California Citrus State Historic Park Reviews

This citrus park gives you a personable guide who walks you right up to many varieties of oranges and other citrus fruits. Historical insights as you pick fruits for free to take home with you! Wonderful experience!

Have lived in Riverside almost 40 years and had never been here until we had two sets of visitors in October. We thought this would be an interesting place to take them and it definitely was. The museum is small but very informative and the docents were very knowledgeable. The docent that showed us the different citrus was most interesting and we had no idea there were so many different kinds Our visitors were as impressed as we were. The next time we have visitors from out of state this will definitely be one place we will take them.

The setting is very peaceful, and beautifully maintained park. Ideal for a quiet walk in the orange groves, with a museum and best of all the Sunkist Center hall.
Check out the web site for photos of this venue. It is perfect for family gatherings of all kinds.

A short history of citrus, how CA became a citrus center, orange trade with iced wagons, and more. You can also walk around orange trees. A small museum and shop. You can bring your guests to show CA history. 5$ for parking.

It is historical, educational and it smells good. Pets on a leash are welcome. A nice visitor's center where one can get fresh orange juice. Great for hiking - nice trails, a few hills, but great views at the top. Well informed and friendly docents. Very convenient - don't have to drive for miles to get there. A nice respit from the busy, noisy world. One caveat, do not go when it is hot. Although there are many trees and lots of shade it is still hot!

When in Riverside, this is an interesting place to visit and enjoy the outdoors in the park & pick nick areas . Historically known for its citrus groves, tours are offered and orange purchase is available.

This is a great little park for many reasons. Beautiful building and grounds for a celebration; wedding, memorial, and they even have summer concerts in the park. If you're looking for an onsite picture spot, check this park out. The history of our orange groves can be experienced in the museum on the park grounds. If you live in Riverside and have, somehow, missed this little gem......take a picnic and enjoy it TODAY!
Be advised: There is a parking fee

we drove by, didn't know that it was a park until we got on the internet. Good thing we didn't pick any oranges, it is against the law. No fences around the park

This is a beautiful park where you can wander around all sorts of citrus trees (and other kinds) in a hilly setting with windy paths. The visitor center is pretty well done ... exhaustive citrus history (panels maybe a little text-heavy). Nice little citrus-themed shop.

This is a fun and informative place. The small, but nice museum has displays, to include videos, giving the history of citrus fruits around the world. The rangers are friendly, helpful and knowable. Groups can apparently arrange for special briefings as a ranger was during a demonstration of various types of citrus for a Boy Scout troop. The history of the various types of citrus was fascinating and there were samples. The park itself has various types of citrus and if they are ripe you can take some home.

The park has a wide variety of programs offered throughout the year for kids and adults to enjoy. It offers lots of information on the citrus industry that helped make the Riverside and surrounding areas the economic contributor to the Inland Empire in the past hundred years. Come visit and enjoy!

The museum wasn't open on the day we arrived, be good to check when it's open i suppose, have been to it before and it is worth it as is the park. That being said we were able to wonder the trails and the fruit was in season and we followed the rules and didn't pick any but it sure was tough to do that so tempting. The fruit looked so good and there is an amazing variety here to see and smell at least. Wonderful and relaxing way to spend an hour or so and nearby be sure to stop at the Gless Ranch stand for some great prices on local citrus and other edibles with great friendly service.

Have visited a few times. It is a very well laid out park with ample parking, very nice organization, and lots of historic orange trees and landscape. However, the recent drought has taken its toll on the flora and the tourism. Overall, average place.

I was expecting some village museum targeting school children. Well, I was so underestimating this place!

First of all, the volunteers are amazing. They do it because they love what they do and they want to make sure the visitors are happy. To give you an idea, I was standing against the sun and the guide asked me to move to the other side, because "one of the rules here is the guides are facing the sun, not the guests" - wow!

Second, typically citrus farms grow only a few kinds. This park has many dozens of different fruits. And, the best of all, you can taste them! I've never seen so many varieties in one place and it really felt a lot like a good wine tour. Some fruits were as punchy as a shot of strong liqueur, other were sweet as desert wine with everything in between. And, as oppose to wine, citrus can be enjoyed by everyone.

Third, citrus grove in the middle of a city is always a pretty place.

And, finally, it does have great education value, both in terms of citrus plats and local history.

Here are some tips.

1. Bring cash. You need to pay $5 for parking and all gifts in the store under $12 have to be paid in cash (they take cards above $12).
2. They do free tours but not every frequently. When we were visiting it was at noon and then at 2 pm. You should probably call in advance and plan around available tours. They are very educational.
3. They let you taste pretty much any fruits, but what we found the most exciting is trying fruits from their rootstock trees. Those trees normally used for planting grafts and not meant to be eaten. But because they are grown from seeds, every plant has unique taste. Yes, some of them have pretty bad taste (mostly because they are bitter). But others have so unusual taste in a good sense - it blew our minds! So don't be afraid to try them out. It's a bit of a lottery, may not always be delicious, but it likely to be different from anything you've tried before.

Overall - very pleasant experience for our group, highly recommended!

The was such a fun place to visit. I learned a lot about citrus fruits I did not know, and also got to see and taste these fruits. Great experience. Will be retuning when other fruits are in season. Well worth the $5 parking fee.

This park preserves one of the vanishing landscapes of the citrus industry. Great museum that details the history and development of the citrus industry in California. Free citrus tastings and nice little gift shop.

Great place to take a picnic! Make sure to check out their gift shop. Great place to have a party, must reserve in advance.

As you pull up, you'll immediately roll down the windows because it smells amazing! The Welcome Center is small but gives you a good history of citrus. The staff were friendly and eager to share information. They have a tasting station where they walk you through several (we had 8) freshly picked fruits from sour to sweet with information all along the way. Once you've finished up, you can walk the beautiful grounds for a while.

You will be surprised at how informative and fun it is to come to the park. the docents are great and tasting oranges is yummy Kids and adults alike enjoy the time spent here. In the summer the concerts on the lawn is a good way to spend a warm night. Come to Riverside

If you find yourself in Riverside with a spare hour, it is worth a walk around this state park. Especially if you aren't used to seeing oranges grow on trees (I'm from Seattle, ok?). It is a well groomed park with pretty groves to walk through. There are picnic tables and bathrooms. The visitors center is only open weekends so we didn't get to see it. I didn't realize how many varieties of oranges there are. It is a delight for the senses-- sight and smell!

What a nice way to learn about the California citrus business! Wander among acres of every variety of citrus plant, and then visit the nice museum building on the grounds. Interesting and informative displays tell the story. Helpful staff even ran out into the parking lot as we were leaving to bring us brochures and driving directions to our next destination. What service !!

Very interesting place. Just moved out here to riverside and was just checking out the area. This is def a great place to go if you are in the area but I would not plan my day around it. They say the best time to come here is feb and march when all the fruit is ripe. They have a lot of diversity which is great.

Check it out...you only pay for parking $5. There is also a picnic area but I would give yourself an hour to walk around.

We were the only ones there for the tour because it was July in Riverside, and the temps were around 100 degrees. Definitely go for the docent tour; if you go on your own all you can do is walk around in the groves, and that by itself, is not very interesting. You cannot pick fruit on your own, only with a docent.

Tour times are posted at the visitor center/museum/gift shop. The docent took us out to the groves and showed us the many different kinds of citrus. He cut a piece of fruit off of each tree and had us sample it. Some are very sweet and delicious, like the Valencia oranges, and the juice will be running down your chin; I had never tasted oranges so good! Others are sour, like the "sweet" limes, which aren't sweet at all. As you move through the groves, the docent will let you pick the fruit you like. We left with a whole bag of grapefruit and a whole bag of oranges. The kids really enjoyed this, and we all learned a lot about how they brought water to the area and how they shipped oranges to other parts of the country and who different immigrant groups were who worked in the groves. Simple but great lesson in agriculture and CA history.

Wear good closed toe shoes. Some of the trees have large thorns on them. My kids had on flip flops, and I had on Crocs, and a I stepped on a thorn, and it went up through the bottom of my Croc into my foot--ouch!

$5 entrance fee per car.

Learn of the Riverside history and buy good quality cheap costing oranges. Always stop by and pick up a bag when I drive by, a must when in Riverside.

