Overall I'd say it's a great beach. My family and I come here annually for our crab fest, and we usually arrive sometime between 5-6am to reserve a fire pit before it gets too busy. There are bathrooms and showers just a short walk away, with ample parking on the street. The water is pretty clear, sand is nice and soft, and pretty quiet for as busy as it is. Just be aware that it gets really windy here, and be ready to fend off the extremely fine sand getting into your eyes and your food. Also, it is wasp central!! Every year we find it harder and harder to fend them off. I was stung twice in the first 15 minutes I was there. So if you're allergic, be prepared. I did find that if you come after 5pm, it's more ideal for a meal (less wind and less bees). Other than that, we love playing beach volleyball here and everyone we've encountered has always been super friendly. read more

What a gem of a beach! It isn't as big as other beaches, but it has a vibe all of it's own. Just don't go into the creek that runs into the ocean, NASTY! read more

Love it! This is one of my favorite beaches on the central coast. It gets a little busy (more so in the summer), but it is a beautiful beach. There is food and shops in walking distance to the beach. read more

The beach is clean but there seems to be a huge amount of sea weed no matter where you go in the water. It can be annoying at times but what can you do about it. Nice beach with a bunch of cool stores. read more

I brought my cadet here since he is in Grizzly Youth Academy. Since our visit was only for 4 hours it felt rushed because this place has limited parking or maybe because there are so many people!! It is really nice and I will definitely go back to chill for a longer time! read more

Was recently there for the first time, and it is now on my short list of favorite California beaches. Nice wide sand beach, calm enough for kids but waves for boogie boarding, great weather, warmer water than in Santa Cruz, and a really cute town. read more

RV camped on the bluff above the beach NW of town. Rates went up to $40 to park overnight in a turnout, but the location in relation to the beach and view are excellent. read more

Loved it. The weather was a little warmer than at Pismo where we were staying. The kids enjoyed the morning playing there. There was no bathrooms though :( read more

I really enjoy getting away and coming to this tiny beach town. There is so much to do in the surrounding area. Great place for a get away.

Great spot to bring your dog. A lot of people here have their dogs unleashed, having a good time with their dogs and playing fetch.

Fantastice! Super soft sand, which reminded me of my travels to Hawaii and Cancun. Not a lot of wave action, so boogie-boarding or surfing is a little rough. Food is readily available at the relatively short boardwalk which borders the sand. Really great beach! read more

Nice beach... Great place to relax.. Water is nice and cold.. If you early you can find free parking by the beach.

Lovely beach with grey, cement like sand that's good for building sand castle. The little town is cutesy like capitola. The beach is part pebbly and part sandy with some kelps. Great view. It's about a 10 min slow stroll in length. read more

This is a very lovely, 3-block beach front. That's it. That's the whole town. Small but nimble. The beach is gorgeous. Clean, well-maintained with a beautiful pier. Avila Beach looks astoundingly new for a California beach town. Turns out that the whole town was totally rased and rebuild in 1990 after a major oil disaster. Compared to the near-by beaches, Pismo Beach and Morro Bay, Avila Beach is very nice and clean, and it totally lacks the rough winds of Morro Bay. read more

A beautiful beach for swimming and wading and sunning. Can walk your dog early in the morning only. Good places for coffee, sandwiches, ice cream along the sidewalk. In the summer will have to pay for parking. It gets crowded early on. read more

The beach and harbor area has lost a bit of its charm with the influx of bars and party-like atmosphere. I used to come here when it was quiet and thought of it as a little gem (sigh). With that said, noting beats walking the beach or the pier with a scoop of ice cream. read more

I love it here. Even when its foggy/overcast it's pretty. Its small, its quaint and from my experience never crowded. The beach is clean, water is calm in most spots, the views are great. The vibe is relaxing! Its a happy place for me. I will say I could not stay in Avila, after 3/4 of a day I'd go bananas but I love to go and spend a morning or afternoon and to me its heaven for that amount of time. read more

