Santa Barbara

Once you’ve had your fill of green juice in Malibu, take the hour-long jaunt up the coast to Santa Barbara and Montecito (a particularly nice stretch of road for top-down drives). The region has almost completely recovered from last year’s wildfires and mudslides, and favorites like the Four Seasons Resort the Biltmore Santa Barbara are fully up and running. Check into a suite once you arrive at the historic hotel to ensure access to the dusty-pink, ultra-exclusive Coral Casino, where an afternoon by the Olympic-sized pool and drinks at the living coral bar is all but mandatory.

If you’d like a momentary break from golden-sand beaches, wind your way up into the hills for a night at the tranquil Belmond El Encanto, which is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year. While you’re there, be sure to take the short drive through the mansion-lined back roads to Ganna Walska Lotusland—a stunning private garden home to some of the rarest plants on earth (only a limited number of visitors are allowed each year, so reservations are a must). Or, you can head back toward the water to Santa Barbara’s buzzy Funk Zone and check into the new Hotel Californian. The Martyn Lawrence Bullard–designed gem is in the heart of the city’s urban wine trail, where you can spend an evening swinging from one tasting room to the next mapping out the wineries you’d like to hit on your way north.

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Belmond El Encanto

Photo: Courtesy Belmond El Encanto

Four Seasons Resort the Biltmore Santa Barbara

Photo: Courtesy Four Seasons

Four Seasons Resort the Biltmore Santa Barbara

Photo: Courtesy Four Seasons

Hotel Californian

Photo: Courtesy Hotel Californian