| Weather | | How much crime? | | What are the neighborhoods like? | | What are the people like? |
| Isla Vista, CA (located in Santa Barbara County) is a beachside community. One edge of the community is on bluffs facing the Pacific and behind are the Santa Barbara mountains. The weather is generally moderate/mild, it is mostly sunny but there are also rainy days (though rare in the summer). The weather is not extreme. Generally, there is not heavy rain in Isla Vista, however, the area does get heavy rains particularly if there is a storm passing through (for example, during El Nino it rained often and very hard). It does not snow in Isla Vista and it is generally not windy. | | Isla Vista, though small, has its own share of crime. There is a college student population that lives there and a segment of that population uses (and abuses) drugs and alcohol. With that, comes the risk of drunk drivers on its limited streets. There are many bikes in the community and bicycle is not uncommon. There is a lot of partying that happens in Isla Vista and with that comes drunk arguments and brawls as well. | | Isla Vista is bordered on one side by the ocean, on another side by the University of California at Santa Barbara, and by El Colegio Road on the back end (although technically the actual border may extend a little beyond El Colegio - there are green fields behind the road). The neighborhood is mostly students who attend the University of California at Santa Barbara, although there are some families, both low and middle income, not affiliated with the university that live in the area as well. The community is also home to faculty and staff from the University and some of the people that work in the businesses in Isla Vista. The businesses are mostly food options for students, but also coffee shops and places to get a bike or get your bike fixed. There are university owned apartments for freshman in Isla Vista (off campus housing), private apartment buildings, and houses divided up as rentals with the exception of a few where families own and live in them. The housing that is waterfront is the most expensive and the price goes down, generally, the further from oceanside you get. The area is beautiful and walkable. | | Isla Vista mostly - though not exclusively - reflects the predominant student population at UC Santa Barbara. This is a mostly white middle class community - because the campus is mostly white although there are students of color (like myself) that have lived there. It is a party town and UC Santa Barbara is known for its wild parties. On the weekends, starting from Thursday night, the parties start and they continue each night through Saturday. There are also some environmentalists and hippies in Isla Vista. City dwellers who want trains and museums and high rises in their lives might become bored in Isla Vista, but those who enjoy college parties or the natural environment of beaches and bluffs, might love it. There are many surfers and skateboarders in Isla Vista. |
| Downtown Area | | Restaurants | | Schools | | Single life |
| There is really no downtown shopping area in Isla Vista but there is a main strip of businesses and eateries - very small - just a few blocks long. | | Isla Vista is not famous for its fine dining and most of the food options are quick and cheap to serve the students that live in the area. Having said that, good (or at least iconic) food can be found. Freebirds is a burrito spot in Isla Vista that stays open very late. Its burritos are delicious and students seem to love it because they are wiling to wait in long (but fast) lines - sometimes even at midnight. | | The University of California at Santa Barbara - located in Isla Vista - is a large public university with a wide variety of programs and curricular and extra curricular opportunities. | | It really depends on the person. The campus has student organizations, events, lectures, and cultural programs that provide opportunities to meet people. The nightlife in Isla Vista mainly consists of college parties - for those who are into that sort of thing. |
| Noise | | town comparison vs. | | Tourist attractions | | General comments |
| The college parties can be very loud. | | Compared to Santa Barbara, Isla Visa has a much higher concentration of students though it lacks the size and options of food and outings available in Santa Barbara. Isla Vista's feels more of a local place even though Santa Barbara is not as big as Los Angeles. They are both beautiful. For those without ties to the university, Isla Vista may feel too small and cramped.
Compared to San Luis Obispo, Isla Vista is also much smaller. Both San Luis Obispo and Isla Vista have college students at each respective nearby university, but the concentration just seems higher in Isla Vista since it is a more geographically compact community. Also both areas have beautiful beaches. | | The most beautiful are the beaches, the bluffs, walking along the sand under the moonlight or at sunrise. The campus at the University of California is also a beautiful place to walk around. | | Isla Vista feels like a small community - and it is - a place to connect to nature or to get very drunk with other college students. It feels like an isolated bubble, its own world of rambunctious weekend nights and quiet Saturday mornings - because everyone who partied is asleep and hung over and other people who did not party with them are picking up the empty beer cans from the front lawns to recycle them for some change. It feels both like a naturally beautiful place - a retreat from city life and a frustrating, homogenous small town, isolating world where you are stuck if you don't have a car. To be clear, you do not need a car for Isla Vista but if you do not have a car - you can't drive away to, for example, even downtown Santa Barbara. |
