Imperial Beach

Located south of downtown San Diego and stretching all the way to the Mexican border, Imperial Beach's main claim to fame is the annual US Open Sand Castle Building Contest held each July. During the rest of the year, it's a great beach for swimming, surfing and bodyboarding, as well as fishing from the pier. Lifeguards are also on duty year-round. Near the border, sewage from Mexico makes swimming ill-advised but closer to the pier the water is usually fine. This beach also has great appeal to wildlife enthusiasts as the Tijuana Estuary is here with its river mouth emptying into the ocean.