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Avila BeachCalifornia

Pink sunrise sky over the town of Avila Beach and the pier

Avila Beach California

Sunrise on San Luis Bay. Beaches, piers and a small town worth slowing down for.

Sand, piers & tide poolsBeaches Hotels, rentals, campingStay Fish tacos to wineDine Trails, kayaks, aquariumThings to Do Today in Avila

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Where to go in Avila

Avila Beach sits on a south-facing cove of San Luis Bay, between San Luis Obispo and Pismo: one small town, three piers and a valley of hot springs and farm stands. These are the places worth the trip, each with parking, hours and tips on its own page.

The beachfront hotels, Avila Beach and the pier from the hill above town

Avila BeachWarm, calm water in a south-facing cove, with the promenade, the pier and Front Street right behind the sand.

Sea lions swimming through clear water and kelp beside mussel-covered pier pilings

Harford PierSea lions, fish markets and fish and chips over the water

A striped shore crab tucked into a rock crevice in the Avila tide pools

Tide poolsCrabs, anemones and sea stars at low tide

The paved Bob Jones Trail winding under an arch of coast live oaks

Bob Jones TrailA flat creekside path under the oaks

Pumpkins and hay bales stacked under the Avila Valley Barn sign in fall

Avila Valley BarnPumpkins, pie and farm animals

The restored 1889 Point San Luis Lighthouse, a white Victorian keeper's house with its square light tower, under a clear blue sky

The lighthouseAn 1889 light station on the point

A group of kayakers paddling through kelp toward Cal Poly Pier as fog rolls over the hills

Kayak the bayPaddle out to the sea lions

A private hot tub on a deck among the oaks at Sycamore Mineral Springs, the sun low through the trees

Hot springsMineral tubs in the oaks

Houses climbing the hill above Avila Beach in late-day light, with the pier at right

Wine tastingFive tasting rooms, from Front Street patios to apple wine up See Canyon

Seared ahi tuna with wasabi cream and a cold beer on a blue table at Port San Luis, with boats moored in San Luis Bay behind

Where to eatTwelve restaurants, from oysters on Front Street to breakfast at the foot of Harford Pier

Through the year

Summer

Fall

Winter

All year

This month in Avila Yearly events

Before you go

Red sunrise sky reflected on wet sand below Avila Pier

One hour of sunrise

Real sunrises over San Luis Bay, filmed by Jay Olson from a tripod on the sand between 2015 and 2018. Nothing but the waves.

Watch the videos Sunrise Collection prints

Jay Olson Photography

Gallery

Shop prints Watch the videos

Pink sunrise sky over the town of Avila Beach and the pier — Pink sky over townBuy print

The sun bursting over Avila Pier at sunrise — Sunburst over the pierBuy print

Red sunrise sky reflected on wet sand below Avila Pier — Red sky over Avila PierBuy print

Fiery orange sky over breaking waves in Avila Beach — Fiery sky and wavesBuy print

Surfers in the water beside Avila Pier under a pink sky — Surfers at first lightBuy print

Double rainbow over Avila Pier and San Luis Bay — Double rainbow over Avila PierBuy print

Orange clouds reflected in a tide pool at Avila Beach — Tide pool glowBuy print

Ducks on the water under Avila Pier at sunrise — Ducks under the pierBuy print

Rocks along the shore of Avila Beach at blue hour before sunrise — Blue hour at the rocksBuy print

Morning sun shining through beach grass at Olde Port Beach, with Harford Pier on the horizon — Sun through the beach grassBuy print

A wave rolling under the pilings of Avila Pier — Wave under the pierBuy print

Sandpipers reflected on wet sand at Avila Beach — SandpipersBuy print

Sunrise over San Luis Bay from the Avila Beach promenade railing — Sunrise from the promenadeBuy print

Gulls flying past Avila Pier in golden morning light — Gulls in goldBuy print

Golden rays of morning light over rocks at Avila Beach — Golden raysBuy print

Pink clouds reflected in the tide pools at Avila Beach — Pink tide poolsBuy print

Surf rolling in at sunrise in Avila Beach — Sunrise surfBuy print

Wispy morning clouds over flowers and the town of Avila Beach — Morning over townBuy print

Sunbeams streaming through fog and twisted oaks beside the Bob Jones Trail — Sun rays through the oaksBuy print

The fishing boat Saturnia beached at blue hour, with the lights of Harford Pier behind it — Saturnia at Port San LuisBuy print

A couple watching the sunrise from Avila Pier as waves wash through the pilings — Sunrise on the pierBuy print

The sun rising over the headland behind Avila Pier, with the coast fading into gold — Sunrise over the headlandBuy print

A pelican landing in the surf in front of Avila Pier at sunrise — Pelican at sunriseBuy print

Sandpipers on wet sand under Avila Pier as the sun rises behind the pilings — Sandpipers under the pierBuy print

The sun rising over the hills behind Harford Pier, seen from the rocks at Port San Luis — Harford Pier at sunriseBuy print

Sandpipers feeding on wet sand that mirrors a fiery sunrise sky below the headland — Sandpipers in fiery lightBuy print

Pink and blue clouds over the beach houses, palm trees and pier along Avila Beach — Beach houses at duskBuy print

A curlew wading through foam under Avila Pier as the sun rises behind the pilings — Curlew under the pierBuy print

The sun bursting past a pier telescope, with two people walking the beach below the headland — Pier telescope at sunriseBuy print

A great blue heron wading among the pilings under Avila Pier at sunrise, reflected in the wet sand — Heron under the pierBuy print

A paddler in an outrigger canoe in front of Avila Pier under an orange sunrise sky — Outrigger at sunriseBuy print