Aliso Creek Rest Area

Yeah, it’s come to this. I’m reviewing a rest area. But hey, this is important stuff.
This stop on the way to San Diego has a pretty impressive view and both paved and unpaved trails where you can walk your dog while looking at the Pacific. That’s a winner right there.
Bathrooms were just OK. Needed some attention and freshening.
Lots of people in the middle of the day. Plenty of truck and car parking. Good place to walk your puppy but FOR THE LOVE OF GOD people pick up the poop!
Some vending machines if you’re starving and/​or in desperate need of a coffee.
And that view.

Seat Liners, plenty of toilet paper and CLEAN!!!
There is also a bunch of vending machines if in need of a snack!!!

Ice cold prison toilets, despite the constant flow of travelers. Bonus for the various bird noises that sounds like a special effects CD on a loop. Lots of birds. You might see a yellow sea warbler. Or maybe a black booby near the ladies room. (You may need to stand on a trash can)

They recently remodeled both sides of these rest stops the south bound side very nice and was much needed especially during the summer time travels the north bound side not too much as compared to the southbound but overall a nice pit stop on the way and back to/​from San Diego when traveling along the 5 freeway. Also they are dog friendly as well.

Nice place to take a pit stop when traffic is bad. There is a lot of parking, most people take the first parking stalls they come across, so it seemed crowded, we parked towards the end. The building I went into, the restrooms were clean and well-​ventilated. I was surprised that the entire toilet was made of steel, even the seat. Note toilet seat not too wide.
There are a lot of workers around, looked like they were getting ready to clean and replenish the restrooms in the first building.
There were no lines to use the restroom. Then I saw another building closer to the rest area entrance that also has restrooms… that building had a line. Lesson learned, may be better to use second building restrooms since most people go to first building.
Had a lot of selection of snacks and drinks in the vending machines. When I was there, there were refilling the vending machines. There is also a hot drink maker (coffee, hot chocolate, etc) and there is sugar, sugar substitutes, stirrers and stuff. There are some benches to sit and rest.
There was a little area to walk around and it overlooks the traffic, we waited until traffic got better before moving on.

I don’t know how many times I’ve passed this rest stop traveling between LA and SD regularly over the years and rarely stopped. Grabbed a super sized soda upon leaving LA the other day and low and behold, the tinkle light goes on in my head when I’m almost home. I would’ve been doing the pee pee dance sitting down in the car, but that’s kinda difficult.
Upon exiting the freeway, there’s a pretty long path before getting to the parking area. Good for the weary traveler trying to navigate a non-​familiar area. The initial parking spots are quite a ways from the actual restrooms. However, you may not be able to find something right in front. Don’t want to take that chance if you have an in car emergency.
There are picnic tables and a nice large park area along the west side of the rest area. I noticed people walking dogs and cooking up grub on a portable grill out there. Great ocean views!
The restrooms are fairly clean, I can only speak for the mens side though. Typical public restroom smells. No paper towels to near the sinks, just electric hand dryers. They work ok.
All in all a convenient stop if necessary on the long stretch of nothing between San Clemente and Oceanside along the 5.
Keep on Unilocal’n!

Easy on and off! That is a priority for me!
Plenty of parking.
Nice views.
Bathrooms mostly clean, but don’t have regular toilet seats, which is funky.
Vending machines for whatever you might need on your travels.
Overall, a decent rest stop.

My husband and I travel often, and this has got to be my favorite rest stop in all of California! I’m totally not kidding. Just for reference, my second favorite one is in Burlingame/​Hillsborough at the 280 NB and third is Coalinga/​Avenal 5 NB and SB. Every time my husband and I do our SD trips, we make it a point to stop by here, even if we initially don’t feel like taking potty breaks.
The restrooms here are the cleanest and well ventilated I’ve seen (and smelled) in California. Perhaps the close proximity to the beach really helps keep the odors away.
Speaking of beach, the views (especially the 5 SB one) are nice, making it more than just a place to use the restroom and get some vending machine snacks.
Which leads me to talk about the vending machines, which are really peculiar. They not only have food and drink, but they also have a drugstore-​like one that vends pain relievers such as Advil and Tylenol. They even have condoms here (which trips me out).
Going back to the restrooms, there are plenty of stalls (I’ve never seen or been to a line) and it seems like they’re always kept up.
Overall a clean, serene, and interesting rest stop. And I’m sure one never would have put the words «clean, «serene,» and «rest stop» in one sentence.

I never thought I would review a Rest Stop, but alas here I am. Hopefully this will help a wary traveler, or a mom coming home from Disneyland whose little kid desperately has to make a potty break in Camp Pendleton and sees this exit sign and pulls off with fingers crossed for a some what clean bathroom (HAND RAISED!!!).
I was pleasantly surprised at this rest stop. I mean, it has been at least a decade, if not more, since I have been to a rest stop, so I don’t know what I was expecting but I saw the bathroom buildings (yes plural!) and saw that they were new and built from clean white tile, as opposed to crummy old brick or wood shingles like others, and I knew that it would be a decent stop.
The bathrooms were clean inside, lots of vending machines that were well stocked, grass, plenty of parking.
If you need a bathroom break in Camp Pendleton, this is your place.

This is a nice rest area very clean. The restrooms are clean also. Vending machines are well maintained …

Very nice rest area! Beautiful view, clean restrooms & multiple vending machines & coffee vending machines!

