Love this beach been there twice for fishing and I caught 3 perches! :D win win win Truly a hidden gem. read more

We loved the campground and Beach at New Brighton State Park. The staff was super friendly, the campsites were clean, and the views were breathtaking. We will definitely be back. read more

One of the best campgrounds we've stayed at. Location couldn't be better. It sits on the bluff above the beach, and the sites are not on top of one another. It was quiet. Showers are $0.25 per minute with hot water. The campground is a short drive from Capitola's cute beachfront shops and restaurants. read more

Always a great place for a stroll any time of day or season. Interesting to see history preserved by nature. Mysterious beautiful place.

We love this place! It's not far from San Jose which is mighty convenient. It has a small trail that takes you down to the beach where you can just relax and enjoy yourself all day long... with your dog too (as long as they are on lead). The campgrounds are always well kept and have all the modern amenities for superb car camping. They have clean flush toilets (Yay!), hot showers (bring quarters), fire ring (you can buy wood there), table and conveniently located water spigots for dish washing and such. The best spots are sites 69-82 that overlook the ocean... but they are hard to come by. You have to make reservations far in advance to camp in the summer too... just pre-plan and you are A-OK. It's worth the effort for this beautiful spot. read more

I used to take my kids camping here when they were younger and we always enjoyed it. The campsites are clean and the location is convenient for people living in the Bay Area - why drive 3 or more hours to camp when this gem is so close to home? In recent years it has become a favorite beach for me and my dogs to spend some time "away from it all". The beach is is somewhat protected from the weather and it is "too crowded" only on holiday weekends and very hot summer days. Bring a picnic lunch or food to barbeque because once you get here, you'll want to spend the day. read more

Great location with the town close by and beach access. We camped for two nights and were shocked by the amount of generators and camping trailers. Also, the 10pm curfew is enforced. We got a visit from the ranger around 1045pm saying we were way too loud (we were talking in our regular voices around the campfire) We were lucky enough to get a big camping lot (#59) and other lots we saw were fairly small. Some looked to only fit one tent. Restrooms were very nice and clean. Can't comment on the showers because I don't shower when I camp. :) As far as the beach goes it was very crowded and people had brought full spreads down there. Overall I'd camp here again, probably not visit the beach again. read more

Nice place. I read a lot of the other reviews and there not so accurate. I haven't seen one raccoon and the park rangers don't come around that much. If your rv camping don't get sites 70,67,66 they are not very level. The reservation system is the worst I have ever seen. They know these are tent sites so why would it let me book these 3 when you have to put in rv length?? The beach is a long walk down stairs but it's worth it. Very close to downtown Capitola. read more

Only camping spot on the beach within spitting distance of Santa Cruz (allright, Capitola). And when the couple times a year huge storm blows in and the waves are too big everywhere else, New Brighton goes off! read more

I love a good beach and this one is a gem. The cliffs are beautiful and I had numerous sightings of dolphins, various birds circling in the distance, a little lizard, and seals (or sea lions?). Absolutely gorgeous. This beach is very family-oriented. There are a lot of little kids running around which was ok for me. The downside was all of the seaweed strewn around, which felt a little dirty to me, but was not that big of a deal. Parking was easy but cost $6 for the day. If you want to skip out on the parking fee, I hear there's free parking on Coronado St. nearby and a convenient path that leads down to the beach from there. Also, the park service reps walk the beach. I saw them fine some people who brought beer in their cooler. They had to dump all of the beers and throw the cans away. That's kind of a drag. I will definitely visit this beach again. read more

Awesome campsite! We wanted to camp on the beach and since Santa Cruz to Monterey is a protected sanctuary this is as close as we could get! Its very close to everything (in case you run out of beer)... and right on a bluff overlooking the ocean. I didn't give it 5 stars beacuse you have to book several months in advance! However if planned properly its a wonderful place to camp with the family! enjoy!!! :D read more

This is a breathtakingly gorgeous place to camp. We paid a few extra dollars to get a spot facing the ocean and it was soooo worth it! The facilities are kept clean for a state beach, they clean the bathrooms in the morning. They have pretty strict generator hours which I think contributes to the serenity of the place. Our only complaint is about the showers. The water pressure was so low that I could spit harder then it sprayed. And the water temperature was not adjustable! They charge .25 for 2 minutes. I spent .12 waiting for the lukewarm water to come out :( read more

Love that New Brighton is dog friendly, that it has a restroom available and a lifeguard on duty. Bit of a walk down to the beach from the parking area but there is a choice of a gentler ramp or steeper stairs for your use. Lots of kelp on the beach but there was a pretty strong RIP current today so it may just be due to the tides. read more