Quiet, beautiful views, great smells all around, and dog friendly! This was a very enjoyable afternoon hiking around orchards and learning about the history of citrus production in California! Loved it! I would love to go back and do a tasting tour!

We took our engagement pictures here yesterday and loved it! There are so many beautiful citrus trees, walkways and grassy areas. There are also a few covered areas to have birthday parties or get togethers. Parking is $8 which isn't bad and the bathrooms were very clean. I was very impressed and glad our photographer suggested such an amazing place to capture some very special moments.

We took a tour and were taken into the orchards to taste the different varieties of fruit. It was very cool. I learned so much. It was lots of fun.

Stumbled on this park in a list of "things to do in Riverside." So glad I went! The museum in the visitors' center was well organized and interesting. The park rangers were friendly and informative. The nicely curated gift shop items include a large variety of produce box labels (you'll understand this if you go there). Don't miss the tasting tour - definitely worth the time - and spend some time walking the beautiful grounds.

BlueDalia
We went on Earth day 22 of April, the volunteers they are very kind and well inform , they gave us a tour and a sample of different kinds of oranges, grape fruits , lemons what a wonderful experience,tasting the fruits, we visited the Museum and we saw a video of the History of the Orange in Riverside County.at the end we received a bag full of Oranges as a gift from Mother Earth. Thanks what a great day.

Park was okay, beautiful orange trees, but not much to do because tours had ended for the day. Went to Visitor's Center and museum. Didn't stay long.

This is a must see when visiting Riverside. If you like the outdoors bring the kids and come walk around the place. If you come while the orange trees are in blossom Feb/March you wont smell anything better. Fruit stand on the street that sells citrus most of the year. Very nice park like setting with many orange trees. People sometimes have weddings here.

Beautiful walk in the middle of the orange and avocados trees. Your able to taste different types of oranges grown around the area after your walk. Nice view of Riverside.

We stopped by on a blazing Sunday afternoon (the museum is open Friday, Saturday, and Sunday only). Super friendly staff introduced wild exotic citrus types grown at the park (with samples!). There's a fine new exhibit on the people in the citrus industry in the past, emphasizing the workers, who came from all over the world, from China to Italy to Mexico to the Philipines. The permanent exhibit is a little hokey, with a lot of side tracks on citrus's journey from Yunnan province China to Riverside California. But great for kids!

Unexpected fun! Tasted several varieties of citrus and got to take home a bag full!! Very informative Joe was a great guide :) The whole family enjoyed it immensely!

Wandering through these old citrus groves is like traveling back in time to the early part of the 20th century. Dusty trails through dark green trees heavy with fruit. Look for the Buddha fingers lemon - it's awesome. There are a lot of signs to keep one informed of the type of fruit on each tree. And though the signs say don't pick the fruit - you can usually pick up a piece from under the tree here and there that aren't damaged. Check in with the visitors center for trail maps and events.

This park is great but you have to pay to get in if you aren't going to a special event. Why in the world you would pay I don't know. I used to go when it was free. Now I only go if there is an event there and the people hosting it have to pay to get me in.

This park is basically an orange grove with a small museum. Visit during the fall when is it cooler or visit during the spring when the trees blossom. The smell is incredible. Right across the street are privately owned orange groves with a stand where you can buy yummy oranges.

This is a small preserve (about 20 acres) filed with orange trees. You can buy delicious oranges at the corner shack. The visitors center is small, but it has plenty of information regarding the citrus industry in Riverside.

This was a great surprise for us! There is a very well-done visitor center with fine displays about the history of citrus-growing in California. The highlight (don't miss this!) is the tour of the orchards. It last about an hour. You learn all about the different citruses and get to pick and eat some. Then afterwards there is a "citrus tasting" at the visitor center so you can try all sorts of different citrus. Our ranger-guide was super well informed and friendly. All this for the price of admission to the state park. Don't miss it!

A great place to get get in exercise and have amazing views of the surrounding areas! There’s 2 different routes that vary the length and difficulty level.

this was a neat place. it is an outdoor living museum of California's second gold rush The citrus industry. Here you can walk through the orange groves see the operation and learn about the industry. There are short hiking trails, and a venue you can rent for weddings etc. Besides oranges we also saw kumquat trees, lemon trees and grapefruit trees. You' ll learn a lot you didn't know here.

Visited the Park yesterday and had a wonderful time learning about the significance that the citrus industry has had in the Riverside area and Inland Empire as a whole. The visitors center was open and contained information regarding the history of citrus in the New World, as well as offering a guided tour on Fridays at 11 & 2. The tour was approximately one hour in length, but it was quite informational and provided a great perspective of how different types of crops are grown, harvested, and maintained. There was even a wonderful sampling of citrus at the conclusion of the tour! Well worth the $5 donation.

Very nice park. Pathways are very well kept and there are so many different kinds of citrus trees growing practically as far as you can see. It costs $5.00 tp park, $4.00 for seniors over 62. They have tours only Friday to Sunday. We were Thursday but are going back again on the weekend since we live in Riverside. It was a beautiful walk. All the trees are beautifully manicured.

The tour was led by a well informed and caring docent named Joe. I fear that with a group of kids he would have kept the tour short and sweet, but instead Joe engaged all of the members on the tour. My daughter loved the attention that he gave her and he answered all of her questions. The docent in the gift shop/museum was equally as nice. Great place for families!

Very nice tour about 45 minutes, knowledgeable tour guide, sampled juicy fruit off the trees & learned a lot. Wear a hat, sunscreen, no heels!

Got a parking ticket here >$70, but no posted signage in the museum lot for paying for parking or park fees. The museum was closed before the posted closing time so there was no one to ask.

Such a sham and unethical ticketing practices.

An enjoyable couple of hours learning about citrus and the local Riverside area. The museum is new and kid friendly. There was also a volunteer who gave us samples of different kinds of citrus and shared a lot of information about citrus. We did not have time to take the tour. January is a good time to go when the citrus is ripe.

The park is well kept and restrooms clean. Very graffiti clean restrooms when we were last there. They have summer music concerts here and it is a great place to let the kids run around. There is a building that can host small receptions. Also, there is a museum that documents the history of citrus in the area. Boring for kids but pretty cool for us history buffs. Several areas to walk and hike around - some paved and others dirt. I have a Senior Park Pass so I can't tell you about entry fees.

Came on a day when the museum was closed and no tour was offered. Would have added to the visit. However, the smell of the orange blossoms, the verdant various shades of dense green color interspersed with the purple jacarandas, and the singing of the birds was delightful. Well worth the $5 parking fee!

I wasn't expecting much from this park but we signed up for the tour and had a great time. The tour guide took us on a guided tour of the orchards and introduced us to scores of varieties of citrus, letting us sample any we wanted. It was lemon and grapefruit season at the time. Can't wait to go back during orange season!

This park was great. The staff allowed my children to taste the different fruits that grow in the region. We were able to hike and have fun as well! Highly recommended.

Some parks are all about nature, others are all about sports. This is a peaceful example of a working citrus grove, with a few facilities for picnics and weddings, but it's really about seeing many kinds of fruit trees in cultivation. It's a sunny, lovely place with an encompassing view of the valley, and a window to the past of Riverside.

If you like citrus fruit, this is a mandatory stop. There's the expected museum and gift shop, but the highlight was the citrus tour. You and a small group of people walk through the very large orchard. The guide tells you about the different types of citrus, and picks and passes around samples of various fruits. I had no idea there were so many varieties. In about an hour and a half, we tried at least three types of grapefruit, four of kumquat, six or seven types of orange, a couple of blood oranges, two types of lemon, five or six mandarins, and the very weird-looking Buddha's hand. By the end of the tour my hands were sticky, my stomach was full, and we had two bags of citrus to take home.

If I lived nearby, I'd take the tour every couple of weeks.

Oh, and did I mention that it's free?

A couple of suggestions:

--Wear sunscreen and light clothing. As others have said, there is very little shade on the tour.

--Call ahead to reserve space in the tour. The space is limited, as are days of operation. Check the park's website.

--Although admission is free, parking costs $5 (cash or check).

What a great way to understand just how much the citrus industry made an impact on the area. There are lots of paths some leading to higher areas that overlook the groves. Too bad all of this is going away! Great day for a family outing at a great price. The visitor center had a short film; exhibits and free tastings with a docent who explained about the fruits being served. There's a guided tour that takes about 45-minutes. Its free and worth the time. Go to the Facebook page for information about upcoming events.

