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About Palm Beach & Pajaro Dunes in Watsonville, California

Palm Beach is a day use area of Sunset State Beach that has a separate entrance from the main park. The access at Palm Beach enters onto to a wide sandy beach on Monterey Bay that is backed by beautiful grassy dunes.

North and south of the park the state-owned beach continues in front of the Pajaro Dunes Resort which has condos and vacation rentals. It’s possible to walk the beach for miles in both directions.

Free parking areas can be found just outside of the state park parking lot. This beach is popular with local farming families because most of the other beaches in the area don’t have a free parking option.

To get to Palm Beach, take the Riverside Drive exit off Highway 1 near Watsonville and head west to Lee Road. Then it’s a long straight drive between farm lands on West Beach Street which leads to the parking lot. Hike up and over the high dunes to an excellent sandy strand.

Address
W Beach Rd & Rio Boca Rd
Watsonville, CA 95076
Phone
831-763-7063
Park Name
Sunset State Beach
Other Names
Pajaro Beach, Palm State Beach, Palm Beach State Park Entrance Station
Owner
State Park
Pet Details
No dogs allowed on the beach
Fees
Fees to enter park, but free along the street outside of gate
Activities
Fishing, Picnicking, Beach Walking, Beachcombing, Sunbathing
Amenities
Picnic Tables, BBQs, Restrooms, Showers, Lifeguards, Dunes
Map of Palm Beach & Pajaro Dunes
Watsonville, US
5:34 am, March 29, 2024
temperature icon 46°F
L: 46° H: 56°
Feels like 46.24 °F broken clouds
Wind gusts: 0 m/s
UV Index: 0
Precipitation: 0.04 inch
Visibility: 10 km
Sunrise: 6:56 am
Sunset: 7:26 pm
Humidity 81 %
Pressure1013 mb
Wind 0 m/s

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Nearby Attractions

Nearby Lodging

Reviews

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Rated 5.0 out of 5
January 3, 2024

After a huge storm they found an old WWII era bomb on the beach here. It was a practice bomb with no explosives. Pretty strange thing to find on the beach though.

https://www.newsweek.com/bomb-found-california-beach-pajaro-dunes-1857074

Sandy