A Tourist’s Guide to Dog-Friendly Santa Barbara, California

Navy the California Corgi – That has a nice ring to it, right? Last week our family embarked on our biggest journey together to date, traveling to California! We were invited to attend a friend’s wedding in Santa Barbara over the long weekend, so we figured, why not bring Navy? We extended our trip a few days and made a little family vacation out of it!

Before traveling to Santa Barbara, we were told that pretty much everything is dog-friendly. However, we made sure to not only research online if something was dog-friendly, but also to call ahead to confirm! We wanted to make the most of our time in dog-friendly California, so we packed our itinerary with only the best dog-friendly activities. 

We apologize in advance for how long this post is. Truthfully, we loved our time in Santa Barbara so much that we didn’t want to leave anything out!

Day 1: Thursday

Flights were significantly cheaper to fly into Los Angeles rather than Santa Barbara. So early Thursday morning, we departed for LA!  After a relatively short (4.5 hr) flight we arrived in Los Angeles around 9:30 AM. Navy did absolutely amazing on the flight! She was a bit scared when the plane took off but she passed out as soon as she laid out on our laps. 

We waited over an hour for our rental car shuttle from Advantage. Guys, take our advice and splurge on a rental car from another service. After spending almost 5 hours on a plane the last thing we wanted to do was wait for a shuttle and then for the car. We were so tempted to just head straight to our hotel as a shuttle for the Aloft El Segundo hotel came by every ten minutes. Yet we still waited… As soon as we got to our rental car, we drove straight to the El Segundo Dog Park so Navy could run around and stretch her legs. After a quick game of fetch and a ton of running around with other pups, we decided to head to the Salt Creek Grille for lunch. It had an absolutely gorgeous dog-friendly patio. I mean, I can only imagine how awesome it looks at night!

For our one night in LA, we decided to stay at one of our go-to hotel chains, Aloft. Not only are Aloft hotels incredibly dog-friendly, their hotels are always incredibly cool! If you don’t believe me, take a look at some of the pictures below. The Aloft El Segundo was kind enough to plan a Tito’s Vodka sponsored “Yappie Hour” for Navy and her SoCal friends. The evening was filled with puppuchinos, toys, playing, and a ton of great conversation. We cannot thank all of our friends enough who made the time to stop by and meet Navy. We honestly could have stayed outside chatting and letting the pups play all night! Also, we want to extend a BIG thank you to Aloft El Segundo for hosting such an amazing event! To my LA based friends…rumor has it, these yappie hours may be a monthly thing!

Day 2: Friday

Without traffic it should take about an hour and 45 minutes to drive from LA to Santa Barbara. Zach had to make it to Santa Barbara for a wedding rehearsal by 11am, so we left LA by 7am. Luckily we didn’t hit too much traffic and arrived in Santa Barbara in just under 2 hours. Zach is a member and cardholder for IHG hotels, so after a quick (yet amazing) breakfast at the Cajun Kitchen Cafe down the road, we were able to check in early to the Kimpton Goodland.

While Zach was at the wedding rehearsal, Navy and I explored the hotel. Hands down, the Kimpton Goodland is the most Instagram worthy hotel we’ve been to. When we checked in they even gave us a map of the property that included the Instagram logo for different photo ops. You know very well that we checked out all of the locations! Kimpton’s are also some of the most dog friendly hotels out there, so we could virtually take Navy almost anywhere on the property.

Later on, we joined our friends for a late lunch just down the street at Los Arroyos Mexican Restaurant in Goleta. The patio is shaded, perfect for dogs to cool off on a warm day! We ended our day with drinks at the Kimpton Goodland’s Outpost restaurant. Not only is the food amazing here, but so was the decor and ambiance.

