Everything You Need To Know About Visiting Calico Ghost Town: A Day Trip from Los Angeles

January 2, 2025 by jordangassner

I recently visited Calico Ghost Town on a day trip from Los Angeles, and the experience was absolutely captivating. Wandering through the historic streets, I couldn’t help but feel the echoes of the Old West in every weathered building and dusty alleyway. In this post, I’m excited to share everything you need to know about visiting this unique destination, including the fascinating history behind the town and the little tips that made my visit extra memorable. If you’re looking for a mix of adventure, history, and a touch of mystery, Calico Ghost Town might just be your next perfect escape. Here is Everything You Need To Know About Visiting Calico Ghost Town: A Day Trip from Los Angeles:

Skip To:

1. Reasons To Visit
2. Calico Ghost Town Tickets + Arrival Tips
3. Calico Ghost Town Attractions
4. A Morning in Calico Ghost Town

calico ghost town: a day trip from los angeles

Reasons To Visit

Authentic American Old West History

Calico Ghost Town offers a unique window into the American Old West. Originally a bustling silver mining town, Calico offers an immersive and authentic glimpse into the life and culture of the mining boom era. Walking its streets, you’ll see preserved buildings, old mining equipment, and artifacts that tell the story of the town’s heyday!

Family-Friendly Fun

With a mix of educational exhibits, shops, restaurants, and seasonal events, the town caters to all ages, but especially to kids! If you want to be the cool aunt or uncle in your family, this is definitely the place to spend a day with your niece(s) and nephew(s).

Interactive Attractions

Beyond just viewing the historic sites, Calico’s visitors can enjoy mine tours, train rides, and gold panning. Plus, lots of shops, museums, and other attractions like the Mystery Shack provide a fun experience.

Scenic Desert Setting

Located in California’s high desert, Calico offers a stunning and geologically colorful landscape that’s perfect for photography and a bit of adventure. The rugged terrain and clear skies add to the overall experience.

calico ghost town: a day trip from los angeles

Tickets and Arrival Tips

Location and Hours

Calico Ghost Town is located about two hours east of Los Angeles, near Barstow, in San Bernadino County, California. It’s exact address is: 36600 Ghost Town Road, Yermo, CA 92398

Calico Ghost Town is open from 9AM – 5PM daily, except for Christmas day*!

Best Time of Year To Visit Calico Ghost Town

Being in the warm California desert, the best time of the year to visit Calico Ghost Town is undoubtedly during the winter months, from December to February, when the temperatures are a bit cooler. I personally visited in February and not only was the weather mild (70°F and sunny!), but the park didn’t seem to get super packed with visitors either, except for when we were about to leave just after 12:30PM.

If you’re hoping to truly get that ghost town feel while visiting Calico, I recommend visiting in the morning hours when the park opens at 9AM.

How To Get To Calico Ghost Town

Located off Route 66 near Barstow, getting to Calico Ghost Town requires a car, but is fairly simple to get to. From Los Angeles, you’ll take 1-10 East to CA-210 East to I-15 North, and then exit the freeway at Daggett-Yermo/Ghost Town Road. Calico’s entrance is located about 4 miles down the road.

calico ghost town: a day trip from los angeles

Attractions

Maggie Mine Tour

You wouldn’t have a historic old west mining town without the mine, right? Maggie Mine is one of Calico’s most fascinating attractions, offering a glimpse into the harsh, yet adventurous life of the miners who once worked these tunnels! This self-guided experience takes you through a real 1880s silver mine, where you can see preserved mining equipment, learn about the extraction process, and experience the eerie stillness of the underground passages. Informational displays along the way bring the town’s history to life down in the mine, although, I preferred the visit without!

