Linda Mar Beach (Pacifica State Beach)

You know a beach is going to be worthwhile when it has not one but two names! Pacifica State Beach is situated on the outskirts of San Francisco in California’s San Mateo County. One of the most popular beaches to learn how to surf in the Bay area, it is known to surfers as Linda Mar Beach.

The largest, and also southernmost, beach in Pacifica, its reputation as a surfing hotspot ensures there are plenty of nearby stores where you can rent equipment, and also a good number of surf camps active during the summer months.

Visited by up to one million people each year, Pacifica State Beach arcs for nearly a mile, and is also nice and broad, so that there is sand on which to relax on even during the highest tides. It is overlooked by hills at the southern end of its bay, and backed by dunes at its northern half.

Pacifica State Beach is widely reported to be the location of the world’s most scenic Taco Bell, which sits between the highway and the beach. There are also several ticket-based parking lots, restrooms, and showers.

Walkers will enjoy the trails that stretch away from the beach in several directions.