Santa-Ynez Travel Guide
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Welcome to the Santa Ynez Valley, an idyllic domain of oak-covered hills and uncrowded roads set against a mountain backdrop. This is beautiful country, where the clear blue sky achieves a brilliance unheard of in the smog-clogged cities. In the Santa Ynez Valley, the pace is a little slower, and the locals a little friendlier. Don't expect to find yokels gnawing on hay -- this is gentleman-farmer country, where some of the nicest ranches are gated and have video surveillance, and even Disney's Davy Crockett is a respected winemaker. This balance of old-fashioned living and modern sophistication is what makes the area enjoyable: You can wallow in simple pleasures one day and go wine tasting the next.
Los Olivos is a good, ol' fashioned country town in the middle of the Central Coast Wine Country. There's a flagpole in the center of the town's intersection, and stretches of boardwalk stand in for sidewalk here and there, giving the town a Wild West air. If you saw TV's Return to Mayberry, that was Los Olivos standing in for Andy Griffith's sentimental Southern hamlet. But these days, the town's storefronts feature art galleries, stylish cafes, and wine-tasting rooms; you'll see more Land Rovers than John Deeres in this upscale retreat.
Just minutes away from one another, Los Olivos, Santa Ynez, Ballard, Solvang, and Buellton each make an excellent base for touring the wineries of this fertile area.
