PH Travels

PH Travels offers small-group trips designed for discovery. Each journey tells a story, combining remarkable destinations with curated experiences — from behind-the-scenes tours and expert insights to time with fellow travelers who share your passion for architecture and history.

Our 2026 destination: Santa Barbara, Sept. 16–20

Register for our Santa Barbara trip

Set between the Santa Ynez Mountains and the Pacific Ocean, Santa Barbara, California, is a city shaped by reinvention. After an earthquake devastated Santa Barbara in 1925, it rebuilt with unusual discipline, embracing a cohesive architectural vision that blended the Spanish Colonial Revival style, Mediterranean traditions and a commitment to human-scale design. The result is a place where the historic fabric still feels present and purposeful, guiding how the city grows today.

Join Preservation Houston in Santa Barbara from September 16–20, 2026, as PH Travels continues its mission to explore the places where preservation, architecture and community intersect. Each trip offers curated access to significant sites and the people who steward them — an inside look at the architecture, landscapes and preservation decisions that give a place its character. We’re delighted to have PH member and veteran trip planner Lynn Kelly helping guide this journey.

About our Santa Barbara visit

Across five days, we’ll explore the architecture, landscapes and layered history that define Santa Barbara. Our plans include a guided walk through the historic downtown core and a visit to the celebrated Santa Barbara County Courthouse, a landmark of Spanish Colonial Revival design. We’ll spend time at Old Mission Santa Barbara — founded in 1786 and known as the “Queen of the Missions” — examining how its evolving architecture reflects centuries of cultural and environmental change.

A full-day excursion carries us up the coast to Hearst Castle for two in-depth tours that reveal the collaboration between William Randolph Hearst and Julia Morgan, the first woman licensed as an architect in California and a pioneer whose mastery of engineering and design shaped some of the West Coast’s most enduring buildings.

We’ll also enjoy a day in Montecito visiting historic estates that offer extraordinary examples of landscape, craftsmanship and early 20th-century design. Woven throughout the itinerary are memorable moments that highlight the region’s natural beauty and hospitality, from a welcome sunset cruise to an exclusive tasting at a Santa Rita Hills winery.

Travel coordinator Lynn Kelly will join Preservation Houston’s Kathleen Nuzzo and Jim Parsons to lead the journey, connecting Santa Barbara’s architectural traditions with the preservation challenges facing California communities today.

The trip includes:

  • Four nights’ accommodation at Hotel Californian, a luxury property blending Spanish Colonial Revival architecture with contemporary design, located steps from the waterfront

  • Two lunches and three dinners, including a catered event in a private home

  • Private experiences including a chartered sunset cruise along the Pacific coast, a reception and tasting at a Santa Rita Hills winery and drinks at a Montecito private club

  • Curated excursions in Santa Barbara and Montecito led by local historians, preservation professionals and expert guides

  • A full-day trip to Hearst Castle, including two specialized tours

  • Transportation for all group activities

  • Pre-tour educational materials and a pre-tour reception in Houston

Pricing and eligibility

$4,990 per person / double occupancy
$6,190 per person / single occupancy

Prices do not include airfare, which is the responsibility of each traveler.

Register and pay in full by Friday, February 6, 2026, to enjoy a discounted price of $4,740.50 per person double occupancy / $5,880.50 per person single occupancy.

PH Travels is a benefit of Preservation Houston membership. If you are not a current member, please join prior to registering for the trip.

Registration

Begin your trip registration by completing our traveler registration form — click the button below to get started. This form must be completed for every traveler in your group.

Register for our Santa Barbara trip

Cancellation and refunds

A $1,500 nonrefundable deposit is required to secure your reservation. The remaining balance is due in full by June 1, 2026. If full payment is not received by that date, your reservation will be canceled and the deposit forfeited.

If you need to cancel your reservation for any reason, you must notify Preservation Houston in writing.

  • Cancellations by June 1, 2026: All payments beyond the $1,500 deposit will be refunded.

  • Cancellations after June 1, 2026: No refunds are available, but you may transfer your reservation to another traveler with no penalty.

Questions?

We’re happy to help! E-mail us or call (713) 510-3990.