The Barbara is making waves on East Beach.

The new beach club is open through October and features a partnership between the city of Santa Barbara and Brian Jones, who used to work in the travel industry and provide safari experiences.

The setup can be for two people or up to 40 in what’s called “the Anacapa Cabana.”

Jones said the beach club is a place for everyone, in the latest episode of Santa Barbara Talks with Josh Molina.

“There’s a lot of people who have wondered why we don’t have these public spaces or these types of services in California, and on other hand some of us don’t want to see our beaches turned into something that is overly commercialized or limiting the amount of sand people can be on,” Jones said. “So finding the balance between those things is just the priority for us as anybody else.”

There are no boundaries or secluded area for the beach club.

“What we are doing is offering the convenience of these rentals to folks who are already coming out,” Jones said. “Most of these people are already going to the beach. We are just organizing it in a way that is maybe more supportive.”

Amenities include a communal dining table, beach games and a kids play area. Beach attendants also offer extra chairs, phone chargers and snacks. People can bring their own food and drink or pre-order charcuterie and sandwiches.

Reservations are highly encouraged for weekends and larger parties to ensure
availability. Beach attendant services are complimentary. People can find all of the prices by clicking here.

Joshua Molina is journalist who currently writes for Noozhawk and teaches journalism at Santa Barbara City College. He formerly covered politics and land use for the San Jose Mercury News. Santa Barbara Talks is an independently owned podcast where Molina looks to bring together voices from all perspectives to discuss and provide solutions to the challenges related to housing, education, transportation and other community issues. Subscribe to his podcast here and consider a contribution here.