San Juan Capistrano is ringing in the New Year with style. Multiple restaurants are offering specials for residents and guests to enjoy ushering in 2025.

In town, Ysidora Restaurant & Lounge at the Inn at Mission San Juan Capistrano is offering a New Year’s Eve dinner celebration. Starting at $85 for adults and $30 for children, they are planning to help guests ring in the New Year with a festive Spanish-style dinner featuring an exquisite menu of traditional flavors and modern twists.

Ysidora will be serving a delectable 4-course dinner starting at 5 p.m. As the clock strikes midnight, raise a glass of bubbly and toast to the New Year. The Ysidora bar will remain open until 1 a.m., offering handcrafted cocktails and festive libations to keep the celebration going.

Down the street in San Juan, Paddy’s Station is offering a party environment for those who want to dance into 2025. Their ultimate New Year’s Eve Party will be celebrated with “Flock Of 80’s.” Get ready to dance the night away to all the favorite ’80s hits. The party starts at 8 p.m., and the band goes on stage at 9:30 p.m., so get there early for a spot up front. Admission starts at $35 for general admission bar or standing-room-only. Visit paddysstation.com for more information.

For a more rock and roll-themed entrance to 2025, the San Juan Hills Golf Club is celebrating with a chef’s dinner and dance party with live music afterward.

New Year’s Dinner is in the Terrace Lounge & Sunset Terrace, with seating from 6-9 p.m. The menu includes an appetizer, soup or salad, entree and dessert. Dinner reservations start at $120 per person. After dinner, San Juan Hills Golf Club offers a party atmosphere with a $45 cover charge for general admission seating or $390 for a reserved table for six. Bottled wine specials and full bar service are also available.

Doors open at 8:30 p.m., and the band starts at 9:30 p.m. Open seating is available only in the room or patio adjacent to the main ballroom – first come, first served – but there is no direct view of the band and dance floor. General admission guests may enter the ballroom to dance.

For more information, visit the website sanjuanhillsgolf.com.

There’s also a New Year’s Eve party at Trevor’s at the Tracks, an event dubbed “Sax at the Trax,” beginning at 7 p.m.

Join Pilot Touhill, a Laguna Beach-based band including a saxophone, for a rocking party. The band has played all over the world, but it is their first appearance at Trevor’s at the Tracks. Call for reservations (949.493.9593) or go to.

trevorsatthetracks.com.

The River Street Marketplace in San Juan Capistrano is officially open, breathing new life into the south Orange County destination just steps from the train station.

A decade in the making, patrons are now trickling into the 60,000-square-foot, $70 million development to get a sneak peek as some 30 businesses put final touches on their establishments.

The new hub, still in the soft-opening phase, has a mix of retail, restaurants, a meat market and a food hall, as well as other offerings such as a pilates studio, flower shop, farm-style community tables and a grassy gathering place for visitors on nearly 6 acres that were once a large nursery.

“With River Street Marketplace, our goal was clear: To celebrate San Juan Capistrano’s rich heritage while creating something new and fresh and something that folks can enjoy for years to come,” said Dan Almquist, managing partner of real estate developer ALMQUIST. “The response from the community has been amazing and we’re so grateful.”

While more than a dozen eateries will draw visitors in to dine and drink, the retail side of the development includes a mix of mostly locally owned shops that curate unique products for customers.

For longtime San Juan Capistrano resident Stacey Fitts, opening up her Pick Me Flower Boutique has been a dream since she first heard about the River Street plans.

The shop offers grab-and-go bouquets and creates custom arrangements, but also offers other items such as candles, pottery and fragrances, all selected from other small, women-owned businesses.

“I hope (customers) are inspired to bring beauty into their home with flowers and to give beautiful bouquets as gifts to friends that will brighten their day,” said Fitts, who has been in the flower industry for 37 years.

She’s excited about what River Street means for drawing in new visitors to see the special place she calls home.

“I think it’s going to have an amazing impact on San Juan Capistrano. I feel like San Juan is a new location on the map that people are coming to see, things they should have seen a long time ago,” she said, noting that visitors to River Street may stop at the Mission San Juan Capistrano for the first time, or meander through the Los Rios historic district.

Several shops give a nod to the rich Western culture still celebrated in the historic town, such as Austin-based Tecovas, selling high-quality boots, leather and denim apparel and accessories. Wildfire Mercantile is another boutique that offers Western-lifestyle clothing and apparel, including cowboys hats and boots.

