Del Mar Beaches

 In this largely populated area, you can find famous racetrack trainers with their horses early in the morning on the beach by The River Mouth and beautiful ranches and polo fields. The fairgrounds and racetrack offer open-air concerts, host the annual county fair, Fourth of July fireworks, and horse racing throughout the summer. In Del Mar, you will find three main beaches. There are lifeguard towers every few blocks from 15th Street north to the Rivermouth; a grass park area with playground, bathrooms, showers and recycling bins; and nearby restaurants, shops and hotels.

Del Mar City Beach is one of San Diego's finest beaches. With architectural dream houses, colorful flags in front of the wide sand beach with good swimming, intermediate surf and easy access at every block. There isn't much parking in this area.

The River Mouth has a large wide beach with room for lots of different recreational activities and your pets to run around. There are shallow sandbars and unpredictable currents.

Del Mar City Beach, is just south of 15th Street. Bluffs line the beach, but they are neither as high nor as steep as elsewhere in North County. At all but the highest tides, the beach is totally passable all the way to Torrey Pines, and there are a number of sketchy, unsanctioned trails down from the cliffs. A dirt path paralleling the train track on the bluff is a favorite of walkers and joggers, who can go for miles without encountering a car or crossing a road. There are some patchy reefs offshore along here, creating some fairly good surf breaks. People other than surfers and joggers do use the beach here, but most prefer the northern zone.

Traffic and parking are Del Mar's only drawback. It is not advisable to use any of the cliff trails here. Also, Del Mar is one of those infamous San Diego beaches where the sand can take the skin off your feet on a hot summer day. Don't forget to bring shoes or sandals.