The National Steinbeck Center offers three distinct visitor experiences: literature and history, agriculture and art, and special events and educational programs. If you’re looking for a hotel in Salinas, first decide which themes will shape your visit: Steinbeck’s life, historic districts, railroad history, or rodeo heritage.

Steinbeck and Literature

Interactive, multisensory exhibits appeal to visitors of all ages. The National Steinbeck Center is open daily from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; check the opening hours before you arrive.

The Steinbeck House is a Victorian Queen Anne-style home and was John Steinbeck’s birthplace and childhood home. In August 2000, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places. Valley Guild offers a tour there on the third Saturday of each month. Check specific dates and make reservations for this tour before your trip.

Historic Districts and Culture

Oldtown Salinas is the city’s historic commercial center; many of its buildings date from the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The Southern Pacific Freight Depot was built in 1873 and is the oldest surviving commercial building in Salinas.

Chinatown is one of Salinas’s most historically significant districts; its origins date back more than a century. Events include the Asian Cultural Fair, which celebrates heritage, art, and community connections. Chinatown continues to host this cultural event; check current dates if you’d like to plan your trip around it. As a guide to choosing, the districts have different focuses: Oldtown represents the historic commercial center and its buildings; Chinatown combines its long history with an ongoing cultural event.

Railroad Heritage and Visitor Information

For information about things to do locally, the California Welcome Center is located downtown in a historic railroad depot. The Monterey & Salinas Valley Railroad Modeling and Historical Society is dedicated to establishing and preserving a railroad museum in Salinas. Its focus includes the railroad’s historical, present, and future value to the Monterey Bay region. The Historic Scale Diorama of Monterey County Railroads recreates Monterey and Salinas Valley railroad lines from the 1950s and 1960s as a detailed HO-scale layout. The difference is in their time frames: the Society looks at the railroad’s value across the past, present, and future, while the diorama recreates routes from two decades.

Rodeo, Trail, and Wine Route

The California Rodeo Heritage Collection Museum is open to rodeo fans on all four days of the rodeo and is accessible year-round by special appointment. Check the seasonal schedule before your visit. The California Rodeo Heritage Museum traces the origins of the rodeo to a Wild West show held at the Salinas racetrack on August 1, 1911.

The Juan Bautista De Anza National Historic Trail runs directly through Salinas. From Salinas, you can follow the River Road Wine Trail south toward Soledad. These offer different route options: a historic trail through the city and a wine route heading south.

Explore more destinations: Monterey, Seaside, Carmel-By-The-Sea, Spreckels, Moss Landing, Sand City, Soledad, Pacific Grove

Go to the main travel overview: Monterey.