Citrus and California have a long history and it all started in Riverside. The museum displays were very well presented, the shop at lots of citrus themed delights, books, posters and fun stuff. Tasting orchard tours of many varieties of citrus as well as offerings in the back patio if you don't want to take the tour. Plenty of walking paths through this working orchard as well as vistas across a sea of green that used to be the only view in this now far more developed part of Southern California. Be charmed and educated here - enjoy your state parks.

We stopped in on a Sunday, and really enjoyed our visit! We had a great tour with Joseph, who explained so much! I never knew there were so many varieties of citrus! We got to taste many of the varieties they have growing, and even got to take some home. The grounds are beautiful!

Love to visit this little park, Lots of citrus trees. Citrus museum and gift shop. Beautiful roses, clean bathrooms.

This is a little known State Park (even to locals) that is fascinating. Who knew there were so many different types of oranges? In Utah we only have one kind to choose from. I learned so much. Check the hours before you go so you can catch a tour. They have orange tastings at the end of the tours and it makes it a lot more fun. When we went in March, they offered tours on Fri, Sat, and Sun only. If you go another day you can still wander through the massive orchard. The trees are all labled but you can't pick the fruit. It was so interesting and informative. I learned things I didn't realize that I didn't know! I loved it.

It's a nice little museum that highlights the roots of this whole area.  It was great.  For being a small, lightly visited park, they do a nice job there.

Far cooler than it should be. Lots of good, easy hikes. Nice place to have a picnic, and cool places for kids to explore. The visitors center was ok at best, and the gift shop was closed, but it is definitely worth a trip.

It will be a better park when the drought is over and they water the grass again. The trees still look good though.

Be sure to visit when the orange blossoms are blooming in the early spring. The smell is unlike anything you have experienced.

California Citrus State Historic Park is interesting and beautiful. The orchards are lovely and the museum exhibits are well organized. The museum building has a lot of interesting historical information about the citrus industry, and where the citrus trees originally came from. We took our 10 year old granddaughter along with us, and she loved it. Samples for tasting of various kinds of citrus fruits from the orchard were offered. The volunteer gave us a lot of information and explained some of the exhibits inside the museum. There were not enough volunteers to open the gift shop, though. It might be a good idea to phone to see if it is open. We had to go twice because there were not enough volunteers to open it the first time we went.

This is a very nice little place to visit in Riverside. It has a little museum and a really nice place to have a picnic.

A lovely setting among the orange groves, and that wonderful freshcitrus fragrance. A very nice place to hold a special event, family reunion, or reception. Or attend one of their events, or just explore the park and enjoy a picnic.

Great place to hike, picnic, play outdoors with children, or just read a book. Surrounded by orange groves this is also a wondeful place to take pictures. During the summer they have concerts in the park. Year round they have other activities such as bird watching. Great place to be outdoors.

We took a troop of multi level girl scouts to the park to not only learn about the trees and fruits they bear but to also learn about the history of the groves in Riverside, the environmental impact and preservation of the remaining groves. Regardless of age each girl benefitted from this experience and walked away with knowledge and a desire to be a better person in regards to or groves and even eating better.

As an adult I enjoyed the peaceful feeling I had walking around on the trails and listening to the shared information.

This is a beautiful park area but you really have to take the tour to understand why it is here. There are so many different varieties of citrus it and the guide explains several unique ones you will miss if you just walk around. You also get to taste several different varieties. Very informative and interesting guide. We were rushed so did not get to really explore the visitor Centre.

We came on Memorial day in the morning and it was not crowded at all. The morning tour was great since the sun was not too bright. Highly recommended to go on the guided tour that explores the orange grove and talks about Riverside's Citrus history. Riverside's booming orange groves, innovative irrigation, and advanced packing and shipping methods created the basis for the California Citrus industry more than 100 years ago. 25,000+ acres of groves were there then, but about 4000 acres of those still remain according to our guide . Walking through the groves , our tour guide gave us a full details on each kind of citrus tree. He gave us all different citrus samples and we got to taste from the trees. Be prepared that if you sign up the tour, you will taste lots of oranges during this one hour tour. We got to take home 3 bags of oranges and grapefruits and also were eating the fruits all the way on the trial with the tour guide. The museum was worth a visit too. If you go on the self-guided tour, you cannot bring any bag and pick oranges though, so better to go on the guided tour.Its hard to explore this giant park by yourself, so the guided tour is a good idea. There are so many different oranges and lemons out there. The tour guide is very knowledgeable not only talking about different citrus trees, but also about the history of the water canals. It's a fun morning and opportunity to taste and learn about citrus and explore the park.

This is an interesting up close look into the citrus industry. The visitor center gives you the 411 on the evolution of the citrus growing business and the employees who make it possible
The docent gives you an opportunity to taste test the ruby red grapefruit, the navel oranges, the tangelos, the kumquats and others. There is a sidewalk tour through the orchard with all the different types of citrus

If you love taking long walks within a green landscape which offers beautiful vista views than this is your place. Most of the walking paths are paved which are a big plus for those who need stroller or wheelchair accessibly.

Many of the paths will take you into the citrus groves which will led to the hill top were views of the local city and distant mountains can be seen. But do remember that this is Southern California where haze can block views on some days. I was there on a clear day which allowed me to view the mountains of San Bernardino, San Gabriel, and Santa Ana. The climb to the top of the hill was an easy task; I act was afraid to journey to the top due to my recent kneesurgery but I reached it with no problem.

Be sure to visit the visitor center while at the park. The staff is very friendly and can provide a great amount of information on the history of citrus and of the location.

I remember when all the hills around the park were orange groves. I was, at one time, a vital and flourishing industry. Then the value of the land and a local initiative caused the industry to disappear.

The California Citrus State Historic Park was established to ensure that the history of the citrus culture would not be forgotten. It is a large park with various fruit trees and grassy areas. You may tour the grounds and see various displays.

It is also a great place to relax with family and friends and have a cool afternoon picnic.

This is a humongous state park that is devoted to the history of this orange fruit and its impact on California. The grounds are to meander on - with varietals of orange trees and beautiful SoCal weather! There is a visitor center but it is open only on weekends. There is very little information outside itself so you do some research and go. It would be better to have some things written or pamphlets outside the visitor center - so visitors can learn more. There is a fruit stand outside of the gate to buy oranges but they sell in large bunches. Not one or twos. I still liked it and I can only imagine what this place would smell like when Orange blossoms are in season. It would be THE PLACE to go then - just for the smells!

This is a hidden gem in Riverside. We took the 2 p.m. tour and must have eaten 20 different varieties of lemons, oranges, grapefruits, and kumquats. The fruit was juicy and flavorful, and our tour guide Joe was a wealth of information about the citrus varieties. We also were able to pick two bags of citrus to take home. You are only allowed to pick fruit off the trees if you take the tour. Otherwise, fruit picking is prohibited. I highly recommend this tour! Children are welcome too!

Because I don't like to share! This place is a haven! They have blues in the park during the summer (go early so you can get parking or better yet bike down Victoria Ave. for a scenic trip), there is citrus tasting during citrus season, a very nice orange grove museum and beautiful trail through the groves. It is perfect for family picnics or weddings. I don't use this frequently but it is in fact idyllic.

There are great walking paths through the park - some of incline and some just good and long - the trees provide a wonderful scent when blooming and the docent led tastings are also GREAT!

It was great hearing about the history of citrus in the area. We took the guided tour and saw the video.

This is a great idea for weddings, memorials, meetings that isn't boring and lifeless. Surrounded by citrus trees and beautiful landscapes plus tributes to California's citrus heritage. A very beautiful backdrop and park setting and plenty of good parking.

It was a hot day in L.A. so for a short hour and half drive found citrus park, the park rangers were very in formative and advised to return late Feb thru mid Mar when most of th fruit will be in season allowing to taste the different types of citrus. Will return then

We actually rented the Banquet room that they have on the grounds.This Park has beautiful landscape that gets your attention and they even have security on site.

This is a great way to explore one of few remaining citrus groves in the area. There are tours available that educate on the history of citrus agriculture as well as the different citrus varieties grown here. Each plant has a sign indicating what grows there. At only $5, it’s a good bargain. We visited on a hot summer day, so there are few places to find shade. The surrounding fields of palms stretches out a long way providing a great view of the valley. We enjoyed our brief visit to California Citrus Park.