This review is about the beach only. We always have a good time here, this is generally the only beach I bring my boys too, the reason as very simple, it is clean with the exception of the drift wood. I am able to set up pop-up tents and have plenty of room to spread out, even with the beach is crowded and the boy enjoy playing in the water and making very large holes in the sand. The weather is usually good here, and we always do enjoy ourselves, we do bring our own lunch as there is nothing just in walking distance to get to eat or drink, but you are able to carry a ice chest you are good. This beach does have fire pits for the early evening people, which is a great way to end a day at the beach. If you want a recommendation, this is a good beach to bring the family and enjoy a nice day, I am sure they might be other beaches in the area that are good, but this is the one the kids keep asking to come back to. read more

The Camsites are big and nice, but everywhere is garbage. They have clean restrooms and showers, but hot showers are very expensive, everything seems to be more expensive here compared to other state parks. Overall it is okay, but you are likely to find a better place around. read more

This place is really beautiful. The beach is loooong and the waves are fun to play around in. Me and my bf camped here for a weekend with his dogs and had a really fun time. The rangers are really chill as far as rules go. They don't seem to care about the quiet hours or be very strict on the group size restrictions. It's a fun place for dogs too except you can't let them off leash on the beach which kinda sucks. The dogs were not too happy about that. The park doesn't seem to have very many trails either and the ones they ahve are covered in poison oak. I'll definitely come back here if I want to bring the dogs camping again though, otherwise I'd probably try something else just because of the lack of trails. But it's absolutely gorgeous and very dog friendly! read more

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I went camping here with my husband, 7yo and 9yo in September. -Four stars for the lack of privacy at the camp sites. Also, (I'm assuming) because of the drought the sites were extremely dusty/dirty. It was hard to keep the dirt out of the tent with kids running around on a super dry campsite. -Bathrooms were well maintained with toilet paper, etc. -We were able to have a fire which was nice since at Mt. Diablo we weren't able to due to the drought. -The only reason I'd come back is because of the amazing accessibility to the beach. Our site was in the 30s, maybe 38? If I come back I would definitely choose a site closer to the bluff overlooking the ocean. I think these were in the 60s and near the RV sites, but note that they are 10-20$ more than normal sites. read more

Just stayed here again for 4 days. Good times and nothing but. I love camping here. The staff seems pretty lax about the 2 car and 8 person max. We had upwards of 12 people and 5 cars without any problems. I love this place! read more

I love New Brighton minus the sticks. But, if you stick close to shore you can probably save your feet. It's a nice walk and the beach is never too crowded. Since, most people camp and walk. Otherwise, the lot isn't too big. So, locals don't have to steer clear. It's a good place to walk the dog. Since, unlike other places in town there are behaved owners with dogs on their leash ;) read more

This place is excellent for summer camping. Our neighbors were nice and lent us oil since we forgot to bring some. Our group bbq'd till late, 12 am, then decided to head to the beach. We had no trouble being on the beach after the 10pm curfew because it was too foggy above the beach for patrols to look down. I always get excited for being on the beach at night. It was also fairly epic seeing the houses lined up next to the sand a little bit down the coastline. read more

Just went here over the weekend. Luckily, the weather was great. I booked 1 month in advance and had the last available spot. This campground definitely tends to fill up fast! There are some spectacular sites with ocean views that I imagine are booked out way in advance. My site was spacious. I did not feel like I was on top of any other party. This was really fantastic for a state park. Also, the campground was filled with younger party goers that were responsible. Therefore, this might be a good place to go if you want to make a little noise. 25 cents bought me 2 minutes of warm shower! Also, the views are spectacular in the group day use area. Lots of dogs and pretty dog friendly overall. My only complaint is due to parking. When booking on reserve america it stated " 2 vehicles per campsite". We had 4 cars and two campsites. As it turned out, reserve america's fine print states 1 car and 1 towed in vehicle.The reservation office is open 7-5pm. Since I arrived at 5.30pm, I had to deal with campground parking police at 8am. Basically, I booked an extra site just for the two cars ( we weren't using it otherwise) and I still had to pay $20 per night for our extra two cars. Bonus, they only take cash. The staff was reasonably nice about this issue but pretty much non-empathetic to their poor website feature that caused the mess! So beware of that! read more

