7 Of The Most Hospitable Small Towns In Southern California
Southern California is the land of iconic stars and hidden gems. Laguna Beach offers the most unique stretch of sea coves, tide pools, and white cliffs, while Malibu has the best surf, well, practically anywhere! One of the most popular states to visit from around the world, SoCal is used to all types of visitors seeking a getaway from the LA scene. Enhancing the beauty of nature with genuine kindness, it is no wonder that the locals here are friendly and lucky to live in this beautiful part of the state, just a hop from the nation's best beaches! Joshua Tree and Palm Springs are desert towns with very unique personalities, charming every type of tourist with equally enviable hospitality.
Carpinteria
Carpinteria welcomes one and all with legendary surf to, well, surf or enjoy the oceanic sensory overload under the hot sun! The beating waves attract beach lovers from all around the state to the sandy scene rivaling Santa Barbara! From Carpinteria City Beach to Carpinteria State Beach with its camping and picnics, Padaro Beach is a real cultural experience to mingle with natives and vibrant little businesses like Padaro Beach Grill and A-Frame Surf Shop! All offering a wider stretch and relaxed vibe with fewer crowds, Rincon Beach is a surfer's paradise! Replete with shopping, Linden Avenue features vintages, antique treasures, and the unmissable Robitaille's Candies straight on your way to the State Beach!
The casual town where you can flip-flop to the beach offers le meme dining options for every taste, whether snacking, dining, or stocking up for a blufftop hike! The unassuming "Spot," across the train tracks, is an old-timey diner with burgers and milkshakes for nearly a century, while Reynaldo's European & Mexican Bakery, great for breakfast or dinner, serves fresh pastries, famous tamales, and other authentic dishes! Sly welcomes afterhours for brews, a stiff drink, or specialty vintage cocktails like Sazerac, allegedly America's first cocktail! Carpinteria's welcoming accommodations include the reputable Holiday Inn Express for families and couples with spacious rooms, but Carpinteria State Beach remains the favorite among rugged family caravaners, equipped for just $45 per night.
Idyllwild
Idyllwild, an idyllic town spread in the foothills, with Palm Springs to the other side of the San Jacinto Mountains, has a quirky character. Home to avid outdoorsmen, the town beckons nature lovers with hospitality akin to Southern for rest and relaxation in between wild adventures of every level and taste! The Fireside Inn, Idyllwild Inn, and The Grand Idyllwild Lodge offer that authentic mountain vibe you crave—to hit the trail running—any of the 30 trails through the beautiful Mount San Jacinto State Park! Two hours east of Los Angeles, Idyllwild is an easy, breezy vacation getaway any time of the year, including the sparkling Lake Fulmor, minutes away! Don't miss the Idyllwild Nature Center for local flora and fauna insights, but what is all the hype about this special town, you ask?
The name of Idyllwild's mayor is Max the Third, who is a dog, while the appealing North Circle Drive features fun attractions in shops and art galleries. Idyllwild Arts' Parks Exhibition Center, also here, offers a local and regional spin on the art of the beauty you see around you! The charming town has a cozy feel under the peaks, while its ravishing nature and laid-back attitude are enviably far away from the city noise and fumes. In between enormous boulders and evergreens, the sweet-smelling cedars permeate the town, while San Jacinto National Park is the star attraction with mind-blowing scenery. One sight is worth a thousand words, and you will understand the meaning of "Idyll-wild," together with Idyllwild County Park, a serene oasis, minutes away or a quick hike.
Joshua Tree
This small community, at 2,700 feet above sea level in the High Desert, borders Joshua Tree National Park to the northwest. Home to under 10,000 real characters, Joshua Tree is a fun little town with funky art and remnants of the Wild West, as well as mock UFO sights! Another eclectic art exhibit, the 10-acre Noah Purifoy Desert Art Museum, features "assemblage sculptures" from bowling balls, mufflers, and a "U"-shaped one out of 14 toilets. Nearby Pioneertown, built in 1946 by architect Gene Autrey, is a television star in many Western series like The Cisco Kid, while Desert View Conservation Area is right downtown from your hospitable stay at The Invisible House and Furstwurld Museum on the other side!
All this makes Joshua Tree an exciting destination to visit, drawing over 2 million visitors a year. With the recognizable name of the national park, many head to the high desert town and straight for Joshua Tree National Park. With trails, quirky trees, and other wicked fauna styles, it is as if nature competes with the town's roadside oddities along the way! Whether you're in for nature, which is resplendent, or attractions, Joshua Tree Downtown offers a hip vibe through vintage motels, numerous art galleries, restaurants, and an art museum! AutoCamp Joshua Tree is incredibly modern and popular, while families with babies can enjoy nature on-site at Joshua Tree Friendly Hills Park with a playground and nearby friendly hike.
Julian
Julian, named allegedly after its most handsome resident during the early pioneer days with quartz and gold mines, is a sweet-scented town from 1870. Offering a heavenly family getaway with fresh fruit, baked treats, and generous mountain nature for adventurers, the Julian Gold Rush Hotel is a grand stay, while the California Wolf Center is minutes away from downtown. Just an hour northeast, high above San Diego, begin your discovery at the Julian Pioneer Museum with fascinating past insights like vintage clothing, mining equipment, and Aboriginal artifacts. Home to around 1,300, Julian's mind-bending scenery and the harvest season attract summertime and early fall tourists for hikes and apple picking through the orchards. Staying a secret within the picturesque Cuyamaca Mountain Range, Julian's delightful attractions and impeccably serviced cafes host visitors like royalty.
