San Elijo State Beach — Attraction in Encinitas

Pros: insanely great views campsites are somewhat private. Good proximity to shopping and food.

Cons: Strict Check in Times: I had a long drive to the camp and ended up getting there 12 minutes before my check in time. They would not allow me to check in 12 minutes early. They also would not let me park in their lot and wait. Their staff recommended that I drive my campervan around for 12 minutes and come back when I’m allowed in. It’s a campsite, not a hotel room. It’s not like my site wasn’t ready for me, they were just intentionally being unaccommodating to their guests.It felt more like a power move than anything. Stolen Belongings: I left for a day, leaving some articles of clothing out to dry on the picnic table along with an unopened bale of firewood. When I came back everything was gone and my fire pit had been cleaned out. It seemed as if they assumed I had checked out (though I had my reservation until the next morning) and took my belongings. When I went to the office to file a report the officer took my information and I was told that the rangers are “very busy” and to wait to hear back from them. There’s also nothing to leave like a tag on a post to say that you have that campground reserved so if you leave your spot and don’t have a tent or something to leave behind, it’s assumed by everyone that no one is staying at your spot. About an hour later an officer stopped by who was very nice and checked around but didn’t find anything and said to check with the maintenance team in the morning because it looked as if they cleaned out my spot while I was gone. Turns out that’s what happened. I talked to someone from the maintenance team the next morning who explained to me that they don’t even get a list of what sites are still reserved or not so they’ll just go through and clean / toss everything if you aren’t there. The reservation system is confusing and it’s impossible to get through to their phone to ask questions: All you get is an automated recording every time which isn’t really clear. FYI their premium campsites do not have power hookups. You need to specifically reserve an RV site for that even if you do not have an RV. It also doesn’t help that the entire California state reservation system is incredibly difficult, not allowing bookings within 48 hours in advance or listing direct numbers to most of their campgrounds. As previously stated, there’s no way to get a hold of them on the phone. The camp store and reservation office is closed. You have to pay to use the showers, they are not included with the campground fee. There’s no free camp wifi which is certainly not the end of the world but FYI. They don’t have an entrance if you’ve already checked in. I waited in the check in line for 20 minutes one night when I was already checked in and just trying to return to my camp for the sunset.

Overall, there aren’t many accommodations at this campground in various capacities. I wouldn’t return in the future.

UPDATE: I contacted the park and after weeks of no response and following up with them they refused to take accountability for the incident or give...

Secret 48-Hour First-Come First-Serve @ 9:15 AM Policy

No, I’m not joking.

BE AWARE that, at San Elijo, to register for an available campsite that has gone unreserved within the last 48 hours, you MUST be first in line at the booth window at 9:15 AM that day, and the next day if you want to stay a day over. Do not count on any of the staff to inform you of this policy. It is not posted on the website or at the campground.

Also be aware that, if you are staying in a campsite that is un-reserved and available for the next night, and you want to stay for another night, you MUST show up at the booth, first in line, at 9:15 AM, or there is a possibility that the staff will register that site to somebody else on a first-come first-serve basis.

Also, BE AWARE that once a California State Park employee cancels a reservation that is within 48 hours, it is impossible for them to reverse it.

I have stayed at over a dozen other California State Campgrounds, and dozens of other government-run campgrounds, and the policy consistently is that first-come first-serve means that you must be the first to actually occupy a site once someone leaves, that only then are you are allowed to register for the site. Also, that if you are occupying a site that is first-come first-serve and want to stay another day, you have until noon the next day to re-register.

Not at San Elijo.

While staying at a reserved site, an ocean-front site became available on a first-come first-serve basis. After talking with three different Park employees, and informing them of which site I wanted to move to, I was eventually told no problem just check in at the booth after 9:15 AM. I canceled my reservations for the old campsite, and checked in at the booth at 9:30 AM, at which point the very same clerk I had last spoken with informed me that she had registered the site to somebody else. At no point did any of the park employees inform me of what the actual policy was, until after they had registered the site to somebody else.

We had booked a non-refundable tour for the next day, and would not be available to check in at 9:15 AM each day for the next two days for our old campsite we had once had reserved, which was now on a first-come first-serve availability. Rather than cancel our planned tour, we decided to leave the campground three days earlier than planned, even though we had once had reservations for those three days.

The San Elijo California State Campground staff understood my dilemma, and understood that they had repeatedly failed to inform me of their un-posted procedures, yet insisted that there was nothing they could do.

Staff were always very courteous and professional, yet overall service regarding first-come first...

Three stars for the views which are fabulous and the nice clean bathrooms and showers (note the wash sinks are on the building end outside). And, the beach when the tide is out is lovely. Note there are signs that warn not to go near the cliffs as they collapse and can kill you. No stars for the tall tall stairs everywhere to get to the beach except the far south end of the campground. But the catch here is the trains at this end are at grade, are very close and run all night. Yes, they do wake me up over and over. No stars for the fact that the campsite provides public access to the beach at several locations. This means a high theft rate for bikes, generators and anything left unattended that is valuable. No stars for the beach which is gone at high tide, has lots of cobble that is hard to walk in and trips you up when in the surf and bruises up your feet. Did I mention that when you fall you land on random cobble hidden by the surf? No stars for the rock shelf that is between the sand and surf. It is riddled with holes, irregular erosion troughs, cobble, and can be covered with slippery moss. Booties or water shoes are highly recommended. Last time my husband and I tried to boogie board here my husband twisted his ankle and both of us had scrapes and bruises after we caught the first wave. The surf was not even very good but we had enough education that after one wave, we gave up and drove to a different beach. Note I am a rough and tumble gal. My advice here is to skip this beach if your thing is boogie boarding or swimming unless you are lucky and find a sandbar. The surfers are further out so only have to go through this zone going out and coming in. Surfing is very popular here. Why do we come here every year? Our surfer friends join us and the...