These Towns in Southern California Come Alive in Spring
When it comes to Southern California, it's easy to think you have it all figured out under the pleasant year-round weather with hot summers and sea breezes along the beach. Loaded with small towns from the mountains to the sea, Julian is a beaut with lilacs, native flowers, and apple blossoms in full bloom in the vibrant mountain atmosphere with its charming 19th-century California Gold Rush layout.
Re-energized and fresh-faced, nature bursts in vivid colors unlike in any other season, from pink-blue sunrises over the sparkling waters to super blooms and green mountain carpets to deep orange-hued sunsets that drown in a fiery ocean. Carpinteria delights with a serene beach, while Borrego Springs is one cool town within a state park for stargazing and metal sculptures.
Avalon
Avalon, the hub on the ever-beautiful Santa Catalina Island, just off the coast of Los Angeles in the Pacific Ocean, is a major tourism destination, attracting millions of visitors each year. Staying quaint through the first months of spring, there is no better time than now to visit this stunning southeast corner of the island. The ambient town on one of California’s Channel Islands inspires a dream of a faraway land with a foreign feel. Some of its popular attractions, which you can enjoy in serenity right off a high-speed ferry from the mainland, include the postcard look and the casual local pace downtown, the not-to-miss Wrigley Botanical Gardens on a stroll, and the stunning promenade wrapping around Avalon Bay for daytime views of the bay and spectacular sunsets.
For unforgettable experiences, hop on a glass-bottomed boat tour to peek at the secret underwater world for an even more alien feel in a submarine or parasail through Avalon Cove. There is also the oldest operating golf course west of the Mississippi and welcoming spas for some well-deserved relief from stiff winter muscles. Visitors can explore the island on a Hummer or Jeep tour, hike up some bluffs for a top-down view, or pedal along the boardwalk in the ocean mist to different sides of the town. April is the best time to visit, with the weather still on the cooler side for hikes without breaking a sweat and bright sunny days for vivid views, the lovely island breezes, and high contrasts in springtime scenery.
Borrego Springs
Located within Anza-Borrego Desert Park, Borrego Springs welcomes a handful of tourists in the spring for stargazing and trekking through the park and along the roads with metal sculptures that make it one of the coolest desert towns. Offering easy access just northeast of San Diego, it is a destination worth exploring, and there are many ways to do so. Adrenaline junkies enjoy a 4×4 along the sandy road to the splendor from Font’s Point, best at sunrise when the soft rays illuminate the badlands and the sparkling Salton Sea to the horizon. The refreshing sights continue on a hike, with waterfalls along the maiden’s tail or the human-sized wind caves in the orange rock for a selfie.
This unique small town wakes up with springtime beauty before many of the other California towns through its Anza Borrego State Park. In the summer, the desert land turns from unpleasant to lethal, but in the spring, Anza Borrego is ideal, with traces of wildflowers after a super bloom and unique sunrises in the state known for the best. With warmer spring weather that has not touched the rest of the country yet, camping is a great option for stargazers around this town, an International Dark Sky Community, like the Milky Way core visible in April. With a feel of mysticism all around, the nearby landscapes include Galleta Meadows, Fonts Points, and Borrego Palm Canyon Nature Trail.
Carpinteria
With humidity, daytime highs of 73.5°F (23.1°C), and almost no chance of rain, spring is the second busiest season for tourism in Carpinteria. The beaches offer a serene atmosphere with the tide pool creatures creeping out to taste the first sun rays, like anemones, crabs, octopi, and starfish, and your best chances to lounge along the sands among sea lions through May. It is a real wonder to commune with the pristine, fresh-faced nature, from the pink-blue sunrise to the orange-hued dramatic sunsets at the pet-friendly Carpinteria Beach camping area. Don't miss a stroll along the Santa Claus beach before turning downtown via Linden Avenue, and kickstart the next morning along the main street at Lucky Llama Coffee House for another day of sightseeing.
The popular Carpinteria Bluffs Nature Preserve, just east of Santa Barbara, offers free, beautiful trails bursting in color in the early spring's fresh breath and breeze from the sea. With picturesque vantage points along the way, visitors enjoy rest and picnics overlooking the rocky coastline to Anacapa, Santa Rosa, and Santa Cruz islands, as well as a section designated to a seal sanctuary. While closed through the end of May, when harbor seals give birth and nurse their young, you can see them playing and sunbathing from the bluffs above the beach. In the evening, don't miss the Rincon Mountain Winery—walk-ins are welcome—to discover vintages and robust flavors while learning about and savoring its award-winning wines at outdoor tables at sunset.
