I am planning a trip to California June 7 to June 17. We are a family of 5(2 adults, 3 kids ages 10,13,17). Although we don't have reservations yet my tenative plans are: San Francisco 3 nights,drive straight to Hollywood for 2 nights, Then work our way up the coast to Cambria 2 nights, Monterey 3 nights. We fly in and out of San Francisco. We would like to spend a few nights somewhere on the beach where we can swim and lay in the sun. Are we crazy? I have read posts about some beaches that say too cold or too rocky. Any suggestions for us?

I'm not as familiar with Southern Ca beaches... but for the central coast I prefer Refugio just north of Santa Barbara, Avila Beach just south of San Luis Obispo and Carmel State Beach just south of Monterey. Nice sand ! Refugio and all Santa Barbara beaches will have tar... so bring baby wipes with you!
Happy to answer specific questions!

Also, it's COLD here so you need sweatshirts and wetsuits if you have them. You'll be here during "June Gloom." enjoy your trip!

The water in Central California is very cold, even in June. For warmer ( not just warm) water, you need to consider going farther south, maybe San Diego.

even in san diego, the water is pretty cold. i've seen kids go in as early as march but most adults shy away. wet suits would be a good idea. i don't think you'll be swimming at all in central ca. maybe find a place on the beach but has a heated pool.
you can never predict the weather these days but, june is often overcast right along the coast until the afternoon.

With your schedule, I don't see much time for sunning on the beach. On the day you drive to Hollywood, you probbly won't get there till mid-afternoon, so there isn't much time then. Next day, if you drive to a beach (Venice Beach, perhaps) that will consume a good portion of the day & you won't have much time for sightseeing anywhere else in So Calif. The next day when you drive to Cambria would be your best bet for sun - but do you really want to spend a "transit" day on the beach?. Also, I'm not sure there is enough time to get to the beach at 10, spend a couple of hours there, then off to Cambria with enough time to enjoy the scenery. Once you get to Cambria & north, the possibility of sun diminishes quite a bit - so I would not make plans for 2 days on the beach. You might get lucky - but don't bet on it.

Stu Dudley

Cambria is almost ALWAYS colder than Santa Barbara... that's why I suggested Refugio... and wetsuits!

Only if you are a seal can you realistically swim w/o a wet suit on the Central California coast. In June, the water has barely warmed up from the winter. Warmest water is in September. You will likely have mid-50s water.

Does anyone really think someone from a non-coastal area will have wetsuits for a family of 5 - and want to take them on a 10 day vacation just in case they want to spend 2 days on the beach???

Stu Dudley

No... they didn't say where they're from...LOL!! But now they will know to rent them when they get here and hopefully they will not be expecting the water to be like Florida!

My family of 5 DOES have wetsuits... from about size 2T up to adult!

When I was a kid, I used to go to Avila Beach any time from early May to early October. Living in the area, if it was foggy at the beach, we didn't bother to stay. The fog would usually burn off by afternoon. We never bothered with wetsuits. That said, I can only remember a very few days out of those years where I would consider the water temp to be "comfortable" to laze around in (when the air temp was about 105). Normally we'd swim a bit, bodysurf a bit, and then dry off and hang out on the beach. We never went to the beach at Cambria for swimming; quite a bit colder and prone to riptides.

LA and San Diego beaches are the warmest (but the water is still pretty cool). Santa Barbara area is still fairly warm air temps. Further north, things get a bit colder. Avila and Santa Cruz area I think are better because they face south; most of the rest I like for walking but not swimming.

A reasonable person looking at a map and seeing where San Francisco is would think that a little beach time would be possible - we did (in our pre Fodors days).

It is not hot there - we watched fireworks one July 4th wearing every item of clothing we had with us and still froze. (And we had just been to Pacific Northwest and figured SF would be warmer - it was not)

Some years you might be lucky and get water that is tolerable south of Santa Barbara. Kids might find the water ok most years - adults almost never.

My rule of thumb is for water temperature
Below 68 degrees - no way
68 degrees - ok for short times
70 degrees - an hour is no problem
72 degrees - all day

Even in San Diego, it is rarely over 68 by June 17

You don't have your reservations yet? I strongly recommend you fly into San Francisco and home from Los Angeles.
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BRrrrrrr.....

I've learned that there is a HUGE difference in what is tolerable to kis and adults! LOL!!

As a kid, I could spend an entire day bodysurfing at Sunset or New Brighton now when my little guys want me to get in with them it NEVER seems warm enough.. thus the wetsuits!

Welcome to California!

In response to Gail's post about the weather in San Francisco....San Francisco weather is different from everywhere else. I don't mean the San Francisco Bay Area, I mean San Francisco the city. I work in the city and live 16 miles south. There can easily be a 15-degree swing in temps in the summer --- leave SF and its 61, get home and its 76. My point is only that you can easily be warm, or hot, outside the city (and the farther from the city, the warmer it will usually be!).

That doesn't mean anything, however, as far as water temps, though. The Pacific is cold, period!

I also grew up swiming along the CA coast - mostly in the Santa Cruz area, but also Ventura, Oxnard, and Santa Monica. I have learned that "swimming" means different things to different people, depending on where you are from. Our "swimming" is just like curmudgeon described - play in the waves, body surf a bit, then dry off and hang out on the sand. Only the most hearty just hang out in the water.

I'm trying to decide if it's even warm enough to kayak in Santa Barbara over Memorial Day Weekend! LOL!! I'm a wimp!

Thank you all so much for the feedback. I am from the midwest and have only been to CA 2 times and never with kids. We are used to Lake Michigan water so I think the kids will be o.k. with cold water if the air is warm enough. I personally have to get pretty hot to get into cold water. I am thinking now, because of your feedback, That maybe we will stay near the beach while in Los Angeles. The kids want to tour the Warner Brothers studio so maybe if we stay near the beach for a few days that can also be our beach time. Someone told me that Manhatten beach is nice. Any ideas?

I think you're smart to think of staying near the beach in L.A. There are lots of good choices. Manhattan Beach is one very nice idea, especially for a family. If you go there, Mama D's Italian is a must.

We like to stay in Marina del Rey, because we visit our son at Loyola Marymount University. There's everything from a Ritz to a Marriott Courtyard at Marina del Rey. We've actually stay in both of them and can recommend them.

I don't know if your kids are interested in trying to surf, especially if the water is cold, but if you go up to Zuma Beach, it's a fun place for them to try. There's a helpful shop just across the road, where you can rent wetsuits and boards. Our son tried it there, and loved it.

You could drive the famous Sunset Strip, all the way through that area, then to UCLA and Westwood, then up to Malibu and Zuma. Eat at Moonshadows (more expensive) or Gladstones (more funky) for good oceanside food.

You can tour a studio for a fee, or get free tickets to a taping, like of Jay Leno. Some shows have a minimum age of 18 and some 21. I think Leno's show is all-ages, and we saw it once. Google the ticket websites and see if you have time to order them on-line. Otherwise, it's an ordeal of getting there in the a.m. and hope you get tickets. It's worth it, though, if you like the guest he's having that night. We saw Jimmy Fallon and a musical guest my son wanted to see.
It's a real L.A. thing to do.

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