Swami’s State Beach

Our friend from Encinitas took us here to check it out.
Parking can be crowded, but definitely a beautiful beach!
Easy access with wooden stairs.
Lots of surfers, great to catch some waves.
There is a bathroom and few benches at the top.
Great to watch the sunset on a perfect day!
It’s also right across some great stores and little restaurants.
Amazing beach to visit and make a quick stop if you’re around the area.

Happy YOU year 2016! I absolutely love start running from here. I park at the lot if I can get there early around 6am but come at 0630 you’ll park along the street which is totally fine.
I start by running south towards the train station at Solana Beach which is 3miles & then turn around for a total of 6miles. My favorite part is smelling the burning of wood by The campgrounds.

Probably the second most dramatic beach cliffs in San Diego county after Torrey Pines State Beach. Swami’s is a wide beach accessed only via a very tall, wooden staircase and curving stairway. At the top of the access point is a public restroom, tiny park, tiny parking lot, and a few benches to enjoy the views and especially the sunset. This is a big surfing spot, so parking is at a premium. Many visitors opt to park one street over from Pacific Coast Highway and walk under the train tracks through a corridor that was built seemingly for this exact purpose. There is the Swami’s meditation center next door that looks like it was taken from the live-​action movie set of Alladin. The tiny entrance to the official, small parking lot is immediately after the meditation center.

Whenever I’m in Encinitas this is one of my regular stops, the waves are great. Parking is sort of harsh and there is a ton of stairs to get down to the beach.

One of my favorite beaches in North County. Great for surfing, walking, and dog friendly!

The American Breakfast was really good! And I love all variety of coffees they offer. Bonus: dog friendly too!

Swamis is yet another fantastic beach located in north county. This spot is a great place to surf or grab some morning/​afternoon waves. There are always pretty decent swells and the vibe at this beach is awesome, I would recommend this beach to anyone visiting or from Encinitas.
Pros–
Views
Picturesque
Swells
Lifeguard on duty usually
Easy access
Clean
Cons–
Parking is limited (use street)
Stair climb can be brutal

This is yet another great beach in North County. Parking can be bad on peak seasons and weekends. Great surf spot most of the year. There are a ton of long boarders here because the waves are usually really slow. This is a great spot to go to if you want to learn to surf.
Parking lot is small, but you can also park on the street and even across the train tracks and walk across (don’t get caught). Free parking all around. Long flight of stairs to get to the sandy beach with bluff background with a small cave. There is a lot of marine life here so be careful when walking in the water. I have had 2 friends get stung by sting rays here (shuffle your feet). They are usually only around when the water warms up. There are jelly fish around warm water too.
There are bathrooms at the top of the stairs as well as a shower, benches, and occasional hippies playing music. A lot of the times there are people doing yoga at the top of the stairs in the grassy section. Great spot to watch the sunset in your car or on a bench. Grab a burrito and come eat it here.

Beautiful setting. Cliffs overlooking the ocean and beach below. Staircase that leads down to the beach, very stable and well maintained. Outdoor shower facility located at the bottom to rinse off in fresh water. Expansive beach with tide pools. Huge boulders to sit or relax on. Perfect for the day or the sunset. Lots of walking room and distance.
At the top on every Sunday the coolest yoga and creatively artistic individuals gather and play musical instruments, dance, picnic and just have fun. It’s great to partake with them or to just watch and enjoy the chill vibe. I’ve been going for years. It’s a über cool experience. Bring the children, it’s children and pet friendly.

Disclaimer: I don’t surf, so this is not a review of the surfing crowd in the waters. As far as I could tell, people like to bundle and clump up in groups out there, making it look pretty dangerous when going after waves. But hey, what do I know about surfing…
Beach-​wise, Swami’s is absolutely wonderful and beautiful — a great place to go to walk, relax, and soak in some sun. The walk along Highway 101, which is parallel to Swami’s, is relatively safe as there’s a walking lane in addition to a bicycle lane.
From Swami’s Café to Surfer Statue (aka «Cardiff Kook») and back is about 2.8 miles. It’s the perfect place to walk, run, cycle, bring your dogs, bring your kids, and relish in the fact that San Diego is, without contest, America’s Finest City.
Parking can be very crowded on the weekends but it’s worth the slight hassle.

This is a great beach. It is beautiful, and less seaweedy than other beaches along that stretch. Great surfer watching beach with some nice swells but definitely a bit crowded and young if you are actually trying to surf!!. It seems more like a local beach which is awesome so it doesn’t get too crowded.
Parking isn’t too bad and stairs are step but doable.

Beautiful beach. Great views. Awesome surf. Just depending on the weather sometimes there are lots of flies in the sand. Usually you’re good. Worst case scenario if there are; walk up the beach to moonlight and you’re good.