Julian
Overlooking the city and San Diego County from 4,226 feet (1,288 m) above sea level, Julian welcomes in early spring with a fresh green mountain carpet and the first blooming daffodils. As the days warm up, more flowers poke out until the whole area explodes in super bloom. Coming alive in the last days of February, this display of nature's beauty, the annual wildflower show, often lasts through April. Although the winter ends in March and snow can bless the high altitude even in May, spring is a beautiful time of year with chilly mornings, 75-90 degree daytime highs, and cool evenings, so a light jacket is a good idea. Offering a range of experiences in every season, like the fall harvest, Julian in spring is an idyllic blend of fresh-faced nature and serenity downtown, with its inviting cafes.
While the High Sierra mountains and deserts delight with wildflowers, the town blossoms with apple orchards, sending heavenly scents mixing with those wafting from the pie shops, which are a year-round thing here. From the mountain lilacs along the hillsides to the valleys' variety of native flowers, the highlight of fruit trees in full bloom makes for a vibrant mountain town. Just an hour northeast of San Diego, Julian is perfect for a weekend retreat in a charming 19th-century California Gold Rush atmosphere for serene strolls along historic architecture with a timeless feel in the air. A real jet set for a Southern California adventure, avid outdoorsmen can explore the nearby landscapes and peaks like William Heise County Park and Volcan Mountain Wilderness Preserve.
Palm Springs
Coming alive in the spring when the nearby Coachella and Stagecoach kick in in April, Palm Springs draws some of the hundreds of thousands of concertgoers to its own desert-scape of attractions, venues, and hiking. A gorgeous 10-minute ride up in the world’s largest rotating tram car, the Aerial Tramway is giving in more ways than just the views on the way up to Mt. San Jacinto State Park. The atmospheric change from the desert heat to crisp, cool mountain air feels heavenly at the Mountain Station for a whole-day activity. Find two welcoming restaurants, a gift shop, and even a theater, and of course, the state park and visitor center, with 50 miles of hiking trails to explore the high altitude views. It’s a photographer’s paradise in the warm off-shoulder season, with the beautiful desert blooms.
This destination resort town nestles in one of SoCal's most famous locations, the Coachella Valley, comprising three distinct canyons: Andreas, Murray, and Palm. Nearby, Tahquitz Canyon features a 60-foot waterfall down a soft rock cut for a swim under. Once home to the Cahuilla-speaking people for half a millennium, they called it Sec-he, for boiling water, or Agua Caliente, according to the Spanish settlers. With searing summer temperatures, it offers present-day tourists the most mystical and even spiritual experience in Southern California, particularly enjoyable in the spring. Palm Springs is a spa mecca in most natural environments and a habitat for endangered desert species in canyons, small rivers, and a desert floor. While the picturesque neighborhoods alone explode with cactus blooms, don't miss a hike to the Painted Canyon near Mecca with Ocotillo blooms.
Palos Verdes
Perfect for a day trip, Palos Verde is an often-overlooked town just south of Los Angeles. Welcoming most visitors in late spring and summer, March and April are just as lovely to visit for complete serenity without compensating for the weather under SoCal sunshine. Located at the gateway to Abalone Cove Park at the tail end of the 22-mile bike ride that extends from Pacific Palisades, Palos Verdes—remote and liking it—is perfect for springtime adventures for every level of activity. Don't miss the unbelievably scenic Portuguese Point Loop trail, with picturesque cliffs, wildflowers, and blufftop picnics for whale watching and epic views of the blue Pacific, Catalina Island, and sunsets over the sea.
Down below, Abalone Cove features natural wonders to explore, like tide pools, sea caves with sea lions basking, and even a beach waterfall, while the bridge connects to Long Beach. Perched on a peninsula just up the hill from the Redondo Beach area, Palos Verde offers a rural and isolated feel with the ocean on three sides and untapped tracts for hiking, like lush landscapes, rocks, mountains, cliffs, and slopes. Just 30 miles southwest of downtown Los Angeles, "The Hill" feels like an entirely different world to relax and take pictures against the best coastal views in Los Angeles County for every taste of a nature lover, but the big local sport is cycling. From up and down the hills on a bike, bring a longboard along to hit the waters at Bluff Cove or Lunada Bay.
While it is easy to fall for the SoCal charms that make it a real vacationland, come in the spring for a whole change of personality, most distinctive in nature, that never really falls into a deep slumber but receives a beauty sleep. Offering easy access from San Diego or LA, like Palos Verde, these towns are perfect for a whole weekend getaway or just a day trip to come meet spring and perhaps return for a summertime vacation.
