound and generally blockbusters such as Star Wars and the recent James Bond open at this gem. Nearby and across the street is the Granada where theater plays are featured. Downtown Santa Barbara is a beautiful place for tourists yet enough variations for locals like me to visit on a regular basis.

Great town with great food atmosphere views people and all around a fun casual upscale place. Been a part-time resident here for 20 plus years and love spending as much time as I can up in Santa Barbara. Lots of great shopping restaurants entertainment and great people watching.

I love Santa Barbara. I am giving this review a low rating to hopefully get someone's attention. The Transients are beginning to be a problem along State Street. They are becoming more aggressive; and I would say dangerous. Also, I notice a lot of stores going OUT OF BUSINESS including the MACY's. WARNING!!!! I would police the Street better at Night, come up with a better way to deal with the bums and fill some of the vacancies. State Street is NOT immune to down turn that affects tourism etc. I saw this happen to Westwood; and frankly it is never really come back. I hope the central business district addresses these issues promptly. I realize this requires somewhat of a large City solution; but someone better stand up and lead the charge.