The Ocean Beach beaches offer a slight variety of styles depending on what you are looking for. The beach scene includes a secluded beach, a surfing-only beach, a swimming-only beach and a dog beach.

During peak times, the OB beaches are not nearly as crowded as the more accessible and more commercialized beaches of Mission Beach and Pacific Beach. These facts make the Ocean Beach beaches a favorite for locals.

During normal hours, lifeguards are present on the public beaches here and a lifeguard station is located on the beach side of Abbott Street where it connects with Santa Monica Avenue. At the lifeguard station is one of the free public parking lots, a men’s and women’s public bathroom and outdoor showers.

Another free public beach parking lot is located next to the Newport Avenue beach where Newport Avenue intersects with Abbott Street and this parking lot is home to a small San Diego Police station. The largest free beach parking lot is located at the end of Voltaire Street and it has a building which contains public bathrooms and showers. This parking lot is popular for those interested in the large swimming, surfing and volleyball playing beaches which are the Voltaire Street beach and Long Branch Avenue beach. The Voltaire Street parking lot is also popular with those driving their four-legged friends to Dog Beach.