Please note: The Maggie Mine has a separate fee from the Calico Ghost Town entry fee:

• 11 and over: $4.50*
• 5 to 10 year old: $2.50*
• 4 and under: Free with paid adult*

Gold Panning Adventure

Visiting Calico with kids? Step into the boots of a prospector and try your hand at gold panning! This hands-on activity gives you a taste of the excitement that once fueled the California mining boom. With a little patience and a keen eye, you’ll learn the traditional techniques miners used to sift through sediment in search of precious flakes. Whether you’re testing your luck or just having fun, it’s a great experience for all ages, but especially for the little ones. Keep in mind that there is a separate fee for gold panning, and any treasures you find are yours to take home:

• 11 and over: $4.50*
• 5 to 10 year old: $2.50*
• 4 and under: Free with paid adult*

Mystery Shack

Prepare to have your sense of balance and perception put to the test at the Calico Mystery Shack. This quirky attraction is filled with optical illusions and gravity-defying tricks that will leave you questioning what’s real and what’s just a clever trick of the mind. Water appears to flow uphill, objects seem to defy gravity, and standing upright suddenly feels like a challenge. It’s a fun, lighthearted stop that adds a touch of the unexplained to Calico’s Wild West charm. Perfect for visitors of all ages, the Mystery Shack is sure to leave you scratching your head and laughing at the same time. Just like the Maggie Mine Tour and the gold panning experience, the Mystery Shack requires a separate fee from the general Calico Ghost Town admission:

• 11 and over: $4.50*
• 5 to 10 year old: $2.50*
• 4 and under: Free with paid adult*

Calico Odessa Railroad Train Rides

All aboard the Calico Odessa Railroad for a scenic ride through the rugged landscapes that surround Calico Ghost Town. This short but memorable train journey takes you on a loop through the historic mining area, offering a unique perspective on the town’s past. As you chug along the tracks, you’ll hear fascinating stories about Calico’s silver boom, the miners who once called this place home, and the geology that made the area rich in ore. It’s a relaxing way to take in the sights while learning more about this once-thriving mining town!

The Calico Odessa Railroad requires a separate ticket from the general entry fee and the other attraction packages. Prices are as follows:

• 11 and over: $5.50*
• 5 to 10 year old: $3*
• 4 and under*: Free with paid adult*

Museums and Shopping

Beyond the paid attractions above, Calico also offers lots of shops, displays, and museums throughout the park. If you’re into the history of the town, definitely check out the Lucy Lane Museum, which shows what a nice house looked like in the old west days, and the Fire Hall, which holds an old fire truck. If you’re interested in taking home some unique gifts or fun souvenirs, Calico Woodworks, Calico R & D Fossils & Minerals, and Calico Bath & Candle Shop all sell some memorable items. And if you’re just looking for something cool or quirky to photograph, don’t miss the Calico Bottle House, which looks exactly as it sounds.

calico ghost town: a day trip from los angeles

A Morning in Calico Ghost Town

Just an hour past sunrise on a crisp late-February Saturday, my partner and I set off on a new adventure. With steaming coffee and a light fruit breakfast in hand as well as Tomi Adeyemi’s Children of Blood and Bone audiobook streaming from the car speakers, we left the familiar hum of Los Angeles behind on our two-hour drive to Barstow, a quiet desert community east of the city.

Our mission? Explore Calico Ghost Town, a belated Valentine’s Day treat!

The more we immersed ourselves into the magic of our audiobook, the more the desert landscape began to unfurl around us! Soon enough, the vast expanse of open highway became a classic two-lane country road, and three miles later, nestled against a backdrop of rocky hills, we arrived at the entrance to Calico Ghost Town.

Pulling up at the park’s gate, we excitedly paid the modest $8 fee per person. Driving into the upper lot nearest the town, we noticed that aside from a large group of boys and their parents (we guessed a boy scout troop!), the park was eerily empty, a fitting setting for our ghost town adventure!

The first glimpse of Calico was like stepping into a more authentic, sprawling version of Frontierland at Disneyland. Picture a large, lengthy street lined with genuine, weathered facades, each building inviting us to explore further, down side alleyways and behind hidden doorways! Meanwhile, the surrounding hills frame the scene in dramatic relief, the name “Calico” purposefully etched onto the top of one hill just behind the town.