Warm and inviting! The staff here are the best as they take the time to teach and answer questions. Don't miss this gem!

Beautiful park, but you should check before going when the tour is, because without it is less interesting

This place is amazing and you only pay $5 to park. The park is only a mile off the 91. Oranges are everywhere with a lot of varieties. The museum is to the point and a great history lesson. Volunteers greet you and are very nice and know their history. We were encouraged to take a tour and loved every minute of it. Very informative guide who taught us about the different varieties of citrus. What a treat! We were also given two bags of fruit while on the tour. Very fun place but make sure you make time to take the tour. The tour is an hour long. Fun gift shop with sweet snacks and orange themed items. We were there on a Saturday for the noon tour. 6 people on the tour. Hidden gem with light crowds. Enjoy!

Really enjoyed my visit here, but went during the week and the visitor center was closed. Literally only me, a photographer and some groundskeepers at the park the whole time I was there. It is very picturesque, I took some great photos there. Would have really enjoyed a tour and checking out the visitor center though.

I went reluctantly-like who cares about orange cultivation. Got charged four bucks to get in, grumbled about that too. But, WOW, the tour of the groves, the historical stuff, and a bag full of citrus that was probably worth over 20 dollars was incredible!! The tour leader, Maynard, was personable, knowledgeable and just plain fun. Go do this-it is tasty, you eat all the way along the tour, fascinating, and two hours well spent,

Fascinating walking tour of the beautiful grove. A docent provides Riverside history while you get to taste test the different varieties. They even give you a take home bag

Beautiful scenery and plenty of places to stroll and explore. It’s a great place to play catch or picnic.

I love the event center there. Wish I had a reading or throw a party ! I’ve photographed some weddings there and it’s just a lovely place for a celebration or every day visit.

The only thing is...the grass seems to be muddy in some parts . It’s Brent hat way for years. Wish they’d fix the sprinkler system. It’s an unusable area.

Other than that...go visit!!

Great location in Riverside to spend afternoon walk with or without family, we had really nice time and learning about citrus fruits (till this time I only did know basic Orange, Lemon and Grapefruit) Not thinking about all different varieties of Citrus.

The tour is really cool and the views are great. There is also a little museum and a darling gift shop with some very cool citrus themed and locally made items. Great place to get a gift and supports the local state park.

If you're over 50, you'll love this park because it will remind you of trips you took when you were a kid. If you're under 50, you'll love it because you'll finally know what your parents meant when they talked about the trips they took. This is a little museum with no computers or interactive razzed dazzle. Just very helpful volunteers who explain the growth of the citrus industry in CA and beautiful citrus groves that you can walk through, relax, and revel in the quiet and the solitude.

Just like old times.

You get to hike if you want and learn of a lot of different, Citrus tree and lemon trees. For adults and families as well there a nice little museum in the premises as well.

Great way to spend some time in Riverside. Learned about a lot of citrus I had no idea even existed!

We were there on Sat Feb 13, 2016. We called around 11:30am to inquire about the 2pm tour. They took are name as we had 6 people. We grabbed lunch down the road, then arrived around 1:30 to look around the gift shop/history center. Well - I looked around the history center ... my kids, husband and in-laws were out on the back patio listening to Jeff, a docent, talk about all the citrus - as he was also handing out TONS of samples.

The people who work here couldn't be any nicer. We started our tour at 2 with Jeff - and if you can, try to get him as your docent - he was amazing. I believe many others here have written about him! He let us know that he already told us a lot about citrus - same as we'd hear on the tour, but that didn't deter us.

Each group gets a bag in which to put your picked citrus. My kids LOVED it. There is a decent amount of walking, I wouldn't recommend it for anyone who can't stand for an hour+ time. Not all the walking areas were paved, some in between orange tree walking too. We found out that February is one of the best times to visit for fresh citrus.

There were maybe 5-6 kids on our tour, probably 20 or so adults. Jeff asked for volunteers at each tree to be the first tasters of that type of citrus - he sliced open fruit right there for everyone to try, you wanted more of something? He'd give you another sample right off the tree. Kids loved it for 2 reasons - 1) they could toss their rinds on the ground - it was encouraged, and 2) they got virtually unlimited samples of all the citrus!!

My son, 6, volunteered to be a kumquat taster. It was pretty funny - it starts out sour, then goes to sweet. Jeff told me ahead of my son putting it in his mouth to get the camera ready. Pretty awesome. Jeff answered all of our questions about citrus, as silly as some of them may have been. The kids were interested - which says a lot for a 6 & 9 year old. Jeff had the few kids be the "pickers" - we'd all sample a variety of orange (or lemon, or lime) and then the kids would go pick the fruit off the tree to put in everyone's bags. We only did that for the orange varieties - picked to take home.

By the end of the tour, we had probably 30 oranges in our bag, my father-in-law had about 30 too. SO fresh, so delicious. Living in Chicago, I realize even more fully how fresh the fruit is right off the tree in CA.

I would highly, highly recommend this as a place to visit if you find yourself near Riverside, CA. We drove from Lake Elsinore - ~30 minutes. Easy to find. Hopefully you'll have Jeff as the docent on your tour! The gift shop sells everything citrus-themed. For instance, they sell cold drinks (+ water) ... they include lemonade, orange Caprisuns, Orange Fanta, orange seltzer, etc. There are local jams/marmalades by the jar, kitsch stuff - lemon-shaped soaps, I bought a cool citrus ceramic platter, lemon cookbooks, citrusy hand towels, lemon hand sanitizer, and on and on. Prices were VERY reasonable in the gift shop for what we bought.

Oh - you can visit here and NOT take a tour too. We were interested in the tour, so we stayed - there were several people who came to get samples of the fruit, then left.

We will DEFINITELY visit here again - the bag of freshly-picked oranges alone was worth it.

First time visiting and we were so glad we went! The smell of the orange blossoms was wonderful and the grounds were well kept. Wear walking shoes! lots of trails, most are dirt. The views are wonderful as well.

Make sure you make time for you to check this out! It's BEAUTIFUL and they have free tastings of the citrus grown there including finger limes and kumquats.!!! My advice is to check the website and plan to be there to take the FREE guided tour! You get to walk the grounds, sample fruits fresh off the tree, learn about the history of Citrus and the Riverside area...and you get a TON of fresh fruits to take home!

At the time that I visited this park, I ended up very upset and angry. There is a surprising ending.

Let me start at the beginning... with a warning. There are 2 separate hours that you have to consider with this attraction. The first set of hours are the PARK hours, the second set are the FACILITY hours. The park is open for a lot more time than the facilities are. The facility hours are limited. At the time of this writing, the visitor center is open on Wednesdays, Saturdays and Sundays. The park is open every day ... winter hours right now, but of course there's a separate set of summer hours. I learned this the hard way!

On the day I was going to visit the park (a Thursday), I thought the park and facility hours were one. I checked out of my Coronado, CA hotel, drove 3 hours to my Long Beach, CA hotel... checked in.. then decided I was going to visit the Citrus park... 1 1/2 hours away in Riverside.

So, when I drove up, I was expecting a fully open park. I had dealt with the famous LA afternoon traffic, and I was really looking forward to this. Only then was I shocked and disappointed to see that all I could do was look at the pretty groves, but nothing else... there were no rangers, no tours, no anything. Everything was closed. The tour, talking to the rangers, even a little gift store shopping, were the things I most wanted from the park. Coming from the East, all I know are apple groves... I wanted to learn more about the beautiful orange groves I was looking at. Maybe they'd even let me try a fresh orange from a tree... I didn't know whether that was possible. I was hoping for a unique experience. Especially since regardless whether the facilities are open or not, you have to pay a fee!!!! ($4.00 at the time of this review)

Needless to say, I was cussing mad. First of all, I had a $5.00, not $4.00. So, I had to leave behind an extra dollar for a park that I didn't even get to fully enjoy. Along with my money, I had left a note at the park telling them how disappointed I was. To top it off, you ARE NOT ALLOWED to touch a single orange on ANY of the trees. IT IS ILLEGAL! Yes, I was very angry and disappointed. The area is lovely, but I was very disappointed.

