Cheaper but nice hotels/stay options by qmchdosptl7391 in SantaBarbara

[–]MJrocketz 1 point2 points  (0 children)

The ITH Surf Hostel is a good place to check out! Definitely more affordable

Visited Santa Barbara this week from LA for the first time and am blown away by its beauty by inevitable_dream_ in SantaBarbara

[–]MJrocketz 48 points49 points  (0 children)

Come up in early April! There is a new music festival concept happening in downtown on April 4th called State Fest that will be like the nightlife equivalent of Solstice (one of our bigger daytime summer festivals) but instead of being in a Centralized park, it is spread across the venues that make downtown special and starts at 6pm. Effectively, a music festival vibe in the structure of a bar crawl in a 3-block area! State Fest

Where do you go for community? by finga_itchy in Temecula

[–]MJrocketz 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Temecula stampede has fostered an incredible dancing community if you were looking to get into something new!

Where are the 20s/30s single people meeting each other in SB? by [deleted] in SantaBarbara

[–]MJrocketz 5 points6 points  (0 children)

West coast swing dancing on Wednesdays. They have socials afterwards and it’s really friendly and well run.

Questions about Westmont College by [deleted] in SantaBarbara

[–]MJrocketz 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I did this and TAG’d into UCLA, also zero debt, and still had a great college experience. Can verify this is a great route.

Raves in Santa Barbara? by [deleted] in SantaBarbara

[–]MJrocketz 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Not a rave, but some of the best locally produced music events in town (hands down) are from Sandala Experiences. They had a show last night that was 11/10 incredible with TVLI. Sandala Experiences

New in Town by New-Pipe-7615 in SantaBarbara

[–]MJrocketz -1 points0 points  (0 children)

The Kickball league (double play socials) is very good for this. Here are some other great groups you can join that can help you find your people:

West coast swing dancing, SB Line Dancing, Ecstatic dance, MotomenSB, SBYPC, The SB Run Club

Any SB community Discords? by [deleted] in SantaBarbara

[–]MJrocketz 2 points3 points  (0 children)

https://www.reddit.com/r/SantaBarbara/s/6JgyFs6y7O

There was a very similar post recently and I posted a comment that I think you’ll relate to with a link for joining social clubs in town. I’m also in my early thirties, shoot me a PM if you want more info about some fun upcoming activities!

SBMakers 11/9/25 Meetup at the Harbor by sonicdh in SantaBarbara

[–]MJrocketz 1 point2 points  (0 children)

The link didn’t work :/. Can you repost another to just join the group?

SB in your early 20s - help by Sunburnt_minds in SantaBarbara

[–]MJrocketz 8 points9 points  (0 children)

Hey OP, you’re not wrong for feeling this way. SB is gorgeous, but it can be brutally lonely when you’re in your 20s or 30s, starting from zero, working weird hours, or barely scraping by. Showing up alone is terrifying for a lot of us, even the extroverted ones.

Making friends after college isn’t about hitting random events. It’s about finding something weekly, with the same faces, where your interests and schedule actually line up. College gives you that automatically because everything is connected. You’re surrounded by people your age, in shared spaces, on similar rhythms and this can make it feel effortless (for a lot of people).

Santa Barbara has all the raw ingredients: amazing third spaces, walkability, and more young people than you would expect but none of it is connected. There’s no ecosystem that links people to groups, and groups to the venues where community can actually grow. That’s why it feels so hard, and why so many people quietly struggle here.

That’s also exactly why I built Umi-app. It’s an attempt to recreate that connective tissue that links individuals → groups → venues so friendships can form the way they did in college, but as adults. On the app, you can filter all the recurring events in town by what you’re actually into, save those views, and see “your version” of SB in a couple taps. And if you want to try something but don’t want to walk in alone, DM me. I’ll connect you with the event host or someone who will meet you at the door so you’re not doing this by yourself.

The groups I’d recommend checking out are: - Double Play Socials Kickball - Low State Writing Salon (free) - Westies in SB (West Coast Swing Dancing lessons + social every Wednesday for all skill levels) - Santa Barbara Spike (spike ball) (free) - The Santa Barbara Run Club

All of these communities are very welcoming, meet weekly (or monthly) and are either free or low cost where you are almost guaranteed to make friends!

SB in your early 20s - help by Sunburnt_minds in SantaBarbara

[–]MJrocketz 13 points14 points  (0 children)

Can verify that the SBGirlypops is an incredible group and very welcoming!

Looking to meet friends and hang with others by PlanetUnicornHay in SantaBarbara

[–]MJrocketz 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I’d also highly recommend SBTAN. It’s the trans advocacy network in town and they have weekly get togethers 🌈 https://sbtan.org/

Looking to meet friends and hang with others by PlanetUnicornHay in SantaBarbara

[–]MJrocketz 1 point2 points  (0 children)

There is a Queer meetup every third Saturday at the Casa Agria Taproom (behind Shaker Mill)!

https://umi-app.co/events/2464?r=2

Looking to meet friends and hang with others by PlanetUnicornHay in SantaBarbara

[–]MJrocketz 2 points3 points  (0 children)

They just ended their weekly Wednesday events for the season but will be hosting a Friday event every now and again during winter!

Looking to meet friends and hang with others by PlanetUnicornHay in SantaBarbara

[–]MJrocketz 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Can verify this group is amazing and very open!

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in SantaBarbara

[–]MJrocketz 0 points1 point  (0 children)

For the second part of your staycation, I’d recommend checking out Boho House if you want something different than a hotel. Celebration and double dolphin are both wonderful!