Super clean bathrooms!
Great views!
Simply awesome.
Worth stopping by.
Repeat.

The most beautiful and clean rest stop I’ve been to in California! Lots of parking, clean restrooms, vending machines, and an area for dogs to roam around!

Shocked at how clean, spacious, and expansive this rest stop is. Plenty of parking for vehicles big and small, clean modern restrooms, wonderful scenery. Lots of vending machines filled with foods, drinks, even medicine pills. If you need a break from the highway, don’t sleep in traffic, stop here. Sometimes I stop here just to stretch and look around before continuing my journey down to San Diego.

We always stop by here on our way to Baja California. It’s always clean and most of the time it’s fulls of veichles. They have vending machines just in case you get the munchies.

Rest areas are like Mos Eisley Spaceport: You’ll never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy.
Normally, that’s true of all rest areas. To an extent, you still get the odd people who seem to live in their cars, but they don’t linger. Cops won’t let them.
This place was upgraded from my last visit in 2009, so it’s much, much nicer. Almost park like. Great view of the ocean. Easy in, easy out.
Tip: undercover cops work this place regularly. If you’re thinking about hitting that blunt it having a roadside quickie, both are I’ll-advised.
Move along. Move along.

This rest area is right off the 5 on a sectioned off portion of Camp Pendleton it’s really convent no matter what direction you are heading.
Recently they remodeled the whole place added more restrooms and picnic tables and basically just cleaned the place up.
Generally you can get in here pretty quick because there’s a lot lot of parking and its pretty big.
Over the years I’ve stopped here a few times but generally we pass it by because its not that much of a trek from San Clemente to Oceanside or vise versa.
Over all this is a convention facility that has a mellow little view of the Pacific Ocean and some snack and coffee machines to keep you going until the next town.
It’s good to see that they’ve remodeled it and its being put to good use.
Where ever you are traveling be safe and have a great time on the road!

WoW this place has changed since last time I came lol
I didn’t know rest areas could look this nice and I passed by here in the night! There are three big restroom facilities with an employee that regularly cleans. There are more options in the vending machine since last time I came. I was able to purchase a blue bunny cone which my gf ate completely without sharing lol
Pleasant experience for a rest stop but I will now leave and continue to Ensenada, Mexico

Of the rest areas I’ve been too, this is a beauty! Definitely the finest rest area around.
Very clean restrooms and very nice facility in general.

WOW, this place has gotten majorly upscale the last time I passed through here. I only came here during the summer from my Santa Barbara road trip and I was just going to do a quick bathroom break… however, I ended up staying about 15 minutes longer. There are much bigger facilities (way, way more bathrooms, which ARE clean), a clean park for you to walk in, and a beautiful view of the Pacific Ocean.
I don’t have much to say ’cause it’s a rest area, but check it out if you’re coming down from LA/​OC!

Is this even possible? A great looking rest area? That’s pretty rare…
Not only the outside facilities look great and clean, but the restrooms themselves are clean! I’m always prepared for the worst when it comes to rest areas, but this was a pleasant surprise!
Also some nice open areas to stretch or walk your pets!

If you have driven from Los Angeles to San Diego you know bathrooms are few are far between. On Wednesday (10-​02-​2013) I was making the drive from L.A. to S.D. and found myself in that exact situation in desperate need of finding a bathroom.
I remember seeing the construction going on at Aliso Creek for what has seemed like a couple of years and knew I was approaching the exit and figured I would stop. This is my first visit to Aliso Creek since the construction has ended and I have to say I am quite impressed. It is hard to impress me over a rest stop but the folks who planned out this construction and executed it really did an amazing job.
Upon pulling into the rest area you have an area sectioned off for 18-​wheeler truck drivers. As you continue further through the parking lot you come upon an area to park you vehicle out of the way of the 18-​wheelers and stretch your legs.
As I exited my vehicle I was shocked at how many maintenance workers were trimming the bushes, cutting the grass and even cleaning the sidewalk with a handheld Zamboni like machine. I walked in the bathrooms and found them to be clean, smelled clean, soap in the dispensers, hand towels and no large puddles of water on the ground which is always nice.
Outside of the bathrooms in an elevated overlook that overlooks the Ocean. You also have a large picnic area with green grass, a dog run to allow your furry children to stretch their legs as well and of course use the bathroom (aka the grass) if need be.
If you are in need of water, soda and/​or candy this rest stop had several vending machines are your disposal and fully stocked.
If you are a tourist and just passing through the area you will find several small billboards set up with all types of tourist information.
I am very pleased with how this rest stop has turned out. It went from endless construction and long lines of folks using setup bathrooms in trailers to an amazing little Ocean overlook. If you are visiting this area make sure you do your part to keep this clean of debris and remember anything within eye shot of the Ocean only needs a little breeze to finds its way to the Ocean.

When you’re screaming a the idiot drivers on the Five, perhaps a quick breather to get your equilibrium back is a good thing. And here’s this rest area! Perfect.
I pulled in just as the sun was setting and so I managed to enjoy a fantastic sunset, looking out over the Pacific.
A little spooky for a rest area — I definitely felt the creeps but I needed the stretch and I was very careful about my surroundings.
Easy in, easy out. Back on the highway in a flash!