Gaviota Beach is a small but beautiful brown sand beach that’s located 33 miles north of Santa Barbara on U.S. Highway 101. The beach is located on the western end of Gaviota State Park which features a well-known campground with 39 single-family (mixed-used) campsites for tents, trailers and RV’s – all of which are a short walk to the ocean, beach, and pier. There’s a $10 parking fee to enter the park, and you get to the beach by walking under the iconic Southern Pacific railroad bridge that crosses Gaviota Creek above the parking lot. The campground has a store, drinking water, nice toilets, and showers – and each campsite has a table, fire ring, and grill. There’s a lot to do here including swimming, surfing, kayaking, and biking. There are also two great hikes here – one to Gaviota Peak which is 1,325 feet in elevation and the other to Gaviota Wind Caves which are sandstone formations. You’ll also find tide pools here, and you can also ride horses in the park. This is a great, quiet beach, and if you want more action El Capitan State Beach is only 13 miles to the south.
