Posted on 11/02/2005 5:47:42 PM PST by South40
Santa Barbara isn't more than an hour away. Also take them along the Pacific Coast Hwy for a stretch maybe from Malibu up to Oxnard and then across some of the farming country. We spent the night just a couple of weeks ago at a little motel in Ventura on the beach with the room facing the Pacific Ocean maybe 100 yards away. It was nice to leave the sliding glass door open on the balcony, listen to the waves rolling in and enjoying the breeze.
Greetings South40,
I live about 5 minutes away from the Library. My kids first grade class was the first class to get to tour the new exhibit even before it opened to the public. The new Air Force One exhibit is spectacular!!!
As several others have suggested, I would suggest staying in Thousand Oaks or Westlake, it is just a little nicer than Simi Valley. If you live in Simi, please don't slam me. It is getting much nicer I admit but as for accomodations for out of towners it just isn't quite as comfortable... ;)
If you want to stay a bit cheaper look at the Holiday Inn in Newbury Park (adjacent to Thousand Oaks) if you want to stay in a nicer place the Westlake Hyatt is very nice and close to lots of food and shopping. In either case the 101 makes it easy to get just about anywhere and either place would give you about a 10 minute drive to the Library...
Have a great time and I hope you enjoy the Conejo Valley!!
(p.s. I forgot about the "traffic factor" between the library, and Ventura/Santa Barbara route. Miles it's not long, but you can get to SB from the Library in way less than an hour and a half, if you hit it right.)
Actually, it's only a little over an hour away, or about 70 miles.
Freepmail me if you want directions.
The drive to/from Santa Barbara, while short in miles, can be time consuming and frustrating because of traffic. From the Mandalay you can head down Highway One toward Malibu/Santa Monica (lots of beach access) or head up the 101 to S.B. when you have more time.
I can practically see the Library from my house and will be happy to assist you with driving directions, places to see, whatever. Just Freepmail me with questions/needs.
If you want to stay on the water, and want to see the Santa Barbara Mission, look up the Marriott in Oxnard which is two
blocks from the sandy and windy beach, or go to the hotels on the Ventura Marina... also there's a Holiday Inn on the beach right in downtown Ventura, which is now a funky, fun Main drag with Starbucks and restaurants/bars... Also, there are alot of B&Bs in the area that might give a cozier stay than the standard hotel room...
the new Air Force One bldg is awesome and there are new exhibits on RRs California days and Hollywood days, worth the day it will take to see it all, enjoy!
I actually thought it was a bit further then 70 miles, and was allowing for variable traffic conditions. One never knows about those variables!
Santa Barbara + San Luis Obispo are both too far north for your travel considerations, most likely, so focus your trip on the LA area. You can do the typical touristy stuff & go to Hollywierd, Chinese Theatre, etc. + Universal Studios. Allow a good portion of a day to see the grounds of the library though, then sleepover to combine other activities. If you live in SD (as I btw) then you can skip all of the other coastal LA / OC stuff as it's not much different or better than quality stuff down here (just don't have the Queen Mary or the quality mountains, if there's snow, you can joke about how that's our novelty here)
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.