Wednesday, June 5, 2013

Capitola Beach, CA

Capitola Beach is a little bit south of Santa Cruz and, in my opinion, one of the most picturesque beach towns in Northern California. The town itself is tiny and consists of mostly vacation homes and cottages for rent. It tends to get a bit more sunshine than its neighbors to the south, Carmel and Pacific Grove. It's very popular as a weekend getaway destination and hence can be quite crowded on Saturdays and Sundays, especially during the warmer months. Parking is mostly metered, but if you're willing to walk a bit, you can probably find a free parking spot in the neighborhoods a bit farther away from the beach or along Cliff Drive. At one time a small colony of Italian immigrants settled here, so it really has a Mediterranean feel to it; the colorful, quaint downtown is full of boutiques, art galleries, surf shops, cafes, restaurants, and bars. 

Recently I headed to the coast with my friends and spent the day lounging in the soft, white sand of Capitola Beach. The day started out with a bit of fog, but it disappeared quickly and blue skies and sunshine stayed with us the rest of the day. 

Come take a look around...

The view from Cliff Drive...
 The old wharf was built in 1857...
 The popular beach area...
 There is a boat rental facility and a restaurant at the end of the wharf...


 A memorial flower...
 Boats for rent...the fishing is supposedly quite good here...
Bring your bikes...
 Memorial plaques...
 The pretty beach...
 The colorful Venetian Hotel - a popular place to stay...






 Soquel Creek and the old railroad trestle...
 Waterfront restaurants...
 The downtown shopping district...




 More vacation rentals...

Private parking under the trestle...
 Colorful houses line the streets...


 A view from the wharf...
Carmel was once my favorite beach getaway. Then it was Morro Bay. Now I think I'm smitten with Capitola. Ahhhh...life's a beach!

Click HERE to see shots from my visit here a couple of years ago.

4 comments:

Photo Cache said...

I love Capitola, I fancy myself staying in one of those gorgeous pink houses/condos someday, crossed fingers.

Kay L. Davies said...

Oh, I love this! I'm going to send my husband a link to this, because we're talking of doing driving holidays from now on.
Although Capitola is more colorful, it reminds me of my home town, White Rock, in the bottom lefthand corner of Canada, with a long pier going out into the ocean, and people decorating the beach with bright clothing and beach balls all summer.
K

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Misty said...

Hi! :)

Thanks for the nice comment on my blog.

Boy! you sure have a lot of wonderful pictures on your blog; loved the colors of the buildings and the ones of Lake Tahoe. I live in Santa Rosa.

Hope you are enjoying the w/end.