Along San Diego’s coast one can find miles of beaches for swimming, surfing, and general beach-going. In the San Diego area, one can find good beaches at Imperial Beach south of San Diego, Coronado, the beach towns of Ocean Beach, Mission Beach, Pacific Beach, La Jolla, and up the coast of Northern San Diego County. Each beach is unique, ranging from popular white sand beaches to harsh surf spots to the clothing-optional Black’s Beach in La Jolla.

San Diego’s miles of beaches provide excellent opprotunities for surfing. Conditions vary by beach. There are also numerous surf schools throughout the San Diego area.

Mission Bay and San Diego Bay offer amble opprotunities for sailing, windsurfing, boating, and jet skiing.

California gray whales migrate south along the coast each February. There are some great places along the coast to view the migration, such as the overlook in Cabrillo National Monument (in Point Loma), and several private companies offer sailing tours during the migration season that bring you much closer to the whales.

San Diego has some great dives including the Yukon, Ruby E and others in Wreck Alley, kelp beds and much more. In addition several dive boat operators have regular runs to the Coronados Islands off the Mexican coast where you can dive with sea lions. Please be aware that diving here is usually considered cold water diving and the visibility is not always the greatest.