This beach was perfect for our getaway this past weekend. It's never too crowded. Clean and everyone is very friendly. My family enjoyed just chilling out and building sand castles, hunting for seashells and crabs and watching the surfers and boats. read more

What a great beach to come and relax. For the most part clean sand and great area to walk around. Check out the local restaurants and the golf course if you play golf. A must if you are in the SLO area. read more

A hidden gem. Tucked away along the central coast, this quaint little town is a nice beach community. There is pier fishing, nice swimmable surf, and a nice boardwalk with good restautrants and shops. There are also numerous tables and barbeques to set up your picnic, and on a sunny day you will want to arrive early to stake a claim. The beach is very clean and there is plenty of space to park a towel and enjoy the sun. If you are more adventurous, you can rent paddle boards and kayaks near Port San Luis. The locals all seem to know each other and the atmosphere is very pleasant and inviting. Although a 3 hour drive from where I live, I am definitely going to be back for those occasions where I just want to chill. read more

Avila beach is a great mellow place to hang out and take a dip in the water. The waves are smaller than surrounding beaches, good for kids and people learning to surf. I live close by and work in Avila, it is a great little community with friendly people. The area between Avila and pirates cove is a really cool little stretch of coast line that I hope to get the opportunity to dive soon. read more

Sad that Port San Luis Obispo no longer allows Kayak lessons and Tours of Avila Beach unless the Public uses their Venders!

This beach is good for chilling out and laying on the sand, but not for surfing, skimboarding, or body boarding. The waves are small and un-rideable, they go up, then crash down after about 1-2 seconds. read more

Such a beautiful Beach found a Star fish definitely worth returning to :)

Beautiful beach. Sharks. Great whites. Sea lions. Fishing. Fish markets. Swimming. Kayaking. Overcrowded. Oil companies. Oil spills. Bon fires. Lots of people. Some traffic. Packed on weekends. Great place for riding a bike. Expensive. read more

They ruined Avila when they dug it up to fix the "oil leak". It used to be a quaint sea side town, now it's a cement nightmare. Of course the beach is beautiful, I just hope the developers don't set their sites on .......... next. read more

lovely clean beach.. nice rock formations and not too crowded

I love the retro laid back cool of this place. Walking along the pier and beach near it made me feel like I had just walked into a 60s beach movie. Older women in polka dotted bikinis and wide brim hats, beach ball colored umbrellas popping up along the shore and folks doing nothing more than enjoying the scenery, catching some rays and building sand castles. I immediately felt the warm salty air wash over me with a sense of calm and sleepines where Pismo made me all stressed out with its crowd. Fishing boats dot the coast and kayakers come and go with ease, the waves are so calm here so there's no frenzy of activity of people. Little toddlers will love the beach left of the pier with its tidepools full of crabs and critters. When the rest of the beach is beaten down with wind, this section is protected. What others complained as "dirty" and "full of bugs" is part of the unspoiled nature of the place. The sand is not dirty, it's actually the color the of sand, note the black rocks on the cliff. The bugs come for the kelp beds, gracefully flowing in the waves, lulling me to a sense of sleepy and rest. If you like the quiet, nautical feel of beaches of long ago, then this is the place for you. If you want the urban beach scene, head to Pismo instead. read more

great alternative beach to pismo and we also enjoyed the dog friendly farmers market on wed night. been going to pismo for years and never made it to avila until yelp came along! read more

Not too crowded, has some interesting shops. Finding parking can kind of be a pain though.

Warning: There is no gas station in Avila Beach. There is a golf course and a few hotels. The beach is nice. One good restaurant, The Custom House and super seafood at the Fat Cat. read more

Horrible spot! Avila Hot Springs, cabins are gross and stink. Save your time and money, I wish somebody had warned me!

really nice small community. clean beach, lots of little shops. walking on the pier is also fun

who doesnt love this place! what can i say it is one of the best places to be on the central coast. nice dinning friendly people and a relaxing spot to forgot your problems. No matter where i go this place will always remind me of home. read more