Day Trip to

Oxnard and Santa Barbara Mission

We are venturing out on a day trip to Oxnard and Santa Barbara Mission thanks to the guidance of our hosts. So in my usual way of loving the coast, we turn off the freeway way too soon. We spend a good couple of hours enjoying the fog of Malibu, but then we find Oxnard and I love this little town.

Oxnard

Arriving in Oxnard we get out of the car and wander around as it is a coastal town.

We would have stopped for coffee, but the lady running the store seems like she is having a bad morning so we press on and she misses out on our business.

Marina

We really love the marina in this area too. I would love to come back and spend a weekend here and I wonder why it isn’t more famous.

We find this cute island and jetty, but we have trouble finding the road there. We did find this dead end – it went straight into the sea!  So much for the GPS!

Santa Barbara

We head into Santa Barbara still driving along the coast and eying off the gorgeous homes.  It is paradise for the rich along this coastline.

Visitor Center

We find the Visitor Center and the lady gives us some great advice which is why visitor centers are so important to call into when you are traveling. We get lost and finally find our way to our destination – the mission. It is a perfect day for our road trip from Oxnard and Santa Barbara Mission!

Santa Barbara Mission

There are not too many people around the mission so we get to do a slow tour.

My son knows today is an educational day. We treat this as a learning time and he is really interested. As all the Californian kids have to study missions in Year 4, these places have a lot for children to learn.

Old Mission Garden

I love the cactus garden here at the mission, and we study as we walk. If you are un-schooling or world schooling, going to places like this is ideal. It is only a few dollars each to get in too.

The cemetery garden is really interesting to me. Creepy to my son though – I’m hoping he doesn’t step back into that cactus!.

We do a jigsaw of California and the mission areas. Then we find this interactive board that lights up and shows who founded what missions. There were actually only 3 founding padres.

We do a rubbing picture of the mission and we spend time together and make this a bit of an art time.

We end the experience at the mission with some fun!  My son knows what he might look like if he decides to don the robes of faith.

Playground

We have passed a wooden fort and a playground. So he gets his energy out here. there is a model play whale and so he has a whale of a time!

Santa Barbara Pier

We end up taking a walk along the pier. We tried to rent bikes which are at the opposite end. But the minimum is two hours and we are out of time but secretly I don’t mind a bit.

Lighthouse

This lighthouse is now a restaurant and the line up to get in is often out the door at mealtimes so we hear. There are some gorgeous things to see in this area. We drive around the old town and I really would love to spend a few days around this area.

We drive home to our host’s place and get caught up on the freeway for nearly 3 hours.

Tip

Always go to the toilet before you leave a town when you take a road trip to Oxnard and Santa Barbara Mission.  We head back to the suburbs of LA and we cannot wait for the bathroom!

Questions and Comments

• Have you been to Oxnard or the Santa Barbara Mission?
• What do you recall most from your visit to the Santa Barbara Mission center?
• Please share your comments with us.