This rest stop is so nice, clean and the surroundings lush . The restrooms are clean, with paper…read moretowels, seat cover and hand soap. Very convenient to stretch and walk the dogs . No shops just for restrooms break.

California's highway rest areas are universally magical, disappointing, sketchy, lovely, and weird…read more We would stop at them occasionally on cross-state trips when I was little, mainly to use the bathroom, but as I grew older and drove long distances myself, I never really understood their value. Why not stop somewhere you could also buy gas and food? But then I got into this habit of doing the San Francisco-to-Los Angeles trip on the 5 in the middle of the night, and rest areas became essential, because many 24/7 gas stations' restrooms magically go out of order in the middle of the night. Since the pandemic, I've been pretty annoyed by how many of the rest areas along the 5 have been simultaneously closed for long periods of time. I understand if they're doing major renovations, but Caltrans should schedule the construction so that at least some of the rest areas are open along the same route. Rest areas on other freeways feel like a bonus, like that random one on the 280. Who uses that one? Why? I know, I know; I already told you why people need rest areas. The Gaviota rest areas along the 101 might be my favorite in the state. Especially this one, the one on the northbound (eastern) side of the freeway. It appears not long after the 101 goes from hugging the south-facing coast to almost due north toward the curvy hilly section on the way to Buellton. And unlike its 5 counterparts, this rest area has a lot of character. It has gorgeous views of the surrounding natural features, and it feels perfect in scale. Is it safe? It's not unsafe, but compared to other rest areas, you might say it is unsafe. For one thing, the parking is a small bank of angled parking spots right off the incoming lane. People are usually coming fast off the 101, so when you're backing out to leave, you need to very careful. Also, the only thing separating these parking spots from the highway is a short stone wall and a lane for semis and buses. That lane is usually occupied, so you're usually physically protected, but when it's unoccupied, it would be very easy for a car to careen through that wall and into the parking spaces. There are also signs that warn about rattlesnakes, but I've never seen one here. Unfortunately, this rest area has been closed on two separate occasions in the last three years for renovations. The second closure was only for a few months, but it was still annoying, as this is a good place for me to use the restroom, stretch my legs, and catch some sleep if I need to now that Pea Soup Andersen's is permanently closed (RIP). The bathrooms are generally pretty clean. Even though you're right next to the freeway, it doesn't feel as loud or obnoxious as you expect it to. They have some tables to sit at and a couple of pet-relief areas. I love looking across the highway at the craggy hills. It reminds me so much of the geography farther north around the Madonna Inn in San Luis Obispo.

GETTING HERE:…read more Located on the 101 South in Gaviota, #obvi. :) REVIEW: First-timer here! It's an absolute great place for a quick pit stop/stretch break, and I have a vague knowledge of it being closed for a long while. It was such a blessing to be able to stop here for a bit on our way home from NorCal. The restrooms were clean. BIG WIN! I noticed there were informational signs/displays near, that I can only assume shared the history of the area. I will note those on my next stop. I felt safe here, although it was a daytime stop. Will update again soon!

I recently reviewed the Gaviota Rest Area's northbound side (…read morehttps://www.yelp.com/biz/gaviota-rest-area-northbound-side-goleta?hrid=ZD_A27xUjI0BfVrxb346sA&utm_campaign=www_review_share_popup&utm_medium=copy_link&utm_source=(direct) ). Most of what I wrote about the northbound side is true of the southbound side, although this side (southbound) feels like it has a slightly larger and more varied natural area behind the bathroom buildings. This side also has a much larger pet-relief area. Frankly, I've stopped at the northbound side about four times as often as I've stopped here, mainly because it was my habit--ritual, really--to stop at Pea Soup Andersen's (RIP) for a break on my way from San Francisco to SoCal. Now that the original Pea Soup's is no more, this stop will probably be more useful to me. Also like its northbound cousin, this stop was closed for years for renovations. It also seems generally to be closed more often than the northbound side, for some reason. When I visited last week, I noticed that they've removed the payphones. I guess that's to be expected these days, but if a person really were desperate and they had lost their phone, it seems like a remote rest area of all places should have a way to make a phone call. The men's bathroom is usually very clean. The parking setup is similar to the northbound side, so be careful when pulling in and out. It is also slightly safer, though, because there seems to be a longer lead-in before the parking stalls begin than on the other side.

The facility is clean and well-stocked, serving its intended purpose effectively. I observed a…read morecouple of vending machines, one for drinks and the other for snacks and candy.

Always clean, well lit and well supplied vending machines…read more .Note: I came by on 6/29/26, it was closed in both directions for reasons unknown; possibly scheduled maintenance. Re-opening date unknown. Major renovations in progress, estimated completion in one year.

A Vista del Lago review, in haiku form: The best restroom…read morestop... Educate yourselves people! Enjoy the water

Great rest stop and refill for my water. Definite recommendation for anyone who wants to take a…read morebreak from their long road trip. I almost always come down here when I make my trip to Los Angeles.

