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Event

Harbor & Seafood Festival

Come enjoy the abundance of the Santa Barbara Channel, rich in sustainably harvested, high-quality seafood. Meet fishermen face-to-face. Select fresh-caught lobster and sea urchin “uni”. Visit specialty food booths for fish tacos, oysters, mussels, barbequed albacore, fresh crab, clam chowder, and seafood paella. Presented by the City of Santa Barbara Waterfront Department in partnership with the Commercial Fishermen of Santa Barbara and the Santa Barbara Harbor Merchants.

When

Date and Time

The next Annual Santa Barbara Harbor & Seafood Festival is on
Saturday, October 19, 2024
(10:00 am to 5:00 pm)

The 2025 Harbor & Seafood Festival will accept new applications for Food and Non-Food Vendors next summer. Please leave your pets at home!
We thank you and your pets will thank you too!
Where

Location

Located on the central coast of California 1.5 hours north of Los Angeles, Santa Barbara Harbor is easily found. Click on the link below for the location of the Santa Barbara Harbor & Seafood Festival.

View the openstreet map for the Santa Barbara location View the detailed map with the 101 exits and route to the Harbor..
Sponsors

Sponsors for the Santa Barbara Harbor & Seafood Festivals

About

About the Santa Barbara Harbor & Seafood Festival

The Harbor & Seafood Festival offers locals and visitors alike an interactive day, reminding us all that Santa Barbara Harbor is a working harbor where more than 100 fishermen land 10 million pounds of seafood each year, bringing $30 million to the local economy and beyond.

History

Festival History:

Santa Barbara Harbor, with over 1,100 boats, has always been home to a working commercial fishing fleet. On any given day, seabass, swordfish, sea urchins, shark, crab, and lobsters are swung from decks of boats beneath the City pier into waiting trucks. Decades ago, an annual Fishermen's Festival featured a "Blessing of the Fleet", plus a parade of fishing boats packed with people and covered in flowers and streamers. Eventually, this tradition faded, replaced by an annual Harbor Festival designed as a fundraiser for a local home for unwed mothers. Although successful for years, the festival ultimately fell on hard times in the late 1990s and was absent from the Waterfront for two years until it was reinvented in 2002, moved from the Spring season to the Fall season and altered to make local fisheries a cornerstone of the event. Today, the annual Harbor and Seafood Festival, held on the third Saturday in October, draws thousands of people to the Waterfront to enjoy succulent seafood like fresh lobsters and barbequed albacore, plus a host of other seafood treats and marine-related information and demonstrations.

Activities

Activities at the Santa Barbara Harbor & Seafood Festivals


Vessel Tours:

Santa Barbara Harbor Patrol fire boat demonstrations at the Accommodation Dock
US Coast Guard Cutter Blackfin dockside tours at the City Pier  PDF logo
Tall Ship Mystic Whaler dockside tours at the City Pier  PDF logo

Harbor Boat Rides:

Boat rides will be approximately 20-minutes and depart from the Accommodation Dock approximately every 30-minutes
Complimentary boat rides with Celebration Cruises on the Azure Seas and Whisper at the Accommodation Dock from 11:00 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.
Complimentary boat rides with SunSwept Sailing on Kelpie at the Accommodation Dock from 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.

Live Music: Main Stage

Provided by Santa Barbara Harbor Merchants Association

 

Juan Dolor 10:30 am - 12:00 noon
Spencer the Gardner 12:30 pm - 2:30 pm
Cornerstone 3:00 pm - 5:00 pm
Agencies

Ocean Related Agencies & Outreach Groups

Map of the City Pier  PDF logo

City Pier Pop-ups

Commercial Fishermen of Santa Barbara
Get Hooked
Santa Barbara Coast Guard
United States Coast Guard

Fisher's Row — Seafood Direct from Local Fishers

Lobster
Crab
Halibut
Lingcod
Mackerel
Sardines
Kellers Whelks
Oysters
Rockfish
Whitefish
Angelshark
Tresher shark
And…… Maybe some Sheepshead!

Coral Tree Lawn Pop-ups

Santa Barbara Channel Keeper
Santa Barbara Channel Keeper
Heal the Ocean
Santa Barbara Surfrider Foundation
Surfrider Foundation
City of Santa Barbara Sustainability & Resilience Deptartment
SB Sustainability & Resilience Department
Sail & Power Squadron
Project Foodbox
Boy Scouts of America
Exhibitors

Exhibitors

View Festival Vendor Map  PDF logo

Food Exhibitors

Booth 1

Commercial Fishermen of SB, Inc
Lobster & Crab

Booth 2

Commercial Fishermen of SB, Inc
BBQ Albacore

Booth 3

Santa Barbara Mariculture Company
Oyster & Muscles

Booth 4

Brophy’s and Sons, Inc
Brophy's Clam Chowder

Booth 5

Moby Dick Restaurant, The Oyster Bar
Lobster Bisque, Ahi Tartar, Raw Oysters, Shrimp and Scallop Crudo

