Strolling out on the Avila Beach’s Port San Luis Pier is an unforgettable experience especially early in the morning hours. Sea lions are barking, pelicans are gracefully flying in formation, and busy fishermen are starting the new day with the sunrise.

Downtown Avila Beach offers a walking promenade filled with shopping, first-class restaurants and an expansive beachfront area while a nearby golf resort offers large scale concerts on its pristine grass area. Farmers Market is a favorite here on warm Friday afternoons complete with live local music and tantalizing tastes from the area’s eclectic restaurants.

Off in the distance lie Shell Beach and Pismo Beach where cliff-side resorts hug the sparkling Pacific. Downtown Pismo Beach comes to life especially during the summer tourist season and for celebratory festivities including its Clam Festival and vintage car shows. November through February, Pismo State Beach Butterfly Grove hosts an awe-inspiring display of thousands of monarch butterflies nesting here for the winter.

Off-road recreational vehicles race along beach dunes in Grover Beach, expanding southward to Oceano and Guadalupe-Nipomo dunes. During the 1930s, this unique area became the site of a community called the “Dunites”, a group of artists, writers, and intellectuals. These days, horseback riding, fishing and camping on the beach are also popular during the summer months.