Santa Barbara family guide
Things to Do in Santa Barbara with Kids
Curated by Simir Shah
Reviewed & updated August 2026 · we check listings regularly, but hours and prices change — confirm before you go.
Santa Barbara on the map
📍 Where Santa Barbara is
Santa Barbara sits in Santa Barbara, Southern California. Nearest major airport: Hollywood Burbank (~78 mi / 126 km). It's roughly 87 mi (140 km) from Downtown LA and 188 mi (302 km) from San Diego — SoCal traffic can make a drive take far longer than the distance suggests, so plan around it.
Visiting? See SoCal at a glance, getting around and which airport.
Things to do in Santa Barbara
Kid's World Playground
An 8,000-square-foot wooden castle of slides, swings, and climbing structures at Alameda Park, sized for ages 2 to 12 and long considered the city's flagship playground. Volunteer-built in the 1990s in the community-playground style, it's the kind of sprawling wooden fort kids can disappear into for hours.
Free
Arroyo Burro Beach (Hendry's Beach)
A sandy county beach with a big picnic lawn, an on-site restaurant, and a dedicated off-leash dog beach section at one end — a distinctly different, more local-feeling beach than the downtown waterfront strip.
Free; on-site lot
Alice Keck Park Memorial Garden
A free 4.6-acre downtown botanical garden with a koi pond, a sensory garden, and a picnic gazebo — a calmer, no-admission alternative to the paid Santa Barbara Botanic Garden, and an easy stop between other downtown errands.
Free
Santa Barbara Historical Museum
A free downtown museum covering Santa Barbara's history from the Chumash era through the Old Spanish Days period — a quick, no-cost rainy-day complement to the paid Natural History Museum and MOXI.
FreeRattlesnake Canyon Trail
A popular, easy-to-moderate roughly 2-mile family hike along a creek to a shaded meadow — a gentler, more forested alternative to the bouldering-and-scrambling terrain at Lizard's Mouth.
Free
Santa Barbara Certified Farmers Market
The city's flagship weekly farmers market, held downtown every Saturday morning with local produce, flowers, and food vendors — an easy, free way to start a Santa Barbara morning before the beach or Stearns Wharf.
Free to browseElings Park
A 230-acre hilltop park with playgrounds, a free 9-hole disc golf course, and BMX and RC-car tracks — a bigger, more varied outdoor option than the standard beach or garden visit.
Free; disc golf $6 weekendsFree days in Santa Barbara
Free or free-on-certain-days admission. Rules change and some are residents-only — confirm with the venue before you go.
Santa Barbara Museum of Art
Free the 1st Thursday of each month, 5–8pm; free 2nd Sunday for SB/Ventura/SLO residents
A downtown art museum with European, American and Asian collections plus family art-making. Free the first Thursday evening of each month (not every Thursday — CORRECTED 2026-09-15), and free the second Sunday monthly for tri-county residents.
Local restaurants in Santa Barbara
Rusty's Pizza Parlor
A Santa Barbara institution since 1969, serving thin-crust pizza, wings, and a salad bar right on State Street.
McConnell's Fine Ice Creams (State Street)
Scratch-made ice cream from a brand founded in Santa Barbara in 1949 — a simple counter-service scoop shop right on State Street.
Benchmark Eatery
Casual smash burgers, tacos, and flatbreads on a kid- and pet-friendly patio on upper State Street.
Renaud's Patisserie & Bistro
French pastries, croissants, and an all-day brunch menu in a casual bakery-cafe format at Arlington Plaza.
Los Arroyos Mexican Restaurant
A beloved local Mexican restaurant since 1999, a block off State Street, with a real kids' menu and outdoor seating.
Cajun Kitchen Cafe
A family-run Cajun-inflected breakfast and lunch diner since 1984, built around being a family gathering spot.
Lucky Penny
Wood-fired Neapolitan-style pizza served in a penny-tiled building in the Funk Zone, with a casual picnic-style patio.
