Day off beach trip!!!

[Bossy22]

We have just booked our hotel for our next trip, DI&S and are getting very excited!!! Every trip we have a day for the beach but have never gone. Always get intimidated by what beach and how to get there so this year we are planning ahead of time which is where you come in!!! I want to go to a real nice beach within reasonable distance to drive with parking. We are Canadians from rural Alberta so big city driving isn't our favorite. Lets hear what recommendations you have and why. It will be my wife and I, her parents, and our 4 and 3 year old girls. Really want to plan this ahead of time and have the maps and directions and ideas all printed in advance so we don't miss the beach again this year!!!

 

[awdsmama]

We are going to spend a day at Santa Monica, exploring the pier, beach etc. The Budget rental car location a block or two South of DL gave us a daily rate of $25. It seems to be an easy drive, mostly freeway the whole way, we'll just be avoiding rush hours.

 

[ILUVALASKA]

Are you staying near Disneyland? If so, just head south on Beach Blvd. and you will dead end at Huntington Beach. Make a right on PCH and you hit the famed Main St., Surf City, USA. You have a shopping/eating district, rentals, the pier, and more. No freeways. I am a local and I dislike Santa Monica. Too far and feels dirty.

 

[Luv2Diz]

We have just booked our hotel for our next trip, DI&S and are getting very excited!!! Every trip we have a day for the beach but have never gone. Always get intimidated by what beach and how to get there so this year we are planning ahead of time which is where you come in!!! I want to go to a real nice beach within reasonable distance to drive with parking. We are Canadians from rural Alberta so big city driving isn't our favorite. Lets hear what recommendations you have and why. It will be my wife and I, her parents, and our 4 and 3 year old girls. Really want to plan this ahead of time and have the maps and directions and ideas all printed in advance so we don't miss the beach again this year!!!

I asked a similar question here recently and several people recommended Huntington Beach. I'm glad they did! I did some research and it sounds perfect. We just booked a hotel to spend the first night of our vacation there before moving on to DL. Can't wait!

 

[ParkHopper1]

Huntington Beach is the easiest. Santa Monica is nice, but if city driving isn't your thing...then don't do Santa Monica unless you want to go check out the quintessential CA beach vibe kinda place. It looks easy on paper, but its LA...there is traffic in all directions all day!

 

[awinangie]

Is Huntington Beach good for swimming and sand castles?

I have many memories of "body surfing" at the beach when we lived in Fullerton when I was a kid, but I have no idea where we went...

 

[SammiL]

Is Huntington Beach good for swimming and sand castles? I have many memories of "body surfing" at the beach when we lived in Fullerton when I was a kid, but I have no idea where we went...

Great for boogie boarding! There are a lot of families who come to spend the day by the pier, build castles, fly kites and watch their kids swim around.

 

[awinangie]

Thanks!!! Maybe that's even where I went as a kid!

 

[carriemd]

we are going in late March....last time I was in CA in March was about 11 years ago but I remember it being cold. It'll be too cold to swim, yes? We're also visiting friends in San Diego...will it be any better there? I doubt it but wanted to ask

 

[CMHusband]

Are you staying near Disneyland? If so, just head south on Beach Blvd. and you will dead end at Huntington Beach. Make a right on PCH and you hit the famed Main St., Surf City, USA. You have a shopping/eating district, rentals, the pier, and more. No freeways. I am a local and I dislike Santa Monica. Too far and feels dirty.

This is what I was going to suggest. Downtown Huntington Beach is very nice. There is a great Diner called Ruby's out on the end of the Pier with pretty good food. Easy parking with a couple of multi-level parking structures, Great weather (usually) and easy to get to and leave. Breakfast downtown huntington beach at the Sugar Shack on Main street is pretty good. Mexican food at FREDS upstairs on the corner of Pacific Coast Hwy and Main Street overlooking the entire beach at sunset is awesome. Lots of shops to wander in and out of. Depending on the day lots of "crusing" on main street from Hot rods to Lamborghini's - This little beach town has become the perfect example of what the beach is all about.

and definitely forget Santa Monica. - Too far, traffic in that direction is really really bad and its kind of a dump. You'll spend half your day on the freeway. Go to Huntington, you can get there in 20 minutes. and it clean and stress-free. Nice People too. No bad neighborhoods or safety issues.

