Beach Guide
Dogs, parking, lifeguards and the walk down for all five beaches — plus the honest word on Doheny's water quality.
Five very different beaches in about eight miles — and almost none of them are run by the city. Each entry below says who actually manages the sand, what parking really costs, and what the rules are, checked against the agencies' own pages. The one thing this page can't show is today's water quality — for that, check ocbeachinfo.com or call the county hotline before you swim.
Check the water before you swim — especially at Doheny
Doheny State Beach
The classic family state beach at the mouth of San Juan Creek: a campground, a five-acre picnic lawn, a gentle longboard wave at the north end, and a visitor center with ocean tanks (weekends 10am-4pm). Run by California State Parks, not the city or county.