Day 3: Saturday

Our friends over at Jamie Slone Wines highly recommended we check out Handlebar Coffee and Arroyo Burro Beach (also known as Hendry’s dog beach). Handlebar Coffee was probably the best coffee I’ve had in a long time. They allow dogs in their shop and even have a jar of treats at the counter for them! After running around Arroyo Burro Beach, Navy is officially a beach babe. I mean, look at her!

We ate a quick brunch at our favorite, the Kimpton Goodland Outpost before I dropped Navy off at her Wag sitter. As we talked about in our previous post, we did not feel comfortable leaving Navy alone in the hotel room all evening. We’ve worked with Wag before and Navy has been walked by Wag walkers at home so I could not recommend using Wag enough. Their concierge was able to book our sitter, without us having to message any directly. The sitter sent pictures of Navy throughout the evening. Zach and I were able to enjoy ourselves at the wedding knowing Navy was getting love and attention. Seriously, the sitter said she could barely take Navy on a walk without people stopped to ooh and aah over Navy.

Day 4: Sunday

We picked Navy up from her Wag sitter and took her to our other favorite breakfast spot, Cajun Kitchen. Navy was exhausted from her night with the sitter so she just napped and ate pieces of bacon as Zach “accidentally” dropped them on the ground.

Our friends at Jamie Slone Wines invited us to stop by for a wine tasting. The tasting room is incredibly dog-friendly! Navy was a bit tired so she sat back and relaxed while we tried ALL the wines. Navy did perk up when one of our corgi friends Iggy Biggy stopped by to say hello. If the dog-friendly atmosphere isn’t enough, let me tell you, the Sauvignon Blanc is worth stopping by for a taste. Yeah…we ended up ordering an entire case to be shipped back. 

Later in the afternoon, we stopped by Tabano Hollow Open Space dog park to meet up with  Santa Barbara resident, Pavlov the Corgi. The six of us went to Captain Fatty’s Brewery for amazing beer and pizza. Thank you Pav and your parents for taking the time out of your evening to show us around Santa Barbara! Pav may seem like a bad boy on Instagram, but he is a total softy!

Day 5: Monday

We truly made the most of our last day in Santa Barbara. We visited Arroyo Burro Beach again and played for over an hour. Navy even went into the ocean! They have these adorable self dog wash stations in the parking lot. Navy did not find them adorable, but she smelled a lot better!

For breakfast, we dined at the Mesa Cafe and Bar, less than 10 minutes from the beach. The pumpkin pancakes are AMAZING. Don’t worry, Navy got a slice or two of bacon.

Later in the afternoon, we stopped by the dog-friendly Apiary Tasting Room in Carpinteria. They specialize in hard ciders, meads, and hard kombuchas. Zach and I split two flights so we could try a little of everything. We ended up spending about 2.5 hours drinking and playing Connect Four. If Jesse is tending bar, ask to play him in Connect Four. He will bet you a free drink for in exchange a good dead. apiary-dog-friendly4/4

For lunch, we headed down the road to the Padaro Beach Grill. It had great views, amazing food, and a dog-friendly lawn. The beach dining area however, is not dog-friendly. Order the quesadilla, you won’t regret it.dog-friendly-carpenteria4/8

To end our Santa Barbara stay, we enjoyed a late dinner at the Brewhouse. Navy even enjoyed steak bites off the doggy menu!

Day 6: Tuesday

Our flight back to Baltimore was out of LA so we had to leave Santa Barbara fairly early. If we could have extended our vacation longer we would have visited Figueroa Mountain Brewing, Butterfly Beach, and dined at the Lark. We also would have walked around the Funk Zone and visited Stearns Wharf. I guess that means we need to come back ;). I think it is safe to say that Santa Barbara got two paws up from Navy and from Zach and I too!

If you liked this post be sure to read our previous travel blogs to Lynchburg, VA and the Outer Banks. Check out our new Instagram highlights for Santa Barbara and LA for more pictures and videos from our trip. Subscribe so you don’t miss out on more of our dog-friendly adventures and travel tips!