HIP District

What it’s like

The district’s merchant website says HIP stands for Historic and Interesting Places, and it describes ten walkable streets of South Coast Highway from Thalia Street to Diamond Street. It says the heart of Laguna’s business district sat around Bluebird Canyon and South Coast Highway before the town had its current downtown. Visit Laguna Beach, which links to that website, describes a shorter span, from Anita Street to Bluebird Canyon, and says beaches wait at the end of every street. Its listing counts 26 art galleries and 17 restaurants, with coffee shops that have outdoor seating, apparel stores, a bookstore, florists, jewelry and consignment shops, a nursery with home decor, spas and places to work out. This page follows the merchants’ Thalia Street to Diamond Street. The shopping guide, the art galleries guide and the restaurants in the HIP District cover the businesses.

The ocean side of the highway drops to the beach. The Coastal Commission lists stairs at Thalia Street, at most street ends from Anita Street to Pearl Street, and at the end of Diamond Street for Woods Cove. Between Anita and Pearl it lists on-street parking, no fee and no restrooms, with sand mixed with a rocky shore. The Thalia Street, Anita Street, Oak Street, Brooks Street, Cress Street, Mountain Road, Bluebird Beach, Agate Street, Pearl Street and Woods Cove pages cover each access point. The Commission’s 2023 staff report on the city’s Anita Street stairway project describes an ocean-fronting bluff above a narrow sandy beach, with the public stairway between two private homes, at 992 Ocean Front and 1007 Gaviota Drive. The city is rebuilding those stairs, expects to finish in December 2026, and points beachgoers to the Oak Street and Thalia Street stairs until then.

Capri Laguna, at 1441 S Coast Highway, says it sits in the HIP District on the bluff, with the sand a few steps away. La Casa del Camino, at 1289 S Coast Highway, calls itself a historic oceanfront hotel steps from Cress Street Beach and runs a rooftop lounge. The downtown hotels page lists the places to stay along this stretch.

Homes sit beside the commercial frontage, including private houses at street ends above the beach, such as the two beside the Anita Street stairway. Bluebird Canyon Drive meets the highway at the ramp down to Bluebird Beach and climbs inland into Bluebird Canyon. The Village page covers downtown to the north. At the south end, the district reaches the streets around Woods Cove, the cove the Coastal Commission places between Pearl Street and Diamond Street.

Getting around

The Coastal Route trolley is free on weekdays and runs on Coast Highway between North Laguna and Heisler Park, downtown and South Laguna. On the off-season schedule, September 8, 2026 to June 25, 2027, it runs Monday to Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 6 p.m., every 30 minutes. The Long and Short Coastal routes run on Friday evenings, Saturdays and Sundays, every 20 to 30 minutes. Check the getting around guide for the current schedule.

Parking meters take credit and debit cards (not American Express), coins and the Laguna Beach Parking App, and time limits vary by location, so read the posted signs. The Coastal Commission’s listing for the beaches between Anita Street and Pearl Street shows on-street parking. The parking guide covers city permits and rules.

Measured in a straight line from the Coastal Commission’s Main Beach point, the Thalia Street end of the district lies about 0.6 mile south. Cress Street, by La Casa del Camino, sits about 0.9 mile out.

Things to know before you buy or rent

The rules for short-term lodging depend on an address’s zone. The city no longer allows new short-term lodging, meaning stays of 30 consecutive days or less, in its R-1, R-2 and R-3 residential districts. It allows lodging in the LB/P, C-N, C-1 and CH-M zones, and in the CBD districts of the Downtown Specific Plan, with an Administrative Use Permit. Ask which zone covers an address before you plan on nightly rentals. The short-term rentals guide has the rules.

The Coastal Commission’s staff report says the Anita Street project site lies under the city’s certified Local Coastal Program. The city approved that work with a local coastal development permit, which could be appealed to the Commission because the site lies between the sea and the first public road.

Laguna Beach Unified School District operates the public schools in town. Its September 2026 street list includes Thalia Street, Anita Street, Oak Street, Brooks Street, Cress Street, Mountain Road, Ocean Front, Bluebird Canyon Drive and Diamond Street, and the district asks you to contact its Business Services office to confirm an address. For school names and locations, see the schools guide. The Laguna Beach County Water District supplies water to most of the city.

Realatrends.com’s Laguna Beach guide leads to the homes for sale now and the most recent sales.