What Makes Pacific Beach a Top Spot in San Diego? Let’s Take a Tour!

When you think of San Diego, what do you think of? I’m guessing it involves the beach, sunshine and maybe surfing. One of the most quintessential beach neighborhoods in San Diego is Pacific Beach.  It’s also often one of the first neighborhoods that people mention when you ask for recommendations as to where to live in San Diego.

Let's take a little "tour" of Pacific Beach and so you can get a better feel for if it's the right San Diego neighborhood for you to live. 

Located just south of La Jolla and north of Mission Bay, Pacific Beach has over 2 miles of sandy shoreline. PB (as the locals call it) is just off the 5 freeway and can be a good place to live if I you work in La Jolla, UTC, Sorrento Valley or downtown.  While there isn’t a light rail stop in PB, there is one not far away off of Balboa Ave making getting into and out of downtown a breeze.

There are two main arteries running through PB - Grand and Garnet. PB is known as the place to go party when you’re in college and Garnet is the center of that partying.  It’s lined with bars, restaurants, tattoo shops, boutiques, and an eclectic mix of other businesses.  Garnet can be a pain to get down especially during the summer and I’ve had it take 20 minutes to get from the freeway to the beach before, so if you’re planning a commute, take that into account and test it out. The exit at Garnet can also get super backed up on the freeway, but if you’re brave enough, you can cut the line.  Parking in PB can be a pain in the butt during tourist season, but I have always had luck parking just a couple blocks into the residential areas when I’ve wanted to go to a business on Garnet or to the beach.

From a foodie perspective, there are all kinds of great places to try in PB from fancy to hole in the wall and just about any cuisine you can think of.  There are also lots of grocery store options: there is a Vons, a Trader Joes and a Sprouts on Garnet, and a Ralphs on Mission Blvd closer to Mission Beach, North PB has a Gelsons and there are small local markets scattered around as well.

The north/south streets in PB are alphabetical starting with Bayard which is at the ocean end of PB and is also where the PB farmer’s market is on Tuesdays. Moving away from the coast we have Cass, then Dawes and so on until Pendleton which is in a military housing neighborhood.  All these streets are named after 19th century federal officials. The east/west streets are mostly named after precious stones such as Tourmaline, Turquoise and of course Garnet (emphasis on the first syllable, unlike the jewel garnet).

The closer we get to the beach end of Garnet the more touristy it gets. Garnet ends at Mission Blvd and the ocean which is tourist central. Interestingly, Mission Blvd started out being named Allison St, but was changed due to the popularity of Mission Beach. I personally like the old name better...

Along the beach is the Oceanfront walk which is lined with restaurants and tourist shops.  You’ll find people walking, biking, roller blading and walking their dogs along the boardwalk, but this is also where most of the homeless hang out although this is less of a problem here than downtown.  Personally, I've never really had any issues with the homeless in PB and regardless of that situation, PB is just generally a little gritty. 

If you take Mission Blvd south, you’ll end up in Mission Beach, if you take it north, you’ll hit La Jolla.

On the south side of PB along Mission Bay is one of my favorite areas.  I usually park near Fanuel Park and walk west along the Bayside Walk which is a pathway around Mission Bay that goes for like 16 miles. Of course Mission Bay is a paradise for paddle boards, kayaks, sailing and other watersports as well. The houses in this area are so pretty and looking out at the bay is just wonderful, especially at sunset. 

Just east of that is the Crown Point neighborhood which I also love because the houses are very pretty (and higher priced).  Unfortunately, the streets over here need some desperate repaving.  This area also has a small business area which includes coffee shops and some restaurants including Rocky’s which has one of the best burgers in San Diego.

In the north east part of PB is Mount Soledad which is mostly La Jolla, but the lower parts of it are still PB and you can get some homes with amazing views of the bay and the ocean here.  There is also a fantastic mid-century modern neighborhood on Mt Soledad if you are into that type of architecture like I am.  Kate Sessions park is a popular destination on Mt Soledad and has great views of the bay and ocean.  It’s a popular spot to watch sunsets, gather for a picnic with friends and watch multiple fireworks displays.

If you head back towards the beach to the north west area of PB you are in North PB.  Turquoise St is the center of North PB and has lots of cute cafes and restaurants.  This is another more expensive area thanks to it's proximity to Bird Rock and the beach. 

The streets in the main parts of PB are a mix of mid-century apartments and bungalow style houses, though there are a lot of those old bungalows being torn down and more modern homes are being built.

The median price for a 3 bed, 2 bath single family home in PB is over $2.1m which reflects the desirability of living near the beach.  You can get a 1 bedroom condo for around $600k and 2 bedrooms will cost you over $1.1m. According to great schools.org, Mission Bay High School is rated as an 8 and the elementary schools appear to be 7s.  If you can get into Sessions Elementary, that goes up to an 8.

The mix of people who live in PB is going to skew young thanks to that party vibe I mentioned previously, but I know lots of people my age (so....middle aged....😕) who are just living the dream of being able to walk to the beach or bay who live there also and love it. Personally, I'd think retiring there could be super fun too, especially if you can be really close to the water!

So that’s Pacific Beach for you.  It’s one of my favorite parts of San Diego.  The parking and traffic and somewhat grungy nature of some of it may be off putting to some, but if you want that beach lifestyle, it’s really an amazing option and it has so much to offer as far as restaurants and things to do.

If you're ready to talk about your move to PB, click this linke to schedule a quick 15 minute call: Schedule a call

Just want to see some pretty houses in Pacific Beach?  Click here.