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Oceanside, California: San Luis Rey Mission - Zorro

Famous Spanish mission, dating from 1798, was location for filming 1957 TV series "Zorro." The cemetery gates were apparently "improved" by Walt Disney productions.

Address:
4050 Mission Ave., Oceanside, CA
Directions:
Take Highway 76, turn right on Foussat Rd, Turn left onto Mission Ave and follow for roughly two miles. The mission will be on your left.
Hours:
Daily 9-5 Local health policies may affect hours and access.
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Visitor Tips and News About San Luis Rey Mission - Zorro

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Mission.

San Luis Rey Mission - Zorro

San Luis Rey Mission is a completely beautiful and peaceful place. Definitely worth taking time out of your day.

[Kate Robinson, 01/28/2016]

Zorro skull and crossbones.

San Luis Rey Mission: Skull and Crossbones of Zorro

This old Spanish mission was used by Disney in the late 1950s as a filming location for the Zorro television series. A skull and crossbones at the cemetery entrance, added by Disney, still exists.

[Joni, 12/07/2013]

Mission.

San Luis Rey Mission - Zorro

The king of the missions. Commonplace for the locals, usually overlooked, but the mission has a lot going on. Aside from the architecture, there's the fact that it was the site for a movie in the 1920s, and for the famous TV show "Zorro," filmed in the 1950s. There's a koi pond with huge koi off to the side among amazing sculptures, fountains and little streamlets all over the place.

There's a small valley right across the street from the mission where they used to do laundry and irrigate water -- you can still see the gargoyles and there's this giant well over there.

You can also walk down the street and find an amazing bakery with arguably the best pastries and cakes I've ever had, and even further still a cemetery, an excavation site where the Native Americans had stayed, and the Oceanside Heritage Park.

[Lea, 05/21/2011]

The first TV season of Zorro shot some exteriors in 1957 at the Mission, which dates back to 1798. Walt Disney Productions augmented the cemetery entrance with a skull and crossbones on the gate (we hope it's been preserved).


Nearby Offbeat Places

Antique Gas and Steam Engine MuseumAntique Gas and Steam Engine Museum, Vista, CA - 4 mi.
Frog RockFrog Rock, Vista, CA - 4 mi.
101 Cafe - Highway 101 Museum101 Cafe - Highway 101 Museum, Oceanside, CA - 4 mi.
In the region:
Big Arrow in the Ground, Riverside, CA - 42 mi.

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