Francis Beach

$ 7 for the hike-​bike campsite. It is tucked away at the end of the campground, great location, 1 minute’s walk from the beach and 20 seconds’ walk from the showers and restrooms. I didn’t find any outdoor faucets so I used the water from the restroom sink. Shower is $ 0.25 per minute, clean and easy to use. Storage box available. We saw a homeless person camping at the hike-​bike campsite later at night and that person left very early in the morning. But nothing bothered me.

Quietest campground I have ever been to. The sites are pretty close together but have everything you need: huge, sturdy tables and good sized fire pits. We were in site 8, which features two coastal cypress trees. Site 8 is very flat & tent stakes went in easily. The walk to the restroom is a short one, both the toilet stalls & coin operated showers were always clean.
We checked in at 3:00, pitched our little tent, and made the pleasant 1.2 mile walk to downtown. We met up with some friends at one of the little bars and grabbed an über to and from the Ritz. After enjoying some wine and a couple of night caps, we enjoyed our walk back to camp & spent about an hour down on the beach before heading to bed. There is a dry log a little bit down the beach path, that is perfect for taking in the night waves, lights, and sounds.
I slept in pretty late, due to the lack of noise in this camp. The campground is far enough from streets, so all you really hear are the crashes of the ocean waves. That may be a different story on a weekend but on a Tuesday night, it was very pleasant, even with a full campground. The park rangers left us alone, but were there if you needed them.
Such a quaint little slice of beach camping heaven!

Half Moon Bay remember when beach and ocean was free and you could do it lot’s of time in the summer? Not anymore. It’s $ 10.00 a day with filthy bathrooms and the shower’s water is turned off.

This campsite was the perfect destination for a little week day adventure. The park offers RV and tent camping which is why the fee is expensive ($ 60 because of the generator hook up, though I couldn’t figure out how to get it on). The actual area of the site was very small. If I were to go again I would have chosen a site that lines the coast with an ocean facing, rather than on the inside grass of the loop.
However, the bathrooms were clean with mirrors and flush toilets. No soap though so bring hand sanitizer, there are showers that are coin operated but are heated! (50 cents = 3 mins)
There was barely even a walk to the beach, and we fell asleep to the crash of the waves. The only down side to being so close to the ocean was the wind at night. We had trouble starting a fire with just news paper and wood so we had to go buy a little fire-​starting log and coals.
All around it was as close as you can get to plopping a tent right on the sand. Keeping in mind that Half Moon Bay is generally a cold, over cast beach this was a great mini vaca.

While the beach is beautiful, it is super crowded on a weekend, one must arrive early for a parking spot in the lot ($ 10/​car). Dunes and Roosevelt are just as nice and a short ride down route 1.

Consider volunteering here for beach restoration. I signed up through Hands on Bay Area (
). Not only was the volunteering fun, but you get a free all-​day parking pass to enjoy the beach after!

Beautiful beach! I loved the space (even if there was a lot of people this one hot summer day).
I wanted to get away from 100+ degree Fairfield and convinced my family to come here. We left our house at 11 and didn’t get to HMB until almost 1pm (please leave early to not get traffic!).
Parking at the lot was full (plus it’s $ 10). We parked next to a cute little produce barn for $ 5 and only a few blocks away!
It was foggy, but soooo nice to get away from the 100 degree weather. I got to walk along the ice cold water (wanted to go swimming but water was WAY TOO COLD for me). I got to picnic, read a book, and tan my white legs!
I also got to unplug from my phone for a while. Something I’d rather do at home, but it’s sooooo hard with technology everywhere!
I think the only negative is the public restrooms. There were nonstop lines all day, and it got way too gross at the end of the day with people washing sand off themselves. Bring some soap and water to wash your hands. I’m a total germaphobe, so I’m glad I brought some soap and extra water to keep clean hands.
But, it’s soooo worth coming here for a beach day! Relaxing. :)

Awesome location for walking along the beach, playing in the surf, and watching the vibrant sunsets; camping is wonderful here, too!

This beach is absolutely beautiful. It’s a great place to just sit back and relax. It’s around a quite neighborhood and next to a camp ground so you may see a couple tents but definitely take a blanket, wine, and a date here and it would be totally romantic!
I couldn’t think of anything negative about this place. Luckily for me, I caught it right before a sunset. It’s really windy at this season of course, but I’ll definitely update during the summer.

Great clean beach and perfect views when it is not foggy… but oh my goodness, it is always so chilly here! Best time to go here is when the east bay is in the 80’s to 90’s then it will be in the upper 70’s. Perfect weather if you want to cool down from being in the east bay.
We went camping here and it was just right during the summer. The water is super cold but kids loved to play in the sand. Best views and the water is pretty clear. Great for a walk or to hang out with family.
You have to pass by and appreciate what the California beaches offer…

Never been here until yesterday. My wife and I absolutely loved it! Beautiful beach! Of course it’s windy, foggy and a bit chilly. What do you expect when you’re next to the ocean. That’s what I love about it. I highly recommend this beach!

