The golden coast of California is one of the most desirable places in the world to throw down a beach towel and dive into the sea for a swim or to surf. California’s 1,100 miles of coastline is home to a huge number of drastically different beaches that, between them, could satisfy even the most particular beach holiday needs. Trouble is, you can usually only choose one beach to visit at a time and you want to get it right.
From the glamour of Orange County’s plentiful resorts to the secluded Redwood forest-lined Gold Bluff’s Beach to the iconic Zuma Beach, Malibu, we’ve taken many factors into account and came up with this final, fairly off-beat list of the 9 best beaches in California.
1) Seal Beach, Orange County
If you’re looking for that Cali laid-back beach-bum vibe you need go no further than Seal Beach, Orange County. An archetypal southern Californian town with all the extra trimmings you’d expect from an Orange County beach destination, Seal Beach is located in the westernmost corner of the county and is just south of the city of Los Angeles. Nearby Long Beach and San Pedro Bay get the lion’s share of the bikini-clad tourists while Seal Beach is the destination of choice for nature-lovers with all 911 acres of the Seal Beach National Wildlife Refuge saltwater marsh attracting tourists from all over the world all year round.
