Carlsbad State Beach

I come to this camp site once a year to camp and surf. Endless summer! I love this place cause its mellow and not as crowded along with no bars, stores ect nearby for people to loiter around except the campers. Super cool and great for first time campers. This place doesn’t have hooks except a very few usually taken right away. The location has a nice store to buy ice and things you forgot. Showers require a 2 tokens for 4 minutes and since the drought they eliminated the rinse off showers and raised price of showers. They do have nice bathrooms that are cleaned daily and the campsites are very well kept. Remember only 8 people allowed per campsite and have your dogs on their leash. lastly, don’t feed the squirrels, tons of them invade your campsite from people feeding them! they are not afraid to be bold and walk up to your table and take food. Definitely need to control the over population.

So far a great experience– we did a walk in to camp and it is absolutely beautiful!
The customer service has been amazing. The beach is just down the cliff. There is a mini store to get what you need. For example fire wood ice etc.
There is a laundry and each camp spot comes with it’s own picnic table. There is a place to fire up and make some smores! Nummmm! The bathroom was very close to our spot. This place is fenaminal. There is no anti bacterial soap in the bathrooms so if you have germ phobia bring some. Also I am sensitive so I brought water shoes the beach is pretty Rocky.
$ 35 a night if not close to the beach and $ 50 if it’s near the beach.
Try it out!

Came to California from Arizona for a visit to buy something, stopped by the beach to see it for the first time in a few years. It was. okay. Definitely a prettier beach than most California beaches I’ve seen. The interesting area I stopped for was blocked off, I had to climb down a cliff to walk up the shoreline an eighth of a mile or so, then dodge waves to jump up to the stairs, and when I got to the top it, too, was blocked off and I couldn’t go anywhere. I ended up standing up there for 45 or so minutes conversing with an old homeless dude. I want to say «wasn’t well kept» but then again they were actively doing renovation (hence why it was blocked off) so that wouldn’t be fair. If I come back to this area I’ll definitely come back to this beach. But hopefully it will be in much more accessible condition. If not, I’ll immediately lower to two stars.

Beautiful, typical, rocky, Southern Cali Beach. And Clean!!!
Love it.

First time at this beach. Very impressive. Not crowded. Easy to find parking on Sunday afternoon. Restroom is very clean (most important to us women). We’ll definitely come back for family pic nic.

Wonderful! By far the greatest, cleanest, and simplest beach I’ve been to in SoCal. Not a lot of noise so you can really vibe out and relax. Super clean sand and water compared to most. If you go here, check out Carlsbad village in the day time. Such a great place!

One of my favorite stretches of beach along the coast. I like this area because its family friendly, and less crowded then the oceanside beaches. The parking is mostly on the street with one parking lot. There are lifeguards seasonally, and a bathroom at the top of the parking lot. The shore is rocky but not so bad you cant walk. This is a very kid safe area, and the best place for my son to boogie board. This IS our family beach.

Probably one of the most beautiful beaches along the southern coast of California. It’s never too packed so there’s always a place to sit & we always manage to find free parking walking distance to the beach.
There’s always a ton of rocks but why would it matter? It’s a beach. I prefer this beach WAY over Oceanside and others.

This is a favorite place with the locals. It’s slightly south of the village so the tourists aren’t usually there. Surfers catch waves, and you can tide pool at low tide. You can park on the street along PCH or in the neighborhood off of Cerezo. The walk along the cliffs is amazing and is what comes to mind when you think of Cali coastline. The water ranges in color of blue, and you can see kelp fronds in the waves. I have seen Osprey as well so watch for them!

Love this beach — there’s never too many people and it’s super clean.

I dont know why I always go to Moolight beach but I think Carlsbad is my new favorite.
It can take a while to find parking but not nearly as bad as other beaches. Plus there’s tons of beach access spots which makes it even easier.
From the beach access there’s a few stairs to climb down but its not bad at all.
The beach is much less crowded here which I love. Its a bit of a slope between the sand and the water but its necessary for how quick the tide moves up. In the water the waves can get massive. Strong enough to knock you down. Also, goodluck getting all the sand from the water off your body when you’re done.
The last time I was here I saw a seal kicking it on the sand. It was pretty random but cool.

It’s beautiful, it’s nearby, parking is generally pretty good, and on weekdays during the school year I have it to myself!!!

