Spanning practically 4 miles of lovely Pacific shoreline, Oceanside, CA, affords a various number of seashores, every with its personal distinctive allure.
To aid you discover the most effective seashore to suit your vibe, I’ve created this record of the most effective seashores in Oceanside. Organized from north to south, every seashore consists of an outline, issues to notice, and instructions and parking info.
Whether you’re on the lookout for unbelievable surf or a sandy stretch for household enjoyable, Oceanside, CA, has the proper seashore for you.
Oceanside Harbor Beach
Why Go: Widest and sandiest of the Oceanside, CA seashores with premier surf.
Oceanside Harbor Beach is an extended, huge, sandy seashore located in entrance of Oceanside Harbor and bordered by two rock jetties. The marina is positioned behind the seashore, with open ocean entry on the seashore’s northernmost finish.
This seashore is among the greatest seashores in Oceanside for lively individuals and households. It consists of volleyball courts and a youngsters’ play space. Kiteboarding, windsurfing, browsing, sunbathing, and fishing are well-liked actions at this seashore. It has lifeguards, coated picnic tables, barbecues, hearth pits, restrooms, and showers.
Noteworthy: Situated adjoining to Oceanside Harbor Village, there are a number of close by facilities, together with a wide range of retailers, eateries, and resorts like Marina Inn Hotel.
Stand-up paddleboarding and kayaking are harbor favorites. You can lease kayaks and different water gear right here, plus ebook crusing or deep-sea fishing journeys.
The seashore has among the greatest surf, making it an enormous draw for surfers and different watersport fanatics. You’ll typically see surf competitions right here throughout summer season.
Parking and how one can get right here: Take Harbor Drive exit off I-5, which can carry you proper to the harbor entrance. There are quite a few parking heaps on the harbor. Some are free, some free with time restrictions, and the remainder paid.
Even paid heaps could have time restrictions. Watch the indicators rigorously when selecting lots. When you pull into the harbor, in the event you keep left, you’ll come to a tunnel beneath the railway bridge. The tunnel takes you to a big, free car parking zone with the least time restrictions (Lot 1). It’s additionally farthest from the seashore.
Breakwater Way Beach
Why Go: Quieter, family-friendly seashore additionally well-liked with surfers and volleyball gamers.
Breakwater Way Beach is positioned north of Oceanside Pier and south of the San Luis Rey River mouth. One of the most effective seashores in Oceanside for households, it’s a big stretch of sand lined with palm timber.
There are lifeguards, restrooms, showers, barbecue grills, and picnic tables, making it a one-stop seashore for all your loved ones’s wants. Sunbathing, browsing, and volleyball are the primary attracts of Breakwater Way seashore.
However, in the summertime months, browsing is closed in entrance of Lifeguard Tower 8, so surfers should stroll alongside the jetty to get into the water.
Noteworthy: One of the least populated seashores, the river jetty is the place the San Luis Rey River and the Pacific Ocean meet. A sandbar typically varieties right here, creating an epic surf break. For security, keep away from swimming, wading, or taking part in within the water the place the river meets the ocean.
Parking and how one can get right here: Take the Coast Highway exit west off I-5, flip left on Coast Highway and go two blocks to Surfrider Way, flip proper and go to North Pacific Street, flip proper and go three blocks to Breakwater Way. There is a pay lot on the nook of Breakwater Way and North Pacific Street. Metered parking can be out there alongside North Pacific Street.
Pier View North Beach
Why Go: A quiet, native favourite; sunbathing, swimming, and browsing.
Pier View North Beach is located on the north facet of Oceanside Pier with a wider, longer, and sandier stretch of seashore. This is the proper seashore to chill out with family and friends whereas having fun with actions like sunbathing, browsing, swimming, fishing, and volleyball.
There are two lifeguard towers at this seashore. During the summer season, a selected space of this seashore, marked by flags, is closed to browsing however open to all different water actions.
Noteworthy: The Oceanside Beach Community Center is simply north of Pier View North Beach. It’s near issues to do in Oceanside, just like the Oceanside Pier and the downtown space.
Parking and how one can get right here: Take the Mission Avenue exit off I-5 and go west to North Pacific Street. There is one small pay car parking zone close to this seashore, but it surely fills up quick throughout the summer season. Additional pay parking heaps are on the nook of North Myers Street and Mission Avenue and east of North Pacific Street on Surfrider Way. There can be metered parking alongside North Pacific Street.
Oceanside Pier
Why go: Historic coronary heart of the Oceanside seashore neighborhood; backdrop for browsing competitions; reside live shows and occasions at out of doors pier amphitheater; pier fishing.
You is perhaps questioning how Oceanside Pier made the record of greatest oceanside seashores. It’s a pier, in any case.
