On Sunday afternoon, Ingram Plaza at Liberty Station will hold a costume contest, rows of trick-or-treaters and a Hollywood car show between noon and 4 p.m. Three weeks later, a small group will climb eight steep ladder rungs and a spiral staircase to the lens deck of the Old Point Loma Lighthouse. That climb is open to the public on only three days a year.
The rest of the season fits between those two afternoons. In late 2026, Point Loma's calendar runs on fixed dates, and the restaurants keep their own time. The events below are scheduled, ticketed or posted. The restaurant news is a mix of one room that has been open for months, one that is still listed as coming soon, and one that won't open its first buildings until 2027.
Four Dates in Twenty-Two Days
Last weekend's Harvest on the Promenade, held Oct. 17 and 18, started the fall run at Liberty Station. Here is what's left, in order:
- Saturday, Oct. 24. "Will You Stay Here for a Moment?" by Denja Harris opens at Visions Museum of Textile Art and runs through Dec. 5.
- Sunday, Oct. 25. Halloween at the Station, noon to 4 p.m., Ingram Plaza.
- Friday, Nov. 6. First Friday at the Arts District.
- Sunday, Nov. 15. Open Tower Day at Cabrillo National Monument.
Three of the four happen within walking distance of one another at Liberty Station. The fourth is at the far end of the peninsula, and it's the one where showing up early matters most.
Oct. 24 and 25: One Weekend, Two Kinds of Afternoon
The Halloween weekend at Liberty Station holds two very different events about a day apart.
The first is quiet. The Denja Harris exhibition at Visions Museum of Textile Art opens Saturday and stays up for six weeks, through Dec. 5. Because it runs that long, it doesn't have to compete with the busier dates on the calendar. A visit fits around First Friday on Nov. 6 or any ordinary weekday in between.
The second is Sunday's Halloween at the Station, which takes over Ingram Plaza from noon to 4 p.m. The posted program includes a costume contest, trick-or-treating, activities and a Hollywood car show. Point Loma Cars and Coffee is listed as a participant, so the cars on display come partly from a local gathering many peninsula residents will already know. Since it ends at 4 p.m., the event leaves the evening free for the neighborhood's own trick-or-treat plans the following Saturday, which is Oct. 31.
Nov. 6: The Arts District Gets Its Turn
Twelve days after Halloween at the Station, the activity moves from the plaza to the studios. Liberty Station's First Friday at the Arts District comes back on Nov. 6. That date's calendar lists open studios, a free kids craft and shows by Mockingbird Improv.
First Friday comes around every month, but the November edition falls while the Harris exhibition is still on view. That makes Nov. 6 the easiest single evening to see both the textile show and the working studios on one visit to the same campus.
Nov. 15: The Season Leaves Liberty Station
The last date belongs to Cabrillo National Monument. Open Tower Day on Nov. 15 marks the anniversary of the first time the Old Point Loma Lighthouse was lit, and the National Park Service describes the day as a chance to imagine yourself as the first keeper. The guided tours cover life at the station from 1855 to 1891 and are the only way to reach the top of the tower.
The rarity is the draw. The park lists only three Open Tower Days a year. One is March 22, the date the lighthouse was taken out of service in 1891. One is Aug. 25, the anniversary of the National Park Service's founding. The third is Nov. 15. Miss the November date and the next one is in March.
Before You Go
The park's rules are specific, and a few of them catch first-time visitors:
- Tickets. Tickets are handed out the same day, first come, first served, at a table near the lighthouse. Every participant has to stop there, and the park recommends coming early in the day to secure a time slot.
- Tour times. Each guided tour lasts half an hour, with tours running between 10 a.m. and 3:30 p.m.
- Footwear. You need closed-toed shoes with a back to climb.
- Height. Children must be at least 48 inches tall, and family members may not help each other up the ladder.
- Bags. The opening into the upper tower is narrow. Backpacks and large items go to a bag check station.
- Weather. Access always depends on the weather. The park asks visitors to check with the Visitor Center or call 619-523-4285 for updates.
If anyone in your group shouldn't take on the ladder, the park suggests touring the assistant keepers' quarters or the first story of the lighthouse instead.
Where to Eat Between Dates
The newest dining room that's actually open on the Liberty Station side has been open since spring. San Diego Magazine reported Grandson Steaks as open by mid-April 2026. Eater San Diego describes it as an all-day Sonoran steakhouse and butcher shop rooted in northern Mexican grilling, founded by childhood friends Tomas Gomez and Roger Canez. It still appears on Eater's best new restaurants list for October 2026. It's at 2690 Historic Decatur Road, a short walk from the plaza on Halloween Sunday.
The room people have been waiting for is El Punto. In July, the San Diego Union-Tribune reported that City Tacos founder Gerry Torres would open the new concept in October, in the former Go Go Amigo space at 2885 Perry Road. According to that report, El Punto will be similar in style to the company's OB Playground taqueria but much larger, with more of a restaurant feel. The menu will carry only the top five City Tacos tacos, plus full entrées and locally caught seafood from executive chef Eduardo Baeza, including ceviche, oysters and tiraditos. Patch reported that the enclosed dog park will let pets roam and play off leash.
The October target is close, but in mid-October the restaurant's own site still read "Coming Soon – Fall 2026," with no opening day or hours posted. Check the site before you plan a post-parade taco stop around it.
The Officers' Quarters Wait for 2027
The biggest change coming to Liberty Station won't be on this fall's calendar at all. The long-vacant officers' quarters are set to become The Admiral, a hospitality project. The plans include a restaurant, an all-day marketplace with a wine bar, bakery and floral shop, a game room, a speakeasy, an event venue and restored gardens, the Union-Tribune reported in August.
As of Aug. 21, construction hadn't started. Groundbreaking was expected before the end of 2026, the first buildings were scheduled to open in fall 2027, and completion was projected for the end of 2028. If that schedule holds, this is the last fall season at Liberty Station before any part of The Admiral opens. The fall 2027 calendar should include at least some of it.
For now, the dates are what you can plan around. They are Oct. 24 at Visions Museum of Textile Art, Oct. 25 at Ingram Plaza, Nov. 6 in the Arts District, and Nov. 15 at the top of the lighthouse, with tickets from the table and closed-toed shoes on your feet.
At YJ Luxury Realty, we follow the Point Loma calendar for the same reason our clients do: we live here. If you'd like a quiet conversation about how the peninsula is changing, from Liberty Station's next openings to the streets that lead out to Cabrillo, we invite you to request a private consultation.