Helena Avenue Bakery
Rustic breads and scratch pastries at a casual counter-service breakfast-and-lunch bakery in the Funk Zone.
Mony's Mexican Food
A local go-to taqueria since 2013 in the Funk Zone, known for affordable street tacos at a casual counter-order format.
Santa Barbara Shellfish Company
A casual, first-come seafood shack at the end of Stearns Wharf, with crab and lobster straight from the tanks and counter seating over the water.
Moby Dick Restaurant
A Santa Barbara fixture on Stearns Wharf since 1959, serving ocean-view seafood and American fare, with a confirmed kids' menu and a weekday lunch prix-fixe.
Corazón Cocina
Inventive Mexican street tacos and ceviche at a fast-casual counter inside the Santa Barbara Public Market.
Santa Barbara Public Market
A Funk Zone food hall with rotating independent kitchens under one roof — including Rori's Artisanal Creamery, Little Bird, Que Smoke Shack, and Empty Bowl Noodle Bar — with communal seating and something for every picky eater in one stop.
Brass Bear Brewing
A local brewery and bistro in the Funk Zone serving sandwiches and charcuterie, built with a designated kids' zone.
McConnell's Fine Ice Creams (Funk Zone)
A second scoop-shop location near the beach end of State Street from the Santa Barbara-founded (1949) ice cream brand.
Local shops in Santa Barbara
Chicken Little
A family-owned kids and baby store since 1979 at State and Victoria, with gear, toys and clothing plus stroller demos and car-seat installs.
Game Seeker
A family-run board game and puzzle shop on State Street with in-store play tables and regular family game nights.
Chaucer's Books
An independent full-service bookstore since 1974 on upper State Street, with a dedicated children's picture-book section.
Seasonal & outdoors near Santa Barbara
The closest splash pads, patches, lights and more — distances from Santa Barbara.
Santa Barbara family FAQ
What are the best things to do in Santa Barbara with kids?
Family favorites in and around Santa Barbara include Kid's World Playground, Arroyo Burro Beach (Hendry's Beach), Alice Keck Park Memorial Garden and Santa Barbara Historical Museum, and more. Our guide lists 7 spots, sorted by distance from you with hours, prices and tips.
Are there free things to do in Santa Barbara?
Yes — free family spots near Santa Barbara include Kid's World Playground, Arroyo Burro Beach (Hendry's Beach), Alice Keck Park Memorial Garden and Santa Barbara Historical Museum. Use the "free only" filter in the finder above to see them all.
Where can families eat in Santa Barbara?
Local, family-friendly spots in Santa Barbara include Rusty's Pizza Parlor, McConnell's Fine Ice Creams (State Street), Benchmark Eatery and Renaud's Patisserie & Bistro, and more — independent, SoCal-only eateries, never national chains.
What does the YourSoCal Santa Barbara guide cover?
Our Santa Barbara family guide includes 7 things to do, 15 local eats and 3 local shops — all hand-curated, locally owned, and sorted by distance from you.
Listings are curated and may change — confirm hours and details before you go.
Book Santa Barbara tours & tickets
Bookable via Viator · we may earn a commission (no extra cost to you)Bookable experiences, skip-the-line tickets, and tours in Santa Barbara — reserved through Viator.
Free cancellationEpic Zipline Tour near Santa Barbara
Free cancellationCoastal Cruise on Yacht in Santa Barbara
Santa Barbara Trolley Tour
Free cancellationSanta Barbara Sunset Cruise on Yacht
Free cancellationAll Inclusive Santa Ynez Wine Tour
Free cancellationDiscover Santa Barbara Yacht Experience
More experiences via GetYourGuide · we may earn a commission (no extra cost to you)
Where to stay in Santa Barbara
Hotels & rentals via Stay22 · we may earn a commissionCompare hotels, resorts, and vacation rentals near Santa Barbara on one map — then book on your favorite site.