Santa Barbara Zoo - 4 Things to Know Before Visiting

East Beach located in Santa Barbara, California, United States, is often the first beach seen upon entering the city limits. It is separated from West Beach by Stearn's Wharf, and is proximal to downtown Santa Barbara. East Beach is the primary beach for tourists, as some of the major Santa Barbara hotels face this beach. The stretch of beach is not frequented as a surfing destination. East Beach is also home to the Santa Barbara Junior Lifeguards, who operate for seven weeks during the summer.

This is a 42-acre saltwater marsh, is one of the largest wildlife refuges in Santa Barbara County and is managed by the City of Santa Barbara Parks Division. The refuge has a 29-acre freshwater/brackish lake, an artificially modified estuary that is usually about four feet deep, which drains through East Beach into the Pacific Ocean. Three islands are located in the lake. A great overlook of the Bird Refuge is available at the neighboring Santa Barbara Zoo, below the Condor Exhibit.

Chase Palm Park along the Pacific Coast, in the heart of Santa Barbara, with its palm trees, is a very pleasent park for walking, running, and biking. This is an extensive park that encompasses much of both sides of East Cabrillo Boulevard and includes a palm tree-lined park adjacent to East Beach. An oceanfront bike path and walkway runs the length of Chase Palm Park from Stearns Wharf along East Beach.

Shipwreck playground is a shipwreck-themed playground that was thoughtfully designed and modeled after an ocean schooner from the turn of the century. At Shipwreck Playground children can play on two awesome climbing structures as well as several interesting sculptures such as surfacing whales, a conch shell lighthouse, and a nautilus shell play area – all situated in a white beach sand and other soft surface material.

Butterfly Beach is located along Channel Drive in the upscale community of Montecito. This is a popular beach with locals, many with dogs. Students are known to pack the beach at times. There are stairs to the widest and most popular part of the beach at Butterfly Lane, and another set of stairs in front of the Biltmore.

Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History is a natural history museum in Santa Barbara, California. The museum has ten indoor exhibit halls focusing on regional natural history including astronomy, birds, insects, geology, mammals, marine life, paleontology, plant life, and the Chumash Indians. It holds a research library, the John & Peggy Maximus Art Gallery and is the only museum to house a full-dome planetarium on the Central Coast.