Southern California beach sunset above is actually a daytime sun photo with a star filter creating a burst of light shaped like a star.

Southern California Beaches, California's warmest beaches, offer fantastic fun all year long. Surfboards, sand, sunshine and swimming are the ingredients for a wonderful vacation at the sunniest beaches and best weather on the California Coast. Beach cities considered in the southern region include Oxnard, Ventura and Los Angeles beaches, Malibu, Santa Monica, Catalina Island beaches, Venice Beach, Hermosa Beach, Manhattan Beach, Redondo Beach, Torrance Beach, San Pedro, Palos Verdes and Long Beach. Los Angeles beaches are generally flat, sand beaches and are for the most part operated by the Los Angeles County beaches department. These beaches are some of the busiest, most trafficked beaches in the U.S. and are not only vital to location film shoots for the movie industry (remember Bay Watch, Gidget, etc.?) but are also entertainment and relaxation venues for millions of visitors each year.

Bordering Los Angeles are the Orange County beaches of Seal Beach, Sunset Beach, Huntington Beach, Newport Beach, Corona del Mar, Laguna Beach and San Clemente. The OC Beaches begin with flat, sand beaches on the border of Los Angeles County and end in the south beaches some 40 to 50 mile distance at Laguna Beach, Dana Point and San Clemente where they sit at the base of cliffs. Accessibility in Laguna Beach and the other southern beach cities of Orange County is somewhat limited by parking and stair-climbing, though each of the cities to the south has one beach that's large enough to attract volumes of tourists, vacationers and locals.

Oceanside, Encinitas, Carlsbad, Del Mar, Solano Beach, La Jolla, San Diego's Mission Beach, Pacific Beach, Ocean Beach, Imperial Beach and Coronado Island.

What you'll find at these beaches on the Pacific Ocean are usually medium to pale tan-colored sand, some coves, some cliffs and lots of waves. The summer water temperatures seldom peak above 70 degrees and winter temperatures usually do not drop below 57 degrees. Air temperatures at the Southern California beaches and beach cities are around 76 daytime and 68 nights during the summer months of July through October. Winter temperatures are around 69 degrees during the day and 56 at night (these numbers are averages and don't reflect the rare but occasional extremes of over 100 degrees or below freezing.)

The beach scene is a mix of ages, sizes and backgrounds but teens and students are the most noticeable in the summertime when they have time on their hands to socialize and enjoy the lifestyle Southern California has gained a reputation for—California cool. For tourists escaping the Nevada and Arizona heat, cool is where it's at. You'll also find people from around the globe visiting the Southern California beaches. California ranks as the top destination in the U.S. and Los Angeles is the top city to visit. It features Universal Studios Hollywood and many theme parks, movies stars and attractions, and it also features beaches.

One factor that delineates a Southern California beach from other California beaches is the ocean temperature. The temperature of the Pacific Ocean waters acts as an air conditioner during the summer months, blowing cool breezes onshore. In the winter, the same water acts like a heater, keeping the coastal cities a gentle, moderate temperature. An effect caused by the Alaskan cold water ocean current keeps the northern and some Central California beaches cooler, however. This current of cold water travels from Alaska to the north and stops around Point Conception, a weather monitoring location 50 nautical miles west of Santa Barbara.

Southern California beaches enjoy amusements and the top theme park in California, Disneyland, 15 miles from the Orange County beaches that are part of the Southern California Beach experience. By county, Southern California Beaches include Ventura, Los Angeles, Orange and San Diego Counties. The photos on this section attempt to provide a flavor of the beaches at their peak. For an ordinary beach experience, be sure to check out each featured city where beach photos are included that tend to be more scenic and represent the overall look you'll see most of the year. Believe it or not, Southern California's population exceeds 15 million but on the majority of days, you can walk to the beach and find the scene serene, un-crowded and simply pleasant.