I may have asked this before (a long time ago), but it's summer and it's road trip season, so......which of these 3 towns, Santa Cruz, Santa Barbara, or San Luis Obispo, do you like the most?

Either as a place to live or just a place to hang out or visit, as in a daytrip or stopover on your way down the coast?

They're all similar in size, thus the comparison.

510Bear;842323228 said:

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I may have asked this before (a long time ago), but it's summer and it's road trip season, so......which of these 3 towns, Santa Cruz, Santa Barbara, or San Luis Obispo, do you like the most?

Either as a place to live or just a place to hang out or visit, as in a daytrip or stopover on your way down the coast?

They're all similar in size, thus the comparison.

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From the north? All three, then turn around.

Santa Barbara is my favorite, and in my opinion offers a wider range of activities. From wine tasting, beach/camping, high end restaurants, college type bars etc etc, and just more of it.

Santa Cruz by far. Not to take anything away from the other two for they are great, but having lived in SC County for 7 years, it just allows a tremendous diversity of people and activities. Ocean, mountains, Shakespeare festivals, funky good dining, little attitude, great mtn biking, hiking, walks on beautiful beaches. Politics aside it is utopia.

Now if you were to ask about the three towns universities I would put UCSC last of the three (personal preference)

I went to UCSB so I am bias, but I loved the downtown.

SLO. It has changed the least in my lifetime.

510Bear;842323228 said:

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I may have asked this before (a long time ago), but it's summer and it's road trip season, so......which of these 3 towns, Santa Cruz, Santa Barbara, or San Luis Obispo, do you like the most?

Either as a place to live or just a place to hang out or visit, as in a daytrip or stopover on your way down the coast?

They're all similar in size, thus the comparison.

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Never been to SLO, but between Santa Cruz and Santa Barbara, I prefer Santa Barbara.

Santa Cruz, it's a rare combo of California beach town, college town, hippie funk and NorCal vibe/attitudes. I feel comfortable and at home there, sorta like Berkeley with a beach. Use to hang out quite a bit there. If I'm in the area I'll stop just because I can.

SLO is okay, seems like a very nice and liveable small city but slightly bland. Seems like a good place to raise a family if you like safe and quiet. Not so much into the "cow" culture but whatever. For a road trip down the coast I'd stop in Morro or Cambria instead.

SB, nice beaches but can't say much more.

Depends what you are looking for:

Santa Cruz: new age grunge lesbian Berkeley by the sea. Redwoods close, unlike the other two. The town itself is not that interesting but there are nice hikes in the redwoods or north up the coast and neighboring Capitola is cute. Good music at the Catalyst

San Luis: what the white god put under the Christmas tree. Better beaches, kayak Morro Bay. Good food and wine
scene

Santa Barbara. Where southern Cal begins. More stylish than the other two, more sophisticated too, but too many self conscious people

Odonto, good call on Shakespeare at UCSC. That can be a magical setting and the productions are usually fun and creative

You can also make the case that the hottest people in the state are found in SB :cheer. I go down just about every summer. ALWAYS a good time. Depends on what you're looking to do.

GB54;842323246 said:

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Depends what you are looking for:

Santa Cruz: new age grunge lesbian Berkeley by the sea. Redwoods close, unlike the other two. The town itself is not that interesting but there are nice hikes in the redwoods or north up the coast and neighboring Capitola is cute. Good music at the Catalyst

San Luis: what the white god put under the Christmas tree. Better beaches, kayak Morro Bay. Good food and wine
scene

Santa Barbara. Where southern Cal begins. More stylish than the other two, more sophisticated too, but too many self conscious people

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Good job. Capitola Village was my home away from home during the surfer beach days. Santa Barbara was always kind of pretentious to me with the snobby rich in the hills and artsy fartsy artist types near downtown. SLO is a commune all to its own. I'd go to Santa Cruz because you can throw in Monterey/Carmel/Pacific Grove for a day too.....

Santa Cruz 👍

socaliganbear;842323234 said:

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Santa Barbara is my favorite, and in my opinion offers a wider range of activities. From wine tasting, beach/camping, high end restaurants, college type bars etc etc, and just more of it.

