I may live in a big city now, but I was born and raised in a small town. Sometimes it’s nice to get that small town feeling back again. Luckily, Julian, California is fairly close to where I live now and is a great place to get some fresh, country air.

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Julian is just 60 miles northeast of San Diego, making it an easy daytrip.

This small town first came to be during its short lived gold rush from 1870 to 1900. After this, some of those who had come for the rush decided to stay and farm the land.

Today, Julian is becoming a popular destination for those looking for the quaint, hometown feel and some quiet downtime.

That being said, here are some of my favorite things to do when visiting Julian.

Eat at an Old Fashioned Diner

Our first stop was Miner’s Diner, located on Main Street. Our kids loved watching the model train travel along the tracks around this restaurant.

Although we stopped here, there are multiple diners located in close proximity to each other.

This diner has a great homey feel and serves up all the comfort foods that you would expect at a diner. We went with all the classic diner breakfast foods. It was a great way to start our day!

We even had some of the local apple cider too!

Visit the Oasis Camel Dairy Farm

Who would have thought? A camel dairy farm in San Diego?

On our visit we watched a funny show that included turkey races and talking birds. The show was hosted by the couple that own and run the farm. It was cute, funny and informative.

Afterwards, we made sure to feed the sheep and camels.

Make sure to support this farm and stop in their little gift shop on your way out. Here you will find some of the skincare items that they make using their very own camel milk.

This farm is only open to the public on select weekends. For more information, including their hours, click here.

Julian Farm & Orchard

We visited in the summer and picked strawberries, raspberries and sunflowers.

During the fall, they have apple and pumpkin picking.

The kids loved getting a chance to pet the animals here too!

Grab a Slice of Pie at the Julian Pie Company

The Julian Pie Company began as a small business back in 1986. Now, their pies are sold in many stores and restaurants throughout Southern California. They even ship their pies nationwide!

We were surprised to see such a selection in this small shop but we chose a slice of the caramel dutch apple pie and a chocolate chip cookie.

Some of their other pie flavors include boysenberry apple, peach apple and strawberry rhubarb.

Shop for Trinkets Downtown

Julian has a bunch of cute shops to wander through. Our kids love stopping into Julian’s Toy Chest to check out all of the old school toys.

While shopping in Julian, you can find anything from apparel shops to leather goods and crystals.

If you are looking for food items to bring back home, you’ll find various a tea shop, a shop featuring homemade jams, a chocolate shop, bakeries, butchers and more!

It’s always fun to do a little window shopping and maybe even find a few, unique gifts for people here.

BBQ & Beer at Julian Beer Co.

Located right in the heart of Julian, the Julian Beer Co. serves up some serious BBQ and a wide selection of handcrafted beers.

The venue has plenty of both indoor and outdoor seating and is family friendly.

Every dish we had was delicious but especially their pork belly bites. The menu has all of the most popular BBQ items that you would expect but they also serve pizzas that look mouth watering too.

Mine For Gold & Gemstones

To try out gold panning and gem sluicing for yourself, head over to the Julian Mining Company. Here, you will head into their shop to determine which activity to try out. You prepay for the activities that you are wanting to do and then given instructions.

We decided to go with a bucket of gems so our kids would have plenty to take home. It didn’t disappoint! It took them about an hour to find all the gems and they were so happy with all of them.

You get to keep what you find while participating in these activities!

There are plenty of others things to do here like throwing tomahawks, playing in the fossil dig pit and a mine tunnel train ride too.

Apple Picking

Picking apples is one of my favorite things to do each fall and there are a few farms in Julian open for guests to do just that!

Depending on the season, a few farms also offer daffodil, raspberry, strawberry, pear and even pomegranate picking too!

Keep in mind, many of these farms sell out of their products early so make sure to call ahead to confirm that they are still available for U-Pick.

Julian Hard Cider

Speaking of apples, don’t miss your chance to try a sampler of hard ciders at Julian Hard Cider.

Their tasting room is located just a few minutes from town’s center and is a great place to relax after all of the activities that you took part in.

Some of their specialty ciders include Apple Pie, Strawberry Rhubarb and even a Mango Tango.

I hope this list gave you some ideas of what to do in Julian, California. Comment below and let me know your favorite thing to do in this small town!