About the Thousand Oaks, California Area It is impossible to do justice to the attractiveness of Thousand Oaks’s physical environment. With a population of 742,000, making it the 12th most populous county in the State, Ventura enjoys boundless stretches of pristine beaches, unrivalled surfing, swimming, and water recreation, charming and historic beach towns, beautiful citrus and avocado groves and farming land, and the vast expanses of Los Padres National Forest, not to mention the unique natural gem that is the Channel Islands National Park. Its ten incorporated cities offer artistic, cultural, and historic treasures galore, and with vibrant economies and a relaxed and friendly pace of life are among the safest cities in the nation. Thousand Oaks covers an area of 1,873 square miles, including 43 miles of coastline, northwest of Los Angeles County, and is bordered by Kern County to the north, Santa Barbara County to the west, and the Pacific Ocean on the southwest. Thousand Oaks ranges from sea level to the highest point on Mount Pinos at 8,831 feet
Most of its population lives in the gently rolling hills and beautiful canyons of the southern half, which includes the Conejo Valley. North of Highway 126 the county is mountainous coniferous forest country and mostly uninhabited. Distance to 3 closest major cities Four cities in Thousand Oaks have a population in excess of 100,000- Oxnard, Simi Valley, Thousand Oaks, and Ventura. Of these Ventura and Simi Valley are furthest apart at 29 miles. With a strong economic base and a large and diverse labor pool, Thousand Oaks’s major industries include agriculture, biotechnology and other high-tech industries, manufacturing, tourism, telecommunications, and military-related research and development. The United States Navy is the region’s largest employer, contributing approximately $1.2 billion to its economy annually. The County ranks 10th in California for its agricultural production, and the Port of Hueneme is the largest refrigerated fruit terminal on the West Coast. It also serves as a key distribution point for imported vehicles. All this plus easy access to other areas of greater Los Angeles makes a very wide range of employment choices available to County residents, whose median income significantly exceeds national and state levels.  Thousand Oaks has enjoyed a real estate boom through the 1990’s, with new areas being developed and many new homes built. Enlightened planning codes have meant that the County’s residents enjoy an extremely pleasant suburban or semi-rural environment, although residents' unwillingness to embrace greater population density has in recent years led to housing shortages in some areas. After several very strong years the market has begun to flatten out recently and now tends to favor buyers. All kinds of homes are available, including beach, groves, ranch, modern, ocean view, mansions, and Spanish character homes. Ventura City runs an affordable housing program for low-income residents and a homebuyers’ assistance program. Parks/Sports/Recreation/Golf Almost half of Thousand Oaks’s area is contained in Los Padres National Forest. An astounding natural resource encompassing nearly two million acres in the coastal mountains of central California, Los Padres provides refuge for approximately 468 species of fish and wildlife, including twenty-three threatened and endangered animals, and contains some of the most extraordinary native rock art in the world. While almost half of its area is officially designated wilderness, with no roads or facilities, in other areas there are 1,257 miles of maintained trails for day-trips and extended backpacking and 459 miles of roads and trails for off-road vehicle use. And with 400 miles of flowing streams and rivers and 37 lakes, as well as many miles of coastal shoreline, the Forest offers an abundance of fishing, boating, kayaking, and rafting. The Ventura coast possesses vast stretches of beautiful, uncrowded beaches, famous surf and swimming spots, harbor cruises, and a 13-mile coastal bikeway, as well as delightful beach towns with varied and interesting shopping, restaurants and family entertainment venues. Thousand Oaks is the Gateway to the glorious Channel Islands National Park, a 250,000-acre wilderness preserve and marine sanctuary centered on five islands located a few miles off the coast. Visitors to this natural wonderland can enjoy fabulous SCUBA diving, snorkeling, swimming, bird watching, kayaking, whale watching and sailing, while on shore there are tide pools, isolated beaches, and rugged canyons for day-trippers and campers to explore and enjoy. Needless to say, with its beautiful landscape and stunning California weather Thousand Oaks is studded with fantastic golf courses that will challenge and excite the most discriminating of golfers. Olivas Golf Course in Ventura City has been voted the top public golf course in the County for 4 consecutive years, and over 100,000 rounds are played there annually. The Camarillo Springs Golf Course is a challenging course whose lovely scenic setting attracts many tourists. Set amidst rolling hills it has lots of water hazards and bunkers to test the golfer’s accuracy and judgment. Special Attractions/Events Each of Thousand Oaks’s ten incorporated cities is rich in scenic, historical, and cultural attractions. The smallest of them, Ojai, is renowned as a vibrant haven for artists, musicians and health enthusiasts. Filled with delightful shops, art galleries featuring the work of world-famous artists, and all manner of interesting ways to retreat from the fast-paced lifestyle, Ojai’s beautiful oak-shaded streets were selected to represent Shangri-La in the 1939 movie, The Lost Horizon, and its lovely Spanish Revival-style architecture and delightful health-giving climate have been attracting visitors ever since. In Ventura City the venerable and beautiful San Buenaventura Mission has been in existence since 1782, and the first liturgical services took place in the current church building on September 10 1809. The Mission, which took 17 years to complete, was the ninth and last California mission to be founded by Blessed Junipero Serra, and is still today an active Roman Catholic parish. Nestled amongst the citrus groves of the Heritage Valley, Fillmore is known as the last unspoiled small town in Southern California. The location of countless Hollywood movies, this charming pre-World War II town boasts all manner of fun attractions and festivals, and is the home of the Fillmore and Western historical trains. Departing from the Historic Downtown District, these trains offer a variety of amusing and interesting themes, many based on Hollywood movies, and take travelers on a leisurely scenic ride through the picturesque Santa Clara River Valley. The California Oil Museum in Santa Clara offers a unique historical display of California’s oil industry through interactive displays, videos, working models, games, photographs, restored gas station memorabilia, and an authentic turn-of-the-century cable-tool drilling rig. Its display of vintage gas pumps and participatory exhibits of early oil exploration and extraction are unlike anything seen elsewhere, and are complemented by new exhibits of science, transportation, history, and art throughout the year. Interesting Facts/Historic Buildings and Places Originally the home of the Chumash Indians, early Spanish settlers described the area as the “land of everlasting summers” and named the region “San Buenaventura”, meaning “good fortune”. The county was formally incorporated in 1873, and still retains a number of very old adobe buildings from its early days. While some of these are now ruins, many have been maintained and restored and serve as museums, hotels, and even private homes, like the remarkable Lopez Adobe near Ojai, which was built in 1830 to house soldiers protecting the surrounding country from “marauding” Indians. It remained in the family of its original builder until 1925 and is the oldest continuously inhabited adobe in Thousand Oaks. Many of the adobes have romantic histories and interesting links to earlier, more dangerous times. One of the oldest remaining, the Rancho Simi Adobe in Simi Valley is thought to have been built in the 1790’s and was situated on one of California's largest ranchos at over 113, 000 acres. Partially burned down during an Indian raid in 1820, it is now open for guided tours on weekends. In the 1970s and 1980s, Thousand Oaks was at the forefront of the “smart growth” movement in which residents voted for initiatives that barred development on the large swaths of open space surrounding its cities. These measures have restricted urban sprawl, limited air pollution in the narrow valleys, and enabled the county to maintain its status as one of California's leading agricultural areas. Although they have also led in some parts of the County to housing shortages, they have played a vital role in preserving the County’s uniquely beautiful landscape and lifestyle. Request our Free Thousand Oaks, Westlake Village and Simi Valley Relocation Package. 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