The reply is easy. It’s an iconic fixture that separates Pier View North from Pier View South seashores. It’s a historic landmark initially in-built 1888 and one of many longest picket piers (spanning 1,942 toes) on the California coast.
Near the Junior Seau Oceanside Pier Plaza Amphitheater, you’re near the reside performances and occasions which are commonly scheduled there.
Noteworthy: A serious draw is, after all, pier fishing which doesn’t require you to have a fishing license. With its expansive size, there’s ample area for everybody. There is a bait store with rental gear on the pier.
If you don’t fish, it’s at all times enjoyable watching the surfers and marine life play within the water. Grab a espresso or an ice cream and hit the pier to take pleasure in a leisurely stroll and unbelievable views. A Nineteen Fifties diner on the finish of the pier has closed however can be changed. Adjacent to the outdated diner, a tiny, new seafood-inspired idea opens in Spring 2023.
Parking and how one can get right here: Take the Mission Avenue exit off I-5 and go west to North Pacific Street. You’ll see the pier to your proper. There are a number of parking choices surrounding the pier on either side. They embrace free parking heaps, metered parking alongside streets, and free time-restricted spots and plenty.
For your comfort, the City of Oceanside Parking Map gives an entire overview of the parking choices close to the pier. Note the Oceanside Transit Center affords free parking heaps three blocks away.
Pier View South Beach
Why Go: Best seashore within the coronary heart of the motion; entry to essentially the most facilities and actions.
The hottest seashore in Oceanside, Pier View South Beach is positioned south of the historic Oceanside Pier in downtown Oceanside.
A large and sandy stretch, the seashore has lifeguards, barbecues, picnic tables, and firepits. Swimming, browsing, bodyboarding, bodysurfing, sunbathing, and fishing are the most typical seashore actions.
This seashore additionally hosts browsing contests throughout the summer season, and the close by Junior Seau Oceanside Pier Amphitheater hosts varied cultural and musical occasions all year long. You’ll discover meals and gear rental distributors right here too.
Noteworthy: The home from the film Top Gun is immediately throughout the road from Pier View South. Now a retro pie store, The High Pie homes memorabilia from the film. Pier View South Beach blends seamlessly into Tyson Street Beach and Park, additionally an Oceanside favourite. Guests of The Seabird Resort and Mission Pacific Hotel additionally stroll throughout the road to this seashore.
Parking and how one can get right here: Take the Mission Avenue exit off I-5 and go west to North Pacific Street. There are two pay parking heaps located north and south of the pier.
If these heaps are full, there’s one other pay car parking zone on Myers Street and Mission Avenue, only one block east of South Pacific Street. Metered parking can be discovered on South Pacific Street. The Oceanside Transit Center affords free parking three blocks away.
Tyson Street Beach and Park
Why Go: People watching; being within the middle of the motion; a grassy park with playground.
Tyson Street Beach and Park is among the hottest Oceanside seashores south of Oceanside Pier. The park and seashore are located on both facet of The Strand, the place vehicles crawl by for a take a look at beachgoers and the ocean past.
Tyson Street Park, immediately behind the seashore, has a youngsters’s playground and bogs on a big grassy space. During summer season, there’s a pleasant mixture of younger adults and households blanketing the grassy space and the sandy seashore in entrance of it. The park is a well-liked place to picnic.
Noteworthy: Dramatic stairs lead from South Pacific Street to Tyson Street Park beneath, with a pedestrian crossing to the seashore.
The Aqua Café is a basic seashore shack-style café tucked at the back of the park with a menu of tasty, nutritious, and natural eats – dine in, or take out. The café additionally has native music on Sunday afternoons.
Parking and how one can get right here: Take the Mission Avenue exit off I-5 and go west towards the ocean, flip left on South Pacific Street. The park and seashore are about one-half mile up in your proper.
Parking on South Pacific Street is metered, and there’s a paid lot at Mission Avenue and Meyers Street. About three blocks behind Tyson Park is the Oceanside Transit Center car parking zone with free parking and a charging station. There are three handicapped parking areas in Tyson Park, accessed off First Street and S. The Strand.
Wisconsin Street Beach
Why Go: A paid car parking zone proper throughout from the seashore; an entry level to the Pier and Pier seashores; summertime low-tide jog or stroll.
Wisconsin Street Beach is oddly named, as its location is on the nook of South Pacific Street and Wisconsin Avenue, not avenue.
Over the years, the seashore has gotten more and more slim as a result of erosion. Now, even at low tide, the seashore is little greater than a slim strip of moist, hard-packed sand.
Large boulders line the seashore shoreside and separate it from The Strand and beachfront houses behind it. It’s a “back door” to the extra well-liked seashores on both facet of Oceanside Pier.
