The Solo Scale:

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“Worth the Visit” is a slogan from the tourist site itself. Their words, not mine (I even have the laptop sticker to prove it!). The Mission in San Juan Capistrano is absolutely worth the visit, though probably not for more than a few hours. The hotel I stayed at gave free tickets for entrance (the Inn at the Mission, which is a Marriott property). Since it was nearby, I was able to quickly drop in without making too many plans beforehand. I only had the one evening in the city and they were closing early for an event, but I still had just over an hour to see the sights and wander.

The highlight for me, beyond the history and the ruins, was the flowers and the foliage. Coming from the cold Canadian climate (where it was chilly enough for winter coats before I visited), basking in the cacti on the walk to the Mission before admiring all the desert flowers was an absolute highlight. Wandering around, there are multiple areas to find those flowers in between learning about the history and seeing the exhibits.

There’s a lot of history to be found and the grounds aren’t minimal by any means. Even though I only had an hour, I would have preferred twice that amount of time. There’s also a small gift shop where you can purchase items on the way out. It’s an open-air space with a few interiors that you can duck into, and plenty of places where you can spend the time admiring the areas on your own.

For more information and to get tickets (if you don’t already have them), you can make your plans with a visit to the website here. Keep in mind that the mission is closed Mondays, but that leaves plenty of time to have a worthwhile visit.

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