I love camping at New Brighton. It is the best of two worlds with large trees and a forrest like setting, and just a walk down the stairs to a beautiful beach. I try to go here at least once a year. Would have given 5 stars, but it is really difficult to reserve hear. You have to book at least 7 months in advance, and a year if you want hook ups. They are really strict on generator times, do if you have an RV, book early. I wish they had more hookup sites. You are guaranteed to enjoy yourself if you can get in. read more

I love this beach its my new favorite. Its a beautiful, no too crowded place. Perfect for just coolin' out, cooking some food, and jumpin in the ocean. I'll frequently be back. read more

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New Brighton was much better than I thought it would be. My husband and I came here with our dog to escape the weird Fall heatwave. The weather was absolutely perfect. There was a good amount of people, but not overly crowded. The bathrooms were decently clean and so was the sand. We set up our Sportbrella, ate our lunch, read, relaxed, and just had the most splendid time. I did notice flies around a tree trunk lying on the sand, but that didn't bother me. Whether the water was clean or not also didn't bother me because we never go in the water at California beaches anyway and I don't expect them to be as nice as the beaches in Hawaii or the Caribbean. It was nice seeing dolphins in the water come up every now and then and pelicans diving in to snag their daily catch. We came here mostly because it seems to be the only dog friendly beach in Capitola. Even though she wasn't allowed to come off leash, she still had lots of fun running around along the shoreline and meeting other dogs. read more

New Brighton State Beach - Parks Near Me - Capitola, California

Beautiful State Park. Can't miss with this park. Ocean front. Short hike down to the beach.

Just another perfect California beach! The day we were the surf was pretty gentle, perfect for kids, kayakers, and stand up paddle boarders. It is surrounded by bluffs so there are some stairs to get down to it. Taking a star off for seaweed and sand fleas, but I suppose that's pretty standard issue for a public beach, no funds to clean it up constantly. Note, it feels windy in the parking lot because it is in a ravine which acts like a wind tunnel. Out on the beach it was warmer, and calmer. Great location, close to Capitola and just off the highway. read more

I love this place. Milla does too, my pug! We have been there twice and it has always been really nice. Great place to go for a long walk. Milla loves running in the sand and keeping away from the water. There are lots of dogs there, beyond a certain point they can be without their leash. I remember coming here, before Milla, to visit friends who were camping and it seemed like a fun place to go camping too. I have only been camping out in the valley, where it's hot, dry, did I say HOT, this place seemed like a nice change. The water is COLD, but isn't it cold everywhere in the "Bay Area". I have given up trying to find a warm beach to actually go swimming in...only in Hawaii and Portugal! But this is a great place to hang out! ****OMG We went there this weekend and there were so many dead birds all over. I'm thinking there might have been some kind of spill or something, but then again maybe some drunken youngsters feeding the birds something they shouldn't have! It was sad, I spotted 6 birds and a set of wings...ewh! read more

WE Love New Brighton SB always a peaceful pleasure to RV there for a few days! Great eateries nearby!

Decent location. Gross, dirty, barren site. No soap or hand sanitizer in the bathrooms. Exorbitant prices. Overall not impressed.

Park at the top of the hill for free parking. Bathrooms. Low tide you can walk to the village. High tide walk to Rio Del Mar. If someone could estabish a food option nearby, they would slay it. More valley then local. read more

Don't bother if you want the real camping by the beach experience. Travel 10min south to Sunset Beach! All we could hear all night was the freeway! Not very clean bathrooms and no recycling at every trash area. If you have no reservations, you must wait until 2 pm and then be on a list to see if you get a space. Again, don't bother take all of that time you spent waiting until 2 pm to drive to Sunset beach campground. read more

This is a review of the campground within the state park. The sites in this campground vary in terms of how spacious and private they are. Many - but not all - have shade. The restrooms are nice, although they are really lit up at night and I would avoid a site right next to them for that reason. The campground sits on a bluff above the beach and all of the sites are an easy walk down to the sand and that's a really nice perk in a place with expensive real estate. On the downside, I was surprised at how noisy Hwy. 1 was throughout the park given that it doesn't feel close by. This was especially true in the early morning. It was less noticeable during the day. All in all, $35 is a lot of money for a campsite, especially for a cheapskate like myself, but if you're looking to camp in the area it's a decent option. We had site number 66 and while it was nice enough I wouldn't recommend it because there are better sites to be had. For one, 66 doesn't really have any shade. So, a shady site, like 69 or 70, would be better. Even better would be a "Premium Campsite," which is more expensive ($50 in 2014), but potentially well worth it. To paraphrase Planes, Trains and Automobiles, anyone who would pay $35 for a campsite would certainly pay $50. More to the point, they seem worth the additional money as they sit right on the bluff overlooking the beach, have great shade and the surf likely drowns out much of the highway noise. I think #73 would be my top choice because it seems extra large and private, except that one of the trails down to the beach runs alongside it. I think I would avoid 75 and 76 (and 78?) because they seemed smaller than the rest, but maybe that was my impression. 90 seemed strange too because it wasn't initially clear that it went all the way to the bluff, but it must. In short, for a regular campsite I think I'd go with #70 and if I was ready to splurge (or share the site with friends) I would go for premium site #73. read more

