City of Laguna Beach

The casual tourist who is visiting Laguna Beach for the first time and is just doing a day trip probably believes Laguna Beach is home to just one beach, Main Beach. The local secret is there are dozens of beaches within the town, most just are not visible from the main roads. In fact driving up and down PCH (that’s Pacific Coast Highway or Highway 1 for those non-locals), only a few are really visible. For most the beaches you will need a little luck on parking, knowledge of the entrance (most entrances are marked by just a simple sign), and then the ability to hike down stairs or steep slopes to get to the beach. Only two are accessible without having to hike down, Main Beach and Aliso Creek Beach. The most notoriously difficult to get to and also infamous for the great workout is 1000 Steps Beach.

Laguna Beach is said to be home to 20 to 30 beaches depending on how you count them. The illusion is that some beaches will run into the next. It’s not always apparent on the ground when one beach ends and another begins, especially when the tide is out. For instance, the beaches from Brooks Street through Sleepy Hollow and even to Main Beach are one long stretch of sand. These parts are differentiated more from where you access the particular stretch (and thusly named for the street you would enter from). This also happens with the beaches from Cress Street to Pearl Street.

In addition to these long stretches with multiple beaches, there are a few parks that give you access to multiple beaches. Heisler Park is a primary example. The park is to the north of Main Beach and sits above the ocean. There are several staircases that lead to secluded coves such as Picnic Beach, Rockpile Beach, Diver’s Cove, and Monument Point. The Treasure Island Park is similar with access to Christmas Cove, Goff Cove, and Treasure Island Beach.

Main Beach

Thousand Steps Beach

Treasure Island

Aliso Beach

Beaches in Laguna Beach

Irvine Cove, Emerald Bay, Crescent Bay, Shaws Cove, Boat Canyon, Divers Cove, Picnic Beach, Rockpile, Main Beach, Sleepy Hollow, St. Ann’s Street, Thalia Street, Oak Street, Brooks Street, Cress Street, Mountain Road, Bluebird and Agate Street, Pearl Street, Woods Cove, Moss Point, Victoria, Christmas Cove, Goff Cove, Treasure Island, Aliso Creek, West Street, Table Rock. Thousand Steps (1,000 Steps), Three Arch Bay

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History of Laguna Beach

Part of the Mexican land grant to Jose Sepulvada called Rancho San Joaquin, it was named Lagona, a corruption of the Spanish word meaning “lagoon,” for the two lagoons at the head of Laguna Canyon. Founded in 1887 as Lagonas, it was renamed Laguna Beach in 1904. In 1927 it was incorporated as a city in the County of Orange.

Quickly becoming known as an artist community, the Laguna Beach Art Association was founded in 1918 and opened the first art gallery. In 1936, the famous Festival of Arts and Pageant of the Masters began.

Laguna Beach Events

Known for its artist community, Laguna Beach events center around festivals and shows dedicated to the fine arts and performance arts.

• First Thursdays Art Walk
• Farmers’ Market: Saturday morning on in Lumberyard Parking lot on Forest Avenue
• Pageant of the Masters and Festival of Arts: held every summer from first week after July 4th to beginning of September. This tradition has been going on for over 90 years. The pageant takes places starting at dusk in the Irvine Bowl. Your ticket to the pageant is also entrance to the Festival of Arts. Local artists have booths setup in the complex around the bowl. You can enjoy a glass of wine and wonder around to see the artworks.
• Sawdust Art Festival: created as an overflow for artist not feature in the Festival of Arts, Sawdust is an outdoor market filled with booths of local artists and crafts people. They also have arts and craft classes and live entertainment. Open during the summer and on weekends in December.
• Laguna Beach Music Festival: February, series of concerts for classical and contemporary artists held at Laguna Playhouse
• Plein Air Painting Invitational: October
• Coast Film Festival: November

Laguna Beach Attractions

• Laguna Art Museum: established in 1918, this museum features works of art by California artist or works the represent the life and history of the state. Admission is free on the first Thursday of each month from 6:00 to 9:00 p.m
• Laguna Playhouse: small town theatre that can sometimes feature big stars
• Promenade on Forest Ave: a couple block pedestrian-only street at the heart of downtown with plenty of shopping and dining.
• Pacific Marine Mammal Center: visit rescued pinnipeds (sea lions and seals) and stop by the gift shop to get some beach gear that supports this rescue center.
• Irvine Bowl: home to the Pageant of the Masters

Fun Facts about Laguna Beach

• Parts of the city particular in the Bluebird Canyon neighborhood are made of the Olympic housing from the 1932 Los Angeles Summer Olympics.
• The Laguna Art Museum is longest established art museum in California
• Laguna Beach is home to more beachfront lodging than any other city in California.
• The Laguna Playhouse, established in 1920, is the oldest continually running theater on the West Coast.
• Laguna Beach tops a list of 156 cities and regions nationwide for the amount of money that art lovers spend on lodging, restaurants, souvenirs. The city contains more than 100 art galleries and art studios.
• The many coves and beaches in Laguna may have been an advantage during prohibition. Rumor has it rumrunners used the many secluded Laguna Beach coves to evade federal agents during Prohibition. Their boats had trap doors to get rid of evidence if necessary.
• Unlike the other beach towns in Orange County, Laguna Beach has no piers along its approximate 7 miles of ocean front. However, the town once had 4 piers.
  • There were two piers at Main Beach at the base of Heisler Park. The pier stretched from Main Beach to Bird Rock, allowing visitors to walk across the water to Bird Rock. A second pier was constructed in 1926 stretching beyond Bird Rock. That pier lasted until storms in 1939 damaged it to the point of no return.
  • The other two piers were at Arch Beach (now known as Woods Cove) and Aliso Beach. The Arch Beach pier was the city’s first, constructed in 1887 at the end of Diamond Street. Its initial purpose was to provide a docking area for ships coming from San Diego delivering hay and other goods.
  • The Aliso Pier was built in 1971 and lasted until 1998. Today, the Aliso Beach facilities and Lost Pier Cafe stand at the base of the old site.

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