Moonlight State Beach

While my kids are in school I like to come down here and ponder Great place to relax and waist some time.

Sherbet colored sunsets on the beach… It is magical. Almost any beach in this part of the hood is dazzling.

I love the quote, «If you’re lucky enough to live near the beach, you’re lucky enough».
I start my beach reviews with 12 stars and deduct from there. Even if an oil rig exploded right offshore I’d still have to give five stars because it wasn’t the beach’s fault.
Moonlight Beach. It’s beautiful. Nestled between cliffs and rolling sand dunes I’m pretty sure is close to what heaven looks like. Although heaven probably has a more consistent swell with a glassy 3 – 5′ wave.
Fire pits, volleyball, and beautiful elevations here. It’s clean and there are bathrooms and showers available. There are benches for folks to take it in and get your chill on. The main drag of Encinitas is a few blocks away with great restaurants and cool shops. You can’t help but love an area like this!

Perfect beach. Small and exclusive. A few fire pits, volley ball courts, life guard station, concessions, nice bathrooms, showers, and a play ground for kids. The water is nice and there’s tons of sea life. Once we saw a baby seal.
Love those place. Perfect for parties
On question¿ how crowded does it get in January?

Beautiful beach in Encinitas. The sand hill was very popular with the kids as they plowed down it with their boogie boards. Great day to spend the day building sandcastles and riding the waves. There is a place to rent surfboards/​wetsuits and boogie boards as well as a snack stand with some picnic tables.

We did our Surfing Madonna Run here last weekend and the sun was obviously hot but the beach is always relaxing, this is a great spot to go get your tan, run, or just relax and watch other people. The neighborhood is quiet and have good restaurants also. After the race I just walked back to my hotel.

Great beach! I love that there are concession stands for snacks/​water in case you get hungry, and the bathrooms are REALLY clean!!! I also love the fact that this beach has a big parking lot as well as plenty of street parking available. I will return again!

I’ve truly adored Moonlight Beach all of my life. 20 yrs ago I put my little baby girl Jessie’s toes in the ocean for the first time right here, and again when my son Zach was born. This beach hold so many memories of both of my kids growing up. It is so convenient with the snack bar, restrooms, huge free parking lot, fire pits, BBQ grills, and of course… sand, water and sunshine!

My family and I visited this beach after reading a few of my favorite Unilocalers reviews.
We came the day after the 4^th of July. I was expecting it to be crowded since it was a holiday weekend but it wasn’t bad at all. It was a little overcast and perfect.
This was the best choice for my family for several reasons. I wanted a family friendly beach… check. I wanted a place that had showers to rinse off since we were going to be driving 3.5 hours home from here… check. I wanted a place that had bathrooms so we could change clothes… check. I also wanted a beach that had lifeguards… check. Bonus they had concessions, kayak rentals, tables with fire pits, and a playground.
Only downside is the parking. There is a small lot and lots of hills so be prepared to hike a little.

After two days at Legoland we were looking for a nice beach nearby that had showers for rinsing and a changing area. This beach was perfect. Not only did they fulfill those needs, they also had a playground area for the kids, a great area of the ocean for kids, and plenty of lifeguards.
This beach also had many other ammenties that others may enjoy like:
— 3 or 4 beach volleyball courts
— 5 or 6 barbeque/​bonfire pits
— Many picnic tables
— A beach rental store (everything from boogie boards to beach umbrellas)
— A snack bar with full meals
— Bathrooms
— First aid area (which we used for a band-​aid for my 4-​year old)
Also, on the day we were there they were setting up a stage for a band. We had planned to leave at lunchtime to head back north so we just heard the sound check.
Be ready for a bit of a hill from the parking to the beach, but that’s not unusual in California.

My new favorite beach in North County. I will still go to Carlsbad (it’s just closer than Moonlight Beach) but I am in love with this beach.
It’s really a great family spot. Playground, concession stand, volleyball area, plenty of parking (I’m sure it’s not as easy to park here– we just lucked out when we went).
I’ll definitely be back!

This is our family’s go to beach! We love going here because it is very family friendly. On the weekends they tend to have a beach soccer game or a volleyball game going on. There are a few shaded areas to lounge in for my daughter, who doesn’t like the sun, sand or water. Yeah, not typical kid behavior but we lay out our large beach blanket and she’s good. There isn’t as much kelp on the shore as other beaches, which I enjoy! I hate going into the water and getting my legs caught on the kelp, weird, gross feeling! Parking is above the beach and there are steps leading down. On weekends it can get pretty packed but my husband and i like to park on a nearby street and walk over.
They also have a play area with slides and swings for the kids. My daughter almost always asks to go there.

Moonlight beach used to be my regular beach I would go to whenever in the San diego area. Lately it has been way overcrowded everytime we come.
We usually walk pretty far down on the sand to find an empty spot but lately that walk has increased greatly. The parking is also a nightmare due to this. You can spend alot of time searching for a spot. There’s a nice parking lot that can make the walk to beach much shorter and its free. The parking lot is nice and empty on a cloudy day.
This beach has all the amenities you could ask for at a beach. There’s volleyball courts, bonfire pits, and even a little snack bar area.
There’s also so many food places in this area to check out before or after your time at the beach.

Of course 5 stars, beaches rock!!! :D this is a nice relaxing chill beach where you can enjoy your lunch just gazing into the ocean. They have lots of benches up top to kick back and grub on a sandwich (they have a good sandwich shop down below) or just kick it with a nice fun beautiful babe. The benches are pretty spaced out so you can have some time to yourself or with friends, girls, or girls.
Next time I’m gonna check out the sandwich shop.

