the beach today
SLO County Guide

Cayucos
Beach

Old California

The last true small-town beach on the California coast -- a Victorian-era village with a historic pier, salt-water taffy shops and a relaxed pace that feels like California in 1975. Cayucos sits just north of Morro Bay with a wide surf beach, a long pier for fishing and a main street that has barely changed in decades.

Today on the Sand

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Water Temp

84°

warm · gentle surf

UV Index

9

very high · 10am–4pm

Beach Crowd

Busy

holiday weekend

Beach Toolkit

Beach Conditions

Surf, tides & water temp

Parking Finder

Garages, lots & meters

Sunset

Sunset countdown & live cam

Dining

Where to eat after the sand

Things to Do

Cruises, sails & tours

Events

What's on this week

Beach Rules

Dogs, drinks, fires, drones

Pick Your Sand

north to south

Main Beach

Town-front strand at the pier

Walk-in from downtown

Estero Bay

Wide open sand north of town

Low-key & uncrowded

Cayucos State Beach

State-managed access, free parking

North of the pier

Dolphin Cruises

Open →

Compare daily sails from the marina — wild dolphins on nearly every trip.

Beyond the Beach

day trips

Morro Bay

10 min south

Morro Rock & the estuary

Cambria

25 min north

Moonstone Beach & pine forests

San Luis Obispo

30 min south

Downtown SLO & wine country

Hearst Castle

50 min north

The hilltop estate on the coast

see you on the sand

Water temp, surf and UV are live from NOAA & Open-Meteo; sunset is computed locally for Cayucos Beach. Crowd level is a weekday/weekend estimate.

Right now at Cayucos, the water is 64°F, surf is running 3–4 ft and the air is 66°F but feels like 62°F. Wind is 12 mph from the NW and the UV index peaks at 7 (high) today. Unprotected fair skin burns in about 94 minutes right now, and the strongest stretch runs 12 PM to 4 PM. Today’s tides: High 4:49 AM, Low 7:16 AM, High 2:20 PM, Low 10:46 PM.