It’s additionally a gathering spot at sundown when people and {couples} line the boulders to observe the solar’s spectacular descent into the Pacific Ocean. The seashore is open to all actions and is lifeguard-protected (Tower 7). No canine.
Noteworthy: There are restrooms/showers and picnic tables on one facet of the Wisconsin Street car parking zone. Even although seashore site visitors alongside The Strand is one-way coming towards you, relaxation assured you’ll be able to flip into the car parking zone from Wisconsin Avenue. Stairs result in South Pacific Street.
Parking and how one can get right here: Take I-5 to Oceanside Boulevard, exit west towards the seashores, flip proper on South Pacific Street to Wisconsin Avenue, flip left, and go down the block-long hill.
A car parking zone is on the precise with a U-shaped drive-through. The seashore is throughout the road. Paid lot. Street parking is metered or time-restricted north of Wisconsin alongside South Pacific Street. Parking is free alongside South Pacific Street south of Wisconsin however might also be time-restricted. Check the indicators.
Oceanside Boulevard Beach
Why Go: An simple entry level for a low-tide seashore stroll; a quiet place to perch atop an enormous boulder at sundown
This small seashore on the finish of Oceanside Boulevard is barely larger than Buccaneer Beach, the smallest of the Oceanside seashores. You’ll discover a sandy space about 200 toes huge that’s lifeguard protected throughout summer season (Tower 9). It’s an important start line for a stroll alongside the Pacific Ocean.
Like many smaller Oceanside seashores, excessive tides typically go away the seashore with hardpacked, damp sand. But you’ll nonetheless discover just a few solar worshipers getting their tans on right here.
Noteworthy: Oceanside Boulevard Beach is a serene place to sit down atop the boulders that line the shoreline for a West Coast sundown. Don’t be stunned to see some boulders already occupied with cairns – stacks of stones. This seashore is reserved for swimming, wading, and bodyboarding solely. There are not any bogs at this seashore, however there’s an outside bathe to rinse sandy toes. No canine allowed.
Parking and how one can get right here: Take Oceanside Boulevard from I-5 to South Pacific Street and park there or alongside different close by streets. No parking charges.
Buccaneer Beach
Why Go: A tiny, family-friendly seashore with all the things you want shut by.
Nestled between oceanfront houses and condos on both facet, Buccaneer Beach is the smallest of the lifeguard-protected Oceanside, CA, seashores (Tower 11).
The family-friendly seashore has all of it — handy lot parking, a grassy park with a youngsters’s playground, a small café, and public bogs, all positioned immediately throughout South Pacific Street. There’s even a marked pedestrian crossing between the facilities and the seashore.
Noteworthy: Buccaneer Park, throughout South Pacific Street from the seashore, has a youngsters’s playground, a big grassy space, basketball courts, charcoal grills, picnic tables, bogs, and showers.
You’ll discover Buccaneer Café right here as nicely, the place you may get breakfast, lunch, or snacks day by day from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. Next to the park is a footpath operating alongside Loma Alta Creek for a enjoyable nature stroll or birdwatching alternative.
Dogs should not allowed on this seashore. Surfing is offered on both facet of the seashore space however not in entrance of the seashore, the place it’s solely swimming, wading, and physique boarding.
Parking and how one can get right here: To get right here, take I-5 north to Vista Way exit, go west towards the seashore to Coast Highway (101), flip proper and go to Cassidy Street, the place you’ll go left to South Pacific Street, flip proper, and go a half mile. The seashore is on the left, parking is on the precise behind Buccaneer Café. No parking charges.
Cassidy Street Beach
Why Go: An area favourite for a second of Zen; entry level for an energizing seashore stroll.
You’ll need to watch the tide tables for this seashore, because it’s fully absorbed at excessive tide. The seashore is lengthy and slim and lined with giant boulders shoreside to create an erosion barrier for coastal houses.
This doesn’t go away room for rather more than a low-tide seashore stroll. But once more, time it rigorously.
Although lifeguard tower 15 is positioned on the seashore right here, there’s seldom a lifeguard current. There are not any bogs right here, both. For these causes, there could also be higher seashores for households with youngsters.
Noteworthy: At the tip of Cassidy Street, you’ll see a strong picket staircase that takes you right down to the seashore. Don’t be stunned to search out somebody meditating on a bench on the high of the steps or to see a non-public wedding ceremony ceremony on the seashore beneath. Sometimes individuals will take their lunch break up high, having fun with the sounds of waves crashing on rocks.
Parking and how one can get right here: Cassidy Street Beach is the southernmost public entry seashore in Oceanside. To get right here, take I-5 north to Vista Way exit, go west towards the seashore to Coast Highway (101), flip proper and go to Cassidy Street, the place you’ll flip left and go straight to the lifeless finish.
There’s restricted parking on the Cassidy Street dead-end. More parking is offered alongside South Pacific Street. No parking charges.
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