Population: Less than
1,000 County: Santa Barbara
Los Olivos
features country charm that stars enjoy. Michael Jackson's Neverland Ranch
is not far away so when guests such as Elizabeth Taylor need a place to
stay, they occasionally book a room at the
Fess Parker's Wine Country Inn & Spa
in Los Olivos. Home to wealthy ranchers, wineries and acres of land
stretching across the mountains and plains of this inland city that's drier
than it's nearby ocean neighbors over in Lompoc, Los Olivos is an
understatement of wine, art, great food and solitude. Local magazines
feature some of the star-studded events enjoyed by residents that like to
hideaway from the lights of Hollywood. Bo Derrick, the perfect 10 of years
gone by, and many who simply don't do interviews may be your neighbor at the
table next to you dining on a sandwich and sipping a Chardonnay. You just
never know who you will see in this neck of the woods when you attend the
Quick Draw or other community events enjoyed by those drawn to a slower
pace.
Travelers driving along
the beautiful country roads of the Central California coast are encouraged
to take a nice county drive to Los Olivos near Solvang. You might
pass the miniature pony farm, a man selling apples under a shade tree beside
the road, a wine tasting room, Mattei's Tavern and downtown Los Olivos,
which city folks might not recognize as anything more than reduction
of the speed limit for a stop sign or two.
If simple charm appeals
to you, then Los Olivos has your name written on it. With several
art galleries, tasting rooms, restaurants and the upscale Fess Parker Inn,
your agenda is to relax, slow down and smell the wine grapes or taste the
apples grown locally.. "A Day In The Country" held each October
in Los Olivos celebrates the apple harvests but most days throughout the
year, you can sample local wines from fields grown right around Los Olivos.
Fast becoming one of the premier wine growing
regions, recent Mondavi advertisements discuss the wonderful growing regions
in Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo Counties. The rolling, gentle
hills around Los Olivos are where grapes grow well. You'll be amazed by
the acres of fields of grapes as you drive along Highway 101 between
Los Olivos and San Luis Obispo.
Once a stage stop where guests stayed overnight
on journeys during the era when the only mode of available transportaion
was carriages drawn by horses, Mattei's Tavern built in 1886, still
stands as a testament to the era. Not far from Los Olivos in Santa Ynez,
there's a fabulous Carrigage Museum providing a visual history of the region,
as seen through carriages, saddles, early cars and collections of photos
and articfacts from those days. Today, Mattei's Tavern is a popular
restaurant that serves flavorful meals.
BEACHCALIFORNIA.COM sees lots of beaches
and some where horses are permitted, mostly beginning in Central Coast
California heading north. Though you won't find a beach close to Los Olivos,
you can see plenty of horses nearby. From a dude ranch where women
and men were taught to rope cattle, to the Quicksilver Ranch, one of the
largest miniature horse ranches in the West, we noticed beautiful
horses and enjoyed watching them graze in lush green fields.
From the small shopping area where you
can buy art, wine, antiques, gifts and can dine, to the drive along Almo
Pintado Road with views of the ranch style houses, groves, farms and vineyards,
Los Olivos is a breath of fresh air on a cool, crisp Autumn day. Summers
are fairly mild, but you should bring a jacket and always be prepared to
wear it in the region.
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