Leadbetter Point

leadbetter beach santa barbara hdr

Surfing Leadbetter Point

Leadbetter Point is a mellow wave popular with standup paddlers, longboarders and sunbathers. You’ll find all types of people here, from wealthy Santa Barbara families to the Santa Barbara high school dropouts that drink beer near the parking lot.

If you want to spend the day at a beautiful beach in Santa Barbara, then this is the spot for you. There are bathrooms, showers, benches and a BBQ pit nearby.

As for the surfing, the waves aren’t very good but there always seems to be something breaking, even in the summer. In the winter, when Leadbetter Point picks up west swells, the wave can get fun. This is a great spot to play around in the surf; the waves are usually mushy and not very powerful. More experienced surfers are better off heading to other nearby point breaks when there is swell in the water.

Another reason you might consider heading to a different wave is because Leadbetter Point is usually packed with standup paddleboarders…

When you tire out from surfing, relax on the beach and play some bocci ball or take a walk along shoreline park. If you want to eat between sessions, head towards the harbor and eat at the world famous Brophy Bros.

Trivia: Like Sandspit, Leadbetter Beach is a manmade beach which formed when the Santa Barbara Harbor Breakwater was built.

Leadbetter Beach Pictures

leadbetter beach surfers
leadbetter point january sunset leadbetter point surfing waves

Leadbetter Beach Video

Santa Barbara Surf Map

Back to all Santa Barbara Surf Spots