Fantastic beach for younger kids, and a great option for East Bay residents who aren't up for the…read moretrek into the city or the even longer drive to Santa Cruz. The beach is clean and has useful amenities, including outdoor showers, picnic tables, and restrooms. I haven't actually used the restrooms, so I can't speak to their condition, but I can say I've never noticed trash on the beach, even on busy days. The crowd is generally respectful, which goes a long way. The downside is that the water isn't exactly pristine by appearance, smell, or feel...but you can't have everything. My favorite thing about this beach, aside from the fact that the water isn't freezing, is how shallow it stays. I can wade out with my kid what feels like half a mile and still not feel like we're anywhere close to being too far from shore. P.S. Do NOT forget to pay for parking if you're in the lot. It's yellow, located at the far end, the fee is 5 dollars and it's easy to miss. Also, they don't accept Discover debit.

In The Teen and I's new Friday ritual of water watching before we head home, we stopped by Crown…read moreMemorial before heading through the tunnel to let traffic die down a bit.. This was definitely the place to be back in the day! Parking was a snap and we found a bench to sit on starting the water watching. The view was awesome and the sun was shining just like Bob Marley said. There were people, young and old playing in the sand, lots of bike riders, and of course, those dog walkers. The Teen put the phone down and ventured out and some sand, touching and driftwood drifting.. Definitely, we will be back when it gets warmer with hopes of finding front row parking again!

Very calm and accessible. We parked on the roadside and the beach is right there - miles and miles…read moreof shallow water and sand. There are a lot of driftwood and kelp, so it smells fishy. It's still clean enough that we played frisbees without our shoes. We moved onto the Crown Memorial State Beach afterwards. Although that beach had a parking lot and a cleaner beach, we thought the Alameda beach was more chill. Regardless, both had shallow water where it's safe for small children to wade out and play.

Alameda beach is one of the few beaches in norcal where you can lounge at…read more We have been regularly doing our open water swims in the area and the water's always feeling relatively clean and refreshing. There is plenty of parking all along the roads and overall, a great place to reset in the mornings, evenings and on weekends.

A true hot girl walk…read more A sweet coastline beginner friendly trail. I love that there are paved and dirt path options that make me feel like a real adventurer (without the rigor). There's not a lot of shade here, so I come when I want to sunbathe with my walk. There's a small community feel. Folks tend to be friendly, often smiling or stopping for a chat. Watch out for the baby squirrels during the spring! I think it takes a while for their instincts to kick in...

Shoreline park is a beautiful walking path and a green belt on Harbor Bay Isle. It's about 6 miles…read morelong and runs into the Harbor Bay ferry. There is a gravel path and cement path for cyclists. On any giving day you can find people walking their dogs, relaxing and watching the beautiful bay and enjoying sunsets. There are several benches throughout the path and they also have restrooms and plenty of trash receptacles. In some sections, they even have picnic tables and barbecue pits. One area also has an outlook and sandbox for children to play in. While out enjoying the path, you can guarantee you will find some beautiful wildlife, and a lot of pictures are taken by photographers and people just blown away by the beautiful view of San Francisco. Definitely recommend if you're looking for a clean, beautiful and romantic path.

Ballena Bay is a delightful little neighborhood on the south coast of Alameda. Its actually an…read moreisland that has a curved shape. The curve curves away from the Bay, so you get sweeping views of the SF Peninsula. The marina is upscale and has some big beautiful boats. There are over 500 slips, so its a sizeable marina. There is a walking path that curves around the outer edge of the island. Its a great walk with a dog around sunset. You can walk all the way out to the tip of the island then head back on the other side. PRO-TIP: The Bay side of Ballena gets much colder (maybe 5-10 degrees F) than the inner marina side. Recommend bringing a jacket!

Before you move in, be aware that the management leadership team is tremendously flawed. There are…read moremany benefits in the office staff, but unfortunately an environmental policies are on their boss. She tends to neglect major problems listed below, and nitpicks behaviors that generally go unchecked (Parking, smoking, non-leashed animals, pool behaviors, laundry services running into quiet hours, and littering). Unfortunately this hurts the neighborhood. Everyone I have met is kind, and very inviting. This includes other on-site office staff members, as they conduct themselves with grace and respect for the environment. There are experiences with newer staff members touching , moving, or rearranging things while conducting their housing checks. Which is a minor discrepancy that has and can cause some problems. Senior management doesn't enforce lease violations, allowing malpractice to slip through the cracks from both the staff and inhabitants of the village. Whether it is rude neighbors and toxic residents, or unhealthy uses of power from staff. This creates tension residents and staff. This is the toughest part, of a fantastic place to live. That has hosting capabilities, a pool, a basketball court, and beach access. Although like gristle you learn to live with it, or can't stand the thought of eating anymore.

One of the best if possibly the only east bay dog beach? Great area, perfect size, they do have…read morebathrooms although one major drawback is not water and/or foot washing area. If they put in a water/washing area for our feet and our dogs, this would be perfect. Hopefully someone from the city will read this!