The story takes a happy turn tonight. I am still picking up my jaw from the floor from the incredibly kind apology that I got from the Citrus Park. It was totally unexpected, and very decent of them to do. They even sent me some stickers and a little booklet.

So, I will tell my fellow tourists now... just keep your eyes out on the facility versus park time.. If you want to just stop by for a minute, look at the pretty trees, then leave.. you can depend on the park hours. If you want a more involved experience, then MAKE SURE you KNOW what the FACILITIES schedule is!!!! The area is very lovely. To see the mountains in the distance, the palm trees, and the beautiful groves... yes, that is a nice experience. I wish I had been able to have more of an experience there, but maybe it's an excuse for me to go back sometime. I appreciate the decency they showed me, with me having been so upset.

We had some out of town friends who wanted to visit here. We have never been and we live here close by! How crazy that is! I was extremely impressed with the grounds. Beautiful and well kept. The free samples of sliced citrus was delish and the museum itself is full of interesting facts about the citrus history. I learned quite a bit. The volunteers were friendly and knowledgeable. Our friends were shocked we had never visited. So were we! We will be back soon!

I drive by often but never thought anything about this place other than a place to walk jog or bike. I was invited to a tour and I decided to go even though my first thought was "how boring". It was GREAT! They have a really neat store with everything citrus, a little museum and they even let you taste different varieties of citrus. Now, when people come to visit me in California, this is a place I take them to see.

Museum has been remodeled and collection updated. Rich in Historical Information & artifacts. A Must Stop! Will be thankful you stopped.

Great museum. Very nice informative people working. The smell of citrus fruit is amazing. Rows and rows of beauty. My husband took part of a sampling. Yum!

Though circumstances precluded our taking a tour; this place was still worth a stop. You will really enjoy it if you're
interested in local history. The museum is small but very well presented. Park staff is helpful and accommodating. Best yet, if you're a citrus fruit fan, there is a great tasting experience offered on the back patio complete with exotic and different fruits you'll never see in the stores!
Also, as a bonus, outside the museum, and across the street, you can buy many of the products raised on the Citrus property at bargain prices with super flavor...a real treat!!

This was a Sunday afternoon stop and it was well worth the time. They offer a guided tour at 11 and 2 which I recommend taking. The grounds are stunning and you will learn more than you expect. Best part is the tasting after tour where you are able to taste lots of citrus varieties. Great for kids of all ages. When you leave s local farm sells organs and they are delicious.

We had been planning to visit here for years and finally had the chance today. Very happy we did! The Park far exceeded our expectations.

Be sure to make time to join a walking tour through the citrus grove or you will miss out on a very special experience.

As a long-time Riverside resident, I was amazed at the many facts that I was not aware of regarding the history of citrus in the area.

You learn a lot here and get to taste some unusual citrus, as well!

The volunteers leading the tours do an outstanding job!

Some suggestions:

- arrive early, especially on a sunny day. There is not a lot of shade.

- wear a hat, take sunglasses, bring a small water and wear non-slip shoes.

- most of all, take the tour. You will be glad that you did!

Do you know there is orange with purple inside? We found so many kinds of Citrus and how they migrated and where they coming from. There is small museum inside and staff cut fresh orange, grapefruit let you taste. We took a walk in the Citrus park, which is huge and have all kinds Citrus trees. We are luck and had a volunteer show us different kinds of oranges and tasted each of them, which are so fresh and taste, many of them are the first time we see and taste.

You only pay parking fee $5. It is fun activity for whole family.

Many of the days that parking is putting your money in a slot with a number. You better have cash or you will get a ticket. I was only going to purchase something at the gift shop and still had to pay parking.

Make sure you go when they have tours and tastings! It makes all the difference. This is the BEST place to learn of SoCal's citrus history and the "Second Goldrush" which started here and made CA what it is today! You learn with all 5 senses, especially your tastebuds. We got to try the Australian Finger Lime that costs up to $50/pound on the streets. Amazing for foodies and history buffs alike!

This park offers a variety of locations for taking portraits and engagement or wedding photos. There is a small rose garden near the visitor center and there are also several locations near the lower parking lot, such as the gazebo, the amphitheater, or the arbors.

Plus, I would think that the park would be a peaceful place for a quiet stroll.

Beautiful park with open spaces for frisbie throwing and kite flying. A trail that you can walk easily and the surroundings pleasant to look at. Bathrooms are clean and there are plenty of picnic areas to utilize.

Stopped by here for a quick hour tour with my husband. Small museum with a great history of citrus with a nice walking tour of the grounds. The citrus sampling was delicious and the area is beautiful! Plan for about an hour here to do everything. $5 parking (waived for us as veterans on Memorial Day).

Not very large, nice museum if interested in citrus of the region. Friendly staff. Museum only open Fri, Sat and Sun though.

What a great way to spend a few hours enjoying the beautiful Riverside valley walking through heritage orange groves, learning about our state's citrus history in a very cool & free museum, & then finish it off with a visit through their amazing gift shop (what a buyer they have, & all proceeds benefit the museum). Learn why the navel oranges from this area taste better than anywhere else. We make an annual pilgrimage from Northern Cal & load up the trunk at the farm stand down the road. Can't go wrong at $6 for a 25 pound bag! Don't listen to your husband when he says you'll never eat them all. They last us 3 weeks.

This place is an amazing park of citrus groves. Walk into the trees, enjoying the peace and quiet. They have a museum with orange tastings too. We tried citrus we have never tasted before. Learn about the Sunkist orange plant too. For $5 a car load, it was a great couple of hours for people of any age.

Enjoyed our walk through the various citrus trees, looking at the names and varieties, especially the unique finger limes!

The museum was fairly basic, but I appreciated the attention to the perspective of indigenous people vis a vis the Missions.

Family had a great time tasting oranges, learning, exploring, running around and taking pictures. Staff was very engaged and passionate to share their knowledge.

None of our CA relatives had ever even heard of this gem of an attraction that I unearthed. Located near Riverside, the park has hundreds of citrus trees of all varieties, and a free guided tour will allow you to taste many of them straight from the tree. Call ahead to ensure you have the correct tour time -- I believe they were at 10 am last spring. They also send you on your way with a huge bag of free citrus, so don't buy any at the stand on your way in.

We tried many types of oranges, lemons, meyer lemons, limes, tangelos, tangerines, citron, and a funky looking thing called Buddha's hand. Fabulous!

They have a nice gift shop with a gorgeous collection of antique fruit crate labels in mint condition. Also a very good interpretive center.

This would be a great place to picnic. However, they do not sell food.

We did not spend a lot of time here and it seems to get very little traffic. That is unfortunate, because the small museum is very well done! The host was very passionate about the history of the area, something I was not familiar with. Some SoCal people in Las Vegas where we lived warned us about Riverside being a dump, but we found many treasures that make this a nice visit. The Citrus Park was one of them!

Some say there was an admission charge, if so no one asked for any admission. The museum was quite informative with a nice intro film on the citrus history in cali. The guys working there were friendly, helpful and relaxed. No one else there really on this Saturday first day of December so pretty much had the place to ourselves. Worth the trip and fantastic prices on oranges down the road from a local seller.

Over 85 different types of citrus are grown at the park. The visitors center has very nice interpretive displays that tell the story of citrus from it's origins in China to its 7,000 year, 14,000 mile journey which caused the "Second Gold Rush" in California during the late 1800'S and earlier 20th century. Friendly and knowledgeable docents are on hand to answer questions, give a guided tour of the groves and even present a tasting of delicious fruit just picked that morning. There are hiking trails and a picnic area. Very nice way to spend an afternoon, particularly in the early Spring when so many different types of citrus are ripening.

While it is "open" there really is not much to do unless you can take a guided tour. It would be a lot more interesting unless you just want a place to have a picnic in the grass. Not the highlight of my day trip to Riverside.

Found this place purely by accident on a Thursday afternoon. However, the park itself is not open for tours on Thursdays, only Friday, Saturday and Sunday. We were able to drive around and see all the wonderful citrus trees, the beautiful gazebos that are there, a wonderful picnic area and more. I would recommend visiting this location during "tour" days to see and learn of this place. Even though it was not open for tours, I found it to be peaceful and very serene location. Be sure if you do the tour to wear comfortable shoes, a hat and sunblock! And don't forget to stop at the road side stand and buy some of the yummie citrus from the area. I found the oranges and tangerines to be extremely sweet and juicy!

