4 Best Dog Friendly Beaches in San Diego

At Ocean Beach, you can find many of the best beaches in San Diego, including a very popular spot for pet parents known as Ocean Beach Dog Beach. In fact, this is the city’s original dog beach!

Dog Beach was one of the country’s first off-leash dog beaches, and unlike many of San Diego’s other dog beaches, the rule still applies today; you can unclip the leash as soon as you arrive on the sand, and your dog is free to run around and splash in the waves.

There are restroom and shower facilities available for visitors right along the beach, and during the summer months, lifeguards are stationed. The beach is routinely kept clean through the efforts of Ocean Beach's Town Council’s dedicated Dog Beach Committee, so you won’t have to worry about your pet digging through trash or getting into trouble.

It’s common to see people playing volleyball on the sand here, and further offshore, there are lots of surfers during peak conditions in the fall. If you’re renting a surfboard, grab a Go City San Diego pass with our discount code first to save on rental costs.

Just a short way inland from Mission Beach and across the bay from SeaWorld San Diego sits Fiesta Island, a dog friendly beach that’s part of Mission Bay Park. There’s lots to do on the island, but the main draw for pet parents is the dog beach on the eastern side.

Fiesta Island Dog Park is fenced in, so dogs can run without a leash and you can relax, worry-free. The water on the east side of the island is calmer too, while the waves on the west side are more suitable for paddle boarding and jet skiing. This creates a natural separation between dogs playing in the shallows and other visitors at the main beach.

Thanks to its abundance of activities, Fiesta Island is one of the best dog friendly beaches, but it also earns a top spot on our list of the Best Beaches in San Diego. Other fun things to do at this Mission Bay beach include windsurfing, horseback riding, having a picnic, and kayaking. There are also two miles of trails where you can bike or go for a walk with your dog.

Take some scenic photos on the trails that wind through Fiesta Island’s meadows, then kick back by a bonfire to watch the sunset to end a perfect day with your pooch.

Unlike the human-only Del Mar City Beach and Torrey Pines State Beach in Del Mar, Del Mar Dog Beach - also called North Beach - is a half-mile stretch of shoreline that welcomes both dogs and dog lovers. It’s one of the beaches where a leash is not required, so dogs can run free and socialize with each other without restrictions.

Del Mar Dog Beach is wide enough for dogs to roam without overcrowding, and lots of people set up volleyball nets on the sand. The waves further from the shore can get large enough to attract surfers, but dogs won’t have any trouble splashing around right off shore.

In addition to the beach, San Dieguito River Park is just a few steps away. The park is a large nature preserve that allows dogs to walk the trails with their owners, though you’ll have to keep them on a leash while in the park to prevent accidental damage to the ecosystem.

If you look out over the ocean and spot a suspiciously four-legged shape on a surfboard, don’t be surprised! While La Jolla is the neighborhood most famous for its surf culture, Del Mar Dog Beach is one of the only places where pet owners can take their dogs out surfing with them.

Whether you rent a board yourself or you’re just an observer, watching a canine surf is an unforgettable sight!

The beaches of Coronado Island are some of my favorites in all of Southern California, including standouts like Silver Strand State Beach. One Coronado Island beach that’s especially popular among pet owners is North Beach, which has developed such a reputation for its pet friendliness that it’s also called both Coronado Dog Beach and Dog Run Beach.

The most appealing aspect of Dog Run Beach is the geography. The beach itself is almost completely flat and wide enough to accommodate dozens of dogs at a time. There aren’t any hills or rocky sections, and dogs are allowed to be off leash, so they can stretch their legs while playing fetch or catching a Frisbee.

Bordering this San Diego dog beach is Sunset Park, a grassy area with a few picnic tables and walking trails. The park has restrooms and fields that can be the stage for an impromptu soccer game when not in use. Dogs are allowed in the park, but they must be on a leash.

A little ways to the south, you’ll spot the iconic red roof of Hotel del Coronado, aka The Del. North Beach is famous for its excellent views, especially at sunset, so definitely bring the camera to snap some pictures of your pet during golden hour.