San Diego/Mission Beach-Pacific Beach



Mission Beach and Pacific Beach are the two most popular beach neighborhoods in San Diego. Nestled between the ocean and the man-made Mission Bay, this area is packed with tourists in the summer months who come to visit Sea World, the seaside amusements of Belmont Park, or just to hang out at the beach.

Understand
Mission Beach is on a narrow strip of land between the ocean and Mission Bay, only a few blocks wide. It leads from more upscale Pacific Beach to the north to Belmont Park with the famous "Giant Dipper" roller coaster at its south end. It gets funkier the further south you go on the ocean-side boardwalk, though gentrification is slowly creeping through the area. It is a (somewhat) tamer version of the Los Angeles' famous Venice Beach. Its population soars in the summer with out-of-town surfer dudes, dudettes, wanna-bes, and "Zonies" (Arizona residents trying to beat the heat), packed like sardines into expensive, often beaten-up (but who cares?) summer rentals.

Pacific Beach (PB for short) is one of San Diego's many beach towns, bordered on the south by Mission Beach and Mission Bay, to the north by La Jolla, to the east by I-5, and best of all, to the west by the Pacific Ocean. Dotted with restaurants, bars and cafes, as well as clothing stores, beachwear stores, surfboard, bike and rollerblade rental places, it is a great place to spend a sunny afternoon, of which there are plenty. Many PB residents are in their 20s and 30s, as a result of the booming nightlife. PB is dominated by Garnet Avenue, a large commercial street that runs from the 5 freeway west to the Pacific Ocean.

By car
From Downtown and areas south get on Interstate 5, referred to as “the 5,” exit onto westbound I-8 and exit at West Mission Bay Drive. Stay on West Mission Bay Drive to get to Mission Beach, or you can access Mission Bay by taking Ingraham Street or Sea World Drive. If you want to get to Pacific Beach, take I-5 to Mission Bay Drive and hang a left on either Grand Avenue or Garnet Avenue and follow them into the heart of Pacific Beach. Be prepared to sit in traffic during rush hour and busy weekends, this is the one of the few entrances to Pacific Beach and it creates an absurd bottleneck.

From La Jolla and areas north you can take the 5, exit at Garnet Avenue and make a right. From coastal La Jolla, it might be faster and definitely more scenic to take the surface streets. Follow La Jolla Blvd. south until it intersects Mission Blvd. and you’re in North Pacific Beach. Make a right on Mission Blvd. and you’ll be driving south, parallel to the beach with the ocean on your right.

From Ocean Beach, take Sunset Cliffs Blvd. to West Mission Bay Drive which will take you through Mission Beach to the west part of Pacific Beach, or to Ingraham Street which will lead you into the central part of Pacific Beach. All the overpasses and underpasses can get confusing. After you go over the dry San Diego River, loop around once for Ingraham or stay right and loop around again for West Mission Bay Drive.

By public transit
The Metropolitan Transit System (MTS), San Diego's public transit service, has a few frequent bus routes serving the area: Routes 8 and 9 connect Pacific Beach to the Trolley station in Old Town, with the 8 traveling along Mission Blvd through Mission Beach and the 9 crossing Mission Bay and stopping at Sea World. Additionally there's Route 30, which runs along Grand Avenue in Pacific Beach and connects to La Jolla to the north and Old Town to the south, as well as Downtown on weekdays. Lastly, there's the less frequent Route 27, which travels up Garnet Avenue through PB to the suburban neighborhoods of Clairemont and Kearny Mesa to the east. | Blue line Trolley stops include Clairemont Dr. and Balboa Ave.

Get around
Once you're in PB, the best way to get around is by any means other than a car. Beach cruisers are the vehicle of choice in PB. Rent a beach-cruiser or roller skates or buy a skateboard. It's more fun and you don't have to worry about parking. There are many facilities that rent all of these and more by the hour, day and even week. One of them is Cheap Rentals which has a Mission Beach and Pacific Beach location.

At night, taxis are readily available all along Garnet ave or Mission blvd near the bar areas. If you are outside of those areas, and need to go down to the bar areas, the best way is to call a taxi for pickup. Generally taxis will arrive in under 30 minutes to residential or hotel properties. Most locals walk or take taxis at night.

