Santa Barbara

Raise a Glass of Wine to These ‘Spirit'-ed Adventures

Thrill to specter-centered stories while on a Santa Barbara Ghost Tour. And yes, you bet: Some tours have a wine element.

Jay Sinclair/Santa Barbara/David Wall

What to Know

  • Santa Barbara Ghost Tours
  • A number of tours with different flavors and focuses are available, including the Afternoon Paranormal Wine and Spirits Tour
  • Fees vary, with the Dead of the Night Tour priced at $55

SWEET DAYS AND GOLDEN RAYS: The idea of relaxing on a patio, park, or stretch of sand in Santa Barbara is an incredibly pleasant one. We might fill the image in our mind with bougainvillea blossoms, or Mission-style furniture, or a vista dotted with red tiles and splashing fountains. But however we decorate it, there's lots of sunshine, always and forever. After all, Santa Barbara, also known as the American Riviera, earned its nickname because of its exceedingly fine weather, among other ideal reasons. So calling upon the less-sunny spaces of this splendid city, the spots where spirits may roam? Call it a quirkier approach to connecting with the Pacific-adjacent hamlet, one that brims with colorful tales, chilling ponderances, and, yes, wine, too, on occasion. After all, this is Santa Barbara, where even a ghost tour might involve a delicious glass of merlot.

SANTA BARBARA GHOST TOURS... is the outfit leading these apparition-seeking adventures, experiences that materialize in a few flavors. There is the Afternoon Paranormal Wine and Spirits Tour, and an evening version, as well as an event that incorporates dinner as well. Are you brave enough to sign up for the Dead of the Night Tour? That happens at 9 o'clock, six evenings a week. And there's a wharf-oriented meet-up, one you can invite your pooch to, too. The founder of the company, Professor Julie Ann Brown, spent many a night aboard the Queen Mary in Long Beach leading wraithful walk-arounds, giving her plenty of ghost-based knowledge and beyond-the-veil know-how. That knowledge has extended to the sunshiny burg just off the 101, a place known for great grapes, posh plates, and, yes, the occasionally eerie moment.

FOR MORE ON THE TOURS, prices, and booking your spot, float by Santa Barbara Ghost Tours now, and discover the phantom-fantastic side of one of the Golden State's most golden cities.

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