schpenxel

eek, yeah that sounds a little excessive

CI GS

Holy ****, California sounds almost as expensive as living here, in "tax free" (ahem, bullshit) paradise. The irony is that the wife recently decided we should vacation with the whole family in California this year, and is busy booking us some places to stay. I just heard her laughing out loud because one of them wants a $150,000 refundable security deposit.

schpenxel

You shouldn't have any issues pulling that right out of your checking account Sammy

California

Streetk14

If you guys saw what my $500,000 condo looked like, you'd get a good laugh. 1 bed, 1 bath, 1 car garage. Built in 1984. That's Santa Barbara for you. Other than some cities in the Bay Area, this is about as expensive as it gets.

Streetk14

Jeez...where are you looking to stay? That's crazy!

CI GS

I'm not sure. I think Santa Monica. Must've been a typo. Or a whacko.

Streetk14

You're going to be quite close to Santa Barbara. Seriously, you should spend a couple days here instead of down in LA. Every time I have to go down there for something, I want to blow my brains out. SB is only about an hour drive from there. That's why all the celebrities live here. Close enough to the city, but far enough away from the traffic and crowds.

CI GS

Thanks Andy. I'll talk to the boss and see what she's arranged. That whole online booking **** gives me a mini-stroke every time. I'm just going along for the ride.

Unreal

Agreed. Heading north is far better than south. LA is a crap hole. SB is amazing (just expensive).

CI GS

Thanks guys. I'm going to see if I can change the plans up a bit. We have a bunch of teenage kids along for the ride, so they were all excited about going to LA. I couldn't careless about that crap. F@ckin kids nowadays. All they think about is superficial bullshit they see on TV.
Andy, if I do get to come up your way, I may check in with you to see what your up to, if you're in town then.

Unreal

There is nothing really to see in Hollywood/LA except for ******, drug dealers, and homeless. If that is what they are into, go for it.

Streetk14

Haha...spot on. To that I'd add: traffic. Traffic, traffic, and more traffic.

Streetk14

If you make it this way, hit me up. I'm usually in town. I'd at least try to make it up here for a day. Believe me, it'll be a breath of fresh air after you've spent any time in LA/OC. The only thing worthwhile down there is Disneyland and the other theme parks. At least if you ask me.

We're sandwiched between the ocean and mountains here. It's a pretty unique town with a lot of natural beauty. You're probably not super excited about the waterfront like most visitors are (at least I'm assuming since you live on an island), but there's lots to do and see here. I'd at least make it to see the old mission and maybe recommend heading up into the mountains. There's an awesome historic restaurant and bar up there, and it's a great drive. Wine country is nearby too, but that's probably not too teenager-friendly. Just tell your kids that the Kardashians vacation here...then they'll be on board

CI GS

Hahaha. Good to know man. The wife tried finding a house in the area apparently and there's nothing available. But I will definitely try to get up there. You're right about the sea. I see that every morning. But, I love the mountains. I really want to see the sequoias, which is on my bucket list of things to do before I die. I will let you know in advance if I'm heading up that way. Would love to buy you a beer or two or three, for all the help that you gave me in the past.

CI GS

Haha. As always, we can rely on Unreal for succinct advice!

Streetk14

Huh...I guess I've never tried to get a vacation rental around here. But with tourism being our biggest industry, I'd think it wouldn't be too tough. When are you going to be here? At a bare minimum, I could point you toward a good hotel for a night if you're passing through.

I'm also with you on seeing the mountains. I think Yosemite would be on my list too if I were you. I did a bunch of backpacking trips as a kid. Sequoias, Trinity Alps, etc. pretty amazing country.

CI GS

Thanks Andy. We're traveling between the 19th July to 2nd August. We're booked to stay somewhere around San Diego for a few days as well. The problem with a hotel is that there's a bunch of us, 10 in all, including 4 teenagers and 2 young kids (my step-grandsons). Oh yeah, it's going to be fun...

Streetk14

Well, then I guess you're just going to have to commandeer Unreal's beach house for a few days

But on a serious note, I wouldn't think it would be a problem finding something around here. I guess that is probably peak vacation time, but there's tons of people here in town that do the airbnb thing.

Streetk14

Here you go. Found this after a 30 second google search. You got no excuses now

https://www.sbvacationrentals.com/41567/?sd=&ed=&oc=&ch=#availability-title

schpenxel

A cool $1500 a night, no problem