It is very close. You can walk, jog, bike, or skate to the beaches. The distance is about 4 miles. Out here in California, this isn't really considered much of a distance for walking.
You can surf
Santa Maria is about 196 miles from Santa Cruz.
there are loads of things like go karting which is way fun and also cinecenter which even has a food court it is practically amzing
Santa Cruz is approximately 269.5 miles from Santa Barbara