Everyone is ready for summer and waiting anxiously for school to be over.  Orange County has 42 miles worth of six coastline beaches to entertain families and friends, from the most north to south: Seal Beach, Huntington Beach, Newport Beach, Laguna Beach, Dana Point, and San Clemente Beach.  Here, we will compare and contrast them and see what makes a good beach. Hopefully, this will help you decide which one to visit during your summer vacation.

Seal Beach
Seal Beach is great place for families with children. There’s a large grassy patch where kids can play. The sand is white and the beach is pretty much clean. If you’re getting tired of the beach just go on over to the downtown mainstreet area to do some shopping and eating. Ocean Avenue is also a great place to get some delicious food. There are variety of options to choose from: Vietnamese, pizza, seafood, Mexican, cafes, sweets and more. However, there are limited space for parking. You need to be there early in order to save yourself a good spot. Don’t forget to bring your own shade, because there is no shade whatsoever. There are not many places to stay at nearby as well. Vacation rental homes are available, however, these are not very easy on your wallet.

Huntington Beach
Huntington Beach is made up of 8 miles of unbroken sand beaches and is loved by locals, surfers and visitors. Unlike Seal Beach, there is a lot of parking space. Hotels and luxury resorts surround the area. Downtown Huntington Beach always entertains people who visit to shop and fill their stomach with good seafood. In addition, the pier provides visitors with a beautiful view of the sunset. It is also known as the home of the U.S. Open Surfing Championships, which explains why this beach full of surfers. Maybe too many surfers. There is a lot of litter and makes it an unpleasant sight. The beach is occupied with young adults, which might not be the best place for families who want to have a relaxing time.

Newport Beach
Newport Beach is divided into 4 different district areas: Newport Balboa Beach, Corona del Mar Beach, Little Corona Beach and the Crystal Cove State Beach. Little Corona Beach has the best tide pools in Orange County. You are able to see many different kinds of creatures such as sea anemones, hermit crabs and small colorful fish. These tide pools are enjoyable for adults as well. Crystal Cove State Beach is a very unique beach. Most of them are undeveloped and remains as a natural seashore. However, this can be a demerit for those with mobility issues. Newport Beach is also popular for whale watching and other marine activities. It is likely that you are able to see a pod of dolphins at any time. This beach probably has the most active activities, but at the same time the worst  traffic.

Laguna Beach
Laguna Beach is known as the most picturesque beach in Orange County.  It has beautiful scenery to enjoy, and is not as crowded compared to other beaches at some places. This place used to be a colony for artists in the 20`s, leaving art museums and galleries around the beach. It is not a place to go to with small kids, but recommendable for artistic people. The downtown area is for people who want more action. You may encounter bad traffic going through the main drag.

Dana Point
The harbor is definitely the place to go in Dana Point. Boats and ships occupy the bay neat and nice. Yes, you can do shopping as well, but the best commodity here is the ferry trip to Catalina Island. Visitors mainly use the Catalina Express to go there, and the great part is that it is available all-year round. There are sites to see like the San Juan Capistrano Mission, but it doesn’t seem as active and updated compared to other beaches.

San Clemente Beach
This beach is another great spot for surfers. There are enjoyable waves coming and going constantly. The view from the San Clemente Pier is very pretty, and you can see the tip of Dana Point and the silhouette of Catalina Island. There is a train station right by the pier called San Clemente Metrolink Station. The train track along with the pine trees is a very “beachy” sight. Yet, the sand is very rocky and very uncomfortable to walk on barefoot.

Personally, I like Newport Beach the most out of all six. It’s more lively and seems like something is always going on there. We have a another great summer ahead waiting for us. Put on your bathing suits, get tanned and go to your favorite beach to create unforgettable memories!