South Ponto Beach

Very special place — can be rocky at times, so bring your Tevas if you have them :)

Great beach for Bön fires! We met friends here & had a blast. Everyone was using the various fire pits & making food. Not a ton of parking — but the parking is free.

I’m just not into this beach. This is a local’s beach, not touristy at all. It is basically a big rocky sand dune that gets very crusty and full of debris. It will chew up your bare feet. Then down closer to the water piles of seaweed sit rotting everywhere — it stinks, brings out flies and other pests. Seagulls pester us a lot here, likely due to all the picnicking. You may be tempted to place your towels closer to the water where the sand is cleaner, but by mid-​afternoon when the tide comes in you’ll be wet or clamoring to move farther up.
It has the feel of a good swimmers beach, but in fact it’s notorious for dangerous rip tide. Get here early for free beachside parking. Road parking can get tight and cars line up for spots in the summer. Another option is the parking lot on south end, but it’s a bit pricey for the day. That’s where the bathrooms and showers are located.
This beach just has issues and a feel I don’t care for.

After the January storms, local beaches suffered a lot of sand erosion. Ponto Beach is now essentially ROCKS, and at high tide you won’t even see sand. Warning: With all the large and medium rocks, it’s dangerous to walk down to Ponto Beach, even past the restrooms. Slipping and sliding on rocks is a recipe for broken ankles. Essentially, there is no recreational beach here now.

Want to get away from it all? A great California state beach that has simply a big lot of sand, good waves and the ability to have a bonfire (need a enclosed pit).
Parking is extremely limited and thus the coolness factor. You can play volleyball and enjoy a nice frozen treat during the summer with the vendors. Alcohol is not allowed which makes for a nice family beach day.
Warning: surf can get jacked. Paddlers beware.

I come here a lot, because it is close and convenient, but it is not my favorite. (Sidenote — I feel kinda ridiculous giving a beach 3 stars, because, Hello it is the beach! And it is of course amazing and beautiful and I feel so lucky to live 10 minutes from it and go all the time!)
It is for sure more of a locals beach, as opposed to other beaches that are more touristy, which is also one of the reasons I come a lot, because it is a little more low key.
Here’s my list of grievances:
— Parking. Two places to park: a paid lot or the street. I always park on the street. It is free vs. $ 15/​day for the paid lot. But it is a nightmare. There isn’t that much and it gets gnarly. It should be better now that there are designated stalls spray painted on the parallel parking area with a clear KEEP OPEN, because before, cars would cram and double park parallel, sometimes blocking the entry/​exit and making it impossible to back out if you park facing the beach. Lots of Austin Powers turns going on.
— Always a bad rip current. ⁹⁄₁₀ the lifeguards make announcements, post flags, wade out to warm swimmers that there is a bad rip current.
— Lots of small seagrass clumps everywhere. I don’t mind some seaweed, but it always seems worse here compared to other spots.
— Bathrooms are a hike. All the way by the paid parking lot. Quite a walk if you are anywhere else on the beach.
Insiders tip: Although tempting, resist the urge to set up your beach much past the small slope you walk down after parking. The tide rises in the afternoon and it is a pain to keep creeping your stuff back and/​or watching it get drenched by a big wave. I always park it right at the base of the slope.

LOVE LOVE LOVE this beach! Has a parking lot or you can park off the street. Waves ore calm which makes for great swimming. Every Easter there is a sunrise service here that is absolutely beautiful. Hundreds of people show up and many of then are baptized in the water after the service. I did this myself two Easters ago. Service is held by North Coast Calvary Chapel.
Other than that, SUPER DUPER beach! Very fond memories :)

Great location with easy parking (if you can find any during peak times). I have found that late mornings during the week are a great time to snag a spot with no issue. I like to bring my youngest child here as there are no stairs to conquer. Also, a beautiful place to watch the sunset!

Visited this beach twice in two days this last weekend. Saturday night was party time for groups of teens and 20 somethings with fires, beer and burgers. They were all friendly and in a good mood… except this one muscly dude with more temper than brains… but it is all good. Got some nice pictures of the beach and of the sunset.
I returned Sunday for an hour to walk the beach. Saw many remnants of the nights parties (and a group of seniors cleaning up).
Next time I return to Carlsbad, I plan to bring beach chairs and enjoy the sunset.
Had a wonderful time at the beach!

Pinto is another good all around beach. There is plenty of sand at the south side of the jetty. The north side has a lot of rocks a lot of the time and it’s a pain to get in and out of the water on this side.
Parking here is hit or miss. There is street parking and there is also a free lot. Be ware of the high amount of sand in the most northern part of the lot because I always see a lot of people get their cars stuck in the sand here. They have lifeguards on duty dieting the spring weekends and summer days.
This place is great for surfing. It’s good for all stages of learning but there are mostly advanced surfers at the Ponto Point.
There are no bathrooms here and no food services. The closest place for food and use of a bathroom (besides the ocean) is the taco shop just south of here, which is really good.

So rare in So Cal to find a beach which helps you leave the industrial vibe. Here you can forget that millions of people are all around you.

