Favorite Beaches

With over 70 miles of Pacific Ocean coastline, San Diego County has many outdoor recreational choices, especially due to San Diego’s perfect weather. Where to go? What beaches to choose from? Here’s a short list of favorite beaches to do activities:

Best Snorkeling:

La Jolla Cove Snorkeling – Hands down, La Jolla Cove is the best location for snorkeling in San Diego. The water is calm, making it suitable for children and beginners. The undersea life is abundant and close to the shore. Arrive early for the best experience.

Best Tide Pool:

Cabrillo Mounment/Point Loma Tide Pool – Some of the best tidepools in California can found at Cabrillo National Monument. On the west side of Point Loma lies a rocky inter-tidal zone, that gives you a nice window into the ocean ecosystem. If you look closely you can see flowery sea anemones, spongy deadman’s fingers, an elusive octopus, starfish, sea urchins, sea cucumber and even more creatures.

Best Activity Selections:

Mission Beach – Over 2 miles of beach which include a boardwalk to jog, bicycle, kayak, sunbathe or roller blade. You even have easy access to check out Belmont Park to ride the Big Dipper rollercoaster, play at the arcade or ride in the bumper boats.

Most Child-Friendly:

Mission Bay - Mission Bay’s clam calm and protected water allow children to splash around without the danger of the ocean surf. There is plenty of places to have a picnic and fly a kite.

Best Surfing:

Black’s Beach – The waves break long and in organized lines. A submarine trench offshore comes within a half mile off the coast and raw ocean swells come fast and forceful. Black’s requires a long hike down the cliff and a lot of extra paddling effort to get into the lineup. It can hold rideable surf well into the 10′-12′ realm.

Most Relaxing:

Solana Beach – Head north to where there are quieter beaches in the more residential areas to get away from the crowds.

Best Unique Feature:

La Jolla Children’s Pool – The swimming area used to be a place for children to swim, is now used for seal and sea lion when they took over the beach. Now visitors can watch them sunbathe and get a free marine mammal show.