Not far from San Francisco, is the rural town of Montara CA, with its historic charm. Montara State Beach is dangerous for swimmers due to the steep sandy drop, but popular with experienced surfers. Gray whales are a constant sight at Nearby Gray Whale Cove State Beach. Visit beautiful Montara State Beach with it’s wide mile-long beach just north of Montara along the San Mateo County Coast. Behind the beach are stunning sculpted sandstone cliffs making this a very photogenic spot, or head to the historic lighthouse at Point Montara Light Station, with restored and preserved buildings from the 1870’s. Anything you do in Montara CA will be amazing, start planning today! For all the great area beaches, click here.
Weather – When to Visit Montara
In Montara, the summers are short, comfortable, dry, and mostly clear and the winters are long, cold, wet, windy, and partly cloudy. Over the course of the year, the temperature typically varies from 44°F to 66°F and is rarely below 38°F or above 75°F. The best time of year to visit Montara for warm-weather activities is from mid July to late September.
The Best Montara CA Beaches
Montara State Beach
Montara State Beach is a wide mile-long beach just north of Montara along the San Mateo County Coast. Behind the beach are stunning sculpted sandstone cliffs making this a very photogenic spot. At the south end of the beach you can climb up a steep narrow path to a little promontory surrounded by astonishing natural beauty.
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Gray Whale Cove State Beach
Cliffs surround this sandy beach, where whales are often spotted close to the shore. The beach (also known as Devil’s Slide) features a sheltered cove surrounded by cliffs that drop abruptly into the Pacific Ocean. A steep trail leads down to the beach. There is a small picnic area on the bluff above. Gray whales can often be seen close to the shore.
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Point Montara Light Station
Point Montara Light Station is located between Montara State Beach and the city of Moss Beach, CA. The waves crash hard on rocks below the lighthouse grounds, but there is a small sandy beach with access. A footpath leads north from the lighthouse through a picket fence to the edge of the bluff. It quickly splits and the left trail goes out to a point and down to the rocks. The right trail leads back to a creek drainage and down to the beach. This is a good place to just enjoy the view, take pictures, and look for whales offshore if it’s their migration season.
McNee Ranch State Park
Montara mountain (also known as McNee Ranch) is part of Montara State Beach. The mountain is a northern spur of the Santa Cruz Mountains and features the only undisturbed Coastal Mountain Habitat found over 100 miles of coastline. There are steep mountainside trails for hiking, biking & dog walking, with sweeping views of the Pacific below.
Gray Whale North Beach
Edun Beach is the local nickname for Gray Whale North Beach. There is a clothes-free area is to the right at the bottom of the stairs. It is sometimes just confined to the north side of the line of rocks and the prominent rock wall that sticks out into the sand, but it spills over into the other areas of the north end. High above the beach is a strange-looking structure called the Devils Slide Bunker. It is an old WWII lookout that once protected the Bay Area from air and sea-based intruders.
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Best Restaurants in Montara
$-Inexpensive $$-Moderate $$$-Pricey $$$$-Ultra High End
La Costanera $$$$
Perched on Montara Beach overlooking the Pacific Ocean, La Costanera is a contemporary Peruvian restaurant serving coastal cuisine of Latin America. They also offer a full bar, domestic and imported Peruvian beers and a hand selected wine list. Telephone: 650-728-1600 Web: La Costanera
Gherkin’s Sandwich Shop $
They serve craft sandwiches with your choice of turkey, roast beef, pastrami, ham, salami and unique offerings for their vegetarian guests.
