11 Parks to Explore in Santa Barbara County

Alameda Park is a two-block park in downtown Santa Barbara. As one of the city's oldest parks, it is home to a variety of rare trees and plants. These horticultural treasures include the soapbark tree, the white ironwood, and the bunya-bunya tree, just to name a few.

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.

Elings Park is a 230-acre private park. It is one of Santa Barbara’s most beautiful gathering places for nature, athletics, and culture. It hosts weddings, special events, recreation activities, sports leagues, and more. The park consists of sports fields, hiking and biking trails, playgrounds, wedding/special event venues, and landscaped walkways. The park is a hub for mountain biking, youth sports, paragliding, and other outdoor activities.

Franceschi Park is a 15.78-acre public park located at the intersection of Mission Ridge. The site hosts a small picnic area, a large patio that serves as a group picnic area, restrooms, some trails, and a parking lot; and further serves as a resource for the pioneering horticultural work undertaken by Italian horticulturalist Dr. Francesco Franceschi.

This is a 10-acre park located at the cross section of Laguna and E. Los Olivos Street and spans between Alameda Padré Serra and Mission Ridge Road. This monument to Santa Barbara was the tenth Californian Mission built by Spanish Franciscans. The grounds contain ruins of Mission Santa Barbara’s old waterworks, tannery vats, grassed areas, and the City Rose Garden and so more.

Parma Park is a park located in Santa Barbara, California.The park is situated on State Route 192 about one mile west of its junction with State Route 144. The park itself is located in chaparral and oak-covered hills. The park is relatively primitive, with a handful of picnic tables; however it has several hiking and horse trails. The park is also the major landing zone for hang gliders and paragliders launching from Gibraltar Road.

This is a small urban forest with a year round creek. Filled with an abundance of rocks and sandstone boulders deposited there by an ancient landslide, and roofed by oak trees, the park affords a diversity of topography. The towering trees are lush and the park offers shaded picnic areas, short trails, and the area is strewn with large sandstone boulders.

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.

Shoreline Park is a popular 14.6-acre coastal bluff park located west of Leadbetter Beach. Park amenities include a playground, two restrooms, individual picnic tables and barbeques, a group picnic area, sidewalks, park benches, and beach access stairs. This park is perfect for a family picnicThe beach below the bluffs is relatively narrow and rocky and is often covered in water due to tides.

This majestic and beautiful 35-acre Skofield Park is nestled high in the foothills adjacent to Rattlesnake Canyon Trail and along Mission Creek. It is covered with large grassy meadows and numerous native shade trees. It is a best place for walking, hiking, and wildlife viewing. This is the only city park with reservable camping areas for nonprofit youth groups.

This is an old 25-acre park runs up San Roque canyon with a picturesque hiking trails that criss-cross a creek and connect to the historic trails of the Santa Ynez Range. It opens up into a grassy field with picnic tables, a playground, public restrooms, and walking paths. There are also so many things to see and do here. it is one of the iconic attraction here, which is very close to nature.