Cheap bus tickets from San Diego to Santa Barbara
Find and compare the best ground travel options in one place.
Millions of travelers trust Wanderu every year to get:
Lowest Prices
We find the cheapest bus & train tickets, so you can wander for less.
Best Travel Options
We partner with 500+ carriers to bring you the most bus & train options.
Quick & Easy Booking
Book trips quickly with a simple, hassle-free checkout – online & on our app.
Fast Customer Support
We don’t monkey around. We respond within minutes to help you out.
See what travelers are saying about Wanderu:
San Diego to Santa Barbara Bus Schedule
Is it better to travel by bus or train from San Diego to Santa Barbara?
There are usually 9 daily train trips available from San Diego to Santa Barbara.
Bus | Train | |
|---|---|---|
Avg. Price | Avg. Price$51.51 | Avg. Price$48.40 |
Daily Trips | Daily Trips1 | Daily Trips9 |
Duration | Duration9h 28m | Duration5h 48m |
Bus from San Diego to Santa Barbara: Journey Information
There is one daily bus from San Diego to Santa Barbara. Traveling by bus from San Diego to Santa Barbara usually takes around 9 hours and 27 minutes, but the fastest Amtrak Thruway bus can make the trip in 8 hours and 35 minutes.
| Distance | 188 mi (302 km) |
| Shortest duration | 8h 35m |
| Cheapest price | $51.00 |
| Most frequent service | Amtrak Thruway |
| Bus lines | 1 |
Price trends for buses from San Diego to Santa Barbara
Monthly avg. prices
Prices as travel date approaches
What bus companies travel from San Diego to Santa Barbara?
There is one intercity bus company available to search and book on Wanderu that operates from San Diego to Santa Barbara. Amtrak Thruway is the only company that has bus schedules available to search and book at the moment. It only makes the trip once a day on most days.
| Bus | Daily Trips | Avg. Time | Avg. Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Amtrak Thruway | 1 | 9h 28m | $51.24 |
Amtrak Thruway, also known as Amtrak Thruway Motorcoach, is a system of intercity passenger buses operated by Amtrak to connect train stations to areas that are not served by the carrier’s railroads. On the bus, passengers can enjoy comfortable reclining seats with leg rests and access to onboard restroom facilities. Amtrak Thruway bus tickets from San Diego to Santa Barbara start at $51. On average, there are 1 Amtrak Thruway bus trips on this route every day.
Frequently asked questions about traveling by bus from San Diego to Santa Barbara
The bus takes an average of 9 hours and 27 minutes to cover the 188 miles from San Diego to Santa Barbara. However, the fastest bus only takes 8 hours and 35 minutes. It’s definitely on the longer side, so plan to get comfortable for a long road trip. Keep in mind that your actual bus may arrive earlier or later than scheduled, depending on whether there is more or less traffic than usual.
With many people traveling in the middle of the week, Wednesday is the busiest day of the week for bus travel. If you are planning to travel on a Wednesday, you should make sure to book tickets well in advance as they may sell out.
On the other hand, Sunday is typically the least busy day for bus travel on this route. If you are looking for less crowded buses to Santa Barbara, book your ticket for the last day of the week.
There is usually only one bus per day from San Diego to Santa Barbara. It leaves the station in San Diego at 10:00pm each day. The time might vary for specific dates, so be sure to search on Wanderu for the most up-to-date information.
There is usually only one bus per day from San Diego to Santa Barbara. However, it is not a direct bus, so you will have to get off your original vehicle to change buses during the trip.
Need more travel options? Consider taking the train from San Diego to Santa Barbara; ticket prices start at $44.00.
City Information
San Diego
San Diego is known as "America's Finest City" for its sunny weather, white-sand beaches, and dazzling attractions from Belmont Park to SeaWorld. San Diego's 70 miles of pristine beaches include such gems as Mission Beach, Pacific Beach, La Jolla Cove, and Coronado Beach. The city's strong surfing culture may even inspire you to rent a surfboard and catch the epic waves, bro.
Visitors can spend days getting lost in Balboa Park, a 1,200-acre cultural hub which features 16 museums, immaculate gardens, and the world-famous San Diego Zoo. The historic heart of the city, Old Town, showcases San Diego's heritage and ties to Mexican culture, while other sights like the USS Midway pay tribute to the city's military and maritime history. Leave time for some evening exploring, too! San Diego is rated the #1 best city for craft beer in America, so don't miss out on the bars in the Gaslamp Quarter: 16 walkable blocks packed with nightlife and young crowds.
Two airports, as well as many bus and train options, mean it is easy to get to San Diego from afar or from nearby cities like Tijuana, Los Angeles, Phoenix, and Las Vegas.
Santa Barbara
Santa Barbara is a major travel destination along the southern coast of California. Dramatically situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Santa Ynez Mountains, Santa Barbara offers incomparable scenery with a comfortably warm climate year-round. White stucco buildings with Mediterranean-style architecture, gorgeous beaches, and upscale local cuisine give Santa Barbara the nickname "The American Riviera."
There are many kinds of vacations to enjoy in Santa Barbara. You can spend days on the soft sand of Leadbetter Beach, surfing in the swells at Rincon Point, or shopping for trinkets along Stearns Wharf. Or embrace the area's history by visiting the Mission Santa Barbara, a Spanish mission founded in 1786. Highlights from the mission include Spanish architecture, a rose garden, a museum, and even crypts.
Santa Barbara Airport, only a few miles from downtown, serves passengers to the region. Amtrak's Pacific Surfliner stops in Santa Barbara on its way from San Diego to San Luis Obispo, with plenty of connections to other SoCal hotspots. Intercity buses, including FlixBus, offer routes from Santa Barbara to destinations like L.A., San Diego, and Las Vegas.
Station Information
Where does the bus leave from in San Diego?
Image credit: Doug Letterman
Link to image attributionMain departure station: Santa Fe Depot - 1050 Kettner Blvd
The Santa Fe Depot is the main train station in San Diego and one of the end points of the Pacific Surfliner, the only Amtrak train line that serves the city. The station is also used by the Green Line of the San Diego Trolley light rail transit service and the COASTER commuter rail service that connects the city with the central and northern coastal regions of San Diego County. Opened in 1915, the Santa Fe Depot is famous for its Spanish Colonial Revival Style architecture and grand interior space that features natural redwood beam ceilings and ceramic details. The train station is located in the heart of Downtown San Diego, making it easy to reach from all parts of the city.
All bus stations in San Diego:
Santa Fe Depot - 1050 Kettner Blvd
Where does the bus arrive in Santa Barbara?
Main arrival station: 209 State Street
All buses from San Diego arrive at one main station in Santa Barbara.
All bus stations in Santa Barbara:
209 State Street
Get around town with Moovit
Need a return trip from Santa Barbara to San Diego?
Search Bus TicketsPlan your next adventure
More buses from San Diego
Continue by bus from Santa Barbara
Wanderu is the simplest way to book bus and train travel.
With just a quick search on Wanderu, you can compare bus and train schedules and prices from hundreds of travel companies in one convenient place to find the trip that works best for you. Wanderu’s simple checkout process makes it easy to book cheap bus and train tickets hassle-free. Most importantly, as Wanderu is an official partner of all leading bus and train companies, we always have the best bus and train deals out there.