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Cities, counties and the governor have issued temporary closures of our treasured beaches to help minimize the impact of coronavirus on California’s citizens. We have been scanning the news for directives related to beach access and we’ll try to keep this page updated with what we learn.

UPDATES:

  • Masks are no longer required outdoors for those Californians and visitors who have been vaccinated. If you haven’t been vaccinated and have at least one comorbidity (a condition that could make COVID more dangerous) it is still recommended that you wear a mask when near others (for your safety).
  • Beaches in California have no restrictions again. It’s possible that you’ll still find parking limited in a few parks, but the beaches are all open to the public.
  • 1/25/2021 Governor Newsom has lifted the stay at home order across the state.
  • 12/5 Southern California region has triggered a stay at home order. This includes all coastal counties from San Luis Obispo to San Diego. Also the Bay Area counties are starting a stay at home order starting tomorrow.
  • 12/3 California health officials issued a regional stay at home order as the state’s intensive care unit (ICU) capacity is getting close to 15%. The state has been divided into five different regions (Bay Area, Sacramento Area, Northern California San Joaquin Valley, and Southern California) and if any of them dip below 15% they will trigger the stay at home order which lasts for 3 weeks.
  • 7/1 Los Angeles County, Ventura County, and Laguna Beach will close beaches for the 4th of July weekend (Friday through Monday). This includes parking lots. In LA the piers and bike paths will be closed in addition to the beaches. Laguna Beach is closing its city beaches for the holiday too.
  • 6/2 About half of the California state parks and beaches have opened their parking lots. There are still quite a few state beaches that are completely closed to the public. Those can be seen on this updated list.
  • 5/29 San Diego County has announced that beachgoers can sit and sunbathe on their beaches again. Group activities are still forbidden and parking lots and piers are still closed. Masks are supposed to be worn and social distance is required.
  • 5/13 Los Angeles City and County beaches have finally opened back up for land and water based activities (e.g. walking and surfing) but not for group activities like volleyball. Sitting and sunbathing on the sand is still prohibited. Visitors are required to wear a mask at the beach, but they can take it off when swimming. Parking lots are closed as are piers, Boardwalks, and bike paths.
  • 5/11 most Southern California beaches are now open with the exception of state park operated beaches (see that section below) and Los Angeles beaches which hopefully will open soon. Beaches in each city may have different open hours, but for the most part, it’s all daylight hours.
  • 5/5 Laguna Beach and San Clemente will open their beaches to “active-use” like other cities. This means no sunbathing or resting on the beach, just being active on the sand and in the water.
  • 5/1 Governor Newsom has ordered beaches in Orange County to be closed due to large crowds that had been gathering on them. OC cities might challenge the closing order but they are closed for now.
  • 4/29 Laguna Beach has opened city beaches up in the mornings from 6 to 10am for physical activities on the beach and in the water. Like other cities this means no sunbathing or sitting on the beaches.
  • 4/27 San Diego city beaches just opened with restrictions. At the beaches visitors can “recreate” which means walking, running, swimming, and even surfing, but they should not sit or lay down on the sand.
  • 4/24 Ventura County has opened up city and state beaches with restrictions. Beachgoers are not supposed to sit or lay down on the sand. Officials hope these conditions will keep visitors from staying long and creating crowded conditions.
  • 4/24 Huntington Beach and Newport Beach have opened some of their beaches too. The rules vary and parking lots might be closed at beach access points.
  • 4/24 San Clemente has opened city beaches for active recreation purposes only. This includes walking, running, and surfing, but not sunbathing.
  • 4/16/2020 The city of Santa Cruz has opened up their beaches again and hopes to keep it that way if social distancing is adhered to by beach visitors.

The “Stay at Home” Directive

March 19th, 2020 – the governor has issued a broad directive to get Californian’s to stay home unless they must leave for essential needs or work. Technically disobeying state orders like this can result in a hefty fine, but the governor said that he prefers peer pressure over law enforcement, that is, unless someone breaks the law by entering a closed park or beach (recently a surfer in LA was fined for ignoring clearly posted signs).

In general, we recommend staying at home, except for getting exercise which helps your physical and emotional well-being.

