Favorite Activities in the Riviera!

David: “My favorite thing about the Riviera is the dramatic ocean views. Sometimes I drive Alameda Padre Serra (aka APS) home just to see the ocean. The view is panoramic so you can see the Santa Barbara Harbor (which is beautiful at twilight with all the twinkling lights). You can also see the main landmarks in the City, like the Courthouse tower, the Arlington Theater, and Granada Theater. The Riviera Theater shows mostly indy films, many that are recognized at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival. What people don’t know is that the park at the Riviera Theater is quite beautiful and great for walking dogs. Sunset dinners at the Belmond El Encanto are amazing. And one of the coolest things on the Rivera is the wall of frog statues on Paterna Rd. ”

Teddy: “I live on the Upper Riviera and absolutely love our neighborhood. The views are incredible and there are urban hiking trails galore. There are also a lot of little secret staircases hidden between houses that connect one street to the next. I love parking at the Mission and walking up Pedregosa Street to the secret staircase and continuing up to Alameda Padre Serra to Paterna Road and up to Mission Ridge Road to do a big Riviera loop. It is such good exercise and there are beautiful ocean and city views along the way. On Paterna Road there is a famous house that has an incredible toy frog collection. You can see everything from rubber frogs to froggy windchimes to pillows with frogs on them and everything in between. It is truly a sight to see and one of my favorite places in our neighborhood. My girls also love going up to Franceschi Park too and exploring and running around the Eucalyptus grove too. It is always so peaceful up there. For dinner before a concert at the Santa Barbara Bowl it is fun to go up to El Encanto Hotel and have a drink and burger on the patio. It is the perfect way to pregame before a show!”