Hidden gems - Beaches in San Francisco, United States not to miss (Updated March, 2024)

Hidden gems: Beaches in San Francisco

Discover the city's hidden treasures—remarkable spots that are relatively undiscovered but offer exceptional experiences. Our selection criteria? A rating of 4.5 or higher with fewer than 150 reviews. Explore these lesser-known yet outstanding places that promise a delightful visit in San Francisco. This list contains 115 places from Beach category.

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Within San Francisco

Macabee Beach

Beach

👍👍 Lots of real authentic raw feldspar on this beach with inclusions of black tourmaline. This is real moonstone, not the fake moonstone you can find at moonstone beach. There is also a good variety of sea glass here when the tide is low.

5.00 (17 reviews) (~137.32 km from centre)

Frolic Cove Beach

Beach

👍👍 Great fun walk with the grandkids! Walked in the surf saw some great shells but it is a protected area so you are not allowed to remove anything! The walk is worth it however!

5.00 (15 reviews) (~213.31 km from centre)

Carmel Beach

Beach

5.00 (7 reviews) (~87.49 km from centre)

Three Mile Beach

Beach

👍👍 This beach is right next to four mile. It is a very small area where the tides can come up pretty far (so be careful). It's beautiful and secluded but can be tricky to walk through because it's a pretty rocky area. There is still quite a bit of debris from earlier storms this year too, but it's nice...

5.00 (5 reviews) (~94.86 km from centre)

Elmar Beach

Beach

👍👍 Well worth the trek. Clean, white sand. Perfect for wading and sun worship.

5.00 (5 reviews) (~33.96 km from centre)

Aeneas Beach

Beach

5.00 (5 reviews) (~137.78 km from centre)

Rockaway Beach

Beach

👍👍 Gorgeous little beach. There is a small hike to the south side cliff and the north side cliff which offers gorgeous views. Sand is dark colored. Beautiful area at sunset. There is a restaurant Nick's that offers ocean view dining and has live music and dancing Friday and Saturday nights.

4.90 (121 reviews) (~20 km from centre)

Limantour Beach

Beach

Swimming, horseback riding & picnicking draw visitors to this large beach backed by dunes & cliffs.

4.90 (85 reviews) (~49.93 km from centre)

Pomponio State Beach

Beach

👍👍 This was a fun, random stop to stretch our legs while driving down Hwy 1. We saw some cool caves and there was a lot of ocean life in the little puddles on the bluffs. A fun place to explore and move around before getting back on the road.

4.90 (71 reviews) (~53.34 km from centre)

Crissy Field South Beach

Beach

👍👍 It's a beach so it's got water and sand, but it also has nice views of Golden Gate Bridge and plenty of parking. It's also easy to get to on foot or on the 30 bus. There's construction happening nearby for the Presidio Tunnel Tops but you won't hear it because the ocean and people chatting drown it...

4.90 (41 reviews) (~4.27 km from centre)

Schooner Gulch State Beach

Beach

Popular among surfers, this rustic state beach features a stony shoreline ringed by eroded cliffs.

4.90 (24 reviews) (~162.12 km from centre)

Sculptured Beach

Beach

👍👍 Sculptured beach at Point Reyes national seashore is truly a National treasure! Gorgeous, loooong beach with beautiful flowers along the shore and it's cliffs. It was a nature feast. Kids can have hours of fun here. If you visit at low tides, you can enjoy tide pools too. The cliffs are sculpture...

4.90 (17 reviews) (~45.28 km from centre)

Sunset Beach

Beach

👍👍 Awesome beach for creating sand art. Here are some sand sculptures that I created over this weekend. The Saturday ones are at one location, and the Sunday ones are new sand sculptures at a different spot in the dunes just north of the Saturday sand sculpture area.

4.90 (14 reviews) (~111.83 km from centre)

Stinson Beach

Beach

4.90 (12 reviews) (~23.09 km from centre)

Indian Beach

Beach

👍👍 It's a .5 mile or .8 km from the parking lot. There are steps, plaques, and a bridge along the way. The beach is nice, with lots of crushed shells along the shore.

4.90 (11 reviews) (~57.74 km from centre)

Lake Temescal Beach

Beach

👍👍 Beautiful little park, with a little lake and beach to hang out by. Hidden gem for sure. Perfect for morning or evening walks good mix of sun and shade plenty of seating through out

4.90 (8 reviews) (~18.3 km from centre)

North Beach

Beach

👍👍 It's an incredible paradise😄😄😄😀😀😉😃

4.90 (7 reviews) (~142.68 km from centre)

Drakes Beach

Beach

👍👍 Great idea just for one time short trip. Although, this place is special because you can see the seals really close while they are resting on the beach. And if you hike a bit up, really close from the parking (couple of meters) you will be able to observe beautiful view of the ocean and the cliffs....

4.80 (134 reviews) (~55.03 km from centre)

Seaside Creek Beach

Beach

👍👍 This is a true hidden gem. The beach is huge. There are gorgeous rock formations. You can even go up to some rocks and maybe meditate there, it’s magnificent. There are almost no people on the beach. Such a great place.

4.80 (132 reviews) (~229.87 km from centre)

Mara Beach Carmel

Beach

👍👍 I love this beach. My husband and I got married here and holds many treasured memories. I plan on doing my maternity shoot here as well.

4.80 (120 reviews) (~144.62 km from centre)

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Hidden gems: Beaches in San Francisco, United States