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Butterfly Beach
Rating Details »
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
18 reviews for Butterfly Beach
We went to Butterfly Beach on a rare 90+ degrees day in Santa Barbara, and it was semi-crowded but our overall experience was good. The beach was very clean, but the water was freezing. The water at this beach has a lot of seaweed, but much less than Goleta Beach which is a plus. Some attempted to surf, but the waves broke pretty close to the water. Casey enjoyed jumping in the waves, and I enjoyed relaxing in the sun.
Make sure to bring your own water, food, umbrellas, etc., because as many say, this is a "locals beach," so there are no amenities like bathrooms or tables - just sand and water!
Being near a beach most of my life, I would like to go out on a limb and say that this is seriously one of the most beautiful beach I've been to, ever.
My boyfriend and I enjoyed a lovely break from sightseeing here, and it was very romantic despite it being relatively hot. The beach was clean, no oil rigs in sight, no huge crowd of 909 tourists *insert HB native laugh here*, and a beautiful view of the clean water. Wished we could've watched the sun set at this beach before we left SB.
Parking was relatively easy for being a Saturday afternoon; we found spots along the road and walked less than a few minutes to the beach. Dog-friendly beach, but still very clean (as they always are). Use Google maps to help you locate the beach -- we looked up the Four Seasons Biltmore in Montecito, as it was across the street from the beach.
Highly recommended for a romantic date!
Oh, I've heard that celebrity sightings are common here. Didn't see anybody famous, but who cares when you've got the most handsome man cuddling with you while wiping sweat off your brow from the heat? :)
So beautiful. :)
Why I thought a picnic on the beach would be romantic beats me. By the time I got to the beach, it was 80 degrees and I'm wearing jeans and a sweater. I was literally sweating on my pasta =(
Comfortableness aside, Butterfly Beach is gorgeous. No oil rigs, no light polls, no strip malls obstructing your view of the waters. Unlike the beaches in LA, I didn't see any crazy homeless people or trash cluttered around. Just white sand, palm tress, and the water (no seaweed!). A beautiful beach - but I wouldn't rate this as the best in California (Pebble Beach is!).
Google maps the Four Seasons since it's across the street from the beach. I had no problem finding free parking. Dog friendly.
Sorry to go against the grain, folks, and, maybe I went on a bad overcast gloomy day... but, what is the big deal? The view isn't that great, there weren't that many people or dogs for that matter. The sand isn't all that... this beach is small... there are HUGE tangles of seaweed all over the damn place, hmm... maybe I need to come back to re-evaluate when it's a lot warmer.
Great for a light lunch snack and gaze at the wondrous prism of nature and earth, the sands of sweet America, I love the light that springs up and into the eyes of the person you are taking a picture of .....literally, or maybe, just your mind.
Yes, handle with care. Travel light. And may the wind guide your back and hold your dreams above fate.
HELLO. I'm here to review Butterfly Beach, in Santa Barbara (CA).
My girlfriend (whom I love very much) and I just returned from Butterfly Beach. We had seen the effusive enthusiasm all over Yelp for this "best beach on the West Coast".
We arrived at evening, with a low-hanging sun still giving its warmth. We found the beach certainly pleasant, enjoyable, and beachy.
However, 5-star-status it cannot deserve. There were a number of swarthy locals huddled around a thumping dj/turntable setup on one end of the beach -- they were blasting horrific techno pulses that we couldn't get out of our brains.
Lest you think us curmudgeons, we are ourselves young and vibrant and good-looking and open to the occasional beach party. This was not the only factor in the one-star markdown, however -- the beach itself was narrow, lacking in stunning vistas or extraordinary privacy, and overall was enjoyable, but not spectacular.
Thank you very much, and I hope you will read more of my reviews in the future. Just search for "Douglas K.". That's me!
Douglas K.
This is very much a locals beach. Probably because its so damn hard to find. And despite the fact that I used to live 3 blocks from another sand and ocean water filled locale, I always drove 20 minutes to get to Butterfly because its just so much better than everything else in the area.
The beaches of Goleta are filled with college students, and the beaches of Santa Barbara around the pier are filled with bugs, tourists, volleyball players and have dirty sand.
Butterfly (which is in Montecito) is everything the other beaches are not. It can be hard to find and parking is often painful. But butterfly beach is one of those rare beaches where you can bring the family or you can bring the leftover keg and nobody cares. The sand and the water are clean. And I might just pack up my towels and be there before dawn tomorrow morning.
Walk here at Sunset. This is one of those places that gives you religion. Been to a lot of beaches for a lot of reasons, and I can say that for cleansing the soul, none top Butterfly.
One of my best memories ever was one particular afternoon at Butterfly Beach - watching the dolphins swim by, lying in the sun with friends, taking a dip in the warm water and actually not getting covered in tar.
Heaven!
Oh so beautiful... Emphassis on beautiful (Typo here but works! Brilliant!!) Surreal beach in Santa Barbara. If possible, I highly recommend some Bud Light Tall Cans (You don't want to deal with bottles). Although it is illegal to drink on this beach, people do it all the time, just move underneath the cliffs to the right when you walk up so you'll have some time and they'll bust the other people first. And bring your guitar:
"Hmm Jenny, where should we sit?"
-"Let's sit by that guy playing guitar"
Lovely & magical beach. Right across from the Four Seasons Biltmore. Easy parking on the street. The street above is lined with tall palm trees, then the Biltmore grounds is right there, so it's a great location. Great place to watch a sunset. Lots of people out walking their dogs. More of a local beach or maybe the people staying at the four seasons walk over, but nice group of people. Didn't notice any homeless or weirdos. A beautiful couple were taking their wedding pics on the beach. Must see if you're in the SB area.
Perfect sand. Little or no breeze. A tree to take cover under, if necessary. Right next to the Biltmore, so you don't get the gross beach bums and trash everywhere. Minimal tar deposits (a curse in Santa Barbara) and overall my number one tanning spot every summer.
I've spent my life in San Diego, one of those scenic, picturesque photo magnet/postcard sorta places, and I still have no problem finding beauty in my city's landscapes.
That said, Butterfly Beach is kinda ridiculously gorgeous. A small strip of sand hidden away from any major road, no surf to speak of due to the Channel Islands keeping it quiet, plenty of free parking, seems to be devoid of the homeless that mob State Street, and at sundown is the sort of place at which you wouldn't mind having a heart attack and dying if it meant the view being your last sight.
Also, take the bike route south from the wharf, and when you come around the cemetery and see the hill, keep going - my girl and I went this way not exactly sure if the bike path was going to lead to the beach, and the site of a hill for an out of shape guy like myself on a bike too low to the ground was enough to get me to turn around. We drove around there later in the day and approached it from the south, and not until we left the beach and headed north did we realize how close we were to the beach on our bikes. Lush greenery on the car and bike path just north of the beach/cemetery if you're in to that stuff, too.
Beautiful beach, beautiful name...My college roommate actually got married on this beach in an impromptu ceremony. Across the street is the tony Four Seasons resort, it's a very upscale, peaceful beach.
I have lived in Orange County my whole life surrounded by Newport and Laguna beach and nothing compares to this beach. This definitely has to be the most beautiful beach in California. The locals come out at night and are great to talk to and everyone brings there dogs to play in the water. Local photgraphy students use the beach for photoshoots and the atmosphere is just surreal and something out of a movie. I can not say enough good things about this place.
This is my favorite beach. It seems every time I go here I mostly see Golden Retrievers, not sure why but it makes it all that more interesting. One of the best benefits of this beach is that it's not as crowded as the one more downtown.
Possibly the best beach on the West Coast.
