We stopped here this past Saturday to walk around and enjoy our picnic lunch that we had packed for our surfing day in the Santa Cruz area. There is a small fee to get in here, but you can visit all of the State beaches with a day pass.

There are several steps that lead down to the beach here. It was quite crowded and we found a nice spot to the west of the beach. Lots of cool seaweed here and some pretty rock formations. This is a great place to relax on the beach in a much less populated area than the Boardwalk or Capitola City Beach.

Warm sand, cool waves, nice people. New Brighton State Beach attracts a much different clientele than the Santa Cruz Boardwalk Beach. If you want a traditional day at the beach with your family, but wish to avoid the hoards of raucous beer drinking tourists from the Central Valley, then check out New Brighton.