Best Beach Towns For an oregon family vacation

Looking for the best beach town to use as your home base for your Oregon family vacation? The beaches are family friendly, stunning, and the perfect places to laze away long summer days. I’m focusing on the Northern Oregon Coast as these happen to be our favorites. They are definitely some of the best beaches in the Pacific Northwest.

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What to Know About Planning Your Oregon Family Vacation to the Beach

Weather

Moving from the east coast of the United States, I had a vision of what a beach trip looked like. Think small bikinis, and a lot of heat and humidity. The west coast is different, it is home to some of the best beaches in the United States. However, if you are visiting the Pacific Northwest for the first time you need to make sure you check the weather before you start packing. There is a good chance that even in the summer months, you’ll want a light sweater and pants on in the middle of the day. However, that doesn’t take away from the fun! Our family had a fantastic time making sand castles and splashing in the shallows even if we did it while wearing sweatshirts. And it just meant I had to apply less sunscreen!

The one thing we weren’t expecting though: the wind! Part of the charm of the Oregon coast is its rugged cliffs and driftwood strewn beaches. The downside to all of that natural beauty is dealing with the wind that caused it. Expect gusts up to 20 mph on a typical beach day. But don’t worry, if wind isn’t your thing I have some beach recommendations that are tucked into coves.

Activities

Your Oregon family vacation will be chalk full of adventure if you base yourself out of the northern Oregon coast. There is no shortage of scenic state park hikes, tide pools to spot marine life in, and mile long stretches of sandy beaches for strolling or biking. Honestly, I think the Oregon coast is one of the best places to take young children on vacation. There is an endless supply of kid and adult friendly activities to make everyone happy!

Best Oregon Beaches for Families: Picking Your Homebase

The first thing you need to pick is where you are going to base your Oregon family vacation. We are partial to the Northern Oregon coast due to it’s proximity to Portland. All of these beaches are a short road trip from the city!

Without a-do, the best beaches in Oregon for families with young children are:

Cannon beach

Perfect for: Families who want to stay in a luxury hotel and have commercial amenities on a charming main street

If you are interested in a Oregon family vacation to the beach then you’ve probably seen photos of the famed Haystack Rock, one of the Oregon coast’s most photographed natural wonders. What you might not know is Cannon Beach has so much more to offer than just one rock formation, although it is pretty great! Cannon Beach is a popular spot for families due to the charming commercial area and soft sand beach. But be warned, if you go you’ll fall in love!

Upscale Family Lodging

The Surfsand Resort is our absolute favorite hotel in the area. You simply cannot top the location. Haystack Rock is right outside your door and main street shopping is just a quick drive, or leisurely walk, down the street. But location isn’t the only thing the Surfsand has going for it. This hotel also has an indoor pool, which you’ll be sure to make use of on a cloudy or windy day. They’ll even set up a bonfire and bring you Adirondack chairs and s’mores kits so you can have an absolutely memorial evening on the beach during your Oregon family vacation.

What to do in cannon beach

Cannon Beach is the perfect mix of small town charm, stunning state parks, and family friendly beaches. Some of our favorite activities to do in Cannon Beach are:

• Tide pool: at low tide you can walk out to Haystack Rock and spend an hour spotting sea anemone, starfish, and puffins up on the rock.
• Shop: Cannon Beach is the perfect place to get souvenirs. We’ve been buying an annual Cannon Beach t-shirt for the kids for years to commemorate our trips. If you are more into a temporary souvenir make a trip to Bruce’s Candy Kitchen. Just try not to eat your souvenir before you even get back to your hotel room!
• Ice Cream: What trip to the beach would be complete without ice cream? One of the best places to get ice cream in Cannon Beach is Suzy’s Scoops. Doesn’t hurt that it is right next to a pizza shop!
• Bike ride: kids will love the laid back bike riders you can rent from Fun Cycles. Just be sure to check their website for their hours of operation as they only rent bikes out during low tide. I recommend taking the bike out to Haystack Rock for tide pooling!
• Build a sand castle: this one is a given, Cannon Beach is a great place and you should plan on spending long days out here! It is also one of the least windy beaches we’ve been to in Oregon so you should expect to be able to wear bathing suits in July and August.
• Ecola State Park: located just 3-miles north of Cannon Beach, Ecola State Park should be a must stop on any Oregon family vacation. Even if you aren’t big into hiking, you’ll be sure to enjoy the stunning views! Our favorite hike was the Crescent Beach trail.
• Road trip to Seaside Beach: Seaside is a bit too large and commercial for us but we love to take a road trip up for the day, especially if it is a rainy day! Young children will love the Seaside Aquarium. One of the best things to do in Seaside is embrace your inner child for a round of mini-golf or challenge yourself on the family-friendly ropes course.

