Old Town San Diego

A great place to spend a day. We ate, we shopped, we ate more. There is always something going on.

Love walking around down here. We stop and get fresh made tortillas for the dog and then head down to Churchill and have a cigar and a beer. Great place to just unwind and chill for a few hours after a hard day or week at work.

It’s a tourist spot, but there’s variety for any kinda visitor, especially families. Still a pretty nice place to hold events. Like the amount of food vendors, specialty shops, and historical sites. Every establishment we went into, we encountered friendly people.
Totally recommend going early enough to look for good parking spots and avoid large crowds ’cause most of the establishments are small.

I have very fond memories of going shopping here a long time ago, as I had purchased a few gifts for my wife when we were still dating. Yes, I drove 800 miles from Phoenix and back to get my girlfriend at that time a few gifts that she really wanted.
Therefore, whenever we happen to be in San Diego, I always want to take her shopping here even though we don’t really need or want anything that they have to sell. I just enjoy the look on my wife’s face as she is like a kid in a candy store. I just hold bags of stuff to later put in the car, and take home and stash away never to be opened again.
This time around we were here for a purpose. We wanted to do something different; therefore, we opted Halloween here and enjoy all of the festivities. And there were definitely plenty of them. Parking within a 2 mile radius was absent as there were so many people enjoying the celebration and the atmosphere.
We just really enjoyed everything that Old Town had to offer, including all of the reveries that abounded throughout the place.
This was definitely an enjoyable place to be; especially when mixed with the various Ghost Tours that cover all of the historical places, and their haunted facts.

Lots to do and lots to see. Spend the day there with your family and explore the history of California. I like how it is very laid back and a great place to shop and eat. You have to look for parking signs because the lots are all over the place. We paid a few bucks for almost 6 hours of parking.
The restaurants are plentiful with a good variety but expect more Mexican spots because of the location. They do have a great cigar lounge if you want to take a load off and watch the game.

I love me a good Old Town. Can’t stand any of the new hip and hot places… sometimes you just gotta get down to the original!
Old Town San Diego is plain beautiful and rich of culture. So much amazing shops. Everything down to candy shops, tea stores, fun stores and restaurants, Old Town San Diego really makes San Diego what it is.

Super cute Mexican style old town with SO much to see!!!
I came years ago for lunch and remembered loving the fresh hand made tortillas made by the ladies right in the front of the restaurant.
I recently came back to bring my sister who was visiting and what was supposed to be a quick stroll after lunch ended up hours of walking and sightseeing… Think Olvera Street in steroids!!!
First, there are MANY Mexican restaurants to choose from. Not your typical taqueria. They are more of a fiesta! Some have live music, outdoor patios and colorful décor.
There are also many souvenirs shops selling unique handmade jewelry, artisanal house décor, bags, etc
There are also several museums: police, trains, old house…
Fiesta de Reyes is definitely a must see outdoor market with a restaurant, outdoor performances, shops…
Cannot wait to go back!

Loved this place and everything it has to offer! Shops were all so cute and reasonable prices! Great churros! All the shop owners were friendly, great atmosphere all around, I will be back!

A great place to come and walk around and eat come delicious Mexican Food, shop for Mexican artisan crafts, listen to music, go to Mass, and have fun. Always a stop for us when we’re in San Diego.

It’s a great place to walk around and take things in. Parking can be a nightmare depending on what time you get there (what I’m knocking my rating for), but once you’ve got that taken care of, just spend some time roaming around and seeing all there is. The Victorian homes are gorgeous and full of character. I also love all the little shops have a good mix of old timey & touristy items at somewhat reasonable prices depending on where you go.

Here are a couple things to do when you visit Old Town San Diego:
Look at the old Victorian homes, take note of the beautiful foliage, gawk at a ridiculously large tree with huge limbs and roots, roll down a large grassy hill (or at least talk about rolling down the large grassy hill).
Have dinner at a touristy Mexican restaurant that has a mediocre rating. All of them have mediocre ratings, so really, it doesn’t matter where you eat, just eat some Mexican food here. Maybe have a margarita if you want to get LOCO.
After eating you have some options. Maybe you can just walk up and down the streets and buy cheap touristy products, like my friend and I did. Or you could check out the haunted house, or you could get even more LOCO with some more drinks.
Don’t forget to go into one of the shops that has all the nifty clay pots and wind chimes, there is specifically a very large one that is mainly outside — you could spend awhile here just looking at things you may or may not want to purchase.
We tried to find some ice cream here, but there was a Coldstone, which is not very «old town» IMHO, and also a place we saw that was serving Dryers (meh.) So maybe if you are here longer than we were, you can find some decent ice cream.

We came across this street when visiting Old Town San Diego. The homes we rebuilt I the late 1800’s. The houses are a Victorian style surrounded by beautiful old trees and green grass. The old church and tea house are open to the public. The techies has an A rating.