 

[CMHusband]

we are going in late March....last time I was in CA in March was about 11 years ago but I remember it being cold. It'll be too cold to swim, yes? We're also visiting friends in San Diego...will it be any better there? I doubt it but wanted to ask

yes. too cold to swim. but overall the weather is nice- today for instance it was like 70 degrees F. San Diego is really nice too but not as "beachy" unless you go over to the Coronado Hotel - That is a really nice beach to check out with a quaint small town feel. Your friends will tell you its worth the trip.

 

[GoofyDadude]

"Every trip we have a day for the beach but have never gone."

That sounds like us as well. Thanks for asking this question. Looks like we will take a ride out to the beach this time around. Thanks for the info too.

 

[Luv2Diz]

This is what I was going to suggest. Downtown Huntington Beach is very nice. There is a great Diner called Ruby's out on the end of the Pier with pretty good food. Easy parking with a couple of multi-level parking structures, Great weather (usually) and easy to get to and leave. Breakfast downtown huntington beach at the Sugar Shack on Main street is pretty good. Mexican food at FREDS upstairs on the corner of Pacific Coast Hwy and Main Street overlooking the entire beach at sunset is awesome. Lots of shops to wander in and out of. Depending on the day lots of "crusing" on main street from Hot rods to Lamborghini's - This little beach town has become the perfect example of what the beach is all about.

and definitely forget Santa Monica. - Too far, traffic in that direction is really really bad and its kind of a dump. You'll spend half your day on the freeway. Go to Huntington, you can get there in 20 minutes. and it clean and stress-free. Nice People too. No bad neighborhoods or safety issues.

Thanks for posting this....It makes me that much more excited to start our vacation in Huntington Beach! We had originally planned to spend our first night staying on the Queen Mary but reviews are pretty negative. Huntington Beach sounds like a much better choice! We had also pondered seeing Santa Monica later in our trip but may skip that.

 

[wiigirl]

Huntington Beach is the easiest. Santa Monica is nice, but if city driving isn't your thing...then don't do Santa Monica unless you want to go check out the quintessential CA beach vibe kinda place. It looks easy on paper, but its LA...there is traffic in all directions all day!

 

[luulu1999]

what about Hampton beach is it far? Balboa Island looked like something that would be fun for us Thanks!

 

[CMHusband]

what about Hampton beach is it far? Balboa Island looked like something that would be fun for us Thanks!

Never heard of Hampton Beach?
Balboa is nice too. but If you only have one day, you'll be better off picking one place. Huntington is a little smaller, more "quaint" maybe? and easier to manage logistically.

 

[nannyz]

We did the beach thing a couple of times but never really enjoyed it. The beaches are dirty, the sand is gray, and the water is cold.
We go to Knott's instead. The kids love it and the fried chicken is good.

 

[LYNSUE]

We will be visiting Disneyland in August and we want to spend one morning at the beach. We love to just walk the beach front at the waters edge. Would Huntington Beach provide enough beach front for a long walk up and back?

 

[KCmike]

We did the beach thing a couple of times but never really enjoyed it. The beaches are dirty, the sand is gray, and the water is cold.
We go to Knott's instead. The kids love it and the fried chicken is good.

I've been to several beaches in SoCal and have never seen them dirty. I think the Pacific is gorgeous blue water. To me the Atlantic is dirty looking.

To the original poster I would suggest Newport, Huntington, or Corona Del Mar. Newport and CDM are very close to each other and just separated by a jetty. The CDM is a perfect crescent shape beach for wading and getting into the water. It is cold but not bad in the summertime.

CDM

Corona Del Mar Beach by KC MikeD, on Flickr



Corona Del Mar from the Cliff by KC MikeD, on Flickr

Newport Beach

Newport Pier by KC MikeD, on Flickr



Newport Beach by KC MikeD, on Flickr


This was from November of 2013. 2 months ago.

Pacific Sunrise by KC MikeD, on Flickr



Cresting the Wave by KC MikeD, on Flickr

 

[GoofyDadude]

Very nice pics of the beach, KC Mike. Thanks for sharing