9 Most Historic Small Towns to Visit in Southern California
When you hear Southern California, you are likely to immediately think of Los Angeles or San Diego. The big SoCal cities are undeniably tourist magnets for their urban allure and slew of metropolitan attractions and activities.
However, there is something magical within innate small towns that can’t be easily replicated in busy concrete jungles. With their wellspring of history and character and a more relaxed vibe, small towns can be a better vacation pick at times! Interested in a history-filled and off-the-beaten-path California trip? Read on to get to know some of the best historic small towns to visit in Southern California!
Solvang
Named “The Danish Capital of America,” Solvang came to be thanks to a group of Danish Americans who occupied and developed the area after the original Spanish settlers left. Today, the town is steeped in Dutch heritage, with Dutch-style architecture, a windmill, and the Hans Christian Andersen Museum right on the town's main street, Mission Drive.
Most of the town’s history can be seen at the Elverhoj Museum, which aims to educate about Solvang’s Danish-American past and share Danish culture. If you want something fun for you and the little ones, the Solvang Viking Museum has an authentic Viking ship on display! Visit the town from November to January for Solvang Julefest and celebrate the holidays like the Dutch do. With this, the best way to learn Dutch culture is still through food, so grab pastries at the Danish Mill Bakery while there.
Pioneertown
While you can always go to actual Old West towns in California like Sacramento and Columbia, Pioneertown stands out for being a historic town that started as a shooting location for Western movies in the 1940s. Now a tourist town, the place has preserved its movie set buildings perfectly, but also added new and exciting amenities and establishments for visitors.
Stay a night or two at Pioneertown Motel to immerse yourself in this "Living, Breathing Movie Set." Eat like a cowboy at Pappy and Harriet’s while reading the current issue of Pioneertown Gazette. Need to do a supply run? Shop at the General Store and Pantry for cowboy hats, jeans, and canned goods. Lastly, put on your new cowboy hat and unwind with the locals over drinks at Red Dog Saloon. Not bad for a pretend cowboy life!
Carpinteria
Behind this town’s beautiful shores and laidback seaside town vibe lies Carpinteria’s history of tar pits and asphalt lakes. When Spanish explorers saw the natives seal their wooden boats with oil from the area, they were amazed at their skill and knowledge, thus calling the place “La Carpinteria” or “The Carpentry Shop.”
Stroll through the sandy shores and campgrounds of Carpinteria State Beach to see layers of sand, stone, and tar—proof of Carpinteria’s past and evolution into a tourist beach town. A little ways from the main beach is the Tar Pits Park, one of the only five natural asphalt lake areas in the world. Further down is Carpinteria Bluffs Nature Preserve, which is perfect for hiking and wildlife watching. Before leaving Carpinteria, make sure to enjoy its waves, since its shores are considered to be the “World’s Safest Beach.”
Los Olivos
Over the years, Los Olivos has developed the reputation of being one of the best vineyard towns to visit in California. However, as evident in its name, Los Olivos was originally known for its 5,000 olive trees! Do the Los Olivos Historical Walking Tour to see the original ranch that planted all those trees, as well as other historical spots in town like a 19th-century tavern and the old general store.
After learning of the town’s history, sampling its amazing olive oil is a must! Visit Olive Hill Farm to join their olive oil tasting sessions and take home a few bottles for your pantry. If you are as crazy about olive oil as them, they even have an olive oil club you can join. Participate in sightseeing around town and bike through its olive farms and vineyards via electric bike rentals from Pedego Electric Bikes.
Ojai
Ojai keeps the town’s Native American heritage and Spanish past alive in its museum, town structures, and way of life. Start your historic Ojai tour at the Ojai Valley Museum, a reformed church that now houses important Ojai artifacts and exhibits. Then, book a room at The Lavender Inn, Ojai’s first schoolhouse that is now a beloved bed and breakfast.
