Edhat Staff
Photo: David Mark / Pixabay
By edhat staff
Santa Barbara has been featured in the New York Times’ popular “52 Places Traveler” article.
For the past 13 years, the Times travel section has started the New Year with articles on places to go around the world, 52 to be exact, brought to you by interesting travelers or one dedicated traveler. The destinations are varied, sometimes showcasing a small mid-western town in the U.S. and other times a remote Grecian island.
Sebastian Modak was selected as the 2019 52 Places Traveler, who’s previously worked at Condé Nast Traveler. For the last installment of his 2019 series he chose to highlight Los Angeles and Santa Barbara.
Obviously we’re skipping over his review of LA and getting to the good stuff of how he viewed our little blue town by the big blue sea. “… the town is almost too pleasant, like it has been packaged and gilded for maximum enjoyment,” he began his article.
Modak describes Santa Barbara as having a reputation as a weekend escape for Los Angeles’s elite, which reading that may cause significant eye rolls from SB locals. Not because it’s untrue, but because they hate it. One true thing the writer noted that locals can agree on is the list of things you can’t do in Santa Barbara: smoking, parking, and skateboarding, although he forgot to mention using a plastic straw.
Local taquerias La Super Rica and Mony’s were mentioned as well as the bougie’er options fo The Lark and Bibi Ji. Of course, the ever-expanding wine scene and Funk Zone are easy targets for travel articles.
Read the full article here and share your thoughts in the comment section.
“the list of things you can’t do in Santa Barbara” — none of those are things you can’t do in Santa Barbara.
One more writer who simply does not understand Montecito and Hope Ranch are not Santa Barbara. Nor are day trippers who hit the Funk Zone Real Santa Barbara either. Real Santa Barbara is found in the Home Improvement Center parking lot. On a week day.
Egads, more tourists.
He must have forgotten to mention Santa Barbara’s fine collection of bums, corrupt politicians, transients, drunks, petty thieves, and gangs.
its ok they can read the independent article showing that 77% of our homeless were once residents of the town they are visiting. YAY marketing!
An article on Santa Barbara that leaves out UCSB, the Mission and the Santa Barbara Bowl but gushes for several paragraphs about unusual wine grape varietals and boutique wineries. The author gets an F for research.
Well I read it. I am a lifelong local and a senior citizen. I don’t know who these other Commenters are., Did MTNDRIVER really grow up on Mountain Drive? I knew just about everyone who did in my day. I thought the article was decent. SB has all my life been a “tourist town.” That is how 50% of our population make a living. I thought the writer did a good job at what he is supposed to be doing. Happy New Year! Yeah look at the traffic lately, there are too many people in this World!
SBREADER: The largest local employee is the government; not tourism. Cottage Hospital is the second largest local employer. Don’t spread false narratives. Tourisms plays a role in funding the city budget; but property taxes and retail sales taxes in various forms are the real primary revenue sources. Yes, tourists do help support retail sales taxes. TOT – tourism transient occupancy tax – is much further down the list and certainly not 50% of all city revenues. . Soaking local residents is where the majority of local tax dollars come from, along with needing ever increasing property values to keep the property tax shares flowing too. Pays to know the fundamentals of local taxation – creates more informed voters and better understanding why elections do indeed have consequences. When all politicians do is promise more spending but ignore how those funds will be generated, your have government malpractice and we need to stop electing those who continually commit this.
I thought it was a bit bland. It would be cool if someone took a deep dive into the history and culture – something a la Anthony Bourdain……