Their salads are made with only the freshest ingredients and they have the best burgers in town! Try their special breakfast and frittata sandwiches made with all your favorites. Telephone: 650-728-2211 Web: Gherkin’s Sandwich Shop
3-Zero Cafe $$ – $$$
The 3-Zero Cafe offers distinctive family meals. Kids love the Mickey Mouse pancakes, adults rave over the brioche french toast. The decor consists of model planes and other airport-related memorabilia and is sure to make a positive impression, leaving your family with a fun memory from your visit to the California coastline. Telephone: 650-728-1411 Web: 3-Zero Cafe
Moss Beach Distillery Restaurant $$ – $$$
The Moss Beach Distillery sits at the edge of a cliff in Half Moon Bay, California overlooking the ocean. We offer delicious steaks and fresh seafood alongside a haunted setting provided by our resident ghost the “Blue Lady.” For the more casual outing they offer a heated outdoor patio that comes fitted with warm blankets and fire pits. Telephone: 650-728-5595 Web: Moss Beach Distillery Restaurant
Mezzaluna $$ – $$$
Mezzaluna offers southern Italian dishes with a California flair, serving only the highest quality meats, fish, and produce, much of it locally sourced. The restaurant, located in Princeton by the Sea, is just 20 miles south of San Francisco, near the heart of Silicon Valley. Telephone: 650-728-8108 Web: Mezzaluna
Best Montara Nightlife
The Wine Room
A great little wine bar. Coast-side cute on the outside. Modern on the inside. Nice and warm making for the perfect place to curl up with a friend, a group, or just you and your glass. The music talent is usually from the local area, but widely known and in many cases, published more than a few times. Telephone: 650-728-9463 Web: The Wine Room
Old Princeton Landing Public House & Grill
They host live music, private events, festivals, sporting events, plus pool and dart tournaments. Their garden back patio is dog friendly! Every weekend they host the best bands from around the Bay Area and coming through on tour. Telephone: 650-728-7096 Web: Old Princeton Landing Public House & Grill
Hop Dogma Brewing Company
They specialize in creative, handcrafted ales and lagers always made with exciting and premium ingredients which they personally source. Hop Dogma enjoys brewing small batches that enables them to constantly experiment and perfect their products. They partner with Lamas Restaurant to provide great food with your craft beer. Telephone: 650-560-8729 Web: Hop Dogma Brewing Company
Cheers of Pacifica
Locals bar in beautiful Pacifica Beach. Cool bartenders. A great 3 piece band comes on at 7 pm. And the band is great! Great tunes and cold drinks. Can’t get better! Telephone: 650-359-1225 Web: Cheers of Pacifica
Devil’s Slide Taproom
The main focus is west coast craft beer but if a certain brewery makes a beer that the customers are asking for, it will be brought in so that everyone can enjoy their favorites. The menu may be simple but what is on the menu is done well. With a head chef that has over 30 years of experience, these bar bites have been elevated. Telephone: 650-898-8855 Web: Devil’s Slide Taproom
Wow! Another awesome and great place in California!
What i really like whenever i go for a holiday is going to places with awesome weather as i live in the north. So Montara is another that should be on my bucket list!
Thanks Leahrae for another great review!
You are welcome Hanna! Thanks for stopping by and I am glad you enjoyed my Montara CA review.
Montara beach really looks so beautiful. I hope to be there soon, as I am traveling to California. I like the list of restaurants, nightlife, hotels, and attractions you have put together. This makes my travel planning a LOT easier. How much time should I allow for vacationing here? I’d like to make sure I see all the attractions and visit the beautiful beaches.
I bet you are getting excited for your vacation to California. I would try to spend at least two weeks here, that way you will be able to take your time, relax and enjoy everything in Montara. Thanks for stopping by.
I need to visit NoCal beaches a lot more! Montara Beach looks so breathtaking and I would love to take some surfing lessons as well as take some kayaking lessons! I really like there’s a University of Surfing an I think that’s a huge selling point for that beach. Even the restaurants look amazing as well especially Mezzuluna!
Yes, it is breathtaking that the whole northern California coast is the same. Definitely a great vacation and surfing is a lot of fun!
Thank you for writing this post about Montara in California. Although I don’t live in the US, I visit often, and being a beach person I’m always interested in new beach travel destinations to explore.
I am also an open water swimmer so I was wondering, which, if any of these beaches, are best for swimming?
Thanks
Mark
Hi Mark, and thank you for stopping by. I would definitely swim in Montara State Beach. That is going to be the best for swimming in open water. Please let me know if you have any additional questions.
I love the northern California area and my family and I are planning a vacation to this area this coming summer. We wanted to visit a few different coastal communities and Montara is one of them. Your site is very information, and has answered a lot of questions for us. Everything we need is now at our fingertips. Thanks for this great information.
You are very welcome. I am glad I could provide the information you need so that you can start planning your family vacation to Montara CA. The whole area is amazing and you will have a wonderful time. If you need any help with anything, please don’t hesitate to contact me. I would love to help!