The quaint main street's collection of eclectic shops and casual restaurants exceeds the expectations of an average California vacationer, enchanting visitors most with its famous apple pie scene and cozy bed and breakfasts! Don't miss the Julian Pie Company for a sensational fruity slab, while the nearby 9-acre Jess Martin Park features a skateboard and exercise areas, as well as a children's playground. The most atmospheric Desert View Park is just south for a day well spent before a dinner at the Julian Cafe or Julian Beer Co. This easily strollable town, with picturesque views all around, offers many antique shops with one-of-a-kind treasures, collectibles, and scenic relics from the past. Visitors can explore the local gold mines and take a horse-drawn carriage ride for a nostalgic experience on one of California's friendliest getaways!
Laguna Beach
An iconic town on a global scale, the artist colony of Laguna Beach welcomes you with generations of practice in hospitality! Not exactly a hidden gem in Orange County, halfway between Los Angeles and San Diego, its coastal topography feels otherworldly against all the other California beach towns and cities. The coastline is a destination in itself, with seven miles of coves and beaches, while the town hosts an exemplary atmosphere, catering in-between your sightseeing adventures. From sea caves to tide pools, visitors can explore under and over oceanside bluffs until plopping down on one of the sandy beaches, all within city limits! Booming in the summertime with over 6 million annual visitors, you may face crowds or visit on the fringe of the season to enjoy the loveliest beaches in California.
With turquoise waters of pristine clarity and white sands under the picturesque cliffsides, you can splash out on a flashy seafood experience at the first-class Splashes Restaurant! The attractive residences and businesses overlook extraordinary beaches while delicious seafood and desert restaurants, top-tier hotels, and spas vie for your attention among their likes! From luxurious to casual and fun, there's something for the everyday tourist, like the Pacific Marine Mammal Center, Gelato Paradiso, Carmelitas Mexican Food, and K'ya Bistro with vegan options. Boasting the most beachfront lodging options in the state, Laguna Beach is California's "it" spot for beach getaways and in the nation, with impeccable service used to handle busy families, lonely souls, demanding directors, and needy celebrities.
Malibu
Stretching for over 30 miles along the Pacific and Highway One, the legendary town of Malibu, with a nearly mythological status, is home to only some 10,500 locals! One of the most attractive beach towns in existence features the homes of iconic Hollywood stars and top athletes. Combining elegance and privacy along the long strands of beach, it is a sought-after destination from around the world. Surfrider Beach, the front-row seat for surfers, offers some of the most perfect waves anywhere! There's plenty of Malibu magic for plain families to relax in a vibrant beach atmosphere with colorful sunsets and, just inland, the hills and canyons of spring wildflowers and waterfalls of the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area. The two-hour Malibu Wine Hike includes Chumash cave drawings and, of course, wine tasting, all along the rolling terrain of Saddlerock Ranch vineyard!
Considered the first World Surfing Reserve, visitors can watch surfers in action from the nearby Malibu Pier, while Zuma Beach is a sunny, friendly paradise to lounge while soaking in the rays and good vibes! Don't miss the winter whale migration from the ideal perch of Point Dume at Malibu's north end! Featuring perfect aesthetics beyond the beach, Getty Villa from 1974 showcases ancient Greek and Roman art with free admission; just make a reservation! The Surf Museum at Pepperdine University's Payson Library offers contemporary, beach-inspired masterpieces like 30 historic surfboards on display, some over a century old! Browse the shops at the Malibu Country Mart and Malibu Lumber Yard for upscale retail or to spot a celebrity and dine waterside at Malibu Farm Restaurant, an organic café on the pier. Duke's Malibu honors a pioneering chef, serving Hawaiian cuisine indoors and on a terrace with excellent water views.
Palm Springs
This small resort town in the Sonoran Desert, with its hot springs and golf courses, has been a favorite desert playground for Hollywood stars ever since the 1930s! In the business of entertaining tourists for nearly a century, Palm Springs knows a thing or two about hospitality and how to keep visitors engaged. Despite its distant location, Palm Springs is a pampering destination with many impeccably serviced full-fledged spas and one of the state's biggest treasures, with a nostalgic vibe through its historic neighborhoods. A gorgeous architectural playground of mid-century modern styles—even some office buildings—you can stay in a luxurious hotel, historic inn, or a mix throughout the city.
The nearby Coachella and Stagecoach Festivals make Palm Springs an ideal base for adventures as well as a destination with shops and restaurants open year-round to escape the mid-summer day's heat. The unmissable Palm Springs Aerial Tramway ride is a two-and-a-half-mile journey up and over Chino Canyon to the peak of Mount San Jacinto, with views from an elevation of 8,516 feet! Another unique attraction, the Forever Marilyn, is a statue by the artist Seward Johnson, which is a spin-off of the memorable photo from the movie The Seven Year Itch.
The Golden State has plenty of drawing power with nature and vibrant attractions, but friendly vibes under the hot sun and the sand steal hearts and keep it the top destination in the Southland. From the beaches to the Cuyamaca and San Jacinto Mountains, SoCal is particularly hospitable through its tiny towns. As diverse as the state itself, these are perfect for a weeklong getaway or vacation. Visit Laguna Beach—yes, from the screens—and there's truly something magical about Malibu, the nearly mythological town, while Julian combines adventures and pleasures of pie eating and apple picking in the mountains!
