previous <  Naples pictures

Alamitos Bay Beach is located in Long Beach, California. Access to this beach is not readily known outside the local area as there are no hotels along the Long Beach peninsula where the beach can be accessed. In the summer, the beach fills with local kids attending camps.

From kayaking to kite surfing, sailboat lessons to basketball, the beach offers a variety of activities and rentals. This a kids vacation paradise, though most the children are local kids who take are accustomed to a beach lifestyle. Children living on the Long Beach peninsula, Naples Island and Belmont Shore have access to the beaches on daily basis and boy, do they enjoy their beaches!

At Alamitos Bay Beach, you'll find lifeguards on duty in the summer. As the long, warm days heat up the beach activities, the cooler nights bring out romantics who come to this beach to board the Naples gondola rides. Actually, many families ride the gondolas and we've discovered that the gondola experience is fantastic for birthdays, family gatherings or a leisurely ride around the bay, steered by a gondolier who will sing for you. Birthday parties can be planned at Alamitos Bay Beach through the concessionaire with the tiki-themed building and carved statues that sit out on the beach.

We love this beach because it is old-fashioned, intimate and located in a protected bay away from the powerful Pacific Ocean waves. In the winter months around November, you'll see light displays on platforms in the bay that herald the holidays. In this bay is the beloved Naples Boat Parade, held usually the second Saturday in December. After the Belmont Shore Christmas Parade is held on Second Street, you know the Naples Boat Parade will be coming within a week or two.

For those seeking a great beach that's slightly out of reach from view, you have to navigate to Ocean Avenue in Long Beach and head south toward the peninsula. 

The ocean facing beaches along this stretch of sand feature windsurfing, jet skiing and if you drive to the end of the peninsula, there's another great beach, 72nd Street Beach. The tip of this beach connects to the channel which exits Alamitos Bay. This is the entrance and exit to the Pacific Ocean for boats departing the islands and bay. Aqualink catamaran water taxi comes in and out of this channel, which offers great views of Seal Beach Pier.

in Long Beach, California is one of California's great hidden secrets, though during the summer when the cars come to a complete stop, trying to find a place to park, you'll not believe it. The bay includes one of Long Beach's popular public marina facilities, restaurants overlooking the bay, Aqualink boat service, Duffy boat rentals and fabulous neighborhood beaches in front of some lovely houses.