I have been reading your blog and looking at all the wonderful destinations. I have been planning a vacation to California and I think Northern California is the perfect place. The weather is perfect and there is so much to see in the entire area including Montara. How long do you think I should plan for my stay? I want to enjoy it all, the beaches, the scenery and all of the area attractions. Thanks!
Yes, I agree that northern California does have a lot to offer. I would make sure you account for 2 days of travel right off the bat as you won’t get much done those two days other then getting to and from California. Then plan at least another week and a half to two weeks for your vacation. This way you can relax, take your time and just enjoy it all. If you need any help with your planning, please fee free to message me.
I love a historic place at the sea side and find Montara just a place to be. The ambiance and smell of fresh water would be next to nothing. The nice thing about Montara is that it not a big city, so the perfect place for a vacation for me! There are so many attractions here as well and I love seafood so the restaurants appeal to me. I am looking forward to traveling to Montara California. It seems unique, beautiful and peaceful.
Hi Stella, and thank you for visiting Montara CA. I am glad you enjoyed and are looking forward to a vacation here. For seafood, definitely try the Moss Beach Distillery Restaurant. It is not far away at all. And if you have any other questions, please don’t hesitate to ask.
Thank you for all the information on Montara California. I like the weather as it does not seem to get too hot for me. I really want to visit California on vacation. I am curious how long do you think I need to plan for my vacation if I want to enjoy the beaches and all of the attractions in the area?
Hi there and thanks for visiting my Montara CA post. Boy, I would vacation here for at least two weeks. This way you will have ample time to hit the beaches and see the area attractions. Depending on how far you are traveling, you will want to account for 2 days travel (there and back). So maybe 2 1/2 weeks if you can do it. If you need any help with planning, please let me know.
What a beautiful review of Montara. i did not know the place myself, but just reading your review made me want to go there. The climate seems to be my ideal and your descrption of the place is spot on. I liveiin Europe and this year we are planning to go to the US for a vacation as soon as the kids are finishing school. California was one of the spot to visit we had in mind and now you just added a specific location to our map. Montara will be. Thank you
You are welcome Barbara. The whole area is beautiful so save some time to enjoy it all. If you have any additional questions, please let me know.
I have never been to California. I have always wanted to go but knew I wanted to stay away from such busy places like San Francisco or L.A. This looks like the perfect little town for my energy. Do you know of any nearby wildlife rescues or animal/pet events that go on there?
Yes Alisha, you can visit the Peninsula Humane Society & Pet Rescue which does both. Please let me know if you have any other questions.
Another great travel spot review. I am definitely bookmarking your page to come back to. How far is Montana from Jan Jose? I have relatives who live there and wonder if it is too far a distance to travel from, if I book a visit to my cousin’s and have a girls trip to celebrate an upcoming birthday this year. I can see that the best time to travel is between June and September, what is the highest temperature for this warm season? I come from temperate zone and would like to know what to prepare.
It is really fairly close from San Jose to Montara, less than an hour drive. Temperature is going to vary little with an average between June and September of about 73°F. So this is summer weather, and you can take along your summer clothes. Just make sure to take a light jacket in case it gets a little chilly and you are out at night.
Hi Leahrae, I just reviewed your site and left you a comment on your Montara, CA post. Very well done! In fact, I read it twice because now I want to take the wife there on vacation soon!
You’ve utilized great use of images and organized everything in a way that was easy to read and very educational. I like they way you put the topics into sections with where to stay, things to do, nightlife, etc. And I really like how you used the $ to indicate the cost level of each establishment. Very creative and different from what I have seen before.
Anyway, great job. The site looks amazing and this post was extremely effective!
Thanks so much Bob! I am glad you enjoyed visiting beach travel destinations. Please come back when you are ready to put your plan into motion
I would love to help!
a wonderful video about Montara and a very good presentation; I am in love with the sea and live 1.5 km from the Black Sea; but unlike Montara, along the coast is only the beach; Montara is a nice place for surfing; and they are good restaurants and cafes; thank you for the post
You are welcome Carmen and thank you for visiting my Montara CA review.
Wow, great info! Looks like the wife and I need to check out Montara, CA soon! Looks absolutely beautiful!
It is absolutely beautiful Bob! Worth vacationing to for sure