I was so excited to get a campsite that I reserved six months prior...here's why the negative five stars... When you check in they hand you the slip to put in your window. So I taped it in my window and maybe I should not have just assumed it was for my campsite and parking because when I had to file a complaint the next morning that someone stole stuff out of my campsite, their response was about the slip I taped in my window warns me about the "high theft alert". I strongly feel that this is something that should be mentioned at check in!!! Not an after thought of telling me I should read the information before putting the tag in the window. Apparently, this campground is known for having things stolen and I would have been a lot more careful. I have never had stuff stolen camping so I was so shocked and violated. It took hours before the camp ranger got back to me. Sadly, I do not recommend this place. read more

This is kind of delayed, but I have been meaning to write a review for a couple months. My husband and I (and two dogs) camped here a few months ago with another couple. We loved it! First a warning....my husband was sitting up alone at the site at 2:30am. He noticed an older model pick-up truck cruising slowly through the grounds with their headlights off. They appeared to be scoping out the campsites and, we assume, looking for things to steal. My husband shined his flashlight at the truck when he got to our site and the driver hit the gas and sped away, so clearly he was up to something shady. I had read other reviews mentioning theft, so I don't think it was an isolated incident. I wouldn't leave anything you value sitting out over night (or even during the day in your tent). Great things: - We had a nice site. It wasn't one of the "premium" sites, but we had a nearby site with lot of room and a decent amount of privacy. We did walk through the entire camp area and saw that at the other end of the park, some of the sites are practically on top of each other. There were tons of people and no privacy...not something I would enjoy. But over on our side it was lovely. - Bathrooms with showers. The bathrooms weren't spectacular, but for a state park they were clean and not too scary. - Proximity to the ocean. It's great to be able to walk down to the beach! Next time we may just try driving from our site to the beach. - Close to everything, but away from it all. When we arrived we realized we had forgot to pack the dog food! No problem, Safeway is just down the road. It's nice to feel like you are so far away from "city life" and yet have amenities (groceries, supplies, atm, etc) nearby. - Beautiful grounds. Nice beach that offers swimming. It really is a beautiful slice of Coastal California. - Seems like it would be an ideal spot for family camping. So much to do! Not so great things: - Our site was rimmed with a ton of poison oak. We had to make an effort to keep our dogs leashed to where it was out of reach. Not too big of a hassle for a group of adults, but could be more difficult with small children. - The beach was VERY VERY crowded on the 2 gorgeous, sunny days we were there. It was hard to find a nice place to sit without having strangers five feet away. I guess this is in part to the park being so close to Capitola. - While our site was nice and spacious, if you don't plan ahead you could get stuck at a tiny site with other people almost on top of you with no privacy. - This park is very popular so you need to make your reservations well in advance to get a decent site. I lucked out and found one on short notice...I'm assuming someone had cancelled their reservation because the site hadn't been available when I'd checked two months prior. - The trail on the north end of the park going down to the beach is a bit rough. I wouldn't recommend lugging a bunch of gear and small children through it. Next time we're going to drive from our site to the beach parking. read more

Great place to go camping. Campsite is overlooking the beach down below. Constantly hear the waves crashing up against the shore. Camping wise, there are no BBQ grills. Recommend u bring your own. Campsites are huge, nice trees to help block the sun out. At night time make sure you lock up your food, including coolers cuz the local raccoons will be coming to visit you and they can open a cooler just like me n u. Do not leave cat or dog food out, it will disappear. The walk down to the beach was not far. Bathrooms are cleaned and stocked every morning. overall this is a good camping spot. read more

As a local, I've never camped here or paid to park or anything. I just walked in from the surrounding area and enjoyed the beach. This beach affords stunning views of the south part of the bay, including Moss Landing and Monterey on a clear day. This area seems to be the north tip of the aptos fog bank though, to keep that in mind if you're hoping to sun bathe, especially in the summer. When there is a zero or negative tide you can easily walk along the beach all the way to Capitola Village which is fun. You can often see otters from the shore in their little kelp beds, and there are lots of nice rocks and shells to be found. read more

