Sabado (Saturday) Architectural Walking Tour
Join us for a 1.5 to 2 hour architectural walking tour and celebrate the cultural heritage of historic downtown Santa Barbara.
Select date and time
Location
Santa Barbara City Hall steps
at de la Guerra Plaza Santa Barbara, CA 93101About this event
The Sabado (Saturday) Tour meets at the City Hall steps at de la Guerra Plaza at 10:00am. From there, you will be guided by an experienced docent to the historic de la Guerra Adobe, El Paseo, Meridian Studios, Lobero Theatre and more as you hear the rich anecdotal history of these buildings and their designers and builders. Learn about the heritage left by the first Spanish and Mexican settlers and those giants of Southern California architecture Julia Morgan, George Washington Smith, Lutah Maria Riggs, Reginald Johnson, James Osborne Craig and Mary Craig. Rain will cancel a tour.
Suggested donation is $20 per person. Payment can be made on site at the tour. Cash, check and credit card (via QR code) are all accepted.
Interested in becoming a walking tour docent? AFSB is looking for volunteers to join its team of docents. Training will be provided. Expected participation is approximately one tour per month. Contact Lydia at (805) 965-6307 or by email at info@afsb.org for more information.
Frequently asked questions
Yes. Tours are weekly, weather permitting. Rain will cancel a tour.
Reservations are highly recommended and are a courtesy to the docent as a notification of attendance. If you are unable to make a reservation, you can arrive to the tour meeting location a few minutes early prior to the tour start time.
Tours last approximately two hours.
Tours are an easy stroll. Slight modification of tour to accommodate wheelchair accessibility is provided as needed.
The suggested donation is $20 per person.
Payment can be made at the time of the tour. Cash and checks can be given to your docent directly. You can also pay by credit card using a QR code your docent will have available.
It is not necessary to tip the docent. Docents are volunteers and any tips are passed on to the Architectural Foundation of Santa Barbara.
Yes! Children under 12 are free. We recommend that very young children in strollers stay home though.
Yes. Private tours can be arranged with advanced notice by contacting the Architectural Foundation of Santa Barbara at (805) 965-6307 or email info@afsb.org.
The Architectural Foundation of Santa Barbara is a non-profit organization dedicated to public awareness of the built environment. AFSB offers educational programs with a focus on architecture, design, and art to Santa Barbara County youth and community.
The Architectural Foundation of Santa Barbara welcomes volunteers to join its team of walking tour docents. Training will be provided and expected participation is approximately one tour a month. Please contact Lydia at (805) 965-6307 or by email at info@afsb.org for more information.