This is yet another great beach in North SD with a lot to do near here. There is plenty of parking on most days around here. There is a parking lot and lots of street parking. This beach is easy to get to and easy to find.
There are usually some good waves here to surf. Good for all skill levels. There are lifeguards on duty during most of the peak season and then some. There is a lot of sand to spread out a towel and soak up the sun without getting rushed out by the high tide. There are lots of benches, volleyball nets, and kid play areas for everyone. There are bathrooms and showers too.
There is a coaster stop within walking distance to here and downtown Encinitas. There are lots of restaurants and bars walking distance to this beach as well.
Get here early if you want a table or a prime spot. There is a Whole Foods and 7 Eleven down the street to for beach snacks. See you out there!

Ah, North San Diego. This is livin!
Moonlight beach was remodeled a couple years ago… what do you mean remodeled you may ask! It’s a beach, how does one remodel a beach? Well let me tell you: Us North SD folks take beach living quite seriously. We’ll post up all day every day and we need amenities! This particular beach has all the perks and those perks were upgraded recently. See my list below!
Beach Perks At Moonlight:
Hot lifeguards
Volleyball nets
Snack bar
Picnic Tables/​areas
Playground
Restrooms
Rinse off showers
Equipment rentals
Large sandy beach
Perfect starting point for walks both North and South
Encinitas Main Street is just blocks away
Tough beach life notes:
Parking is rough man.
There’s sand in my car now.
Kids. A lot of kids.
Birds. A lot of birds
Matt E from Portland got sunburned recently. Sorry Matt.
Moonlight beach is one of my favorites. As a local I tend to get there then walk a bit before I set up my stuff because near the towers the seaguls and babies swarm pretty thick.

Awesome beach, 5 stars all the way! I wouldve even given this place 5 stars prior to the remodel, that’s how good it is. The beach itself is super clean, wide open and there are a ton of tables with bbq/​fire pits. This is one of those beaches that you can just hang out at all day. There is also a ton of wide open viewing angles of the beautiful pacific and some decent swells that come through this area which makes it both awesome to view and awesome to surf. As an added plus, there is an elevated viewpoint that give you an amazing spot to just sit back and eat a snack or just relax. Overall, moonlight beach rocks it and is a fantastic beach for us here in Encinitas.
Pros–
Beautiful
Picturesque
Bbq
Firepits
Lounging
Views
Tables
Sand
Beach
Swells
Open space
Cons–
Parking stinks

Moonlight is great! A perfect family beach!
It gets crowded on weekends, holidays, and during the summer, but there is ample parking and I’ve always been able to find a spot in the lot or street next to the beach. Come before 10 and you’ll have no problem parking.
Fire pits, palapas, volleyball nets, showers, snack bar, CLEAN bathrooms — Moonlight has it all.
The park is great too, with grass for picnics, fun play structures for kids.
We come here often, especially in the non-​summer months, when we usually have the place to ourselves and it is dreamy!

One of the nicest beaches in San Diego!
I like the palapas on the sand, kind of the near the volleyball nets. I’ve totally dozed off underneath one and had myself an afternoon siesta, the warm sand feeling so cozy on my skin. It’s great because you get shade and your own little spot on the beach with a designated landmark. If you didn’t bring a beach umbrella, it’s nice to park yourself under one of these palapas and enjoy your day.
As far as beach restrooms go, the ones here are clean and well-​maintained. Super happy about that! They’re kept stocked with plenty of toilet paper.
There’s a parking lot above the beach. You could also park on any of the surrounding streets, which I tend to do more than parking in the lot because I’ve never had too much trouble finding somewhere to park on the streets. I’ve been here during the day, and I’ve also enjoyed bonfires here at night.

For the most part, I love this beach.
The only cons I can see are that it gets insanely busy. That is no joke. If you are hoping to find a nice, quiet beach fitting for reading, writing and meditating, try coming during the off season. It is generally full of families — especially toward the entrance.
If you walk along the beach down south, you will find that the family scene thins out significantly. No one wants to walk a group of screaming kids down any sandy beach.
Further south, a couple of blocks, is where the beach section becomes thinner, but tends to draw a crowd of teenagers and younger adults — all without children. Problem, though, is that you run into tons of pebbles and stones the further south from the entrance, which makes enjoying the water quite difficult. Nothing like a wave coming in and tossing dozens of stones at your feet. Not comfortable at all.
I appreciate that while this beach gets a decent amount of seaweed, it is nothing like Cardiff. It is pretty well contained and you can swim and enjoy the water for a nice portion of the day without getting attacked by a bundle of seaweed. Big plus there.
You also will find a concession stand here. I have not purchased anything. But if you find that you are on the beach and forgot to buy salty potato chips, they will have what you need. There are also nearby showers and fire pits, which tend to fill up very quickly during the peak season.
There is a designated parking lot here, but — again — this place tends to draw very large crowds, so expect to park a couple of blocks away and walk it in, lest you are lucky to get a nearby spot.
Signs say beach parking closes at 10 p.m. and beach is closed 2 – 4 a.m. I have found that coming to the beach around 4:30 is a brilliant time for arrival! The families begin to leave, in preparation for dinner (no doubt) and parking also opens up. It always surprises me how quickly people vacate the beach around dusk, so you actually can have quite a pleasant sunset view on the beach and in the water. Beach sunsets IN THE WATER are absolutely glorious! The lifeguards tend to go off the job around 7:15 about this time of year.
So pack a cooler full of treats and make a day out of it. Wonderful, wonderful beach here.