Santa Barbara Travel Answers

North of Santa Barbara is Paso Robles which is developing a good reputation for winemaking. There is a shuttle service that hits a number of the wineries in Paso Robles. Let me know if you want more specific info, as I left it at home. Karl

There are a number of wineries in Both Santa Barbara County and in the Paso Robles region. Here is an operator in Santa Barbara. gogrape.com/santabarbara/ind... Two of my favorites in the Santa Ynez Valley are the Firestone Winery and the Zaca Mesa Winery. Santa Ynez by the way is where both Ronald Reagan and Michael Jackson had their ranches. http://www.firestonewine.com/ http://www.zacamesa.com/ Both of those are identified with the town of Los Olivos. Hope this helps..................d:o)

hi, well, it's true that paso has great wineries. doesn't the op want to be in santa barbara? paso is two hours north of santa barbara. i would do a search for winery tours in santa barbara. here is one i found with a simple search. you don't need to leave santa barbara county for great wine. santabarbarabackroads.com/?g... this covers a half hour north of santa barbara where there is plenty of good stuff (seen the movie sideways? it's there). i would hate to see you drive all the way up to nowhere town, which is an hour north of where i grew up, to go to wineries. santa barbara is beautiful, has the nightlife that paso doesn't have, has culture, a city dynamic with a small town feel. it's just ... there's so much more to see and do. all you have to do is walk down state street and you will find adult night life. get a hotel or motel within walking distance from state street (6 blocks is a short walk) and you don't need to be near the beach. there are plenty of carts and buses that go down state street. just stay south of carillo st. which crosses state, and you will have no trouble finding anything. hope that helps. sorry above posters. you are right about there being good wine, but why leave a place with so much more other opportunities for the adventures they want? i may be wrong...

Santa Barbara clearly has a much better developed wine industry and some world class wines. Paso Robles industry is relatively new but is developing and has attracted some top end wine makers, Robert Hall, Vigne, Justin to name a few. The OP did want a "party bus", something I have not seen in Santa Barbara (I am sure one could find one), however PR does have a shuttle company, hoponthewineline.com ($50 as per advert.). They also wanted to move a little farther North. Between Santa Barbara and PR they would get a taste of two really different worlds. The SB nightlife seems to be more overloaded with college kids from the nearby University. Not that I haven't tipped a few on State Street, but it gets old really fast. Karl

I suggest you look at the VT destinations for the major cities with wine nearby. Santa Barbara, Solvang, Los Olivos, San Luis Obispo and Paso Robles. I find the Los Olivos area and the wine tasting bars of Solvang to be an excellent start. The almost hidden Edna Valley Wineries of San Luis Obispo are like the old Napa Valley area of rural streets and few tourists. I also recommend the Paso Robles wineries. They do have a lot to offer. See the Paso Robles wineries at website: http://www.pasowine.com/wineries/

the problem with the tours companies is that they are not going to take you from santa barbara to paso robles. you either get sb county or slo county. good luck finding one that will take you two hours north. you could just rent a limo for 6 hours and then have the driver take you around. if you are starting in santa barbara, you could venture up the coast but you will be pressed for time, unless you want to be drinking for 9 hours! if i were in your position, i would pick a location, whether it be santa barbara or the central coast, and stick around that region. think: you're going to be in each winery for about 1/2 hr. plus driving time. how many wineries do you think you will be able to hit if you drive 2.5 hrs up the coast and back? that's the time it will take a van or shuttle or limo WITHOUT stopping. just a consideration. i would stick around sb since you want some night life. paso has none. if it's just wine you want, sure try paso. of course there's a lot of great wine around there.

"the problem with the tours companies is that they are not going to take you from santa barbara to paso robles. you either get sb county or slo county. good luck finding one that will take you two hours north"> By the posters question, it seemed to me, they wanted to know about good wine areas from Santa Barbara and a little further north. I assume they have a vehicle to get from one city to another. In my humble assumption, I think it is then, once in a wine area location, no matter Santa Barbara or up to Paso Robles, they want ot know about a party bus. My opinion.

i am not suggesting a party bus. there are small vans that take people around. they seat maybe six but i'm sure the van doesn't have to be full. just paid for. i was trying to give them an alternative to driving around while drinking. but if they don't mind and think they can handle it, more power...:)

No, maybe my mistake, but I believe they are going for more than one day, like a road trip. So, they drive sober to the next town and then get a Party bus, van, limo, taxi, driver, whatever to go to the wineries. Does that clear it up?

ah yeah you're right. looks like they will be starting in sb and moving north. that makes WAY more sense.

I live in SB and if you have a few days to spend in the area, I would recommend spending a day and night in SB. There are some great fun tasting rooms in Santa Barbara. If you a decent budget you can stay at the Harborview Inn and walk to a number of them, or if you are on a tighter budget there is a nice Motel 6 right near the beach and you can take a shuttle to downtown and the tasting rooms. Then i would spend a couple nights in the Solvang area. Again if you have the budget you could stay at the Alisal Guest Ranch- room includes gourmet breakfast and dinner, they have golf and horseback riding etc. Then during the day you can hit the wineries. Check with the Santa Ynez Vintners Association of a list. Enjoy the weather is usually pretty nice year round.