Swallow’s Day Parade

Held in March on St. Joseph’s Day, the parade celebrates the return of the Swallows to San Juan Capistrano.
I’ve been wanting to come down to San Juan for this day ever since I saw the parade covered on KCAL 9 when I was a kid. I thought there was going to be a bigger crowd than there actually was so I ended up getting there way too early. I spent the time before the actual start of the parade in the Starbucks at the center of the town people watching. There was A LOT of people watching to be done. The locals go all out with their wardrobes and cowboy hats. It was pretty cool to see the women in their traditional turn of the century prairie gear.
The parade starts at 11 am sharp. Expect to see lots of horses … I mean A LOT of horses. It was pretty cool to get there early because I parked in the lot east of the 5 and walked through the staging area, which consisted of about half a mile of horses and their costumed handlers.
There are plenty of park and ride lots where shuttles are provided to the start of the parade. There’s also a fair off to the south of the start of the parade where you’ll find food and games. My friend recommended the Tri-​Tip Sandwiches from the San Juan Capistrano Historical Society, she’s a local herself so I trusted her judgment. They were pretty dang good.