If you are looking for the best beaches in San Diego, you need to know what you are looking for. Do your best beaches require good surf? Or do they need to be more kid-friendly? Whatever your preference, the best beaches in San Diego have it all.
If your priority is for awesome surf, you have many options. Keep in mind that San Diego surf breaks are best in the winter when the swells come in from the west and north, versus from the south during the summer and fall months. The water temperatures are naturally colder than during the warmer months, but often stay in the 60’s, even into January (in 2013-14 we had very few days when the temps dropped into the 50’s).
Some of the best beaches in San Diego for surfing are familiar names to experienced surfers: Black’s Beach, Swami’s, Cardiff, Windansea, Del Mar, Mission Beach, and La Jolla Shores, to name a few of the more well known spots. But remember, San Diego County is a good 70 miles long, stretching all the way up to that most famous surf break, Trestles. Trestles is usually thought of as Orange County, but the reality is that it’s in San Diego County. San Onofre—considered by many to be the best place to learn to surf in California—is just south of there, so it counts as part of San Diego, too.
If family-friendly is more your cup of tea, the best beaches in San Diego include Moonlight Beach, Oceanside, Coronado and Mission Beach. The website UT-San Diego.com called Mission Beach San Diego’s #1 most iconic beach, “the epitome of the Southern California beach,” owing to its boardwalk and roller coaster (there is also an arcade, all known as Belmont Park). You can rent bikes, and just about anything else related to beach fun. Mission Beach is also known as a great surf spot, so you can have everything the best beaches in San Diego have to offer.