Spend A Day In Old Town, San Diego
No doubt, you’ve had countless reminders that summer is quickly approaching, but have you had the time to plan a proper summer vacation? If we’re speaking to your busy-bee souls, we’ve got you covered with a great stay-cation right at your finger tips: a day in Old Town!
The charm of Old Town and its one-of-a-kind shops and spots will have you feeling like you stepped out of the normal routine, and stepped into a semi-relaxed, semi-adventurous version of yourself.
With our mini itinerary below, a planned day-in-paradise awaits you. And if you’re feeling more adventurous, let your spontaneity take you off the beaten path, because Old Town won’t let you down.
1. Toby’s Candle Shop
Toby’s Candle Shop is home to the most amazing fragrances of bath salts, candles, bath fizzies, and so much more! This shop is family-owned, and has been around for over 35 years. All the items in the shop are hand made locally in San Diego by the family members.
Customers can either make their own candles, like pictured above, or purchase one that is already made fresh in house. My favorite was the yellow mason jar candles (lemongrass), which brighten up my kitchen!
My favorite scents were pink sugar, lavender, lemon grass, and Manchurian dragon, a fruity scent!
2. Rose’s Tasting Room
Lots of cheers’n goes on at Rose’s Tasting room. With their selection of local beer and wine, we could have stayed here all day!
My favorite was the California Fruit Wine- mango, which is local to Carlsbad.
Pair some pecan cheese with Mexican beer and you’re in for a real treat!
3. Temecula Olive Oil Company
(pictured above is my friend Ally from Go Seek Explore!)
Being a true Italian and living in Italy in college, I appreciate a good olive oil, but I have never gone olive oil tasting until now!
The Temecula Olive Oil Company is serving up a variety of olive oils to be tasted. Some of the flavors were blood orange, traditional Italian, and my favorite – their dipping oil.
All the olives are grown and locally produced in Temecula, California. Later in the week, we drove by their ranch, which was filled with rows and rows of olive trees!
4. American House
The American House is home to gourmet loose leaf teas, fresh coffees, in addition to high-end spices, with pastries to accompany the sips (a teahouse after our own hearts).
My favorites were the hangover tea, flur de sel salt, flowering teas, Caribbean spice blend, and blood orange tea. Seems that no matter what remedy you need, this is your apothecary.
5. Casa De Reyes
No trip to Old Town is complete without eating especially delicious, authentic Mexican food! And such bites await you, courtesy of Casa de Reyes.
Fresh drinks + homemade food = happiness, for sure. The vibrant blue drink pictures above is just one of their specialty margaritas.
And these fresh drinks compliment decadent Mexican dishes like fajitas, Armadillo shrimp, and tostadas.
The best part of our meal was the homemade tortillas.
Until Next Time
Part two of our Old Town guide will be coming soon! Stay tuned!
Meet The Photographer
Marissa, from Modern Day Mona Photography was the gal behind the lens for this Old Town project!
Marissa specializes in natural light photography, outdoor, boho-inspired, portraits, and dreamy-lit photos – which are her favorites. Check out her website, here.