Lived in CA my whole life and never found a rest stop with free RV dump station and wash out hose…read more Bathrooms were very clean, working vending machines with cold drink options and plenty of trailer and truck parking. As rest stops go, this is a great option for travelers.

About halfway through the Tejon Pass, this rest area was a welcome break. Aside from the fantastic…read moreviews of the mountains here, there was parking in the shade, decently clean rest rooms and a FREE RV sanitary dump site with flush water. Parking for cars is along the loop in the back which is a plus for the folks who aren't used to the all night idling of trucks. Dump site is at the exit and accessible from both car and truck parking areas. Be aware that many of the California rest areas are closed so plan ahead for disappointment. Boron to the east on SR-58 was closed when I was passing through. [Review 21028 overall - 544 in California - 2013 of 2023.]

Stopped here on my drive to Abilene, TX. The sinks and toilets had bugs in them and there was a…read morehuge wasp nest over the door. NASTY! Also had a hard time finding a parking spot. There was many undesirable-looking truckers there and one kept begging me for money and cigars. The blacktop was like a human Frying pan and the picnic tables were broken and covered in wasp nests. Hit my head on a tree branch and almost tripped on a broken sidewalk. It is a Discusting Hellhole dump that is more like a dump than a rest stop.

Check the photos*, for a photo can save a thousand words and if you can hold it, wait till you get…read moreto Blythe 15 miles down the 10. Or, if you don't mind the noxious smell of cooking urine and feces, you might also enjoy the empty view of dirty truck-driver blacktop baking under the hot desert sun and consider the flying sewage insects an aeronautical freebie air show. FWIW, picnic tables, phone and handicapped access, best used upwind...if you can find a breeze. *attempts to photograph one of the broken toilets resulted in a terminal malfunction. I can't say whether it was the camera or me gagging but I never got the shot. Just picture "Eww". P.S., I held it.

My opinion of Beverly Hills is a little jaded. Yes, you understand it's going to be expensive. But…read moreparking is difficult, the people are sometimes snooty and their library just sucks. But this bathroom is one of the more lovely things that the city has done. Maybe they got tired of homeless people peeing in their park or maybe some well-connected dog walker got tired of holding it until he got home. However it worked, it's delightful, for somebody who does a lot of work in the field to know that there's a place open well into the night that you can pull into when you're desperately doing the pee-pee dance. It's clean and well-maintained and because it's in Beverly Hills of course it has its own address! A delightfully generous, sensible feature in a town sometimes not known for its generosity or good sense.

Restrooms are very clean never seen a public restroom this clean and didn't have any bad odorread more

I was very impressed this place is adorable And dog…read morefriendly clean Above beyond Even have breakfast I recommend

We were trying to book rooms for a very large group, and the whole experience over the phone was…read moreextremely frustrating. The person we spoke with kept putting us on hold, was difficult to communicate with, and made the booking process way more complicated than it needed to be. The whole time, his behavior just felt strange and shady. After we finally thought we had everything figured out and were going to pay around $1,500 for our rooms, he asked for our credit card number. We were already suspicious about whether there would be additional charges, so we directly asked him, "Are you going to charge us another $600 when we get there?" He said yes. We were obviously shocked and asked why we would be charged another $600 after already paying around $1,500 for the rooms. He went silent for a while and then quietly said, "yes." At that point, we were absolutely not comfortable giving him our credit card information. The entire interaction was extremely strange and made us feel like we couldn't trust the booking process. We decided not to book. I would be very careful and make sure you get a clear explanation of every charge before giving this place your payment information. Based on our experience, we would not recommend it because it is SHADY!

Environment was good. Service was good. Pretty nice chill place to hang out and chill nice tooread more

Had to cancel due to family illness! :(oh no! Cannot wait to reschedule…read more Looks amazing and great price and location!

What a beacon in the night this place was!!!!! This was not your typical situation.... Some friends…read moreand I were on a casual run from San Francisco to Las Vegas (like on foot!). We were coming up on our second night of running through the night. Learning that Love's had SHOWERS was like finding an oasis in the desert! Well, that's what Love's is right? My group arrived at Love's around 2am. I was the last runner and eager to rinse off all the grime from the last 40 hours. We were greeted with such friendly service. Even though there was a wait for the showers at 2am, the attendants were really friendly and curious why a bunch of women in running clothes were wanting to shower in the middle of the night. We nearly blew their mind when we told them we had run there from San Francisco. The showers were really clean and so were the towels. The whole process was really simple and everyone was able to get their showers in before we continued on. Love's also had a great selection of souvenirs and snacks. I'll probably never be in this situation ever again but Love's was probably my favorite thing from that day! Many thanks to Love's for existing and being our oasis in the night!

It could be that the travel stop was busy but the bathrooms weren't as clean as I've seen in other…read moreLove's stops across the country. Everything else was functional though, and the cashiers were friendly enough.