Almost immediately after leaving the parking area, we encountered a delightful surprise: a small flock of sandy-brown Chukars. These high desert birds, with their curious and endearing presence, were impossible to resist! And we immediately paused our walk down the street to squat down to snap a few photos. The birds’ were quite quick and their playful antics were a welcome and unexpected quirk to kick-off our visit!

Once we were done admiring the Chukars, we set back off down the main drag. There were so many shops and old west artifacts around! We first stopped inside the Visitor Center, followed by the Calico Woodworks shop where we found lots of fun puzzles and locally-made wood art pieces.

On the other side of the drag, the town’s original “Fire Hill“, or firehouse, contained an antique fire truck. And just outside, in the middle of the road, a rectangular water trough with five red “fire” buckets hanging up alongside, ready-to-go in case of an emergency back in the day.

Our next stop was the Lane House and Museum, once home to Lucy Bell Lane, a notable silver mining prospector from Calico’s storied past. Inside, we got to see authentic period furniture, tools, and personal artifacts that once belonged to Lucy and her family. But the highlight for me was seeing a fully-equipped bathroom, complete with a porcelain tub and toilet! It was both amusing and astonishing to see that this unexpected old west luxury was the result of repurposing a former closet, its sloped ceiling now a silent testament to clever reinvention.

Across the street, we couldn’t resist capturing a few snaps outside the old Sheriff’s office before wandering into the Calico Rock & Gift Shop. There, glistening geodes, rugged rocks, and handmade jewelry caught our eyes, hinting at the myriad stories embedded in every corner of the town. While we didn’t walk away with a new rock collection, we did enjoy quickly pretending to play a game of checkers with the large table set just outside the store.

We then took a peek inside Calico’s saloon, now decked out with a popcorn machine and a soda fountain. It was still quite early, so we didn’t stay for snacks or an ice cold beverage, but ascended further into the town, toward the classic schoolhouse at the top one of the hills. The bridge leading up to the schoolhouse was unfortunately out for repairs, but we enjoyed admiring its painted white and turquoise facade from afar, which made it stand out from the sunbaked, earthy tones throughout the rest of town.

Soon enough, we were retracing our steps, turning right onto a narrow path that led us up to a few scenic viewpoints perched above the silver mine. The path here was built a bit more for a hike and had I worn firmer shoes, we would have ventured up to the very top, but instead settled for the lovely view the at the middle of the ascent. From here, the call of the mine was irresistible.

Passing a whimsical bottle shop, a structure ingeniously built from recycled glass bottles, we descended a set of outdoor stairs toward the town’s attractions. We got to the mine ticketing entrance just as the Calico Odessa Railroad‘s train engine roared to life, whisking its passengers (the same “boy scout” group from before) on a short journey along its tracks. We paused, savoring the moment to watch the train leave the station before ducking inside.

For an additional $4.5 each, we embarked on a self-guided tour through 1,000 feet of mine tunnels. Inside, a one-minute introductory voiceover recounted the tale of the silver ore that once set fortunes in motion. The dimly lit corridors had a moody and atmospheric feel that we thought was reminiscent of the Indiana Jones queue at Disneyland (though, the effect was occasionally interrupted by a few rather exaggerated mannequins throughout the mine!). We’d love to come back for a ghost tour when the lighting grows even more mysterious and where we can hear some more personal stories of the town’s former workers.

Before wrapping up our visit, we meandered through the town’s Coffee, Tea & Pottery store and the Sweet Shoppe. I was nearly tempted by summer camp nostalgia when I spotted a bottle of orange cream soda (fully decked out with Route 66 branding), but we wisely decided to change out of our dusty clothes and save room for lunch at Peggy Sue’s 50’s Diner, just down the road. By the end of our visit, Calico Ghost Town had presented us with quirky surprises, old west buildings, and breathtaking desert vistas that we won’t soon forget!

*At time of writing. Costs may change over time.