OP here: we will get 2 full days and a few hours as the first day we will rent a car from LAX and reach there. We do not intend to keep the car with us in LAX for the entire time except for the visit to Joshua tree park.
Some hiking and some boat trips do sound fun!

Anonymous wrote:SB is lovely but maybe not great for teens.

Why not, won’t they just make content or whatever

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Honestly, SB is pretty, but not that much to do.

I used to go there often to visit a friend who still lives there. The beaches are nice, but the water is fairly cold. Depending on when you are going, you could try booking whale watching.

Up the coast there is San Simeon and Hearst Castle, Solvang - a cute little Dutch town.

Danish…

eh.. not that diff 😁🤭

3 nights is likely a bit long. Your teens will probably enjoy the beach and some shopping (and definitely McConnell's ice cream - it's fantastic), but there really isn't that much else to do. Solvang is cute. We paired Solvang with horseback riding at Alisal ranch, which our teen enjoyed.

Anonymous wrote:Honestly, SB is pretty, but not that much to do.

I used to go there often to visit a friend who still lives there. The beaches are nice, but the water is fairly cold. Depending on when you are going, you could try booking whale watching.

Up the coast there is San Simeon and Hearst Castle, Solvang - a cute little Dutch town.

Danish…

We did thee nights there a few years ago. We stayed at hotel Milo I think which we liked. One day we took the boat to the Channel Islands and went kayaking. The next day we walked around the area with lots of restaurants and shops and went for a bike ride along the beach — you can go pretty far in dedicated bike lanes and many hotels have free bikes. I wanted to go to the Mission too but we didn’t get there. So basically two full days and the next morning we drove down to LA. The food is good there and it’s basically a lot more manageable than LA — mostly walkable or bike able.

1-2 nights

Agree there’s not much to occupy you in SB. Could visit Ojai or the channel islands.

Just be aware there is natural oil offshore and feet or shoes will get tar on the bottom from walking on the sand. Locals say no biggie but be prepared with baby oil and wipes.
Santa Barbara has nice hikes around there. Plus there is the university.

SB is lovely but maybe not great for teens.

The botanic garden there is amazing, just beautiful and so different from what we have for plants around here. We were there for a wedding and wanted to go to the islands off the coast but didn't have time.

Lots of hiking nearby too
https://santabarbaraca.com/itinerary/best-hikes-in-santa-barbara/

https://santabarbaraca.com/plan-your-trip/arts-and-culture/historic-landmarks/

Honestly, SB is pretty, but not that much to do.

I used to go there often to visit a friend who still lives there. The beaches are nice, but the water is fairly cold. Depending on when you are going, you could try booking whale watching.

Up the coast there is San Simeon and Hearst Castle, Solvang - a cute little Dutch town.

Anonymous wrote:I don't know if your teen likes to lift weights but mine did this past summer at the SB Gold's Gym. Great breakfast spot: Jeannine's.

https://jeannines.com/

This is great, always love food recommendations!

I don't know if your teen likes to lift weights but mine did this past summer at the SB Gold's Gym. Great breakfast spot: Jeannine's.

https://jeannines.com/

We are spending three nights in SB and 4 in LA with two teens. Feeling now that 3 might be excessive in SB, and we should reduce to one or two. Thoughts? And any input on things to do while there would be great. Going during winter break. TIA!