Seager is a San Clemente clothing brand that combines both Western and surf lifestyles, founded in 2015 by a group of friends who wanted to make apparel and outdoor gear that would embrace the “grit and ruggedness of the Old West.” This is their first brick-and-mortar location, with apparel and outdoor gear and equipment such as tents, backpacks and more.

“This location totally checked off all the boxes for us and best of all, we’re like a five-minute drive from some of the best surfing in the world,” said Mattson Smith, one of Seager’s CEOs.

Smith and partners Elliott Shaw and Case Anderson knew the area had a lot of foot traffic, a place they personally enjoy visiting and just the right spot for their flagship store.

“The response has been epic for us,” said Smith, who added the interest has already exceeded expectations. “We’re really excited about it. It’s our first store, we’re trying to keep our expectations grounded but very excited for all that’s ahead.”

Anderson noted that with the combination of the equestrian community and also being less than 2 miles from the beach made the new development the ideal place for their shop.

“We’re so blessed. This is perfect for us. Families running in the grass, there’s dogs everywhere. It’s really community,” he said. “You can’t ask for anything better. We love it.”

Visitors will also be able to get surfwear and coastal-inspired products at retailers Hobie Surf Shop and Toes on the Nose, specialty lifestyle shops born in Orange County and well-known fixtures in the surf world.

Hobie, which opened its first retail shop 70 years ago in nearby Dana Point, is launching its latest shop with an exclusive partnership with brands Vissla, Florence Marine X and Patagonia.

In 1954, Hobie was one of the first surf shops in the region to become a hub for surfers looking for new boards and gear, influencing the surf culture for years to come.

“They are the ones who created it,” Jake Schwaner, co-owner of Hobie Surf Shops, said of the company’s founder Hobie Alter and fellow early-era surfers. “These guys just all laid around on the beach, deciding what they wanted to do with their lives: ‘We don’t want to wear hard-sole shoes, a suit and tie or work east of the Pacific Coast Highway, so let’s do this.’”

Just hours after opening its doors for the first time on Thursday, customers strolled the shop to check out the offerings, which included clothing and wetsuits, surfboards and other merchandise like coffee table books focusing on surf history and culture. Historic photos adorn the walls and large posterboards tell the story of Hobie Alter and Dick Metz, who helped expand the Hobie retail operation through the years.

The shop will also offer some of Hobie’s in-house brands, including Fragile Ocean, Velzy and SanO Boardriding Co.

Laguna Beach-based Toes on the Nose, a family-owned and operated surf apparel company that started in 1992, is opening its third location the River Street Marketplace.

There are several women’s wear boutiques opening as well, including Shop Common Thread and Free People, as well as May Martin, a jewelry brand and specialty boutique founded in 2014 in Costa Mesa.

SALT is an independent premium eyewear brand from Japan and Studio Pilates offers a place for a “luxurious boutique studio experience.”

Rowan, a California-based apparel brand, is still putting finishing touches on its shop in the marketplace and will open in coming days. It carries men’s and women’s apparel and goods, and donates 1% of sales to the National Fatherhood Initiative.

Aaron Ashton, of Capistrano Beach, soaked in the new venue’s vibe during Thursday’s soft-opening celebration.

“It’s great, I think San Juan really needed something like this,” Ashton said, looking out to the common area where kids can run and play and tables are set out under bistro lights. “It’s great restaurants, great beer, good atmosphere for everyone to come and hang out.”

The history of California began long before the state officially joined the Union in 1850. Nearly 15,000 years ago, there were more than 100 Native American tribes scattered across the region’s mountains, deserts, and coastal plains. The first wave of European settlers arrived in the 1700s and, a century later, were followed by Americans heading west to seek their fortune in the gold rush. Then came the Depression era, which brought another flood of migrants from the impoverished Dust Bowl states. All this rich heritage is very much alive in Southern California’s historic communities, where a walk through downtown is like walking through the past. Visit these frozen-in-time towns to see a side of California that most tourists miss — one that captures the sunshine state’s unique character and culture.

Urban Exploration in Southern CaliforniaDiscover seven towns in Southern California with bustling main streets.

San Juan Capistrano

Originally founded as a Spanish mission in 1776, the town of San Juan Capistrano in Orange County is home to some of California’s most fascinating historical landmarks, including Mission San Juan Capistrano. One of 21 missions built in California, this 1700s site includes the San Juan Mission Basilica, a museum, preserved adobe buildings, gardens, and a gift shop.

