CA Coast: Santa Barbara to San Diego

† Explanation of BAC Ride Fee – This fee is not included in the Estimated Cost and is non-refundable once submitted. The Ride Fee for US and Canada is $85 and $100 for all other countries, both are per participant.

Ride Description

OVERVIEW:  Enjoy the variety the Southern California coast offers from Santa Barbara to San Diego along the Pacific Coast Bike Route. This ride includes rugged shoreline, surfing beaches, quiet oceanfront communities and bustling to laid-back beach towns. Cycling includes frontage roads, numerous beach bike paths, well paved highways with wide shoulders, short stretches of Pacific Coast Highway with no shoulder and some urban areas with traffic. This is a similar tour to the one created and led by Roy and Judy Glickman in 2007 and 2010 and led by Larry and Joan Roe in 2012. In May you'll enjoy some of the best weather California offers. This ride immediately follows the BAC ride, “Central CA Coast and Wine Country,” led by the same RD's.  We welcome both tandem riders and those who wish to ride pedal assist E-bikes.

·         We’ll meet in Santa Barbara on Sunday, May 7th. On Monday we’ll stay in Santa Barbara and do loop rides exploring the area. 

·         Tuesday, we’ll head for Port Hueneme (Wa-nee-mee) via Ventura. The day combines frontage roads and bike paths, most of them right along the coast with beautiful views.

·         Wednesday, we pass miles of crops before reaching the rugged Santa Monica Mountains and riding the shoulder of the Pacific Coast Highway through majestic Malibu to funky Santa Monica.

·         Thursday, we ride the South Bay beach bike path through the area’s famous beaches to the end where we climb into the Palos Verdes Peninsula for spectacular coastline views, then onto Long Beach.

·         Friday is the ultimate SoCal beachfront bike path ride through Huntington Beach (s'up dude?), the Balboa Peninsula, Newport Beach and artsy Laguna Beach to San Juan Capistrano and its famous mission and cute downtown.

·         Saturday, riders will have the option to take the coastal bike route which includes riding 7.5 miles on the wide shoulder of Interstate 5 (since we cannot ride through Camp Pendleton), or take the train from San Juan Capistrano to Oceanside ($15/person). Since it is only a 30-minute train ride, riders will have the option to do a loop ride near San Juan Capistrano before taking the train or just spend the day visiting the Mission. It’s a 4.5-mile bike ride from the train station in Oceanside to the hotel in Carlsbad.

·         Sunday, we head down the coastal road into San Diego, past the historic Del Mar race track, Torrey Pines with its famous golf course, La Jolla and beautiful Mission Bay.

·         Our last day of riding is Monday, May 15th, and will be optional as it will be a loop ride in San Diego.  There will be several loop options which include visits to the San Diego waterfront, historic Gas Light District, and beautiful Coronado Island (which includes a ferry trip across San Diego Bay). 

COVID REQUIREMENTS:  All participants must be fully vaccinated and be prepared to present vaccination documentation for viewing by Ride Leader if requested.

RIDE RATING:  The ride is rated 2B with an average of 44 miles per day and 1577’ of climbing. There are six days of required point-to-point riding (including the optional train ride day from San Juan Capistrano to Oceanside and the 4.5 miles to the hotel) and two days of optional loop rides.  There are a couple of days with longer routes available.  Although much of the ride is on bike paths or roads with bike lanes, some stretches have no shoulder and there are some areas with fast traffic. Riders should be very comfortable riding with traffic in urban areas as southern California is densely populated and very busy.

WEATHER:  The temperatures should consist of highs in the high 60s to 70s and lows at night in the 50s and 60s, so mornings will be brisk.  Though it’s California, there is a small chance for some rain as it’s still Springtime.

LODGING & MEALS:  The tour will include stays in an assortment of hotels and Inns, with most considered mid-range, nice, but not luxury. Two breakfasts will be included, and all hotels not offering complimentary breakfast have restaurants on-site or within close walking distance. There will be two group dinners included.

