Week 167: Spring Valley Swap Meet

Week 167: March 15th-21st, 2026

I almost panicked this week because it was already Friday, and I hadn't done Something New. Admittedly, all I've been wanting to do is stay inside and play Pokopia, even though the weather has been weirdly (concerningly) warm for March (80°F+!) and I could be out by the pool.

Anyway, my boyfriend came to my rescue when I explained I didn't have an idea for my SNEW and he suggested we check out the Spring Valley Swap Meet. Spring Valley is a part of San Diego County, apparently categorized as a "census-designated place" or CDP, a little East from San Diego State near La Mesa.

The Spring Valley Swap Meet is on weekends from 7am-3pm and is spread out across a couple of large parking lots off Quarry Road and the 125 Freeway. My boyfriend said he had this idea because his dad would take him there a lot as a kid while he looked for good deals on power tools and mechanic stuff. He suggested we go early in the morning to avoid crowds and get the best chance at finding good stuff.

So, despite it being the weekend, we were up and out the door at 7am. We stopped at the ATM to get some cash in anticipation for good deals and got to the swap meet parking lot around 7:30am. It was already pretty busy, and I'm glad we got there early, because by the time we left, it was getting packed.

The fog was slowly disappearing around 7:30am when we arrived to the Spring Valley Swap Meet

We found a good parking spot pretty close to the entrance and each paid our $1 admission fee. At the entrance, they handed us a little ticket (see the pic below that I grabbed from Yelp), but then we walked a few steps inside and another guy collected the ticket. It seemed a little silly to even use the tickets at all, since they were almost immediately collecting them from us, but maybe their system works. What do I know?

Since we got there pretty early, I would say about 50% of the stalls were set up. A good portion of the vendors were still driving in, propping up their tents, and placing all their wares out on tables or tarps. We walked around in a few loops watching people get set up and browsing the stalls that were ready and open. By the way, the Instagram for the swap meet is @springvalleyswapmeet and the Yelp Page is here. I think its funny something as unpredictable as a swap meet has a Yelp page, since the deals could be so different each time, so I would take any ratings with a grain of salt.

I noticed a huge variety of offerings, from plants and household goods like paper towels to clothes (both used and new with tags), electronics repair stands, bags, tools, cars, and more. We even passed by at least two realtor stands with surprisingly "affordable" 3-4+ bedroom homes in San Diego County for around $700,000. I'm in no position to buy any property anytime soon, but it would be really funny to be able to tell people I got my house from the swap meet. Maybe next time.

The sun started to peek out from the early fog, and soon I regretted not bringing sunglasses. The morning sun did feel nice as we continued to loop around, discovering new stalls that hadn't been set up yet on our first pass through, and checking out all there was on offer. I was open to any good deal I saw, but I was keeping an eye out for a couple of specific items: a heavy-duty, foldable wagon with thicker wheels (for my upcoming picnic birthday in the park) and a nightstand with storage made of real wood. Unfortunately, I was not able to find either at prices I was willing to pay, but it was good to look around. I may need to rely on those "MUST GO, MOVING SOON" posts on Facebook Marketplace, since I've had some luck there.

What I was able to find was tons of produce at low prices. As a fruit-enthusiast, I spend hundreds of dollars on fruit every month. I try to get organic (yes, I listen to my mother!) but sometimes it is just too expensive. While I could've definitely spent more time browsing and gotten more fruit, I was getting tired on our fifth or sixth loop. I ended up buying just one big bag of 9 mangoes for $5.

While I tried to select good ones, I knew most of the mangoes needed to be eaten that same day. I was disheartened when I got home and the first mango I cut into was almost entirely brown and yucky inside, but thankfully the other 8 were salvageable. I now have a big container in the fridge with cut mango pieces that I look forward to snacking on.

On our way out, we also got a small bag of kettle corn for $4 after striking up a conversation with the kettle corn vendor and trying some of her green-apple flavored samples.

My boyfriend didn't find any deals on tools (he was looking specific for a RIDGID brad-nailer, and none we found were fully functional), but it was still a fun morning. I felt energized being out of the house so early on a weekend, and felt a huge amount of respect for people who truly rely on swap meets to either make a living or find affordable items. I feel lucky that the swap meet is something a bit more novel to me. I have never had to fill a truck full of used toys or Kirkland clothes and re-sell them to make ends meet. It is a hard way to make a living, especially with the fear of ICE raids at any moment. I told my boyfriend we should go back soon because I would much rather be supporting vendors at the swap meet than contributing to Target or Walmart's growing fortunes.

I will say that the Spring Valley Swap meet felt a lot like Mexico, which makes sense given our proximity to the border, but it also felt a lot like the swap meets back home in the Bay. You can really find a huge variety of things to buy and types of people to meet, and this was similar. It differed greatly from San Diego's more "well-known" swap meet called Kobe's in Point Loma. From what I can remember, Kobe's is full of "vintage" clothes re-sellers and people trying to scam you into buying an overpriced, old pair of Levi's because its "fashion." While thrifting in any way is better for the environment than buying new, similarly to not wanting to support Target or Walmart, I would much rather support the people at Spring Valley Swap Meet than any of the gentrifiers at Kobe's anyway.

Honestly, this was a place of true hustlers. There were tons of people working hard to make money and put food on the table for their families, and tons of people looking for good deals. It seemed like a place where there are lots of things to find and discover, and lots of things to learn. It was a reminder of my own privilege, as well as my love for a good deal. I'm excited to enjoy my mangoes with this upcoming sunny weather.

See you next week.