Number 1 I’m a surfer so I’m not giving it 5 stars because of the horrendous crowd in the water. The wave can get amazing on the right conditions and that’s when it takes care of itself, but on an average day there is just the combination of cluelessness and entitlement that makes it awful to surf. If I want to ride a longboard I can go out and dominate the old men but I prefer to shortboard and I don’t like to contribute to the general clusterf**k that is surfing in the 20-​teens.
So that sounds like a zero star review but I gave it 4 stars. Why? Because Swamis is one of the best beaches around to bring your kids to. Its far away from a road and the area south of the point (and south of the steps) is one of the more gently sloping and shallow areas around. Even if it is firing at the point there’s a natural almost-​kiddie pool area that allows the kids to play safely.
I feel like I’m giving secrets away but some are worth it.

Absolutely beautiful. I love that there is a pretty good surf break and it doesn’t get too crowded. There are also many good cafes near by to sit and relax at and have a coffee with a friend.

I’ve been going to this whole area since the seventies. The beach and the area rocks. I will be back soon, was last there four months ago.

A good beach! Not too packed and there are lots of surfers here that you can scope out. :) If you want to swim, there is a small section which allows you to swim.
The stairs to the beach from the parking lot isn’t too bad either compared to the Thousand Steps Beach in the OC.
I prefer going here vs. going to La Jolla on a weekend for example because parking around this place wasn’t as bad and it wasn’t as crowded. I like this place.
It also has a small parking lot but it’s easier to find street parking. Oh, and in the parking lot, there is a restroom for men and women.

i drive all the way from Carmel Valley to enjoy the view during my training :)
PARKING: Small lot to park in and gets busy by 8am. A lot of surfers come here so when i come around 6:30 — 7 its a full lot. there are also «usuals» who hang out here. the homies aka homeless guys are nice and wont bother you. one time my family came with me to jog on the beach so we started having a convo at 7am with one of them and mid sentence, he stopped talking grabbed his cruiser bike with all his stuff on it and jetted north on PCH. we were wondering what the heck he was doing and then realize he was racing the on coming road bikers… funny thing is he totally dusted them! my family and i were dying, so hilar!
BEACH: In the morning it’s low tied so the beach is really flat and good to run on although in the evenings, on a beautiful summer day like today, it was GORGEOUS. so many surfers, runners, families, and beautiful scenery and weather. i usually start from the parking lot and head south for a quick 3mile run. you’ll see other people running as well. i did a brick training (bike-​run) before and started heading south and circled back around to throw my bike in the trunk and run down to the beach. i know a lot of road bikers head north towards Carlsbad as well. be careful if you’re not use to riding on a busy street, its PCH so a lot of cars are commuting.
SURROUNDING AREA: after i normally bring my computer with me, i work remotely from SF, then head to a coffee spot to work from. TONS of great and healthy options within a 3 mile radius!

Great beach. Its located at the south end of downtown Encinitas. It has a nice little park at the very top overlooking the actually beach.
This is a very popular surfing spot. However, a lot of walkers/​runners will run down the beach on the sand or just above it at the street level on the cliff. There are some small tide pools if you walk down to the beach and head right during low tide. You’ll come across some larger rocks covered with Muscles and Sea Anemones. Small fish, crabs, and sometimes random sea life will pop up in these pools.
Parking is a bit of a challenge during popular times. There is a very small parking lot at the top of the beach that cant have more then 25ish spots. There is some street parking but keep in mind on beautiful days you will be fortunate to find any close by.

When I hear Swami’s, I think surfing and surfing only. While it is a well renown surfing spot, I am here to tell you that it is more than that.
There is a park on top of the cliff overlooking Swami’s that has benches, some shade trees, picnic tables and most importantly… bathrooms. When riding bike, one needs to know all the pertinent stops.
The views from the cliff are wonderful. You’re able to sit there and overlook the beach below and listen to the waves crashing on the shore. Very soothing, very peaceful and an ideal spot to take a break.
When the swells are good, surfers here are plenty. There is a lot of amazing talent out in those waters and it makes me jealous that I’m not able to do that. Oh well… I’m happy on my bike, especially if there is a bathroom near by.

4.5…
Wow, I should come to Encinitas more often… I have always heard of this place, but never been.
If you’re able to find parking at the lookout, then you’ll be able to experience an awesome beach view.
After a long flight of stairs down to sea level, you are able to walk the strand. Came here on a week night so the foot traffic was less with walkers and runners.
Flat, packed sand, few kelp and rocks aligning the strand and you occasionally see odd rocks and sea shells. Pretty cool!
A great place to watch the sunset. Will def come back for a beach run!!!