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About Thousand Steps Beach in Laguna Beach, California

Thousand Steps Beach is one of the largest beaches in south Laguna Beach, California. It’s a sandy beach with volleyball courts, restrooms, and tide pools and even sea caves to discover. This is a popular beach so it helps that it’s large and the steps tend to scare people off.

There are enough steps in the stairs that it seems like 1000 steps (especially when returning to the top). The actual number is 223 which we have double-checked. Just take your time and you’ll get there.

At the south end of Thousand Steps Beach there is a cave in the rock wall that you can enter when the tide is out and the entrance is exposed. You can walk all the way through this cave, which is actually a tunnel, to a tiny rocky cove on the other side. There are enticing rocks to climb on beyond the cave and they lead to another sandy beach, but refrain from going farther. Deaths have occurred in this area as the rocks are slippery and there are holes to fall into.

At the north end of Thousand Steps Beach there is another rock tunnel, but this one leads to an excellent beach that you must see. This hidden beach, known as Totuava Beach, is not accessible at high tide as the water around the rocky point will be too deep and the tunnel will be closed off too. When the tide is low it’s easy to walk on sand around the point but the tunnel is way cooler.

To get to Thousand Steps Beach, head to the intersection of 9th Avenue and Pacific Coast Highway and park in a legal spot. Laguna Police love to give out tickets to those who make parking mistakes so pay attention to signs and painted lines. The beach access is across from 9th Ave and it leads to the 1000 steps stairway.

Address
CA-1 & 9th Ave
Laguna Beach, CA 92651
Phone
949-497-0310
Other Names
1000 Steps Beach, Thousand Steps Sea Cave
Owner
City Beach
Pet Details
No dogs allowed on the beach
Fees
Free street parking
Activities
Sunbathing, Scuba Diving, Volleyball, Skimboarding, Snorkeling, Surfing, Beach Walking
Amenities
Lifeguard, Restrooms, Showers, Tide Pools, Sea Caves, Rock Arches
Map of Thousand Steps Beach
Laguna Niguel, US
9:09 pm, March 18, 2024
temperature icon 58°F
L: 57° H: 62°
Feels like 57.61 °F broken clouds
Wind gusts: 2 m/s
UV Index: 0
Precipitation: 0.02 inch
Visibility: 10 km
Sunrise: 6:56 am
Sunset: 7:01 pm
Humidity 90 %
Pressure1014 mb
Wind 2 m/s

Nearby Beaches

Totuava Beach

0.2 miles away

Totuava Beach is a locally-known cove between Thousand Steps Beach and Table Rock Beach in Laguna Beach, California. Location...

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Table Rock Beach

0.3 miles away

Table Rock Beach is a locally-known tucked away beach in south Laguna Beach, California. This is an excellent sandy...

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West Street Beach

0.6 miles away

West Street Beach is in a wide sandy cove south of Aliso Beach Park in Laguna Beach, California. West...

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Nearby Attractions

Nearby Lodging

Reviews

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Rated 5.0 out of 5
March 1, 2023

it really does have a lot of steps, way more than other laguna beach beaches and most have stairways for accesss. 1000 Steps is a killer beach with a fun vibe.

John C