Experience the rich heritage and contagious energy of Old Town
A distinctive 12-block downtown district, home to specialty shops, artisanal dining, and Temecula Valley’s history.
Why is it called Old Town Temecula? Because it’s just that! With its backdrop of enduring hillsides that bloom with lilac in spring, vibrant Old Town Temecula is the historical heart of Temecula Valley Southern California Wine Country. A trip to Temecula Valley isn’t complete without a stroll down the boardwalks of historic Old Town. A downtown foodie district with its buzzy restaurants, charming shops and vibrant nightlife make Old Town a place you don’t want to miss.
Taste & Shop at Temecula Olive Oil
Any visit to Old Town Temecula should include a stop at the flagship Temecula Olive Oil Co. tasting room and retail store. The family-owned and operated enterprise grows and harvests California olives and transforms them into gourmet grade olive oils, dips, specialty olives, pasta sauces and more. The complimentary tasting includes delicious and unexpected pairings of their range of 100% extra-virgin olive oils with their equally flavorful vinegars. Honey from their ranch and regionally sourced blood oranges, basil and pomegranate are some of the ingredients integrated into their products. If you want to go behind the scenes and see where the growing, harvesting and pressing magic happens, book a guided educational tour of their Olive View Ranch. The tour includes a tasting and is bookable online at temeculaoliveoil.com.
Home Grown Gems
Discover hidden secrets from farms to flowers
Any visit to Old Town Temecula should include a stop at the flagship Temecula Olive Oil Co. tasting room and retail store. The family-owned and operated enterprise grows and harvests California olives and transforms them into gourmet grade olive oils, dips, specialty olives, pasta sauces and more. The complimentary tasting includes delicious and unexpected pairings of their range of 100% extra-virgin olive oils with their equally flavorful vinegars. Honey from their ranch and regionally sourced blood oranges, basil and pomegranate are some of the ingredients integrated into their products. If you want to go behind the scenes and see where the growing, harvesting and pressing magic happens, book a guided educational tour of their Olive View Ranch. The tour includes a tasting and is bookable online at temeculaoliveoil.com.
Temecula Valley’s agricultural roots run deep. The community’s inhabitants have lived off of its abundant, fertile lands from the earliest days of the Pechanga band of Luiseño Native American Indians to the Spanish padres during the Mission Era, the Mexican rancheros of the 1800s and the first wine growers to plant vines in the 1960s. You can explore this earthier side of Temecula and see what the growers of today are cultivating by visiting local farms, ranches and animal-centric attractions open to the public.
Temecula Lavender Co.’s locally grown lavender is used in their divinely aromatic natural product line. Visit their shop in Old Town to sample and smell the artisanal, small batch range of soaps, lotions, culinary lavender and much more—you’ll reap the benefits of aromatherapy the moment you set foot inside the store. Tours of their ranch are available by appointment too.
Established in 1991 by the Temecula Valley Rose Society, Rose Haven Heritage Garden is open daily from sunrise to sunset. During April and May, more than 1,600 roses burst into fragrant bloom for the spring season—a second bloom takes place in fall. They host workshops January through April to let the public get hands on with pruning, fertilizing and other gardening education.
Learn about the benefits of sustainable alpaca farming and the animals’ luxurious fibers at non-profit Temecula Valley Alpacas, which offers tours by appointment only. Temecula Valley Alpacas also provides sponsorships, boarding and breeding.
A small petting zoo with a gourmet chocolate shop, the charming Sugar Plum Farm of Temecula is open to the public daily. Stop by to meet and feed the eclectic menagerie of friendly creatures, including a camel, zebra, water buffalo, pig, goats, llamas and dwarf horse. Self-guided tours end on a sweet note with a chocolate truffle sample.
Horse lovers will want to see the spectacular 240-acre Galway Downs equestrian center, the region’s premier venue for racehorse training, international horse trials and shows and many more spectator events and festivals. If you want to get out and ride, visit the 50-acre Green Acres Ranch for a trail ride, or participate in one of the seasonal horse camps.
During Autumn, experience the rustic atmosphere of Peltzer Farm, which is part of a winery. Their annual Pumpkin Farm features a pumpkin patch, pony rides, a petting zoo, pig races and more family-friendly fun. Big Horse Feed & Mercantile also hosts an October Harvest Festival with a pumpkin patch and an 11-acre corn maze.
VAIL HEADQUARTERS
History Revitalized
Although Old Town is the historic heart of Temecula Valley, the newly restored Vail Headquarters on Temecula Parkway gives history buffs another place to soak in our stagecoach-era heritage. Originally a trading post established by Louis and Ramona Wolf (Ramona was the Chugach heroine of the eponymous novel written in 1884 by Helen Hunt Jackson), the site would later become the headquarters of one of California’s largest cattle operations owned by Walter Vail. The Vail Ranch was sold to developers in the 1960s. More than 40 years later, in 2016, Vail Headquarters reopened, thanks to the efforts of an active group of citizens who worked to restore and preserve many of the original buildings as a vital part of Temecula’s history. It now houses charming shops and cafes, a Tuesday morning farmers market, and an unmistakable air of days gone by.