Pearl Street Beach

What it’s like

Pearl Street Beach lies about 1.2 miles south of Main Beach in a straight line. The city describes it as fairly rocky, with reefs at the north and south ends. Agate Street Beach and Bluebird Beach lie to the north.

The city lists body surfing, body boarding, diving and tide pooling as the popular activities. It says surf breaks off the reef to the south and arrives as a shorebreak, and that hazardous surf and rip conditions are present. Surfing is not allowed at Pearl Street during the summer. The city also says there is no climbing, jumping or diving off Arch Rock, and it notes that not every beach has a lifeguard at all times.

Getting there and parking

You reach the sand by the stairs at Pearl Street and Ocean Way. Orange County Coastkeeper’s directions for marine protected area monitors give a second way: the ramp beside the Surf & Sand hotel. The city’s 2017 environmental filing for the Pearl Street Beach Access Rehabilitation Project proposed replacing the existing walkway and stairs with new stairs and walkways and rehabilitating the overlook, and the city approved the project in March 2017.

There is no beach lot. The Coastkeeper directions suggest parking along Ocean Way, or across Coast Highway and one block up the hill on Glenneyre Street. The Coastal Commission lists stairs at most street ends from Anita Street to Pearl Street, with street parking and no fee, and Pearl is the south end of that group. Meters in some city areas allow three hours, and neighborhood parking elsewhere is very limited, the city says. The parking guide covers permits, enforcement hours and the summer lots.

Agate Street has the next stairway about 350 feet to the north. Woods Cove lies about 740 feet to the south, with its own stairs off Diamond Street and Ocean Way.

The Coastal Commission lists no restrooms for the stretch.

Tide pools and reserve rules

Low tide is the time for tide pooling. The city advises checking a tide chart and wearing waterproof shoes, since flip flops are a poor match for sharp rock. Its Good Tide Pooler Rules: no collecting, no touching animals, step gently and leave rocks unturned.

Pearl Street Beach is inside the Laguna Beach State Marine Reserve, which runs from Abalone Point south to Goff Island. It is unlawful there to injure, damage, take or possess any living, geological or cultural marine resource. The city’s page for the beach asks visitors not to collect or disturb marine life, bars taking rocks and shells, and says fishing is not allowed.

Good to know

Closing time is 1 a.m. to 5 a.m. The city bans alcohol (adults 21 and over included), smoking and fires. Dogs must be leashed, and from June 15 to September 10 they may be on the beach only before 9 a.m. and after 6 p.m.

The Woods Cove neighborhood page has the housing and figures for the area.