Old Mission San Luis Obispo

The true gem is the mission gift shop, which has a ton of really cool and interesting items. Its refreshing to step into a gift shop that has unique cultural items and folk art instead of hokey and tacky souvenirs. Don’t get me wrong, they have those too, but theyre limited to a small portion for children.
They have plenty of historical material for your kids, as well as for adults.
If you are going for religious reasons, they do have a nice section with religious material that ranges from bibles to handmade rosaries. Even if your not into the more religion oriented items, its not shoved down your throat like other churches, you would hardly notice that this was an operating church by the gift shop alone.
Prices are more than fair, even on the more expensive folk art compared to other missions. The gardens are beautiful, this is definately one of my favorite places when I lived in the area.

We were driving through San Luis Obispo and decided to stop as we were talking about missions we’ve visited. We got there right as they opened and it was fun to walk through the museum they have. One of the nicer missions we’ve visited.

This mission is in the heart of civilization, the heart of downtown San Luis Obispo. The mission is the local parish so there is much going on around the grounds. Speaking of which, the gardens are very beautifully maintained. The chapel is lovely, and there is an informative museum that ends in a gift shop that is well stocked with many items that apply to all of the missions.
There are other areas to which you can walk, including historic downtown San Luis Obispo.
Parking will cost you, either on the street for two hours, on in one of the nearby garages if you want to stay for longer. The first hour is free.

Beautiful mission in the historical SLO downtown, it is nice and quiet, the garden is beautiful. A great place to wonder around and relax.

The mission is one of the prettiest historical missions on Central Coast.
The grounds are beautiful. The church is gorgeous.
It’s a nice place to stop if you are in San Luis Obispo. You won’t be disappointed.

This mission is very beautiful. My family and I enjoyed going through it, and getting to do mass. The surrounding area is very nice and the people are great.

Love attending mass-​church in historical missions. Gift shop was nice. Enjoyed my worship and historical experience.

Not a MUST SEE, but a must-​see if you’re in or passing San Luis Obispo. Less than half a mile from the 101, please stop to see the Mission AND Bubblegum Alley. One of these are covered in Hubba Bubba, but I won’t give it away.
This mission is one of the better museums, gift shops, and pretty gardens, with a fountain and bells. My favorite was the real-​life bench from the old church. It must have stank though because my wife said it was a P.U.

The Mission San Luis Obispo de Tolosa, named after a bishop from Toulouse France. Founded by Junipero Serra, it is one of the few missions that remains in the same location after all these years. Facing on to the mission plaza this church has been well taken care of over the years. If you come to the mission remember it is an operating church. Masses and other events are often in progress. There is a central garden that is beautiful, and hidden from most people as they are not as adventurous as they might be. The central garden has roses, a big pergola dripping with grapes, a space for big BBQ’s and is the parking area for handicapped church members. The three old bells are on display in the garden area. Now about those bells, there are five bells on in the church belfry. Most people only see the three on the front of the church, however on the north side there are two more. Each of the five bells has a unique name and tone. There is a plaque to the left of the main entrance with the history of the last bell replacements. The peaceful grounds of the mission have some wonderful off to the side places where the noon time readers find respite in the middle of the busy city. Come on in. Enjoy the history and reflect on the history of this beautiful mission. Mission San Luis Obispo de Tolosa is California Historical Landmark No. 325.

This is an addendum to my original review.
I didn’t mention that while at the mission, my 11 year old son purchased a black obsidian arrowhead from the gift shop for 1.00. He was very excited about it because it was a gift for his best friend at home. Upon unloading the car after arriving home to San Diego from our trip, my son accidentally dropped and broke the arrowhead. He was in tears.
I just called the gift shop and I was able to purchase another one and have it shipped to me. They were very helpful.

We are, slowly but surely, hitting as many of the California Missions as possible. A special anniversary weekend proved to be a fantastic excuse for visiting San Luis Obispo, which we’d only ever seen so far as the restaurant at The Madonna Inn. What a delightful town, and what a lovely mission! The parking lot is free and accessible via Palm Street, and the entire mission can be viewed at your own pace. Nothing is closed off, and unlike many missions, you need not enter through the gift shop. We did, however, get a few items for the kiddies at said gift shop, because who wouldn’t want a giant pencil with the missions or a souvenir coin? There is a museum, which we didn’t visit, but just walking through the church and lovely grounds is a worthwhile way to spend one’s time. The mission is fronted by a little park and the San Luis Obispo Creek, which makes the area surrounding it a pleasant walk. It is smack-​dab in the middle of town, so eating and shopping options are plentiful. If you are a Southern Californian looking for somewhere pretty to visit for the day, this is a fantastic option.

