Capitola-by-the-Sea is a scenic city located on the Monterey
Bay in Santa Cruz County, approximately 70 miles south of San Francisco
and 35 miles north of Monterey.
Surrounded by the Santa Cruz Mountains
on one side and the Monterey Bay on the other, west of Capitola Village
are New Brighton State Beach and Pot Belly Beach and sharing a common boundary
with the city is Soquel, which extends up the hillsides that climb all
the way to the top of the Santa Cruz Mountains. Soquel Creek starts in those
same hills above Capitola and flows into Capitola Village and into the ocean
near Cliff Drive, Esplanade and Riverview Avenue. This is where the annual
Begonia Festival Boat Parade is held. Stretching further at the foot of the
river is the beach and Capitola Wharf.
A charming town with boutiques, eateries, a theatre and
an intimate sand beach where surfers find nice wave breaks close to shore
at Capitola Jetty, we think of Capitola as a smaller version of Laguna
Beach. These beaches probably have more differences than similarities but
what we like about this Central Coast spot and the Orange County beach
are the artsy flavor of the town in which each beach sits.
For over 100 years, Capitola has
made tourists feel at ease by keeping life simple and pleasing.
Festivals celebrating begonias, sand castles, wine and art are
highlights for a town, located just around the bend from the big
city lights of Santa Cruz. The river, Soquel
Creek, the site of the annual Begonia Festival where flower laden floats
drift down the river, is held one weekend in September. Also held in September
along Capitola's Esplanade is Capitola Art & Wine Festival.
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