- Opens certain days of the week (in certain seasons) and all week in other seasons so check their Hours and if they are open before you drive.

- $5 fee per car

- plenty of parking spots, clean bathrooms, picnic areas with grills.

- Nice walking trails between citrus trees, Avocado trees. you are not allowed to pick fruit and take home.

- They have a shop where you can buy their fruit, jam, and other products including honey

This is a hidden little gem. It is beautiful, and it's very neat to see what so much of this part of California looked like before the housing boom.

Very beautiful park. Best time is in the spring when you can smell the orange blossoms - Simply heavenly! Unfortunately, due to California budget cuts, the museum and gift shop have limited hours. If visiting during the end of June to mid July, you can enjoy concerts in the park every Friday evening. Bring your picnic basket, chairs or a blanket and enjoy the music.

I had driven past the sign for this park for years and finally planned a stop there. While the park itself (with picnic tables, etc.) is open daily, if you are interested in the history, the visitor center is only open Friday-Sunday 10-4 with tours during the winter months at 11 and 2. If you search, two sites will display so it can be confusing. The state park site is the one that has detailed visit, tour, and contact information.

The park preserves acres of citrus groves that are fast disappearing in the area. Some of the land is used to grow exotic varieties of citrus; the rest is leased to a commercial grower. We arrived early for the 2 pm tour and spent the time reading the detailed timeline of citrus growing from ancient times to the present. The tour covered a lot of what was on the displays. Children got restless and some participants left the tour when the terrain got hilly, although there is a spot where you can see what the area must have looked like in its heyday. I usually opt for a guided tour, but in this case, I would have been happy with just the visitor center. Even though the trees were starting to bloom, a ranger held a citrus tasting on the patio, which we did (there was also an option during the tour, but we skipped it).

It’s amazing to learn that the whole citrus industry in southern California resulted from two trees shipped from Washington, DC, along with several other intriguing facts. It’s easy to combine a stop here with a visit to Riverside’s Mission Inn or on the way to Palm Springs.

Every now and again, you come across that special place where all the dots connect.
Citrus, something so familiar, something you expect you know a lot about, especially if you are from California. A state run citrus park, how intereting could that be?
A $5 parking fee, no admission fee, docent lead tours that start informally when enough people are there (and if the weather is too hot or too cold or too rainy, a very small group will do) but please check in advance to make sure you arrive on a tour day.
And suddenly the entire history of where citrus first came to flourish and how it spread through the world, arrived at each continent, changed, grew, commercialized, changed again. Simple easily laid out, and all the dots of history we barely learned as school children start to connect.
Then come outside please and let's look at each tree, understand a bit more about each type of citrus fruit, how to use it, how it grows, would you like to taste this fruit?
Now all those odd shaped fruits at the farmers' markets (Buddha's hand, the variagated Eureka with pink flesh and sharp flavor, the Cara Cara - a pink flesh variant from Venezuela found in 1976, the 3 variants of blood oranges) begin to make sense, have a context, a history.
It's really what learning history is, isn't it? Learning how to connect all the dots, from the ancient Silk Route to 2 seedless orange trees arriving in California, to casually peeling a loose skinned tangerine while you absent mindedly search for a cool attraction in Riverside.
By the way, and this is just an added thing, the gift shop happens to be especially well stocked.
Which brings us to the last delight, the bag of fresh citrus the docents will provide you as you complete the tour. Remarkable place. You will leave the wiser and the happier. If history were always this much fun and this tasty, we'd all of us be historians.

Thoughts:

Call to make sure that the Visitor Center is open and that the Pick & Taste Tours are available. If it is important; ask which of the 75 varieties of citrus will be available for tasting.

Put the offered plastic glove on your non-camera hand; that glove gets juicy.

Pants legs and shoes can end up with juice spots.

Hikes can be up to one and a half hours.

Huell Howser went; so should we.

Thank you to Joe and the other docents for a great informative day.

A Parent Navel Orange Tree from 19th century Brazil grows as a State Historical Landmark in Riverside.

Paid a family visit to this park over the holidays. We spent about half an hour going through the museum depicting citrus history, then took a guided tour of the orchards. The docent gave a colorful tour, telling colorful stories about the history of different fruit species as well as that of the citrus industry in this part of the country. In between stories we were trying samples of many different types of oranges, lemons, etc., and we were given additional samples to take home as well. After the tour we spent time talking to other docents who had yet other samples and stories for us. All together, we spent about three hours there; a nice half-day activity. I would recommend going during the fall and winter months (to maximize the harvest that you can sample), as well as going during the days that docent-led tours are available (you cannot pick the fruit yourself).

I used to live by the park and had never visited until I was honored to be chosen to speak at a retirement dinner for a colleague. I knew it was a nice place to drive by but had no idea how large and picturesque the place is. I took my wife around, without a tour and walked through the orange orchards and learned about the different and vast varieties and types of oranges. Very pleasant hike, lunch and little store with cool merchandise. I advise you to take a stroll around yourself and be sure to grab a bag of oranges and some cold freshly squeezed bottles of orange juice right outside in the front of the park.

This is a great park! Lots of parking. Only a $5 parking fee for entrance. Several picnic areas. A very nice visitor center. Free tours and citrus tasting. This place is a must see.

We had a wonderful tour of this state park and orange groves. Our tour guide was so informative telling us much about each variety of orange, lemon,lime and grapefruit. Plus you get a bag to fill to take home as the tour guide picks the fruit right off the trees! And also proceeds tasting some of the amazing variety of fruits while on the tour or at the end of the tour. The gift shop is sweet with a variety of citrus items at reasonable prices. I would highly recommend this tour to all! It is free except the small parking fee to enter the park.

The citrus smell fantastic in the spring. Walking through all the trees is like a step back in time when Riverside was all orange trees. There are a large variety of citrus to sample and pick at the park

Parking is $5 and well worth it. Bring your whole family and any guests from out of town.

Come by during one of the tours and each person gets to take home a bag of free citrus.

*Don't collect the fruit if you have not signed up for a tour. It's illegal. During my tour, our docent caught a family stealing fruit and confiscated it all. If you're a repeat offender, they will call the police on you. You don't want to end up in jail for stealing from a state park.

We loved EVERYTHING about this place. The knowledge of the staff. The tour. The tasting time. Even the gift shop was filled with such a nice variety of things. Was very grateful they sold hats, as I was in desperate need of one!

This is a great place to visit when wanting to think about a problem, just to be by yourself, or to have a wedding!
I have done each of these at this facility and it has been a wonderful experience each time.
In the spring the orange blossoms smell so sweet. It brings back memories of my youth in Riverside. Bring the family to romp or hike around and enjoy the peaceful serenity.

The volunteer in the museum was very educated and it was interesting to hear how the orange and different varieties developed from a couple of orange trees. I appreciated that the path around the park is paved so accessible for everyone. There was an opportunity to taste different varieties of citrus. The fruit at the park was not for sale though. We were warned if you are caught picking fruit there is a thousand dollar fine. There is a fruit stand located close to the entrance of the park but they only have two varieties of oranges for sale. The only accept cash at the fruit stand. Entrance is free but you do need to pay to park. A great educational experience and a great place to have a picnic.

If you like the smell of citrus and like history then this is the place for you.
This is one of my favorite parks in Riverside county mainly because it does not get crowded, there are nice picnic areas, and there are nice walking/running paths.

The birdwatching, the walking trails and the museum are great. If you are just a little bit interested in the history of Riverside, you need to visit the California Citrus State Historic Park.

The citrus groves are beautiful to see and walk among. The museum is wonderful and full of great history and information! What a treat!

Want to know what California was like before it was awash with tract homes, smog, and traffic? Then go to the Citrus Park.
This is California's legacy and is a citrus oasis within Riverside. Come in spring to experience the thousands of orange blossoms blooming and take a walking tour of the park and the buildings. This park is continuing to add new buildings and eventually a small hotel on the grounds, but with the potential for closure to the public due to budget shortfalls, these additions may be much later than anticipated. I recommend you do a park hike, check out the buildings, and bring a picnic lunch and a book. This is not a highly developed park yet, the focus has been on acquiring the land, maintenance, and initial development, but it is extremely important to the local and state history. I recommend a half day, and this probably can include lunch, depending on how far around the park you want to hike. terrain is easy, but not very handi-capable. If the ranger isn't busy, you can probably get some good detailed information about the area.
Please make a donation to the park for future development and to prevent its closure. Thanks for visiting!

