That Cool Travel Couple

We visited this town in California without many expectations, but were truly blown away by what we found. An added perk is that the road trip up from Southern California is absolutely stunning!

Where to Stay

If you want to stay at a hotel, definitely check out the Madonna Inn. It’s set against a beautiful hilly backdrop and has an expansive outdoor pool. It’s also located a 5 minute drive from downtown SLO, but feels private and remote.

If you’re more into the beach vibe, we recommend staying in Pismo Beach, which is a 15 minute drive from SLO. Catch some amazing Pacific views at the Spyglass Inn.

SLO and the surrounding area also has no end of beautiful AirBnBs and VRBOs to check out as well – definitely worth looking into if you’re traveling in a group! These are the views from our AirBnB – it was simply fantastic (and a 7 minute drive to downtown SLO).

Downtown San Luis Obispo

The downtown area of SLO is the hub of the city, and is a gorgeous cobble stoned neighborhood to stroll around. There are so many shops (both big name and local). The restaurants offer a diverse range of food – check out our in depth review of Luna Red here.

As you make your way around the downtown area, there are a few places you should definitely check out. First of all, drop by the Mission San Luis Obispo de Tolosa, which was founded in 1772. This place can get busy later on in the day, but it’s worth visiting the gardens and museum for your daily dose of history.

There are so many unique little shops to check out in the downtown. We always love a good plant shop, and Growing Grounds Downtown did not disappoint. They have a wide variety of succulents and air plants, and very friendly service.

We also really enjoyed wandering around Junkgirls. The artists at this unique shop repurpose and upcycle “junk” to make one of a kind decor and gifts. It’s really hard to walk out of here empty handed.

For your afternoon caffeine fix, check out Lokum. This is an authentic Turkish coffee shop that also sells sweet treats like Turkish delight and baklavah. You can also browse a selection of hand crafted jewelry and tea and coffee accessories. Here we also learned that Turkish coffee is noted on the list of UNESCO intangible cultural heritage. Try the Ottoman – so delicious!

Right next to Lokum is Blackwater, a trendy vintage shop with lots of plant paraphernalia. Definitely worth stopping by to check out their uncommon offerings.

Make your way over to the San Luis Obispo Museum of Art. The regularly changing exhibits feature local artists, and we were astonished by the high quality and meaningful displays. Also, admission is free! There are multiple other art galleries in the surrounding streets as well.

To finish off our stroll around SLO, we visited the Creekwalk. This wooden beamed trail parallels the SLO creek. It’s a quiet sanctuary in the middle of the bustling town.

Surrounding Area

SLO is very close to the beach city of Pismo Beach – about 15 minutes. Pismo Beach has a gorgeous pier and even more delicious food. We can’t pass up a good fish n chips or clam chowder. Pismo Beach has you covered!

SLO is also deep in the heart of California Wine Country. It’s a 30 minute drive from Paso Robles. Here you can find multiple low key and laidback vineyards and wineries. For a delicious Italian meal, check out Buona Tavola. There is also a fantastic speakeasy in the downtown area – 1122 Cocktail Lounge. Come early as it’s very small and the line gets long!

As far as vineyards go, we love visiting Sculpterra. The sculpture garden is truly spectacular and worth a visit alone. Tobin James is also pretty great and looks like a Wild West saloon.

And that’s it on SLO for now! Check out our other California destinations here!