tyson street beach

Tonight after dinner, we walked down to this little gem and decided it was a highlight of our trip. While the sun was setting, the horizon line lit up in the most brilliant orange, contrasting with the pale blue ocean. The pier was illuminated by all its lights and all we could do was sit and drink it all in. Thank you, Mother Nature, for your spectacular light show. The horizon golds and oranges stole the show.Back to the park, a well constructed stair case takes you from the upper level (Pacific) and down you go, to a unique beach recreation area. Very big pads of grass on both sides define the park. Think impromptu soccer, frisbee, football, etc. you get the idea. There is a great piece of play equipment with no fewer than 2 slides (maybe more?) and bathrooms, picnic tables, and all the ambience one could ask for. It truly is a destination in and of itself.So, tonight we visited with dogs and their owners, sat on the bench and admired the mind numbing ocean view in front of us. What a wonderful end to the day!

This is quite a busy place!! A very wide assortment of people for sure. On a recent visit, there were so many people with pop up's for shade, you could barely walk. If you do not like crowds,don't go. Fun to people watch.

I liked the yoga class at the beach, beautiful views of dolphins early in the morning. Great to walk along the shore and run. It was clean and has restrooms for convenience.

I love going to the beach for different reasons. I came here to clear my head , play inthe sand, and enjoy the sounds of the ocean. I liked the fact that it was so close to the transit center cuz all i had to go was get off the meterolink and walk there.

So we were looking for a unique day trip, and decided to take the SPRINTER to Oceanside (see my separate review on the SPRINTER). We had never ridden it nor been there, so were not quite sure what to expect.I had heard all sort of things about Oceanside, and, as it turned out, most of them were true. At least at the beach area where we were.It was a fairly nice day, but not in peak season. Not many tourists were out. There were a few families here and there (mostly seemed to be locals out for a walk, picnic, or bike ride. There were a few surfers as well.The first thing I notice beside the lack of people is the condition of the infrastructure. The area around the pier was not attractive. Lots of old concrete construction bearing many layers of chipping paint. You could tell the place was frequently tagged with graffiti, even through it was painted over. Lot of place people would scratch or etch the name/logo/affiliation/etc. into the material, so repainting did nothing. So, definitely signs of gang activity.I did not really see many gangbangers but no doubt they were lurking unnoticed by myself.There was a good size group of "travelers" (aka homeless, runaways, or bums, mostly young people that probably have a decent home with one or two loving parents willing to accept them should they return) hanging out just below the pier on the main walkway. They had all the possessions, their guitars, and the drums and were trying to be sly sneaking a toke here and there. I really don't mind people smoking weed (to each their own), but it was not an ideal setting for a family with young kids.There is a mini-McDonalds at the concessions stand underneath the pier. The menu is quite limited, but it was nice to complement our sack-lunch from home with some hot French fries.There are also your typical beach vendors around willing to rent you bikes, etc. But this is not like PB or Huntington Beach where people go when they say "let's go to the beach".There were some closed bathrooms, which was unfortunate. We did locate some open ones, but they were dirty and meagerly stocked. You could see the stained concrete sidewalks and smell the distinct ammonia-like smell of urine from where people had relieved themselves on walls, in corners, etc., near the pier, bathrooms, amphitheater, etc. The beach itself was clean, but that was probably due it being off-season, making for low visitor numbers. We ended the afternoon by flying a few kites for a while. The wind was great. We kept them all the way up and didn't have to run or anything.We had no reasons to stick around any longer than needed, so headed out early and moseyed on over to the transit station where we waited to catch the SPRINTER back to Escondido.Would I return to Oceanside? Only if I had to (say, for an event someone was hosting).Would I consider going by choice? Not with my family, but if we had a big group of people, sure.Can you find me there after sunset? Not a chance. This is not the type of place I would feel comfortable being after dark, alone or with my family.I hope this is helpful. Please be safe.

Long staircase leads you from the street above. Nice seating areas and bathrooms. Clean beach with lots of seating. Take your sand chairs, sand toys, and boogie boards. Pay parking. Those with disability placards park free with sign displayed.

A cement surface and hand rails are needed. Children should not walk on the present pier. Their are no benches to sit at, only the cement wall.