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My wife and I attended a "Great Big Sea" concert in Santa Cruz, then spent the night at New Brighton in our Eurovan. When we drove up to the park, there was a sign stating the the campground was full. From prior experience with state parks, I talked with the young people manning the booth who told me that there was "lots of space". We "booked" a camping space one row in from the bluffs with a bit of a view of the Bay. Very pleasant, and the campground was very sparsely occupied. We got back after 10PM to a quiet campground...but cold! We woke up at around 9:45 in the morning to warm sunshine through the van windows...very pleasant after a cool night. We had a casual continental breakfast, visited with a "neighbor", then walked on the beach in 70 degree plus weather before heading back over the hill to San Jose. Had lunch at Zelda's by the Beach in Capitola...see review if you're interested. This is not the first time we've found camping space in a "full" campground, so be certain to contact park staff before moving on down the road. There's likely to be space available, and it can't hurt to check. A beautiful campground with spectacular ocean views for $35.00 a night. Complete with hot showers (coin operated) and firewood available from the camp host for a price. This appears to be a good time of the year to visit...especially if you can make it during the week. read more

Beautiful wooded campground within a mile of the beach, if you are lucky enough to get a reservation

Love this place! Stayed overnight in a "full hook-up" site, but there is no grey water or sewer/black water connection. (so, not actual full hook-ups) The hook-ups are for electrical and water only. We stayed in space #49 and loved it. There is a trail that runs behind our site, so we did get the occasional person walking behind our campsite. The camp host sells firewood for $10 a bundle, starting at 4pm. There are garbage and recycling bins near the campsites. The shower areas are nice, big and private. I only wished that there was a shelf or hooks inside the stall area, so I could hang up my shampoo, towel, etc. The walk to the ocean view is about 3 minutes away, and there is a trail to take that leads down to the beach. The beach is long and beautiful. I was enjoying searching for shells while walking on the beach. I saw a restroom area on the beach, but I did not see if they were open or functional. NOTE: you are required to leave alcohol at your campsite, and can not bring your alcohol to the beach. The day we were leaving, the 3 young kids next door were out walking in the rain and walked through our campsite, instead of taking the trail back. It would be nice to not have kids run through our campsite and stay on the road or trails, but kids will be kids. I had read prior reviews about coolers being stolen, so we left our cooler inside our RV during our entire stay. We never saw any raccoons, bees or hornets. When you need to dump your black & grey water tanks in your RV, there are two lanes to choose to pull in to. Each lane has 2 stalls for dumping, for a total of 4 dump sites. That is nice to see!! That way, people don't have to wait forever behind one dump site. The campground has plenty of room for tent or bike camping, about 10 RV hook up sites, and there are some Premium sites that offer beautiful ocean views...but those sites do NOT have full hookups. I really enjoyed the beauty of this place and the quietness. The campground isn't far from the freeway, so we did hear occasional sirens or loud vehicles. I definitely plan to return here in the future!! read more

1.) Learn the Day use rules if visiting. Park rangers do enforce all laws here particularly dogs off the leash and open container. The day use area has a closure time of sunset as well which is solely subject to the Ranger of the days determination of sunset. As fog and other factors may effect sunset be sure to have your vehicle out of the lower day use area before the day use area white gate is locked after sunset If you take a walk down the beach near sunset be extremely cautious, Rangers do not always advise all patrons their closing the lower day use area. The beach is open to 10 pm but day use cars must leave after sunset. Visually the park is exceptionally nice with lots of parking and beach space however during summer months the park fills up fast so call regarding space. June-SEPT expect the park to be filled to capacity on Saturdays and Sundays. early. Nearby Sea cliff state park beach typically has the same large crowds on summer days so come early, leave the dog at home. Choose a different beach if the dog has to come. #1 ticket is dog of the leash!!!!!!! #2 is open container alcohol not allowed at all in the day use area. Don't ask for a ticket risking it. 3.) Know the state park rules regarding what sea life can be legally taken. 4.) Strongly note to the extreme north of the main beach is a rock path that leads to a secondary beach location partially hidden. Along the waters edge there are old railroad spikes that poke out of the sand. Historical debris left from the former railroad tracks on the beach when known as China camp. The main beach entrance on the lower day use has a monument regarding China camp explaining the history. 5.) Plan the tides carefully if walking from New Brighton to Capitola on the low tide checking out the old marine fossils in the rocks, fishing etc. Obvious proper footing, gear ,supervision for the young and again learn the tides as not to get stranded by the tide. Rangers will not make exception read more