We took our senior pitbull mix here to celebrate her birthday with three of her "dog cousins". The…read moreweather was sunny with a crisp breeze from the water. The beach area is smaller than other dog beaches I've been to, but the dogs love it just the same. Tons of zoomies and water play. There were breeds of all sizes. Dog owners are friendly, but some tend to not pay attention to their dogs at all times. Some friendly dogs approached us which is fine, but we had to shoo away other dogs that went into our bags and coolers. There's a lot of free parking spaces that are a short walk away from the trail and beach. I didn't see any water spigots in the area, so be sure to bring a water bowl and extra water for your little one. After a few hours, all of our dogs were pooped after a fun celebration.

Beautiful beach with the view of Golden Gate Bridge. It's part of the coastal trail…read more I got here the hard way by walking down on the sand stairs. It turns out there's a parking lot at the other side of the beach.

What a beautiful beach to go to. Many people came to here during the weekend which is no wonder why…read moreparking is very difficult. However, the good thing about it is how closer it gets you to taking pictures of the Golden Gate Bridge. I took very good pictures with nice angles, and I think it's good doing that here. This beach also leads you to different trails but I decided not to go through them since they might make me go outside of the beach. I decided to walk through the beach though. Very hot outside even though that San Francisco is known to be chilly here. I did enjoy touching cold ocean especially when the waves catch me. If you plan to go here during the weekend, expect yourself to find parking and perhaps going around. Otherwise, you can try again by revisiting during the weekdays.

The Public Shoreline Trail is actually closed to the public during daylight hours. The gates are…read moreclosed during the evening for the homeowners that live next to or very close to this trail. This trail leads directly to Crab Cove and Crown Memorial Beach on one end and Ballena Bay on the other, and it's right next to the water. Lots of benches in the area to kick back on and enjoy the view. Check out this trail if you're in the area!!

This is a nice clean trail that is very easy to walk, run or bike ride…read more Started off at 512 Central ave. Free public parking in front of the gated community/condos We started off riding and before we knew it we were past the beach, past the bridge and all the way on the other side of the shoreline. We ended up riding 10 miles. It is a public shoreline trail however private homes are located in the area.

This park is pretty big. Lots of walking area. Decent play ground. I do wish they had a bigger…read moreparking lot though. It is tiny and it is always full. Sometimes I have to circle around to find parking on the streets. Walking the marina is nice. I did a jog through it the other day.

I have spent more than one afternoon hanging out at Marina Park. It's a good place to slow down,…read moreget some fresh air and enjoy being by the water. The park has open grassy areas and picnic tables with barbecues, there are walking trails, playgrounds, restrooms and they even have outdoor fitness equipment. I'm a big girl but it's always fun to play a little bit on the ellipticals or the machines. There was a little bit of construction going on just near the exercise equipment last time that I was there... Not sure exactly what they're doing though. Still there's something about being outside in the sun while exercising that just makes it more enjoyable to me personally. I like to walk the shoreline with my dog and check out the views. There are always people picnicking and fishing or just hanging out in the parking lot. It's definitely a decent place to spend an afternoon if you just want to relax and enjoy some time with friends or family in good weather with good views.

Great wide walking/ bike path with occasional benches. If…read moreyou love airplanes (I do) this is a fantastic spot as the takeoffs from OAK go right overhead!!

parked at the ferry parking lot which is free…read more it was nice to ride bike along the water but the trail itself is bumpy not smooth. rode all the way to jack london square and the path to get there was not quiety as often you are riding on the should along with traffic. overall i think there are some better bike trail options that are easier to ride and smoother.

Massive urban park with public shoreline and unobstructed, panoramic views of the SF skyline and…read morebeyond. It may feel a bit desolate and empty but it is a well maintained park with benches, trails, restroom, and an observation tower. There was a security car patrolling around, which made this urban area feel more safe to wander solo, but still recommend staying alert and leaving no trace of belongings in your parked vehicle. The views are amazing here! Truly a photographer's paradise. You can walk right up to the shoreline and watch the sunset. There's a lot of ducks, geese, and pelicans which I enjoyed bird watching before sunset :). It gets really windy here and some seating areas (picnic tables and benches) can be found tucked into little areas with wonderful views. You can watch the huge shipping containers being unloaded/ loaded on at the port of Oakland. Great spot to spend a few hours and admire the views.

This is a little known park with excellent views of the Bay, San Francisco and the shipyard. It is…read moreusually practically empty with plenty of parking. There are lots of benches along the way so you can sit and watch the boats go by. You have an excellent view of San Francisco and the Bay Bridge. It's great for taking children on a bike ride, scooter ride or skating because there are many paved surfaces. You can park directly in the first parking lot when you come in or you can drive down to where you can watch the cargo ships load and unload their containers. Young kids love to watch that. Minus one star for the barren landscaping but other that that, a great place to check out.