LOGISTICS:  We’ll meet at the Franciscan Inn & Suites (109 Bath St., Santa Barbara, CA) on Sunday, May 7th at 5:30 PM in our hotel room before heading out for a group dinner. Santa Barbara is served by Amtrak and by commercial air service. The hotel is less than a half mile from the Amtrak depot on State Street and Santa Barbara Airport is ten miles away. Anyone flying in will need to use a taxi or Uber to get to the hotel.  Overnights will be in Santa Barbara (2 nights), Port Hueneme, Santa Monica, Long Beach, San Juan Capistrano, Carlsbad, and San Diego (2 nights). The trip ends Tuesday morning, May 16th. Cars can be left at the Santa Barbara Airport ($12/day) or at the Amtrak station near the hotel for $5/day if validated with a train ticket. Bike boxes can be stored at the starting hotel for the length of the tour. Cal Coast Adventures in Santa Barbara (Calcoastadventures.com) offers rental bikes at reasonable prices.  Return transportation is not provided; fly from San Diego, rent a car, or the best option is to take a beautiful train ride on the Pacific Surfliner that departs Old Town San Diego and goes to Santa Barbara a few times each day, taking approximately six hours.  Presently, train departure times from San Diego to Santa Barbara are 4:10 AM, 6:10 AM, 12:10 PM, and 4:10 PM (all subject to change) for $45.  Each train can take up to 7 bicycles.  The final hotel in Old Town San Diego is .4 miles from the train depot and 4.5 miles from the San Diego airport.

COST & ADMINISTRATION:  Cost estimate of $2000 per person plus the $50 BAC fee, includes 9 nights lodging double occupancy, luggage van, Happy Hours, 2 group dinners, and 2 breakfasts. Deposit will be $1000 with the balance due 15 January 2023.  Single supplement is estimated to be an additional $980.  All routes will be available in RideWithGPS, and printable route sheets and .gpx files will be emailed to attendees.

SINGLES & SOLOS POLICY:  It is recommended that singles who want a roommate try to find their own. However, after receipt of the initial deposit, a single without a roommate will be placed on the ride and given until 15 January 2023 to find a roommate. If they are unable to find a roommate, they will have the option to receive a full refund (minus the BAC fee and payment processing fee) or pay the $980 solo supplement and stay on the ride.  If a single pays the supplement, they may continue to seek a roommate, but must plan to participate without a roommate if necessary.  The Ride Leader will assist by attempting to match singles who apply for the ride.  Solo supplement payments need to be sent to the BAC office by 15 January 2023. Checks should be made out to “BAC” with a notation of the tour name included on the check.  They should be mailed to:  Bicycle Adventure Club, PO Box 23998, San Diego, CA 92193.

CANCELLATION POLICY:  The BAC ride registration fee and payment processing fee is not refundable unless the entire tour is cancelled.  Refunds of tour payments will depend upon whether a replacement rider signs up, and on costs that can be recouped.  The amount refunded will be based on the principle that the tour’s remaining participants will not incur any additional cost as a result of cancellations.  If the cancelling participant is replaced, a refund will be made at that time.  If the cancelling participant can't be replaced, any refund will be determined after the ride and final expense report are completed.  If a single participant cancels and another roommate cannot be found, in addition to other costs that cannot be recouped the cancelling roommate may also be liable for the solo supplement fee of the roommate remaining on the tour.  BAC encourages members to purchase trip cancellation insurance.

Ride Participant Responsibility:  Please remember that BAC Ride Leaders are volunteers, and that successful tours depend on participants providing much of their own support.  Participants are expected to come to the ride well trained, in good health and ready to accomplish the required daily riding using well-maintained bicycles.   All participants should accept responsibility for a safe and enjoyable tour.  We encourage you to read the ride description carefully and respond to requests from Ride Leader.  While on the ride, support your Ride Leader with offers to help with various tasks such as happy hour preparation and clean-up.  Please keep the Ride Leader informed of any special request you may have and respect the Ride Leader’s decisions.

Before participating in any BAC tour, you should assess whether your medical and travel insurance coverage is sufficient. BAC maintains insurance that covers expenses related to accidents. This coverage applies when touring inside the US, regardless of your nationality. It’s assumed that members’ personal insurance will cover medical emergencies such as sudden and unexpected sickness, so these have not been included in the BAC policy. You may want to consider personal coverage for emergency evacuation, as this is not included. The costs of treatment or quarantine for Covid and other unexpected illnesses are not covered. You should ensure that your vaccinations are up to date.

SIGN-UP:  To submit a request to join this ride use the "links" displayed above this Ride Description.  When you are accepted, the Ride Leader will move you from the Waitlist to the Pending List.  At this time you will receive an email notification to login to the BAC website to sign the release of liability form and pay the non-refundable BAC ride registration fee and the initial tour deposit ($1000) by credit card.  As soon as your deposit has been processed, your name(s) will be added to the Participant List.  To contact the Ride Leader, "click" the name at the top of this Ride Description.