The 100 Best Affordable Vacations Read Online Free Page A

Concepción, Lompoco
  1791 : Mission Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz
  1791 : Mission Nuestra Señora de la Soledad, Soledad
  1797 : Mission San José, Fremont
  1797 : Mission San Juan Bautista, San Juan Bautista
  1797 : Mission San Miguel de Arcángel, San Miguel
  1797 : Mission San Fernando Rey de España, Mission Hills
  1798 : Mission San Luis Rey de Francia, San Luis Rey
  1804 : Mission Santa Inés, Solvang
  1817 : Mission San Rafael Arcángel, San Rafael
  1823 : Mission San Francisco Solano, Sonoma
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    Visitors should wander the rose-filled garden and cemetery, where American Indians, who built the original structure, are buried. For many Indians, the mission movement is not celebrated, as thousands died from disease and poor treatment. The cemetery also holds the grave of Juana María, featured in the award-winning children’s book Island of the Blue Dolphins . The museum has period artifacts from swords to chess pieces and Mexican art.
    The Spaniards meant the missions to be outposts of civilization, and that holds true in Santa Barbara. It would be a shame to come here without visiting a few area wineries, which were featured in the film Sideways.
    The Fess Parker Winery (6200 Foxen Canyon Rd., Los Olivos, 805-688-1545, www.fessparker.com ) offers tastings from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily. Come dinner, try Brophy Bros (119 Harbor Way, Santa Barbara, 805-966-4418), a seafood dive with stirring sunset views, clam chowder ($4.25), and beer-boiled shrimp ($8.95).
    [$ PLURGE : For a splurge, stay at the Four Seasons Resort, The Biltmore (1260 Channel Dr., 805-969-2261, www.fourseasons.com/santabarbara ), which runs about $425, and sip champagne overlooking the ocean at the Tydes restaurant.] A budget option is the original Motel 6 (443 Corona Del Mar, 805-564-1392, www.motel6.com ). Rooms once ran $6, but now fetch $80 and up.
    Two other missions worth creating a trip around are the following:
  La Purisima Mission, Lompoc. Now a California park, about 60 miles from Santa Barbara, this site offers a chance to see what mission life was like 200-plus years ago. The park offers living history programs with costumed interpreters throughout the year, so you can watch weaving, potmaking, candlemaking, blacksmithing, and leatherwork—all tasks the original settlers performed.
The building fell into ruins but was resurrected, first by the Civilian Conservation Corps in 1934 and then as a state park. In addition, there’s a 5-acre garden with native and domestic plants typical for the time period, and a corral with burros, horses, longhorn cattle, and goats.
Chain lodging can be found in the area, while Angela’s Restaurant (115 S. J St., 805-737-0184) has tasty Mexican dishes—20 combo plates at $8.49 apiece. La Purisima Mission State Historic Park, 2295 Purisima Rd., Lompoc, 805-733-3713, www.lapurisimamission.org , $6 per car.
  San Antonio de Padua, Fort Hunter-Liggett. One of the most remote missions, this site is on a military post, Fort Hunter-Liggett, about 100 miles north of Lompoc. The third mission built—they weren’t constructed in a neat geographic order south to north—it’s said that San Antonio’s the only one Father Serra might recognize today. Located in a valley filled with oak trees, it’s owned by the Diocese of Monterey and is home to a tiny working parish.
The museum ($5 donation) displays settlement artifacts, including a grape-stomping vat, wine cellar, and scale models. And a music room offers an audio tour with period music. Since it’s located on a military base, drivers and all passengers older than 18 must show identification and proof of insurance. Fill your tank before coming, as nonmilitary visitors can purchase only five gallons of gas on the post.
Despite its location on Army property, civilians can stay in the historic Hacienda Guest Lodge (831-386-2511, www.liggett.army.mil/sites/newcomers/lodging/lodging.asp ), which was designed by famed architect Julia Morgan and