Had the weather been more accommodating this place was actually one of the nicest beaches I’ve been to in a long time. I went during a week day so I’m not sure how crazy full this beach gets. I had great parking and at the front where I paid for parking on kind of a whim I bought firewood and decided to have a modest bonfire while I was at the beach. Initially you’ll see BBQ pits in the main area but as you look at that area to the right you’ll see the camp/​RV sites and you’ll see bonfire pits there. Now the park does close at sunset, but it does provide for a pretty decent view. And the fact that I can go to a beach in late January and enjoy an impromptu bonfire is pretty cool if you ask me.

It’s a cool spot to have a BBQ by the waters. They have BBQ pits and plenty of benches. It’s Half Moon Bay so be prepared and dress warm. Please note that it’s $ 10 to park in the lot. My Eat Clubbers and I had our Team Building BBQ here and we had a fabulous time.

We camped here the last 3 days — it is a nice place for beach tent-​camping except unfortunately it was very cold, very windy, and very foggy during our stay. We didn’t see the sun once. But it was impossible to predict such weather especially since we booked 6 months ago.
There are bathrooms with hot showers (coin operated) at both ends of the campground and we found them clean.
Campsites are VERY close to each other and there are not a lot of shade trees. (see photo)
We walked the pacific coast trail for about a mile and back — very nice walk.

I needed a vacation. Enter Half Moon Bay and it’s delightfully salt drenched air and relaxing sand beaches.
The beach was extraordinarily clean. I mean fine tooth comb. And though we were charged ten dollars to park (they don’t take cards), it was worth it after slogging through yards of sand to just walk a few feet and collapse in the car.
I think the icing on the relaxing sun-​covered cake was when a of a pod of dolphins, baby included, swam incredibly close to the shore and gave us a show. The baby with it’s tiny fin was so cute!
Awesome beach and awesome day :)

The drive here is awesome…
until you end up parking at a Barn…$ 6 worth.
There’s parking by the sandy beach… but on the weekend of July 4^th. It’s quite impossible to find a spot.
My cousins and I were able to get a long bench and a table with a grill…
Came here to just chill and grill up some hotdogs and burgers (till we found out that the ones we brought from my grandma’s freezer were expired — so just hotdogs)
It’s a nice alternative to driving further down to Santa Cruz… as traffic to SC is bumper to bumper on a holiday…
Restrooms. Geeez. Line was suuuuuper long.
The beach… pretty serene… a stretchful of sand that’s perfect for HHWW (holding hands while walking)… haha… only if you’re a romantic.
It can get really windy… so bring a blankie, or a sweater…

Lots of room, clean sand, clean water, great weather… what else can you ask for? When you realize that the only options in the Bay are Ocean Beach (bleck!!) and this, you’ll definitely appreciate HMB.
If you feel it’s packed, you just need to walk further down and it’s just as nice where you can sprawl out your things and chill. We had a nice picnic, people watched, we all brought books and read until we started burning, and played some frisbee. It was the perfect getaway not too far from home.
No need to pay for parking. Just park at the residential areas just a 2 minute walk away. Climb down the slope or challenge yourself and climb down the rocks to get to the beach.
Thanks, Francis!

Very pretty beach (wow, that’s a stretch for HMB) but it’s really crowded… at least on weekends n holidays. Too many kids being loud and running about, and lots of dogs too — not the place to come and relax but I guess it’d be good for families and junk.

Great beach — long stretch, clean sand, heavenly views.
It was packed since it was a Sunny Sunday but not overcrowded if that makes sense. Saw no poop anywhere — unsure what other Unilocaler was barking at.
Lots of tourists seem to huddle near the parking lot. The north stretch is definitely less busy, more of the coastal locals that are chillaxin with their kids and no loud beer drinkers like the adolescents up near the ghetto campgrounds.
And here’s a plug: If you want to avoid the fee, park on Kelly and walk your lazy ass rather than complaining about a convenience fee to park close.
:)

Kind of a gem. parking is not the greatest but what can you do we all love the ocean and the ocean only has so much parking. I could totally see having some sort of BBQ or family reunion at this beach. There is plenty of picnic space and it seems like a very popular spot. The lifeguards were very attentive. We even spotted a sea lion on our first visit who kept rolling in the waves around us to say hello.
As always keep an eye on your children as this beach has a strong rip current according to the signs I read while posting on the sand enjoying some sunshine and dash of fog.