Getting Outside For Your Health

Exercise is considered an essential need, so if you are visiting a beach to walk, jog, or ride a bike, and it hasn’t been closed to the public, you are not breaking the rules. Parking lots might be closed to deter visitation, but if you can get to a beach and still keep a safe social distance while exercising (6 feet minimum from others), then go for it. Try to avoid the busiest beach access points and places where others are congregating. Usually, weekdays are a better time to visit parks and beaches than weekends are.

Officials recommend exercising in your local neighborhood rather than at distant parks and beaches, but there are safe open spaces out there along our coast. Just heed all closures posted or not.

State Parks and State Beaches

This is a state-wide closure that impacts all regions. The California State Parks Department has decided to temporarily close every state park to vehicular access, and this includes all California state beaches. This means that the parking lots will probably be gated when you get to a state beach, but it doesn’t necessarily mean the beach is closed. The CA state parks website has a list of parks that are completely closed to the public that they intend to keep updated. Note that visitor centers, campgrounds, bathrooms, and other facilities will be unavailable at state-run parks until the closure is lifted.

Southern California Beach Closures

San Diego County, Orange County, and Los Angeles County have each issued their own directives that close beaches to minimize transmission of the virus to their residents.

Several coastal Socal cities have also decided to close city-run beaches and coastal parks. This list includes LA, San Diego, Huntington Beach, Newport Beach, Laguna Beach, Malibu, Redondo Beach, Santa Monica, and Long Beach.

Typically these closures includes beaches, parks, piers, trails, boardwalks, bike paths, and the parking lots. In some cases, the public spaces like parks and beaches are still open, but the lots are closed.

Catalina Island is closed to visitors at this time.

Northern California Beach Closures

San Francisco Bay Area counties have issued directives to stay at home as well. Marin County, Sonoma County, and San Mateo County have completely closed all parks at this time, but coastal beaches might be open even of the parking lots are locked. In many cases, it’s not practical to visit these beaches if the lots are not open. Marin is asking that residents only visit beaches they can walk to.

Other counties, especially those in East Bay, have closed some parks while others remain open. Restrooms and playgrounds might be closed even if a park itself is open. Visit the individual county websites to see which parks and beaches have been closed.

In the city of San Francisco many parking lots have been closed that provide access to beaches and that includes facilities in Golden Gate National Recreation Area (see more on that below).

California’s National Parks

The National Park Service has closed many national parks across the country and several California parks with ocean beaches are included.

The main coastal national park in California that is affected at this time is Point Reyes National Seashore in Marin County where most roads and parking lots are closed.

There are selective closures at facilities in Golden Gate National Recreation Area in and around San Francisco and the list includes Alcatraz Island, Point Bonita Lighthouse, and parking lots at Muir Beach, Stinson Beach, and Fort Funston.

All of Cabrillo National Monument in San Diego is closed at this time.

While it’s still cold up north, Redwood National Park has closed all parking lots and most other facilities, but the park lands remain open. These closures affect access to many beaches between Orick and Crescent City.

The Channel Islands are still open if you can get to them by private vessel, but the visitor centers are closed and public boat transportation is temporarily unavailable.

BLM Beaches in California

Near Arcata and Eureka there are coastal lands operated by the Bureau of Land Management and they have closed several developed campgrounds and developed recreation sites. This includes the Lost Coast Trailheads at Mattole River and Black Sands Beach plus Samoa Dunes and South Spit Recreation Area.

Also the Point Arena-Stornetta Unit of the California Coastal National Monument has been closed until further notice. This affects the Stornetta Coastal Access and the Garcia River Estuary.

Piedras Blancas Light Station will also be closed for now.

See the BLM website for an updated list of closures.

Don’t Be a Bad Visitor

If you decide to venture away from your home and neighborhood to visit a coastal beach, bring everything you need including food and drinks. See our beach packing list so that you don’t forget anything.

The small coastal towns don’t need tourists stopping at their stores to buy up their supplies and possibly leave a virus. Self-pump gas stations are probably the only exception and you should follow protective procedures even when fueling up.

Be safe out there!