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I agree that Santa Barbara is best by far. I'd place San Luis Obispo second and Santa Cruz third.

FWIW, we regard SLO and Cambria as the same when we travel through that area and often split time between them.

Cal_Fan2;842323259 said:

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Good job. Capitola Village was my home away from home during the surfer beach days. Santa Barbara was always kind of pretentious to me with the snobby rich in the hills and artsy fartsy artist types near downtown. SLO is a commune all to its own. I'd go to Santa Cruz because you can throw in Monterey/Carmel/Pacific Grove for a day too.....

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Santa Cruz has: the Beaches, the Boardwalk, the Redwoods and UCSC nearby and a short drive away Monterey and Carmel.

When considering Santa Cruz, don't forget to consider excellent wines being made in Corralitos and in the more traditional spots in the SC mountains. Summertime weather there doesn't usually get great until later in the summer due to the marine layer.
I've always liked SB, but it's a little too LA for me. It's a great place to visit, though.

I don't know if I'd book a flight to SLO, but it's a great stopover if you're driving between SF and LA on the 101. One minute, you're driving on 101 through what seems like the middle of nowhere, the next, you're on this very nice main street (Higuera) with shops and restaurants and such, just a couple blocks off the freeway. It's like an oasis.

Nothing along I-5 compares, unless the In-n-Out in Kettleman City is your thing.

Both SLO and Santa Cruz feel like NorCal, while SB is very much an extension of SoCal.

510Bear;842323329 said:

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I don't know if I'd book a flight to SLO, but it's a great stopover if you're driving between SF and LA on the 101. One minute, you're driving on 101 through what seems like the middle of nowhere, the next, you're on this very nice main street (Higuera) with shops and restaurants and such, just a couple blocks off the freeway. It's like an oasis.

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My dad, my little sister and I traveled from L.A. to San Francisco twice when I was growing up, when I was 9 and when I was 12.

Each time we spent the night in San Luis Obispo. I have vague memories of it looking really nice. (Haven't been back since.)

I remember the rock in Morro Bay (I just Googled it, and, wow, it's so beautiful).

My first time up I-5 was to move to Berkeley.

(I did drive down from Berkeley to L.A. via the 101 once as a student, but it was in the middle of the night.)

I grew up in Santa Cruz so I'm biased. That said when you know where to go in any environment it's an advantage.

It really depends on what you're looking for, your personal preferences and how far you are willing to drive. I lived in SLO for 20 years and loved it and there are a lot of fun things to do not only in SLO but in the surrounding area. However, I always enjoyed going to Santa Barbara. It's mission style downtown is very beautiful and classy, and the area near the water is great also. I like Santa Cruz for a visit too, but would put it 3rd. If you do end up going to SLO feel free to PM me and I would be glad to share some great places to eat, see, etc. That goes for anyone else on the board also. A couple of previews: Thursday night Farmers Markets are almost mandatory if you're going to be in SLO. For mouth watering tri-tip sandwiches in a lively atmosphere you've got to hit Firestone Grill. Novo is a great little restaurant downtown, with a good, ever changing menu and a sweet atmosphere next to the creek. Those are some of my favorites.

One thing I would try to do, however, because I just got done booking a hotel there for the end of the month, is to try to plan and book early because in the Summer it can be hard to get a room without a lot of advance notice.

Slo forgot Splash cafe clam chowder. SLO is best area, clean, less populated. Take in Avila Beach for sure.

I live 30 minutes away from Santa Barbara, it is a very special city. There is so much to do there, and you will have a great time. It has great restaurants, stores, and a beautiful environment.

If you do go to Santa Barbara, you should also go to Carpinteria, it is next to Santa Barbara and it is also a beautiful city.

BearlyClad;842323383 said:

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Slo forgot Splash cafe clam chowder. SLO is best area, clean, less populated. Take in Avila Beach for sure.

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I'm actually not a big Splash fan, although I know a lot of people love it. As for Avila, however, I agree. Not just the beach either. Places like the Custom House, Olde Port Inn and the Avila Valley Barn are great stops.