The best time to visit the park is in the winter months, which they define as November through March. These months they are actively picking citrus fruit. Be sure to go when they have a tour (Friday-Sunday) or by special arrangement if you have a school group, etc. On the tour they give you samples of bizarre and tasty fruits that you would never otherwise see in your grocery store or farmers market. After you have eaten oranges, kumquats, limes, mandarins, etc., they have baskets of free fruit that you can take home with you. The tour is free, but the parking is $5. We easily ate and took more than $5 worth of fruit. The setting is beautiful. The museum is small and not very interesting, so be sure to go when they are having a tour for the best experience. Riverside is very hot in the summer and they are not picking fruit then, so I would go in the cooler months if you are able to.

I almost didn't want to submit this review because I'm afraid more people will start to visit the park. I've lived in the Inland Empire for 37 years and did not know this park existed. We found out about it through Facebook when they posted a Citrus Sampling event. Since then we've been back two more times. A total of three times in just under two months. The park is great for picnicking. We take the kid's bikes and they ride for hours. The grassy area is huge. We went on a tour and got fed a wealth of information about the history of oranges in Riverside, oh and we also got fed oranges too! You can go walking through the groves and smell the blossoms in the air. It's a must and at only $5 for parking, you can't beat it.

Even though the visitors center was closed when we visited we still enjoyed this park. I was there with my wife and one of my duaghters (she's 20) and my mom (75). We all enjoyed viewing all the different types of Citrus fruits and the lovely grounds. We would return again to visit the visitors center.

While staying nearby house sitting for fellow RV'ers we spent a Friday afternoon checking out this attraction, the museum, although small, is extremely informative. The grounds are expansive & if you like to walk, there's numerous paths to enjoy the fruit trees & landscape. The staff (predominately volunteers) is extremely friendly almost to the point of being a tad overbearing but they mean well & are well schooled in the history of the area. We were lucky enough to taste some charities of oranges & mandarin oranges courtesy of one of the volunteers....well worth the time, enjoy!

This is a great park for; walking, dates, picnics ... If you came on the weekend during the day you can take a free tour and even taste some of the citrus! Our tour guide was very knowledgeable, and told us so much information, even gave us some citrus to take home. Most of the paths are paved, and easy to walk, or push a stroller. If you go in early spring it will smell SO GOOD, as everything is in bloom. Summer time can be pretty warm, so bring water.

California Citrus State Historic Park

We’ve lived here for several years now and have never been to this place.

Disclaimer: we visited at the tail end of COVID restrictions so some of the things weren’t available.

The park had self registration parking via kiosk to the left as you pull in. The cost is $5.00 per car and the directions are well posted. The place is beautifully unkept. There is a visitor’s center at the end of the winding road. There is a self-guided walk around the interior center with a ranger available if you have any questions. If you are there for the tour (twice a day - Friday-Sunday as of this writing) just let them know inside. The tour begins right out front and then the ranger takes you winding up above the visitors center talking about Riverside citrus history and explaining some of the different species of plants and trees. We attended after orange harvest season so there weren’t any oranges on the trees but the vantage point at the top of the hill was great! We did get to pick some things off of the tree and try them

The ranger (Mary) was great!

The tour was 45-minutes. I suggest you bring a bottle of water, a hat, some sunscreen and hand sanitizer.

A video of my visit is available on my YouTube channel. It’s labeled as California Citrus State Historic Park Tour by BalooTV

Great museum.nice history of Riverside. Very relaxing atmosphere. Very nice walking areas. Smells very citrus

This is a great place to hike among varieties of citrus trees. Along the trails, there are signs and boards which offer information about the citrus industry and the different citrus varieties. It's best to come on Saturdays,Sundays, and Wednesdays, when the Visitor Center and Museum are open (10am -4pm). The facilities include picnic areas and can accommodate weddings. Check website for hours - from April to September, open 8-5 daily, and Saturdays/Sunday 8-7 pm. From October-to March, open Friday-Sat-Sun-Mon 8-5. The Visitor Center is open only on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays.

Had a lovely time. Learned that the orange fruit was more like fingers and originated in China. Thankfully we have round balls with wedges inside today. So easy to eat or squeeze.

History of early California agriculture and transportation.

Teachers this is a great place for the kids. Late March through April is where the trees blossom. My love for oranges goes back to Germany when I had my first orange at the age of 10. So happy to live in a city that has all the history pertaining to citrus.

Excellent experience. Not sure how things have changed since my visit, but I would checkout their website or ring them prior to visit and make a reservation. When we were there, there were not many people, but making reservation did guarantee our spots. The guide was very knowledgeable and explained cultivation history, difference across citrus varieties, and offered us to taste some of their cultivations at the end of the tour. All the fruits we had were absolutely fantastic. We did not get the finger lime, though.

Visited for day outing. Loved the grounds and very well kept. We had picnic lunch.
Lots of families with children there as well.
Banquet facilities are available there.
Had great day, wonderful memories! Will
definitely be returning.

Our friends and family visited the park today. I must say it is a very unique experience. There were many rows of citrus well plant with all kinds of citrus you can imagined. The park is very clean and especially the restrooms are also clean. I was affraid to go in like other parks, but thanks to the people who maintain this place it was extremely clean. I hope this park does not shut down due to the state financial crisis. We pay tax everyday, I think some of that money needs to preserve California history and nature! I would like to say thank you to the all the people who maintained this park. Great job ladies and gentlemen:)

The California Citrus State Historic Park is an interesting place to walk among orange orchards - to get a feel for what much of rural Southern California must have been like - before the suburbs engulfed them.

Unfortunately, I picked a Thursday to visit the park - and the visitor center was closed. I'm sure it would provide more history about the citrus industry.

Follow the signs to the Visitor Center and pay a nominal fee to park. This fee also allows you to visit a lower area with gardens and other buildings. One of these is called the Sunkist Center. But this center is generally not open to the public - and is rented out for weddings and events.

had a wonderful wedding experience at the park... beautiful grove for the ceremony and the indoor part great with the AC...

Great little store with everything citrus; informative ranger lead citrus tours with tasting; great bldg for wedding or other celebrations; good grounds for picnicking in spite of the drought

There is a museum full of local navel growing history, but the real lesson is in the grove of many kinds of citrus from orange, grapefruit, lemon, lime, madarins, etc and all their varieties! There are wonderful short hikes, a gazebo where there are summer concerts, picnic area, building for rental (wedding or other). The setting is lovely in the orange groves on gentle hills away from city hub-bub!

Took a guided tour and learned tons of facts on the cultivation of oranges - samples were a PLUS as well - who would have known there were so many different varieties! Found out where the name "grapefruit" was derived from..... A very well deserved parking fee is the only admission and more than reasonable! We enjoyed both the tour given by "Bob" (a long time employee and now volunteer) and a great chat and more samples with "Gunther"! A very peaceful and tranquil spot to be in, full of beautiful aromas, colors and fruit. The only downfall I can think of is the horrid waste of what would appear to be "perfectly good" fruit that is wasted laying on the ground to rot.....

Very well maintained. I would recommend for a stroll for a few hours. No fee to get in. Nice place. The guides were very friendly. We got to eat some juicy oranges too.

First off the directions on here are bad. Make sure you take Van Buren Rd to get here. Next to the large orange sign and fruit stand for purchase. If you don’t see those stops then you have the bad directions. These directions take you to closed/locked gate maybe for deliveries. We made it for tasting time, 10-1pm F,S, & S. Check them out on fb. Cute gift shop to purchase honey and orange products. I loved the travel size ones!! They only charge for parking, you can pay w/card or cash on building, $5. Grounds are beautiful. Some of the paths are paved and most are dirt. Take the short hike up the back patio for amazing views. It’s worth the stop!!

We visited on a Saturday afternoon. The views from the park were spectacular. The visitors center was very nice, tracing the history of citrus from China to the local groves. All in all an unexpected treat.

This little park in a corner of Riverside commemorates the California citrus industry, which has become far less noticeable as homes and development have ploughed under the Orange groves that once covered Southern California. The par visitor center shows the history of the industry and also offers free tastings of different types of citrus. The grounds have examples of these citrus plants to see. There is a $5 parking fee but otherwise it’s free to visit everything.

