About Butterfly Beach:
Butterfly Beach is a favorite beach of Santa Barbara residents. It's a long, sandy beach with a gentle slope, a good place to walk or to play in the waves. Dogs can run off leash here, and you'll often find lots of them running around and enjoying themselves.
Butterfly Beach Fees:
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Entrance Fee: None
Parking Fee: None
Creature Comforts at Butterfly Beach:
Butterfly Beach offers no facilites, so bring your own water and snacks, and "go" before you go.
Butterfly Beach Activities:
- Walking
- Walking the dog
- Sand play
Lodging Near Butterfly Beach:
Butterfly Beach is right across the street from the Four Seasons Biltmore, a lovely place to stay if you can afford it. Otherwise, it's a few minutes' drive from other Santa Barbara hotels.
Highs and Lows at Butterfly Beach:
- This "local" beach does not have any facilities
- Dogs can run free on Butterfly Beach
Beachgoer Beware:
Because of offshore oil fields, all Santa Barbara area beaches are likely to have balls of tar washing up on shore. Once the gooey stuff gets on your shoes or feet, it's almost impossible to get off. We recommend that you do not go barefoot, and you may want to take an old pair of shoes or buy some inexpensive ones that you won't mind throwing away.
How to Get to Butterfly Beach:
Butterfly Beach is just a short distance from Santa Barbara's East Beach, but the only way to get to it is to take Highway 101 to Olive Mill Road in Montecito and follow it toward the ocean.
You can park along the street in front of the Biltmore, but if you go too far, beware. If you take the one-way road uphill, you won't be able to get back. However, when you're ready to go back to Santa Barbara, this route will take you to E. Cabrillo Blvd.
You can also get to Butterfly Beach by following the waterfront bicycle path from the Santa Barbara waterfront.
