The Views in California-Ventura County Vacation Recommendations
68Enjoying Ventura County
If you want to avoid the traffic of Los Angeles County, but still enjoy a taste of southern California, visit VENTURA COUNTY.
Ventura, Oxnard, Camarillo, Santa Paula, Fillmore, Ojai and Oakview are the most well-known cities in this county. Carpinteria and Santa Clarita are so closely connected to Ventura County I include them in this collection of recommendations.
CAMARILLO is on the 101 Freeway north of Thousand Oaks. It is a beautiful sprawling, valley city with great golf, tennis, and shopping.
Just north on the 101 Freeway is Oxnard. Seasonal festivals and celebrations are common in Oxnard and the MARINA is a wonderful place for couples and families to relax. The Esplanade Mall is very popular as well.
Following the 101 about 30 minutes more, you can choose to head for CARPINTERIA BEACH on 101, take Highway 33 to Oakview and Ojai. Let's start with the latter. Oakview is a small community with everything you need if you choose not to travel any farther north and is a nice pitstop. Just a few more miles more sits Ojai, primarily an upscale community and tourist stop for shopping. Many celebrities are known to live and/or own property there.
But back to the 101 and Carpinteria. The ocean is a lovely view in the earlier part of the day or near sunset, and makes for a peaceful getaway drive. Fog, though is common in mornings in the Ventura area. The 101 is not an interstate freeway, and so allows marked parking for RVs and cars for OVERNIGHT STAYS RIGHT ON THE ROAD (Pay boxes are found along the way.) Many surfers prefer this stretch of road for parking and surfing all day. Anyone may go to the beach area, but it is a very tricky climb down. The giant boulders help retain the side of the hill from the road.
Also along this stretch of highway are a handful of tent and RV CAMPING spots down close to the water. They are state beach campgrounds and most have a mini store and some essentials for camping. Spots go quickly during summer months.
Finally, CARPINTERIA is the northernmost city in this writing. What a great tourist town! Many call it the avocado capital. Orchards are everywhere. Popular restaurants are abundant, but seek out the local dining spots. They are excellent and worth the effort to find. Carpinteria is the southernmost city of Santa Barbara County. It has a well-kept and easily accessibly campground for tents and RVs about a block's worth of walking from the beach with a large restroom facility and plenty of parking for day visits. Lifeguards are available during summer months. It is a great swimming beach. Dolphins have been seen from this stretch of beach before sunrise and just after sunset. Sunnier days invite brown pelicans diving for dinner. This is a great walking beach and looks to run about 1 mile or so.
Now that the tan/sunburn is set in, head back down the 101 South to Ventura. Another fabulous tourist beach town. It is foggier here many mornings, and the sun will shine later in the day. VENTURA STATE BEACH has been cleaned up and refurbished quite a bit. Chairs with an umbrella are available, as well as a snack shop and covenient restroom facility. Lifeguard are at work during the summer months. The pier has been repaired and looks great. Close by also is a playground on the sand for the children. Follow the steps up and stay at the Crowne Plaza high rise hotel. Nice views and good service. Steps from the water. The promenade is perfect for walkers of dogs and feet, cyclist, joggers, and touring carts for rent. Some great restaurants on the promenade and close by within a half-mile radius of the Crowne Plaza.
Want a less expensive overnight stay? Dozens of motels are located on the street just 2 or 3 blocks from the beach. Thompson Blvd. is a good street for a grassy, pretty park with a nice playground just one block from CORRALES' MEXICAN FOOD, locally known as the Burrito hut. Order a 4-way (shredded beef, rice, beans, onions) or a large veggie burrito (lettuce, rice, cheese, beans, onions, avocado and sour cream) and you're full for the day. Be prepared to wait. It's popular and worth every minute and every penny.
Forget beach gear? Try the thrift stores on Main Street for quick and cheap towels, chairs, umbrellas if you're not picky.
Finding Ventura on a Saturday is an extra dividend. Ventura College hosts a weekly SWAP MEET with both vendor and local items, and I highly recommend the fresh produce. Looking for souvenirs not in the hotels? Seek out shops in the "downtown" area. Follow Main Street and find another beautiful park just across the street from VENTURA MISSION. It is the only working mission in California. Residents worship there, weddings and funeral are held there and tourists are welcomed to browse.
And don't forget to visit the BUENAVENTURA MALL. In the past 10 years it has been remodeled into 2 stories. Worth the visit.
Now head east on highway 126. This stretch of road connects Ventura to Interstate 5. Along the way, passing through Santa Paula, Fillmore, and Piru, half a dozen ROADSIDE PRODUCE MARKETS do great business and offer the best snacks and the best homemade beef jerky anywhere. There are 3 in Santa Paula, and at least 3 on the eastern outskirts of Fillmore. Several movies have been filmed in Fillmore, including Iron Eagle . As of this writing, June 6, 2010, Reese Witherspoon is currently working on set in and around Fillmore.
Just past Fillmore a MUST STOP PITSTOP is the FILLMORE FISH HATCHERY. There is a restroom facility and there is no admission fee. It may be small and plain, but there is much joy that be found with your children, watching and feeding fish food to the fish. The best part, though, is the wildlife sanctuary on the western end of the hatchery. Herons, egrets, mallards, kingfishers and many more stop there.
Back on the road, your vehicle is less than 30 minutes from the Interstate. Just before the Castaic Junction of 126 and I-5 is a large, very popular, RV campground village. Good place to stop before tackling the freeway. Or a great resting spot before your next day visit to SIX FLAGS MAGIC MOUNTAIN amusement park just a few miles south on Interstate 5. You are now in the Santa Clarita area. Just north on I-5 a few miles is a plethora of food stops. It is the perfect location for checking your car for the trip over the mountain into the San Joaquin Valley. Locally, this trip is referred to as "the grapevine" because of the mountainous, winding highway.
That's just to name a few. Ventura County has so much to offer for a week's or a weekend's worth of vacationing. Don't pass it by. It will be worth your while.