I live less than a mile from Carlsbad State Beach. I love love the beach! You can go lay out, swim in the ocean, run along the path, hang out with friends, anything is possible!
Parking: free street parking. There’s also a tiny lot next to Fish Harbor Café, but it’s pretty hard finding a spot there most times.
Lots to do around the area too. Walking distance to the shops and restaurants around the area. Do pick up after yourself though and keep the beaches clean!

My son and I love this beach. Clean sand nice waves, no trash everywhere. It’s not over crowded during the week. I don’t head down on the weekends so I can’t speak for that! But we have a pleasant time when we go. Stay inbetween the designated signs for swimming/​surfing/​body boarding or the lifeguards come at you; like the should!

This is one of favorite places in all of San Diego! I love this beach in particular because the parking is beachfront and it is rarely crowded.
You do have to pay for parking, about $ 10 for the day, which is not bad. The parking pay booths are located on each end of the parking lot and accept cash or debit/​credit card. Takes a few minutes to figure out how to use them. Ticket prints out and you put it on the dash. They have security that frequently makes stops here to check for parking so you definitely want to make sure you pay!
They have lifeguards and public restrooms with outside showers/​washing stations. We come here a few times a year to just relax and decompress. Great place to fly a kite, surf, walk the beach or just sit back and take in the sun!

Are you serious?! In one year, this beach bumped up from three to five stars for me.
In that time, I have checked out a good number of beaches along the coast from Long Beach to San Diego.
This is, bar far, one of the best.
I recently stayed at the Carlsbad Best Western and had one of the best beach going experiences off the coast of California.
Probably because of the steep-​ish walkway, the beach here is less maxed out. You can get a decent spot and not feel like you are resting on top of other beachgoers. And the beach has far fewer rocks and seaweed than other beaches along the coastline.
I look forward to my return!

I’m not a beach girl by any means but working 4 miles from this beach has its perks. I will say that the air is breezier and chillier most days when I’m going to work, but there’s a RARE occasion when it’s hot enough for me to come here, clear my head and dig my feet into the sand. The sand is so soft and it’s very clean compared to the other beaches in San Diego.
The cliffs are great for hiking and and climbing, if you’re into that.
The beach is clean and one of the main beaches I go to with my family. I’m not sure if I like this beach more or Moonlight Beach, either way, this will be my stop much more frequently now.

Beach has lots of seaweed
Parking is a bit tough
Restroom? Good luck finding it.
People are chill here compared to Huntington Beach or Santa Monica

Carlsbad State Beach is such a great multipurpose spot.
The beaches are very clean, parking is relatively easy, plenty of trash cans. Waves are good for kids, no bad rip current or undertow like other nearby beaches.
There are few prettier places to run in San Diego! Expansive views of the ocean the entire time.
The paved path, both down low and the street, is perfect for walking & running. You will always be surrounded by dozens of other people all our exercising and I love that! Nothing feels better than getting a good sweat in, sun shining on you, with perfect ocean breezes.
Plenty of drinking fountains along the path, too.
I love the grass along the path and the bigger patch near Harbor Fish for after run stretching.

How have I never written a review for this place?
This is my go-​to beach. I love it. Whenever I’ve gone, I’ve never had trouble finding parking or a great spot to set up.
Want to run? Do it! It’s relatively flat and you’ll always find other runners to motivate you. Keep running south along the coast and eventually you’ll pass all the houses and have a great view again. No mile markers, but once you hit the campgrounds, I believe that’s a 7 mile round-​trip back to Carlsbad Village Drive. Don’t quote me! :)
Want to run stairs? You got it. Plenty of steps and I’ve always seen people running stairs. You won’t do it alone.
Families playing? Yes
It’s just such a beautiful spot.

This is a beautiful stretch of beach fine soft sand and small rocky cliffs and bluffs. I spent my majority of my time on the southern end of the beach where you have carefully climb down cliffs, which I do not recommend. I found some stairs that bordered the beginning of a neighborhood.
The views from the cliffs were inspiring and beach and water beckoning to come down and I did (
). I decided to take a walk all the way up to the power planet. The walk was beautiful and just what I needed that day to help me clear my mind: women do that to me sometimes…(
).
At any rate, the beach is great for surfing, swimming, scuba diving, fishing, beach combing, and of course sunbathing. I did notice however, I did not see my first visible life guard tower, until I reached the power plant area, so their is a stretch of the southern end with out out life guards.