Staycation - Laguna Beach

Lately I’ve taken to the idea of planning annual staycations whether with my kids or solo. Last year my daughter and I headed to Century City.

This year we hung out in Laguna Beach. And by serendipity, I returned to Laguna Beach a few weeks later with J. who had a work offsite.

As nice as it is to live in Pasadena, a walkable city with old-time charm, we rarely drive to spend time at the beach. Anyone familiar with driving in LA county knows that distance is measured in time, not miles. An hour drive to the beach becomes a 2-hour drive home.

Both recent stays in Laguna Beach allowed easy access to the shore and the beaches and coves that run adjacent Pacific Coast Highway (PCH).

The Montage is an oceanfront resort with lovely maintained walkways and ample seating to enjoy the with scenic ocean views. This is all accessible to the public! A friendly local mentioned to me that it was a condition of the owner when the land was sold for development.

Below, a uniquely artful seating area.

And some of the views below.

The taller rock is Goff Island. The image below shows a different perspective, with Goff Island beach to the left and Christmas Cove to the right.

A mile walk south to Table Rock Beach, one of my new friend’s favorite beaches, was a highlight of my visit.

I can’t think of a better way to start the year than with these staycations where the main activities were beach walking and listening to the ocean waves.