This is a decent beach for San Diego/​Carlsbad. Parking is close to the sand — if you happen to score it. The sand, as on every other beach in Southern California, is the type of sand I’m just not crazy about – tiny grains that stick to your skin… not at all the nice gravelly sand that you’d find in Hawaii. Our beaches also tend to drag up lots of kelp on the sand. The rotting kelp draws flies.
Dogs are not permitted on this beach. I believe alcohol may be permitted… if it’s in a pitcher. At least I’ve seen people bring alcohol to this beach.
Bonus Tip:
Be very careful of riptides at this spot. Something about the currents and geography here makes it a rip tide vortex.

If you are looking for a beautiful, clean, friendly So Cal beach; you’ve come to the right place!!! Ponto is the perfect spot for people of all kinds, families, parties, beginning surfers, advanced surfers, swimmers, paddle boarders, sun tanners, beach walkers, junior lifeguards, and more! believe it to be the best beach is San Diego. I I’ve been coming here for the past 10 years, and it never fails me to have the beach experience I want! Even in the evening time, the sunset cliff above the bathrooms and showers is incredibly beautiful and romantic to watch the sunset at.
The life guards are very friendly and helpful too if you ever have a problem also.

What else are you going to do on a warm summer afternoon while in Southern California? Hit the beach and hope you’re the only one with this idea! Well, unfortunately this beach is hot on the minds of most other locals on any given day of the week. It’s a great location on the south side of Carlsbad with plenty of beach for surfers, boogie boarders and swimmers. Jr. Guards use this beach as their camp site so it can definitely get crowded during the summer.
Parking is super tight as their is really only one small area along the roadside. Not a lot of organization to it other than find space and park. However, most locals will do a fairly good job of leaving space for passers by. There was one jerk off who decided to park blocking the access to the rest of the parking area to anyone else who was looking for space.
A great beach for year round visitors!
Keep on Unilocal’n!

South Ponto is a small area where the locals go. The sand is white and soft, and not many people really know about this part of Carlsbad.
The parking lot SUCKS since there are no designated spots. It’s pretty much a free for all. The only positive is that it’s FREE! Cars are parked every which way and sometimes even double parked. We watched a small SUV do an Austin Powers and did the whole back up 1 inch, move up 1 inch, back up 1 inch and so forth. It was sad… Who knows how long they were trying to get out for!
Such a pretty beach with surfers, volleyball nets, and sunbathers. There’s stairs south of the beach that people work out on and other running, walking or biking along the strand. Great place to watch the sunset!!!

*****CAUTION*****
IF YOU DRIVE A MOM-​MOBILE, SEDAN, OR ANY TWO-​WHEEL DRIVE VEHICLE, DO NOT PARK ON THE SAND– YOU WILL GET STUCK AND CAUSE A FRUSTRATING EXPERIENCE FOR PEOPLE WHO KNOW HOW TO DRIVE AND PARK HERE!!! If I’m there and you’re stuck, I may offer to rent a shovel for $ 10, or pull you out for $ 40. Credit cards and cash only.
There are also spaces on the shoulder of the road that are designated as entry and exit points for this parking area– do not park in these areas.
Be considerate of others. Just because people have parked and blocked off others or taken up large amounts of parking space by not pulling forward as far as possible does not mean it’s acceptable to do so.
Contrary to what you may think, it is NOT permitted to have a FIRE DIRECTLY ON THE SAND. I have arrived at this beach many times to find hot smoldering coals where people have not properly extinguished their fires from the night before.
Please remember to pick up your trash and sand toys you and your kids may have deposited in the sand. The trash ferry does not visit this beach. Doing so yourself will keep the beaches cleaner and more enjoyable for the rest of us.

Drive right onto the beach from coast highway 101 !!! Super easy for a quick walk before sunset, or if there is a crowd you can park in the main parking lot for a fee. This is my favorite beach in Carlsbad just because of the ease of access. There is plenty of sand and space available, they even have volleyball courts set up in the sand. If it is not too crowded stop by and enjoy one of the many beautiful sunsets !!!

Went to this beach the other day for the first time and loved it. I’ve driven past it a ton of times, but never stopped.
It is super easy access. You park and literally walk out right to the sand. I went during the week and it wasn’t terribly crowded. I’m sure on the weekends it is really crowded. There isn’t a ton of parking too, so I’m sure that can be an issue when it is crowded. BUT, I prefer beaches that don’t have a ton of parking because then hopefully less people go.
I have a little toddler, so I loved how close my car was to the sand.
Beautiful beach!

Good beach but bad rip tide. We had two cars broken into and the cop said it happens a lot there. Keep an eye on your car if you go to this beach.

In the summer it is tough to get to Ponto. When the parking lot is full cars line up way out into the road just waiting for people to leave so they can score a parking spot.
Junior lifeguards, surfers, volleyball players, joggers, and tourists flock to South Ponto during peak usage. Other times the beach is empty and I savor the moment that this happens for me.
This beach has paved steps leading up to a magnificent view. Intricately detailed decorations are made into the cement.
It is a great place for Sunset photographs, sans cocktails. This is a dry beach, unfortunately this is not an oxymoron.