the beach today
Santa Barbara Guide

Santa Barbara
Beach

The Riviera

The American Riviera -- a long palm-fringed beach below the Santa Ynez Mountains, anchored by Stearns Wharf and backed by the most beautiful Spanish Colonial downtown in California. East Beach is the best stretch: wide, calm, sunny and a short walk from State Street's restaurants and wine bars.

Today on the Sand

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Water Temp

84°

warm · gentle surf

UV Index

9

very high · 10am–4pm

Beach Crowd

Busy

holiday weekend

Beach Toolkit

Beach Conditions

Surf, tides & water temp

Parking Finder

Garages, lots & meters

Sunset

Sunset countdown & live cam

Dining

Where to eat after the sand

Things to Do

Cruises, sails & tours

Events

What's on this week

Beach Rules

Dogs, drinks, fires, drones

Pick Your Sand

north to south

East Beach

Wide main strand east of the wharf

Metered lot on Cabrillo

Chase Palm Park

Quiet park beach with volleyball nets

East of East Beach

West Beach

Harbor-side, calm and sheltered

Near the marina

Butterfly Beach

Montecito's celebrity stretch

20 min east, Miramar

Dolphin Cruises

Open →

Compare daily sails from the marina — wild dolphins on nearly every trip.

Beyond the Beach

day trips

Stearns Wharf

adjacent

Wine, seafood and the best Channel Islands view

State Street

5 min north

SB's restaurant and wine bar corridor

Mission Santa Barbara

10 min north

The Queen of the Missions on the hillside

Channel Islands NP

45 min by boat

Pristine kelp forests and sea caves

see you on the sand

Water temp, surf and UV are live from NOAA & Open-Meteo; sunset is computed locally for Santa Barbara East Beach. Crowd level is a weekday/weekend estimate.

Right now at Santa Barbara, the water is 72°F, surf is running 2–3 ft and the air is 73°F. Wind is 6 mph from the WSW and the UV index peaks at 7 (high) today. Unprotected fair skin burns in about 100 minutes right now, and the strongest stretch runs 12 PM to 4 PM. Today’s tides: High 1:50 PM, Low 10:38 PM.