Surf and Sand in Laguna Beach

+1 on Laguna beach, Carlsbad and San Clemente, I would add Encinitas (cool old timey surfer town that has been somewhat gentrified), Balboa island and Newport beach. I think someone mentioned The Hyatt regency in Huntington beach, that checks all your boxes.

There is Corona Del Mar, or Emerald Bay. But the Surf and Sand is my favorite place. Las Brisas for breakfast, or Greeter's Corner for dinner. And then there is Balboa Beach pier for lunch.

Beachhouse.com in Hermosa Beach is nice.
Short ride from LAX.
I had a very nice long weekend there .

Anyone else remember Russell's in Long Beach? Best scratch made pies anywhere.

Laguna Beach. It is hands down the best beach town in SoCal. Tons of vibe and culture. Many hotels.

Every Friday night after high school football. You from around here?

So, decision made!

Some time in Redondo beach for the LA sightseeing and then a week in San Clemente for some beach time!

Many many thanks to everyone who took the time to give their opinions.

Looking forward to our vacation!!

I grew up in the Redondo Beach area and have currently lived in the San Clemente area for 40+ years, so feel free in asking about anything specific regarding either location.

San Clemente is a great place even though it has grown exponentially on the in-land side of the I-5. The downtown area is great and pedestrian friendly. The Pier bowl, T-street, "Lost Winds", and North Beach are very nice beaches, but since this winter's storms there are no guarantees that there is sand on the beach!

Very nice walking trail through the entire city, along the coast, running from Cotton's Point to North Beach. The city also provides a free "Trolley" that takes you to various parts of the city that will save you parking hassles. Walking a bit from the northern end of the Trolley route will put you in Capistrano Beach/Dana Point which also has free trolley services that will take you to Doheny State Beach, Dana Point harbor, the Ocean Institute, San Juan Capistrano, and Monarch Beach where you can hook up the the free trolley provided by Laguna Beach. In short, you can travel on a sight-seeing adventure, for free, from San Clemente to Laguna Beach, get off and on wherever you please, and return, all without fighting traffic and parking.

Finally, you will be close to Amtrak and Metrolink terminals if you wish to take a train ride into L.A. or down the coast to San Diego, avoiding the grid-lock of the I-5 in summer.

You've made a wise choice, IMO. Enjoy your stay!

While in San Clemente...Don't forget Sonny's. Order the house chianti.

Italian Restaurant: Sonny's Pizza and Pasta in San Clemente

Just checked out the link. Yummy.

Love the menu. Half tray $60. Tray $100. Feeds one to two million soon to be happy people. Sweet!

I am so jealous. We just don't have options like that here. Pizza, kind of a yes. Atmosphere, no.

Thanks for the information, and to everyone else that replied.

Is the freeway traffic really that bad? Last time is was in this area was mid 90´s (just realised thats a quarter of a century a go !!!!) i dont recal sitting in any jams.

If we come up with any further questions i will come back to this thread.

Thanks again!

Yes, it can be that bad.
Travel down to San Diego can take up to 3.5 hrs if you hit the I-5 at the wrong time on a Saturday morning and the weather is nice.
I recently traveled north to Atascadero last week. Leaving N OC at 8 AM took two hours just to reach LAX area, normally a 40 min drive. Did the same thing three days ago leaving at 3:30 AM and it only took me 3.5 hrs to reach Atascadero.
I'm retired and try to use the freeways between the hours of 10AM and 2 PM. Any other time is just getting to crowded for me. I've spent enough time on freeways in traffic to last my lifetime. I used to commute from N OC to LAX on the 405 for 25+ years.

And for pizza and awesome craft beer selection on tap:

Brewpubs: San Clemente | Pizza Port

Re the traffic, we will be on vacation so hopefully wont be moving around at rush hour times!

I have been looking at the dates for swapmeets and Porsche / VW shows and i dont see anything listed for the dates we will be in the area?

We will be in Redondo beach between 27 July and 30 July

We will be in San Clemente between 1 Aug and 6 Aug so if there are any meets going on please tell me!

Thanks again!

https://www.southoccarsandcoffee.com

Every Saturday morning.

They used to have a fairly outstanding brunch service at the Hotel del Coronado, which you have seen before if you watched "Some Like it Hot" Beautiful old resort sort of place, nice beach. They used to do vintage races on Coronado, September though

Cars and coffee it is then!

Thanks for the info.

Someone with a better understand, warn him about the toll road.