Sometimes you just want to spend your days on a seaside stretch where affordable eats are easy to come by and lodgings don’t break the bank. To help you in your quest, we’ve rounded up a handful of family friendly beaches from central California to Alaska that have plenty of space for spreading your blanket but without the high costs often associated with coastal retreats. Get ready to relax!
Dillon Beach, California
Situated along Bodega Bay on the cusp of Marin and Sonoma counties (though it’s actually in the former), Dillon Beach is the only privately owned beach in Northern California—a wide, nearly mile-long stretch that attracts families, surfers, and tide-poolers alike. Blankets, charcuterie, and other outdoor dining treats are for sale at Dillon Beach Resort, just up the hill. The neighboring Coastal Kitchen serves up fried chicken sandwiches and shrimp tacos with Pacific views.
There’s a $10 fee on weekdays, $15 on weekends, for parking at the beach. However, the lot is adjacent to the sand, so you can easily cart beach chairs and umbrellas back-and-forth without having to endure the cliffside stairs of many other NorCal coastal stretches.
Less than a mile south is Lawson’s Landing, a campground with its own waterfront expanse, as well as a mix of overnight sites for tents and RVs.
Westport, Washington
Whether it’s combing the shoreline of Westport Light State Park for seashells and agates (please leave them where you find them), or watching surfers brave the waters around “the jetty,” which separates Washington’s Half Moon Bay from the Pacific, Westport has plenty to entice beach-goers. The small fishing village is home to the largest coastal marina in the Pacific Northwest, as well as miles of waterfront property—sweeping sands where you can rest, recharge, and take your dog on a stroll. You can even drive onto the beach in some spots, making sunset viewing easy.
Body surfers take to the constant Pacific swells at nearby Twin Harbors State Park, two miles south of town, while others dig for razor clams in low tide’s shallow surf. This 225-acre park is also a great place for flying kites.
Back in town, sit down to a rotating selection of blondes, IPAs, and lagers at Blackbeard’s Brewing Taphouse, or dine on crab cakes and halibut fish sandwiches at Bennett’s Fish Shack, a local favorite. Looking to spend a night? The Westport Inn offers simple, motel-style lodgings that are only a block from the beach.
Seldovia, Alaska
About a mile outside of Seldovia, a small coastal community on Alaska’s Kachemak Bay that’s accessible via a 45-minute passenger ferry ride from Homer, sits Outside Beach. Here, eagles and seabirds are frequent visitors and views extend for miles. During low tide, the 1.2-mile Otterbahn Trail connects downtown with this crescent-shaped beaut, meandering through western hemlock and Lutz spruce forest and foreshore (the zone between high and low water marks) to reach the sandy shoreline. Tide-pooling, char fishing, and evening bonfires with spectacular views of Mount Iliamna and Mount Redoubt in the distance are the norm. There’s also space for tent and RV camping.
Seldovia itself is brimming with old Alaskan charm, including a section of historic boardwalk, a small museum highlighting the city’s past, and several spots for fresh seafood and warming soups, including the Linwood Bar & Grill where you can watch eagles, sea otters, and loons from the waterfront deck as you dine.
Capitola, California
While many Northern California residents flock to the beaches of Santa Cruz, smaller Capitola—just five miles east of the boardwalk—offers pristine sands of its own. Quieter and more relaxed than its neighbor, the West Coast’s “oldest beach resort” is home to palm-line streets and several distinct beaches. Downtown’s Capitola Beach has waters ripe for boogie boarding and stand-up paddle boarding. You can rent them both—along with surfboards and wetsuits—at Capitola Beach Company in the Capitola Village, just a couple blocks walk away. Also nearby is Paradise Beach Grille, a dockside eatery where main dishes like fish and chips and coconut prawns make for the perfect seaside grub.
A bit further south along Soquel Cove from Capitola Beach is the city’s New Brighton State Beach, home to prime views of Monterey Bay; a rocky shoreline where sea stars, anemones, and rock crabs reside; and a bluff-top campground tucked among cypress, pine, and eucalyptus trees.
Manzanita, Oregon
With seven miles of sandy beachfront that wraps around Nehalem Bay to the base of 1,680-foot-tall Neahkahnie Mountain, Manzanita is one of Oregon’s most scenic coastal destinations. Its calm waters offer plenty of opportunities for water sports like kayaking and paddleboarding, while the mountain itself has two main hikes that provide breathtaking views of the crescent shaped beach.
A little over two miles north of town and nestled within four miles of dense, temperate rainforest, Oswald West State Park has its own secluded beach and trails. The park’s Short Sand Beach, or “Shorty’s” as it's known to locals, has earned a reputation as a surfing and boogie boarding hotspot. Test out your skills, or simply watch others from the beach’s sheltered sands.
Manzanita’s walkable downtown is filled with fun shops, including an author-owned independent bookstore and boutiques specializing in fair trade jewelry and repurposed wares (from old lamps to vacuum cleaners). You’ll also find affordable eateries like Yolk, a breakfast and lunch spot that dishes up lemon ricotta pancakes and lamb burgers paired with fries.
When you’re done exploring, hole up at the Sunset Surf Motel, which boasts a heated outdoor pool and rooms looking out over the ocean.