The Mission is in the heart of downtown, where tourists will also find the Capistrano Depot, built in 1894, and the Egan House, built in 1883 and on the National Register of Historic Places. Take a guided walking tour with the San Juan Capistrano Historical Society to explore the Los Rios Historic District further, or call into the Historical Society Museum to pick up a tour map so you can wander the sights at your leisure.

Pioneertown

If you’re looking for somewhere that’s truly frozen in time, look no further than Pioneertown, 125 miles east of Los Angeles. Originally built as a movie set in the 1940s, the town is a hyper-realistic recreation of life in the Old West, from its 1880s-style saloon to the saddlery on Mane Street that doubles as a general store.

It’s easy to spend a day enjoying Pioneertown, strolling up the dusty thoroughfare to check out quirky local businesses, including MazAmar Art Pottery, an Art Studio and Pottery Shop where one can browse works from local artists. At night, catch a show at the legendary venue, Pappy and Harriet’s Pioneertown Palace, or stop by The Bravados at Pioneertown Wild West Theater.

Solvang

A visit to Solvang feels more like a visit to an old-world Danish hamlet than California’s Santa Ynez Valley. This quaint town was settled by Danish immigrants in the early 1900s, and it has carefully preserved its heritage in its beautifully restored architecture and classic Danish landmarks.

Hop aboard the Solvang Trolley to take a guided tour of downtown’s most interesting attractions on a replica of an 1800s Danish streetcar. Check out the Hans Christian Andersen Museum for a fascinating look at Denmark’s most famous author, or call into the Elverhoj Museum of History and Art for exhibits that document Solvang’s history from a tiny settler community to a thriving tourist town. Tourists should end the day with a stroll through town, as each street features a rustic windmill, storefront, or land marker.

Lone Pine

Lone Pine is a tranquil town nestled in the timeless beauty of the Owens Valley. Surrounded by the Inyo Mountains and the Sierra Nevada range, this picturesque hamlet has a charming downtown lined with Western-style facades. Lone Pine is known as a fishing hotspot thanks to its proximity to the Golden Trout Wilderness Area. It’s also a great base from which to hike Mount Whitney or the Alabama Hills. Lone Pine’s rustic charm has also made it a popular filming destination, and the town has hosted dozens of movie productions over the decades. Discover its celluloid history at the fascinating Museum of Western Film History, a perfect day out for movie fans. Afterward, one can book a room at the Historic Dow Hotel for a comfortable night frozen in time.

Julian

Julian is a former gold mining town in the mountains east of San Diego, with stunning alpine scenery and a host of historic attractions. History enthusiasts should see the town’s mining past for themselves with a tour of two of its original mines, Eagle Mine and High Point. Guides from the Eagle Mining Company lead visitors down beneath the earth for a look at how Julian’s earliest residents earned their living. Back in town, further history awaits at the Pioneer Museum via vintage clothing, photographs, and household and mining equipment from the frontier era. One can also take a self-guided walking tour around downtown to view landmarks such as the Witch Creek School building, built in 1880 and now home to the Julian Historical Society.

Monrovia

Old Town Monrovia is a monument to the town’s long history as a bustling settlement in the San Gabriel Valley. Wandering the shady streets, you’ll see stunning examples of Queen Anne, Tudor Revival, and Spanish Colonial architecture. For information, head to the Monrovia Historical Museum housed in a historic 1925 Spanish-style building. The museum features exhibits on the town through the decades.

Enthusiasts can enjoy Monrovia’s scenic surroundings as its first settlers once did at the Monrovia Canyon Park. This park has dozens of hiking trails and a Nature Center with interactive exhibits. Also worth a visit on a sunny day is the Hillside Wilderness Preserve, which has over 4.5 miles of trails that run through unspoilt landscapes and breathtaking views.

Step Back in Time in California’s Historic Small Towns

California has long symbolized opportunity and adventure, welcoming travelers from all over the world. Throughout the Sunshine State’s long history, its diverse populations have left their mark in California’s charming and historic small towns, where centuries-old architecture provides a picturesque backdrop to modern attractions and experiences. These quaint towns, frozen in time, are a window into the past, giving visitors a chance to explore the changing faces of California through the centuries.

Hidden Gems in Southern CaliforniaThese are eight undiscovered small towns full of charm in Southern California.

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