Don't come to Santa Cruz. The traffic is already hellish. I went to the Boardwalk last Friday, then into Mission Hill Saturday because my second son was doing a karate demo at the Japanese Festival, and the traffic was miserable. Even today coming home to Aptos from Capitola at 3pm I had to take the back roads overlooking New Brighton Beach because the freeway had stopped up already.

(first world problems)

Santa Cruz (if you include ritzier Aptos and Capitola) has everything the others have and more: high end restaurants and funky restaurants, great cafes, hiking and camping in the redwoods, waterfalls, camping on the beach, free admission Boardwalk, free concerts, fireworks, good wineries, good strolling town(s), art galleries, college town, spectacular views, great surfing (where surfing was first introduced outside Hawaii), kayaking, fresh caught salmon, clean ocean, tidepools, the Mystery Spot, Roaring Camp train through redwoods to the Beach Boardwalk, elephant seals (like being on safari), Monterey Bay Aquarium (Monterey, Carmel and Big Sur), Hawaiian food and live music, spectacular sunsets....You do need a wet suit to enjoy it best however.

GB54;842323246 said:

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Santa Barbara. Where southern Cal begins.

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That must be why the place gives me the willies.

I also have a bunch of random things I wonder about regarding these three places, as an outsider to all of them.

Santa Cruz:
UCSC is kinda isolated....how often do those students come out of their forest?
Do locals like or avoid their downtown?
Is their city government anything like Berkeley's?
Is it really becoming more "upscale" as some residents say in the media?

San Luis Obispo:
How's the nightlife/entertainment scene downtown?
Do area residents use their airport or just trek to SJC and LAX for flights?

Santa Barbara:
Is the July 4th beach scene as big as it is in LA and San Diego?
Is the weather different in any way from points south?
Is Isla Vista the rowdiest college student 'hood in the whole state? Because it looks to me like it might be.

510Bear;842323681 said:

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I also have a bunch of random things I wonder about regarding these three places, as an outsider to all of them.

Santa Cruz:
UCSC is kinda isolated....how often do those students come out of their forest?
Do locals like or avoid their downtown?
Is their city government anything like Berkeley's?
Is it really becoming more "upscale" as some residents say in the media?

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1. I was a student there. Actually the truth is that after your first or second year, you are probably living somewhere in the city itself and going up to the campus for classes. There was no where near enough housing for everyone on campus. So yeah, a lot of students are hanging around town during the school year. The downtown area is surprisingly hopping on Friday and Saturday nights, mostly because of students.

2. In terms of political leanings, they probably are like Berkeley, but Santa Cruz is a much smaller town with a much more laid-back attitude about itself (they don't think they're the center of the universe like the Berkeley pols). That means that if you don't want to hear about city politics, you generally don't have to. They don't fight the university on everything.

3. Housing is nearly as expensive as it is in the inner Bay Area (blame people with Silicon Valley money who want to live there), so in that sense it is kind of upscale, though if you walk around most parts of the town you wouldn't really notice. People there are not terribly pretentious.

I change my mind. I'd want to live in Capitola.

This thread only shows how personal preferences and values influence rankings . Objectively, they are all great places to spend a few days.

510Bear;842323681 said:

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I also have a bunch of random things I wonder about regarding these three places, as an outsider to all of them.

Santa Cruz:
UCSC is kinda isolated....how often do those students come out of their forest?
Do locals like or avoid their downtown?
Is their city government anything like Berkeley's?
Is it really becoming more "upscale" as some residents say in the media?

San Luis Obispo:
How's the nightlife/entertainment scene downtown?
Do area residents use their airport or just trek to SJC and LAX for flights?

Santa Barbara:
Is the July 4th beach scene as big as it is in LA and San Diego?
Is the weather different in any way from points south?
Is Isla Vista the rowdiest college student 'hood in the whole state? Because it looks to me like it might be.

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To answer a couple of your SB questions, the weather is not the same as in LA or SD. It's a a bit cooler. I spend time there every summer and it's always a few degrees cooler than being in LA heat.

As for IV, I would say yes. By design, it's almost like a Midwest college town, high concentration of student removed from the general population. It creates a different kind of experience.