Tips for visiting Old Town Temecula :

• You can easily park anywhere in Old Town Temecula and walk up and down the main street (Old Town Front Street). There is also a big parking garage at the south end near the fire station, for times when the streets are full!
• We spent a few hours shopping and had dinner here and had plenty of time to check out the shops that interested us. I could have used many more brunchs, lunchs & dinners though!
• If you own cowboy boots and hats, this is a great place to wear them!
• Hotels: We chose to stay close to this area and use some of my Marriott rewards points. I was surprised by the fact that they didn’t offer any higher-end options: we had to pick between a SpringHill Suites, Fairfield Inn & Suites, Courtyard or there was a newly built Residence Inn in Murietta (5 miles away).
  • We picked the SpringHill Suites Temecula Valley Wine Country for its location and were satisfied with our stay here: the beds were comfortable, it wasn’t noisy and the room was spacious. Sadly, the pool was on the freeway side which made it less relaxing.
  • The second time around, we tried the Residence Inn Temecula Murrieta because I’d been told it was newer. It was further from old town Temecula (10-15 minute drive), but definitely worth it! We even got upgraded to a huge suite with a kitchen, dishwasher & 2 rooms and bathrooms. Breakfast is included and the gym is small but clean and efficient.
  • One of my friend visited the area with her mother and stayed at the Temecula Creek Inn and said it was very cute! If you like golf, you’ll also enjoy their 27-Hole championship golf course, surrounded by more than 300 acres of natural beauty.
• Recommended shops:
  • Temecula Lavender Co: everything lavender (oils, salts, soaps, candles, etc!)
  • Olivedipity and Temecula Olive Company: everything olive or balsamic derived
  • Temecula Valley Cheese Company: everything cheese, with sandwiches and salads, wine and beer and live music (when we stopped by anyway!)
  • Au Savon de Provence: Real authentic soap shop from Marseille- selling the real Savon de Marseille– with friendly French staff/owners.
  • Old Town Antique Faire: fun place to find antiques and dream of another era
• Recommended restaurants:
  • The Press Espresso: probably one of the cutest coffee shops I’ve seen in a while! As found on their website, this coffee shop is owned by a local husband-and-wife team whose fashion, art and photography background influences their passion for creating specialty coffee and tea drinks.  The decor is an eclectic mix of feminine meets masculine decor surrounded by greenery, and all syrups and sauces are scratch-made in-house. (There is also one in Murrieta)
  • Espadín Mezcal + Cocina: nice bar, tasty food, and friendly staff. The classic guacamole was extremely fresh and had big chunks of avocado in it! The Ensalada de Cameron and the Sinaloa Ceviche Guachinango were also very fresh and tasty.
  • E.A.T. Marketplace : breakfast, lunch or brunch spot with great coffee and tasty looking pastries, trendy decor and friendly staff. Highly recommend stopping by!
  • 1909 : cute patio, stylish decor, slightly deceiving salads but a wide selection of cocktails & wines (including a few from Temecula)!
  • A few other places that we walked by and are now on my bucket list for my next trip to Old Town Temecula: The Goat & Vine, The Bank of Mexican Food (for a fun vibe in an old bank), Swing Inn Cafe (Celebrating 80+ years of great food, fast service and popular prices) and the Blackbird Tavern (looked like a fun hangout spot with an outdoor patio & fire pit and corn toss game with a full food menu) .
• Temecula Stampede: claims to be the West Coast’s largest country western music venue. A friend recommended we check it out if it was open- which it wasn’t on a Sunday night. Next time we’ll have to go line dancing!

Impressions of Old Town Temecula:

Old Temecula was a fun little place to spend a Sunday afternoon. We enjoyed leisurely walking around and checking out the local shops, smelling lavender products, tasting olive oils and balsamic vinegar and buying little souvenirs.

There was a great vibe in this cute town and so much live music to enjoy everywhere! I would definitely come back to enjoy more of the food scene!

Related post: Temecula Wine Country, San Clemente, Skydive Lake Elsinore.