Booth 6

Louisiana Cajun Foods
Catfish/Fries, Gator, Shrimp Jambalaya, Po Boys, Frog Legs

Booth 7

KONA Ice of Santa Barbara
Shaved Ice

Booth 8

Cruising Cones
Soft Serve Ice Cream with Toppings, Cake Cones, Waffle Cones, and Chocolate Dip

Booth 9

Santa Barbara Yacht Club
Lobster Rolls

Booth 10

Anchor Rose Restaurant
Calamari Sliders & Crab Bisque

Booth 11

Salty Gold Uni
Uni Butter Toast & Sea Urchin Butter Jars

Booth 12

Santa Barbara Fish Market
Fish Tacos & Fish Ceviche

Booth 13

Josefina Dos Paella
Seafood Paella


Non-Food Exhibitors

Booth Product
Booth 1 & 2 Dyenosaur Tie Dye Co. — DIY and Handmade Tie Dye
Booth 3 Savana Lilly Designs — Jewelry & Charcuterie Boards/Coasters
Booth 4 Dale Michele — Beach Dresses and Jewelry
Booth 5 Priya Talwar Photography — Underwater Prints
Booth 6 Neil The Wandmaker — Driftwood Wands
Booth 7 NoHo Candle Co & Studio — Candles, Perfumes & Apparel
Booth 8 Perfect Match Candle Co. — Candles and Decor
Booth 9 Chowdees — Dog and Cat Treats
Booth 10 Cutco — Home and Outdoor Cutlery
Booth 11 & 13 Saraba Arts — African Baskets, Textiles, and Pillows
Booth 12 Alyse Jewelry — Handmade Jewelry
Booth 14 Fringe — Handmade Artisan Jewelry
Booth 15 Elenaita's Handmade — Handmade Embroidered Clothing
Booth 16 & 18 Slavic Gifts — Amber Jewelry
Booth 17 Cali Bracelet — Handmade bracelets, blankets, and bags
Booth 19 Ocean Jewel SB — Handmade Ocean Jewelry
Booth 20 Greystone Jewelry — Handmade 14K delicate Jewelry
Booth 21 Rainbow Studio — Ocean Designs & Jewelry
Booth 22 Woolf with Me — Dog Bandanas and Hats
Booth 23 Indigo Trading Post — Handmade Jewelry
Booth 24 & 26 Bill Enterprises — Hats
Booth 25 SB Police Department — Recruitment Team
Booth 27 Wild Alchemy Ocean Resin Art — Ocean Resin Art & Home Goods
Booth 28 Santa Barbara Landing — Landing Merch
Booth 29 Celebration Cruises — Boat Cruises
Booth 30 Maritime Museum & Sea Center — Outreach
posters

Santa Barbara Harbor & Seafood Festival Posters

About the Artist

Janice Blair
For over 30 years Janice Blair has been an acclaimed graphic artist in Santa Barbara. Ms. Blair is best known for her pen and ink andwatercolor illustrations. She has been published by numerous magazines, including Casa Magazine, Montecito Magazine, and Santa Barbara Magazine,. Ms. Blair is equally celebrated for her business advertisements, private commissions, and calligraphy, as well as her annual pen and ink calendar featuring local Santa Barbara landscapes.

Most recently, Janice has collaborated with Lumino Press to produce a collection of letter press architectural scenes.

For further information visit https://www.janiceblair.com/, or to commission Janice Blair please contact: jblairy@hotmail.com.
Click on picture to view in full size on a separate tab.
Harbor Festival Poster 2024

Harbor Festival Poster 2024

Harbor Festival Poster 2023

Harbor Festival Poster 2023

Harbor Festival Poster 2019

Harbor Festival Poster 2019

Directions
FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

Health is always a concern at the festival.
Masks are most certainly recommended and is at your discretion.

Privacy Policy

Privacy Policy

We do not share personal information with third-parties nor do we store information we collect about your visit to this website for use other than to analyze content performance through the use of cookies, which you can turn off at anytime by modifying your Internet browser's settings. We are not responsible for the republishing of the content found on this website on other sites or media without our permission. This privacy policy is subject to change without notice.

If you need further information about the Harbor Festival Privacy Policy, please contact Angela Rodriguez at arodriguez@SantaBarbaraCA.gov


Web Accessibility Policy

Web Accessibility Policy

We strive to be compliant with the California State Assembly Bill 1757 and the WCAG 2.1 requiring all websites in California be in compliance with Accessibility Guidelines. The Santa Barbara Harbor & Seafood Festival website is continuously updated in attempts to stay consistent with the Guidelines.

State of California Assembly Bill 1757 for Accessibility: Internet Websites WCAG 2.1