Ojai culture is also big on spirituality and health, which you can see as you explore downtown (e.g. the Overlook Circle Fountain at Cluff Vista Park representing the spiritual world) or experience through Meditation Mount. Libbey Park, named after Ojai’s greatest benefactor Edward Drummond Libbey, is the town’s gathering place for big festivals and events. Visit Ojal there in May for Art in the Park or watch local storytellers during the Ojai Storytelling Festival in October.
Monrovia
As Los Angeles County’s fourth-oldest general law city, Monrovia has a lot to show when it comes to the town’s historical sites and downtown. With its iconic arch, Old Town Monrovia welcomes tourists to explore its treasure trove of shops. The antique store Trilco Claims and Antiques, the classy local watering hole Basin 141, and the quaint Cafe Mundial are just a few of the must-visit stops within this aptly-named downtown. See if you can spot public art while there!
After all that walking, shopping, and dining, enrich your minds with Monrovia’s history through the Monrovia Historical Museum. From turn-of-the-century kitchen exhibits to Monrovia’s old classrooms, the museum is filled with replicas of what life was like in the early 1900s. Other notable sites in town are the 130-year-old Frank W. Burr House, Jennifer’s House in the Back to the Future movies, and the Upton Sinclair House.
Idyllwild
If you want to avoid the busier mountain towns in California, consider the quaint town of Idyllwild that is big on small-town charm and history. Stay at the Idyllwild Inn, which used to be a sanitorium until it was converted into the town’s very first lodging establishment in 1904. The town’s museum, the Idyllwild Area Historical Society, is a small cabin filled with remnants and antiquities of the town’s old mountain communities.
Idyllwild was originally called Strawberry Valley because of the wild strawberries abundant in the area. If you hike along Strawberry Creek, you might still find bushes of the town’s old namesake! Other pleasant trails for hikers and bikers are Deer Springs Trail and the Idyllwild South Loop. Before leaving this mountain haven, don’t forget to try Candy Cupboard’s chocolate-dipped cheesecake. It’s no wild strawberry, but it’s one of the best sweet treats in town!
Julian
While the Gold Rush days of Julian are long over, this small California mining town continues to earn its keep through its mining tours, museums, well-kept historical buildings, and apple pies. Stop by the Julian Pioneer Museum for a lesson on Julian’s mining history and heritage, then pan for gold and go through an old mine shaft at Eagle Mining Co.
After all that excitement, simmer down by walking through Julian’s downtown to see its preserved buildings dating back to the 19th-century mining era of the town. The Julian Gold Rush Hotel, which dates back to the 1890s, is just down Main Street and is an excellent and thematic accommodation choice. Though tourists visit the town for its mining tours, what makes visitors come back is Julian’s delectable apple pies. Visit during its Apple Days Festival in the fall and treat yourself to dessert at Julian Cafe and Bakery.
San Juan Capistrano
San Juan Capistrano is a great SoCal destination for its dated architecture brought by its rich Spanish heritage. The most notable architecture in town is the Mission San Juan Capistrano, a Spanish mission established in 1776 to start a settlement in the area. Other great historical sites are the San Juan Capistrano Station, which is a railway stop with beautiful Mission Revival Style architecture dating back to 1894, and the old trading post right across the mission.
Additionally, the Los Rios District, the oldest neighborhood in town, is a gold mine of attractions and shops. Browse vintage items at Antiques of Laguna, enjoy afternoon tea at The Tea House on Los Rios, and eat your fill of quality Mexican food at El Adobe de Capistrano. The Inn at the Mission San Juan Capistrano is just down the road from the mission, making it the perfect accommodation when you are in town.
From a Danish-themed town and an olive-filled haven to mining towns with a penchant for apple pies, many tourists probably don’t expect Southern California’s small towns to be this vibrant, diverse, and unique. They might not have the pull and reputation of the bigger California cities, but their small-town charm can win tourists’ hearts in their own special and historical way.
If you have been planning a trip to SoCal but don’t want to go to the usual beach towns or metropolitan areas, these historic small towns to visit in Southern California might be what your itinerary needs for an enriching vacation. You will be able to take it slow, mingle better with the locals, and even learn a niche thing or two about Southern California!