See

 * Take a walk along the Boardwalk or walk out onto the Crystal Pier in Pacific Beach and experience the ocean.
 * Take a walk along the Boardwalk or walk out onto the Crystal Pier in Pacific Beach and experience the ocean.

Events

 * The San Diego Crew Classic draws rowers from around the world for a huge regatta on Mission Bay on the first weekend of April.
 * The yearly Over The Line Tournament takes place each July and is over-the-line in more ways than one. OTL is a locally-invented sport with three-player teams using softballs, known for its rowdyness.
 * The area's annual fireworks show on the 4th of July is well-known, with the waters of the bay reflecting the fireworks in the air.
 * Every September, the San Diego Bayfair draws huge crowds to Mission Bay, with powerboat races and a beach festival with vendors, concerts, and a kid's zone.
 * The Mission Bay Boat Parade of Lights takes place in mid-December and involves a parade of boats decked out in holiday lights making their way through Mission Bay, coinciding with the lighting of holiday lights on the Sea World tower, which are visible from all around Mission Bay for the remainder of the holiday season.

Buy
Garnet Ave, Mission Blvd, and the beach boardwalk are lined with all types of shops, from small clothing stores to large grocery stores.

Eat
Most of the restaurants take advantage of San Diego’s signature weather by offering outdoor and sidewalk seating.

There’s practically a Mexican joint on every corner in PB, most of them could be considered holes-in-the-wall but at least they don’t have wheels. None of them are bad, most of them are good and a handful of them are great. Every San Diegan has a place in their heart for their favorite Mexican restaurant. Ask a local and she’ll definitely share with you her opinion.



Drink
Entertainment is the business in Pacific Beach. Youngsters all over San Diego who aren’t fortunate enough to live in Pacific Beach come here day and night to enjoy themselves. The nightlife is the second biggest attraction next to the beach. The weekend nights are always busier than weeknights but the most loyal patrons will begin their weekend celebrations on Thursday. Early week drink and food specials are offered at most bars, especially along Garnet. As such, almost every night attracts a good-sized crowd in PB. Most of the bars are located on the west end of Garnet Avenue which gets the most foot traffic at night. For a more laid-back environment, try one of the bars that isn’t on Garnet, like Froggy’s or the Australian Pub.

The crowd is typically young and single and consists of college students and working professionals. Most bars don’t have dress codes and sandals are seen on men as frequently as they are seen on women. Men usually wear designer (sometimes ripped) jeans and either a t-shirt or an untucked button-down dress shirt. Women usually wear tank tops with jeans or miniskirts. A general rule of thumb is that if you’d wear it to the beach, then you’d most likely get away with wearing it at a bar in PB. Most bars in PB are notoriously strict on identification for locals and visitors alike. For international visitors, most bars do not accept international drivers licenses as a form of ID even if you are considerably over 21. Even though it is a pain, make sure you bring your passport along.



Sleep
Rooms can get pricey in the area during the summer months of June–September and they’re always cheaper during the winter months. They also have a tendency to fill up, so make sure you call ahead of time to make reservations. A general rule of thumb is that the closer to the beach your room is, the more expensive it’s going to be. Mission Bay is home to several luxurious full-service resorts which are spread over acres of reclaimed land, while accommodations in Pacific Beach are motels and a couple of hostels. A few vacation rental places are based along the beach. For cheaper options, look outside of the area, like Hotel Circle in Mission Valley.



Stay safe
There are lifeguard towers all along the beach that are manned from 9AM till dusk during the summer months. The main lifeguard tower is staffed year round and is on the beach at the foot of Grand Avenue. They can administer first aid and contact the police and fire department if need be.

The west end of Garnet Avenue can be a rowdy place in the wee hours, generally populated by the 21 to 30 age group. Alcohol-fueled behavior can lead to rude and occasionally aggressive activities.

PB and Mission Beach are, like most of San Diego, considered very safe areas, even at night when the large rowdy bar crowds are out.

Go next

 * La Jolla is just to the north.
 * Ocean Beach is south of Mission Beach, across the dry San Diego River.