Beautiful location for a day in the park. Not far from Los Angeles Fun day away for the family to get together and spend some family time.

We were in the area visiting friends and we stopped off to see the oranges. It wasn't orange "season" but had a great time at the lemon taste test inside the visitor center. A lot of great history too and beautiful grounds.

What a fantastic piece of orange grove history, beautiful walkways, unique structures, great rock landscaping. Occasionally they have bands in the park which is fantastic. Try it you'll like it alot!

The tour was nice. They explained about the different citrus Frits and how their grown. Fun and educational for kids.

Everyone I've taken to the Citrus Park loves it. The tour of the orange groves is so awesome... It's free and you get free citrus of multiple varietals. The docents are all volunteers; they're quite knowledgeable of both local history and citrus in general. They do a remarkable job.
I highly recommend the Citrus Park.

a very beautiful park and the reception room that is for rent for party's or special occasions is even more beautiful, very clean and the windows everywhere that you can get a great view from anywhere in the room.

Really great place for an event. A friend of mine had her wedding here - it was a great place - nice facilities - beautiful surroundings and the wonderful smell of orange blossoms!! Not to mention all the little stand sin the area you can get fruits and nuts!

We went there for photos and then ended up wandering around. The park is a beautiful place to visit. All of the volunteers were very knowledgeable.

Its a must to stop by. Well-known in Riverside. Nice hiking sometime smell citrus. Have to pay 5 dollars for parking to support their historic park. Popular place for family picture.

California Citrus State Park was on my list of things to do while in Southern California. We were not disappointed! This park preserves some of the rapidly vanishing cultural landscape of the citrus industry and tells the story of this industry's role in the history and development of California. The visitor center/museum was full of informative exhibits and all of the volunteers are informed and engaging. Be sure to call ahead to take part in the guided tour through the grove. From the initial tastings upon entering to the samples our guide gave us fresh off the trees, we had generous samples of most of the fruit grown there. This is certainly one of our favorite hidden gems we've discovered while traveling and recommend you take time to visit if in the area.

I was intrigued by fellow TA members' reviews. Was staying downtown and really wanted to get out to see the area. So glad I came here. Such a beautiful place.

Museum staff were stellar. They helped me appreciate the variety of trees, including those bearing more routine to very exotic fruit. And it is a lovely place, with the mountain vistas (snow in the peaks) and bird life.

Make sure and come on tour days.

Very nice park my son got married there and we could not have asked for a better experience supper people to work with

We visited on a weekday (museum closed) - first time there - very nice facility. We picked up a brochure and walked around on the paths. We plan to return another time to visit the museum itself.

We have had two parties at this location. Very nice place to have a wedding reception,baby shower, etc.
The grounds are kept up very nice. We have also taken family pictures here also.

Went here on a lark today and was really surprised. Nice little walk through the citrus then met up with a volunteer ranger who had us sample the various citrus types and regaled on the history of the fruit and the park. Then saw a grafting demo.

A little gem in Riverside. Well worth the $5 parking fee.

We had a great time here with my family. We took a walking tour just under a mile long and there were plenty of stops along the way our tour guide Joe was very informative and we got to know a lot about different types of oranges and also got to taste a lot of different ones too. We also got to take home a big bag of different oranges too. Would definitely recommend this place for entire family.

This is definitely not a park you'd just stumble upon, it's off the normal paths. Coming from Oceanside, the map app took us on all the back roads, and at one point we began to wonder if it actually existed, but we finally got there. Was hoping to purchase some of the citrus, but that wasn't on offer. And you can only get samples/tasting if you do the tour. The Gift shop had some interesting offerings, we did get some blood orange olive oil brownie mix and are looking forward to trying that.
Definitely a one and done, mainly because there was no fruit available for us to purchase.

We very much enjoyed walking around and seeing the different citrus tress as well as the interpretive center that explained how citrus got its start in California.

You do not hear much about this venue but it is a highly underrated place. Extremely clean and well kept. A great location for the family to enjoy a walk or picnic. Plenty of open space to play games. We hosted a company event and there was plenty of space for over 60 people. BBQ, jumper and all. Easy to access. I recommend.

Tours are not offered when temps are over 90 degrees. No tours, no tastings. So we didn't experience a tour or tastings. Paid parking is $3 for one hour or $7 for longer. The person at the gate had no information regarding tours or tastings. We toured the Visitor Center/Museum. It's small but informative. The gift shop was closed due to a maintenance issue.

Very nice working park chock full of citrus trees. Unfortunately, the visitor center is closed to non-school-groups on weekdays, otherwise it would receive 5 rating.

A friend was visiting from out of state and wanted to visit this park. We took the walking tour and even though I’ve lived for decades in Riverside I learned a lot of fun facts about our citrus past. The views were beautiful too, postcard perfect. At the end we got to taste a delicious selection of citrus, fun! Their timeline museum inside is very interesting, and they have a nice little gift shop as well. Bags of oranges and other fruit are for sale just across the road. We totally enjoyed our visit!

The park museum was not big but covered quite well with the history of citrus. There is no entrance fee but parking costs $5. It took us about an hour to read through all the notes in the museum and watched an introductory video. It was quite informative. We asked the ranger to give us a tour outside. He handed us a little bag and some napkins before heading out. We got to learn about different kinds of citurs, both native and hybrid and we also got to taste them. The ranger even gave us some extra ones to carry home. We were all surprised by how tasty the oranges are, it was nothing compared to what we could buy from the grocery stores. Overall, we were very happy that we got to visit the park.

What a surprise of a park! $5.00 entry fee per car. The museum is quaint, yet informative. The test test of fresh citrus was a winner. The staff are very proud of their produce. Quite fun. There is also a very large picnic area on the far side of the park, for sports and party, with some hiking trails. Definitely work a half day trip.

Interesting history on area and development, public washrooms.
Samples of oranges, good public facilities.

Far better than I had anticipated....we were greeted by a friendly German host who invited us to spend some time in the visitor centre where we watched an educational video about the history of Citrus fruits and had a peak in the little gift shop. We were about to set off and tour the park when a volunteer (Joe Hamlin) kindly offered to take us on a tour...he shared a wealth of knowledge with us about the park, it's history and facilitated tasting sessions on numerous fruits picked fresh from the tree's!!...even better - he also allowed us to take some home with us! The tours are not scheduled to a set timetable (although they are looking at doing this long term) so if you do want to have a guided tour I would advise you contact the park office firstly before visiting...takes about an hour...we were just lucky Joe was there on the day! Thanks Joe! :)

Lovely park to walk around for the day, play games & outdoor fun for kids. Took my sons birthday photos here & came out super cute. I was tired of the same white background. & great place to fly airplanes & kites. You do have to pay a few bucks for parking so bring some cash

Great place to walk or run and catch the history of the citrus industry and gorgeous views of southern Riverside countryside. Worth the small parking fee. Get there early for cooler temps, definitely uphill climbs but you can also stay on the flat paths AND go across the street to Arlington Sports park to extend your activity. Museum is also worth a stop. Check hours though online. Photographic wonders too.

We have enjoyed having our family gathering at the park. Additionally they have a museum about the citrus history in the region and a venue where we attended a small and lovely wedding.

My boyfriend and I visited the park for the first time after I saw the giant orange on the side of the road. Having lived in the area for most of his life, I don't think my boyfriend thought I could take him anywhere in Riverside that he hadn't already visited. He was wrong! This experience was exciting and relaxing for both of us.
The orange groves were absolutely gorgeous. It's incredible to think of all of Riverside County being covered by oranges, and this park certainly put that bit of history into perspective for me. We hiked around and spent some time sitting on a bench at the top of a lookout. It was very quiet in the park, save for a few families and joggers. We spent a couple more hours exploring the grounds. I think the $5 parking fee was well worth it, if it goes towards maintaining these beautiful groves.
My boyfriend and I will definitely come back here, and next time we will make it to the citrus tasting!

If you're expecting a "normal" state park experience, guess again. This state park preserves a huge citrus grove and includes a visitor's center. hiking trails, picnic grounds, and a rental hall. The point is to honor Riverside's role as the original orange producing area of the US and present the history of the citrus industry. It's best to come on Friday, Saturday or Sunday when the visitor's center is open.