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Bolsa Chica State Beach, Huntington Beach, CA

Photo: Jeff Turner, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons. Cropped and resized.

Sports & Outdoors

Bolsa Chica State Beach

A three-mile Orange County state beach known for surfing, sunbathing, and sunset bonfires.

17851 Pacific Coast Highway, Huntington Beach, CA 92649 · Huntington Beach, CA

About Bolsa Chica State Beach

Bolsa Chica State Beach runs about three miles along the Pacific coast in Orange County. Visitors come to surf, swim, sunbathe, play volleyball, and watch the sunset. The beach was once nicknamed Tin Can Beach before it became a state park in 1960. Fire rings let guests enjoy evening fires, and a visitor center offers year-round displays. An 8.5-mile paved multi-use trail links this beach with Huntington State Beach. Across the highway, the Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve draws birdwatchers. Fishing, including grunion hunting in summer, and a self-contained RV campground are also available.

  • #beach
  • #surfing
  • #fishing
  • #camping
  • #bike trail

What's around here?

The closest stops to Bolsa Chica State Beach, ordered by straight-line distance. A few more like it, plus some different kinds of fun so you can build a full day.

  • Museums

    International Surfing Museum

    Check prices

    Nonprofit museum in Huntington Beach preserving surfing history, with rotating exhibits of historic boards, memorabilia, and photographs.

    3.7 mi awaySwitch it up: Museums

  • Museums

    Newland House Museum

    Under $25

    Huntington Beach's oldest residence, a late-1890s pioneer family home run by the local historical society.

    3.8 mi awaySwitch it up: Museums

  • Sightseeing
    Local Gem

    Santa Ynez Valley

    No admission fee

    Wine country destination marketing group for six Santa Barbara County towns across the Santa Ynez Valley.

    Transit: reachable by public transit

    4.3 mi awaySwitch it up: Sightseeing

  • Sports & Outdoors

    Ralph B. Clark Regional Park

    Under $25

    A 104-acre Orange County regional park at the foot of the Coyote Hills, with open lawns, a lake, and a paleontology interpretive center.

    14 mi awayMore like this

  • Sports & Outdoors

    Crystal Cove State Park

    Check prices

    A coastal state park with beaches, tide pools, inland canyon trails, and a historic cottage district south of Newport Beach.

    15 mi awayMore like this

  • Sports & Outdoors

    Great Park

    Check prices

    A large public park in Irvine, California, with over 500 acres open and more space still being built.

    18 mi awayMore like this