We were in the area for a family trip and my boyfriend was looking for a place to attend mass. We figured, why not check out the times at the mission? With all the history, I find it intriguing to attend mass at a historical site versus a modern church. He also wanted to give confession so we stopped in on Saturday at 4 for confession and a 5:30 Mass. We parked in the small lot behind the church and arrived as a wedding was commencing. A few other tourists and church attenders were walking about taking pictures for their 4^th grade California mission project or preparing for confession.
The sanctuary is an L shape with the alter at the right angle turn. It seemed a little awkward for the priest to continually turn right and left to address the congregation during the homily. Inside, it is mostly well kept, with murals of flowers painted on the walls, dark wood doors and pews.
The grounds are peaceful and quiet. There was a sustainability festival earlier in the day with bands near the creek, but if you walked around to the gardens, the sounds were mostly muffled. A grape arbor covers a portion of the garden between the parking area and mission.
We didn’t have a chance to go in the gift shop or museum but enjoyed being able to walk around the surrounding area and down to the creek.

Really nice old mission. The museum as usual is a labor of love. If you’ve read the history at a few of them then you already know all about them and don’t need to read some more — they all kinda follow the same story.
I like how this mission is well maintained, well located in downtown SLO and surrounded by a nice park with public bathrooms and the creek nearby. The museum is free too!
It won’t take more than 15 minutes but be sure to stop when visiting SLO.

It’s free, donations are appreciated. This mission is very kid friendly. It holds a youth center, museum, and souvenir shop.

I’ve been to lots of California missions and the SLO mission is in the top third of the better ones.
Mission SLO is beautifully situated in downtown San Luis Obispo, it’s well maintainted and is very accessible. The museum is full of interesting artifacts and the gift shop contains a nice selection of trinkets, postcards, books and religious items — not your typical tourist attraction gift shop junk.
The attached church is beautiful and open to visitors (check the mass schedule if you are interested in attending, fyi.)
I love California missions — such a rich part of our great state’s history.
An easy 5 stars!

I came on a Sunday morning to find out that they hold multiple sessions of mass throughout the morning and 2 Spanish masses in the evening. Every nook and cranny of this place is kept really well. Some of the old school items I enjoyed seeing included the actual wooden front doors and the bells.
The courtyard landscape is beautiful, all the grape vines neatly lined, a wishing well to make dreams come true with proceeds going to charity, and various fruit trees looking pristine.
The bells sounded beautiful, yet loud. The mission’s location is conveniently located downtown, so my visit was complete: learned, ate, and shopped! What a great way to spend part of my Sunday!

Mission #4 on our quickie mission tour of July 2014.
Our goal? How many California missions can we see, not to mention hit their gift shops, on our 3-​day Central California coastal trip? Naturally, this was crammed in between stuffing our faces at 4+ star Unilocal restaurants, wine tasting, and dipping our toes in the Pacific Ocean.
The real intent for us coming here was to marvel at the lifestyle of the missionaries and the native Indians at the turn of the 19^th Century. Glossed over in many cases, it is not a pretty story actually. The tragedy of the indigenous people being forcefully converted to Christianity, families separated, being treated shamefully like slaves, is something that is referred to in their museums, but not really emphasized. I cannot fathom the sadness that is attached to these now gorgeous missions today.
Mission San Luis Obispo is a lovely, smaller, and very well maintained mission with an active church. It is critically located in the center of quaint old SLO, surrounded with lush city parks, lots of boutique businesses, gourmet restaurants, and other equally interesting sounding museums. It is well worth the trip. The mission has no entry fee, but accepts donations, and has its own small museum featuring a lot of fascinating artifacts. It is a pleasure to be able to visit the church and amble through the beautiful green gardens with a lovely grape arbor, fruit trees, and lots of flowering plants. Even the gift shop is one of the better ones, with some of the more classy collectibles to purchase.
Definitely put this one on your Must See Mission List!

Errrrr um…
this place needs more cowbell.
(No disrespect, Jesus. But you know the other missions bring their A-​game. Maybe you can help out this one in the off-​season. Amen.)

I’ve gone to a mass here and have also visited just to meditate and pray as other tourists quietly roam around. I have also gone through the museum and explored the grounds. A nice little gift shop is located here too.
It’s a small but interesting museum if you are into California mission history. Very old & beautiful church interior and grounds. Cool old enormous bells which were used in the past are on display in the small courtyard area behind the building. This historic mission is located right in the middle of downtown and if you find yourself shopping or eating at a nearby restaurant you’re sure to hear the bells ring at noon.

Pretty mission with nice grounds, an interesting museum, and a nice little giftshop.
Worth a gander if you are in SLO and easy parking at the garage off Morro, first 60 mins are free!