Sunday, October 7th – Check-In
Santa Barbara, CA
Your tour starts at the lovely ocean-front Fess Parker Hilton Resort. This dramatic 24-acre, mission-style Santa Barbara resort is just a few short blocks from downtown Santa Barbara. With the Pacific Ocean just across the road, it is a perfect setting from which to launch the 2018 Dream Ride. We encourage you to arrive early and explore the area. The nearby beach bike path connects Montecito to Santa Barbara—both offer great outdoor dining and ocean views. There are also bike lanes connecting the Fess Parker to the Santa Barbara pier and harbor (also with excellent eateries), the State Street shopping area, and the Mission. After rider registration on Sunday evening, we’ll meet up for a Welcome Reception at the hotel.
Monday, October 8th – DAY 1
Santa Barbara to Santa Paula (63 miles)
Day 1 of the 2018 Dream Ride starts with a hearty Welcome Breakfast and pre-ride orientation. Immediately after breakfast, the tour officially rolls out with a warm-up south along California’s beautiful “Gold Coast” through Santa Barbara, Montecito and Carpinteria. At Rincon Point, the route joins the Ralph Fertig Memorial Bicycle-Pedestrian Path through La Conchita and Mussel Shoals. From there to lunch in Ventura, the ocean will be within touching distance. In past tours, dolphins and seals have been known spy on Dream Riders. After lunch, the route goes north to laid-back Ojai on the Ventura River/Ojai Valley bike and pedestrian trail (15 miles of traffic-free riding with shade provided by California Oaks), then over Dennison Grade, a country road that passes through a picturesque farming valley, concluding with a 9-mile downhill into our overnight stop in Santa Paula.
Tuesday, October 9th – DAY 2
Santa Paula to Santa Monica (62 miles)
After a delicious breakfast at Flight 126 (located at the Santa Paula airport), Day 2 turns south, back toward the Pacific Ocean. The morning features a ride through the typically fragrant orange groves of Santa Clara River Valley and then through Grimes Canyon and over the hills into Moorpark and the Thousand Oaks area. After lunch and then a rest stop at Paramount Ranch, a funky, old western town movie set backdrop (sharp eyes might also recognize the nearby mountains as the opening scene from the TV show M.A.S.H., which was filmed nearby), the tour continues south through a natural cut in the Santa Monica Mountains on a winding country road that ends at the ocean in Malibu. From there, it's a flat ride along the water into the overnight stop in Santa Monica.
Wednesday, October 10th – DAY 3
Santa Monica to Long Beach (50 miles)
After rolling out of Santa Monica on Day 3, the 2018 Dream Ride continues south along the Los Angeles area beachfront on the Marvin Braude Bike Trail, probably the most popular bicycling destination in Southern California, past surfers, piers and quintessential beach towns. From there, the route follows the edge of the Palos Verdes Peninsula around to San Pedro (the southernmost bit of land in Los Angeles), then across the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, before arriving at the luxurious Queen Mary. Once the grandest ocean liner in the world, it is now a full-service Long Beach hotel, historical landmark and entertainment venue. Your evening on the Queen Mary will be an experience to remember.
Thursday, October 11th - DAY 4
Long Beach to San Clemente (65 miles)
Day 4 begins with a breakfast aboard the Queen. After disembarking, the tour will continue south, first along Long Beach’s waterfront on its well-known beach bike path, and then on the Huntington Beach Bike Trail, through Surf City USA, all the way to Newport Beach. Keep an eye out for Dog Beach, one of the few places in Southern California where four-legged critters are allowed to frolic in the surf. Once in Newport Beach, the tour will take a short ferry ride to Balboa Island. From there, the route will follow the edge of Newport’s Back Bay wetlands onto the San Diego Creek bike path. After a rest stop at the historic Mission San Juan Capistrano, its finally back to the Pacific Ocean and a short, flat ride into the overnight hotel in San Clemente.
Friday, October 12th – DAY 5
San Clemente to San Diego (65 miles)
After breakfast in San Clemente, the Dream Ride continues to pedal south. Along the way, the tour will pass some of Southern California’s iconic beach landmarks such as Trestles (a famous surf spot) and San State Onofre Beach. After a brief detour through Camp Pendleton Marine Corps base (Sempre Fi!), the route reconnects with beach life in Oceanside. After lunch, the ride continues through the beautiful Torrey Pines State Beach, up the hill at Torrey Pines, and then around San Diego’s Mission Bay before arriving at the tour’s final destination in San Diego in the Gaslamp Quarter, a lively downtown neighborhood adjacent to the convention center, Petco Park and Horton Plaza. The Gaslamp area is easily accessible to the freeway system, AMTRAK, and other public transportation.
We strongly encourage and advocate the use of Amtrak and other means of public transportation when planning your trip. Amtrak stations are conveniently located in both Santa Barbara and near our final destination in San Diego.