Expert Tips For Cannon Beach

Cannon Beach is a popular spot for families with young children and the place where we felt that the most was when dining out. Aim for an early dinner to beat the rush! It will put on a perfect schedule. Head from the beach out to dinner. Then head back to the beach for some s’mores and sunset!

Yachats

Perfect for: Families who want to ditch the crowds and feel like they are explorers discovering the coast for the first time on their Oregon family vacation

Our first Oregon family vacation we based ourselves in Yachats. As someone who wants to see the whole world, I rarely travel to the same destination twice. Yachats is the exception to that rule. It is a complete struggle for me to stay anywhere else in Oregon. Yachats just has my heart, let me share why.

Family Friendly Lodging

The Overleaf Lodge is the perfect homebase for your Oregon family vacation. Not only does the hotel has spacious hotel rooms they have cottages on site that they rent out directly. We’ve stayed in multiple cottages and have loved each and every one. These are independently owned so you won’t find cookie cutter decor but you will have find multiple bedrooms, full kitchens, lovely porches to enjoy sunset and more! Did I say sunset? You’ll probably want to stroll out of the hotel and into a lounge chair each evening to enjoy the view.

What to Do in Yachats

If you chose Yachats for your Oregon family vacation you are going to do a little more driving than you would if you are based out of Cannon Beach. But don’t let that scare you, Yachats is one of the most family friendly Oregon beaches! It’s a great spot for families who crave getting off the beaten path and one of the best coastal towns in the Pacific Northwest.

• Tide pooling: some of the best tide pools can be found near Yachats. Our personal favorites are Strawberry Hill and Seal Rock. Seal Rock is a short drive from Yachats and is one of the most popular spots for marine life on the Oregon coast due to this unique feature: there is a docent who will help you spot different marine life! It’s like you are in a museum, its so amazing!
• Sledding: that’s right, you can go sledding! Drive on over to the Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area and the whole family can enjoy sand boarding or sand sledding! You’ll find numerous rentals along the road from Yachats. Pro-tip: bring your goggles so you don’t end up with a ton of sand in your eyes!
• Oregon Coast Aquarium: head north to Newport and check out some more sea creatures. This is a lovely aquarium and my absolute favorite on a gloomy day.
• Cape Perpetua Scenic Overlook: make sure you bring your camera for this one! You can drive up to the scenic overlook and enjoy some spectacular costal views.

Best Beaches for an easy road trip from yachats

• Visit one of my favorite hidden beaches and lighthouses: take the Hobbit Trail to one of the most beautiful beaches you will ever set foot on. Hobbit Beach is located down a half mile trail and while the trail is flat and easy access, it is enough to deter large crowds so don’t be surprised if you have Hobbit Beach all to yourself. If you are more adventurous you can take the same trail upwards to Heceta Lighthouse. One thing to note about visiting Hobbit Beach is that the parking lot is across the highway. We didn’t find it too difficult to cross but it is something to think about when you are traveling with young children and lots of beach gear!
• North Jetty Beach: More sand dunes! If your kids didn’t get enough of sand sledding while they were at Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area then head over to one of the best Oregon beaches for families. With miles of sandy beach and spectacular views, North Jetty beach is sure to be fun for the whole family. The cherry on top are the towering sand dunes. My kids had a great time playing hide and seek in the dunes, and I got my workout in!

Expert Tip for Yachats

Yachats is quieter beach town which is why we picked it as one of the best beaches in Oregon for families. We know plenty of families are looking for peace and quiet and the opportunity to have gorgeous beaches all to themselves. However, if you are looking for a variety of restaurants, shopping, and activities like mini-golf then you would better off staying in Cannon Beach or Seaside Beach.

Manzanita beach

Perfect for: Families who want an in-between. Not quite as commercial as Cannon Beach but not quite as remote as Yachats, Manzanita just might be your perfect homebase for your Oregon family vacation.

Manzanita is the city we used for our most recent homebase and it came highly recommended! After staying there, I can see why. Miles of sandy beach and an adorable main street. We will definitely be back!

Lodging Your Way

While Manzanita is overflowing with gorgeous beaches it is short on luxury hotels. I recommend choosing from a home rental in the area. Many of them are based directly off of the main street and within walking distance of restaurants and the main beach.

What to Do in Manzanita

Located between Cannon Beach and Yachats, Manzanita is your perfect home base if you want to spend the majority of your days on sandy beaches. However, be warned Manzanita is quite windy!

• Visit Cannon Beach: that’s right, even if you don’t pick Cannon Beach as your home base you can still make a day trip there!
• More hidden beaches: Oregon is full of these! Our absolute favorites were Hug Point and Short Sand beach. They were equally enchanting but totally different.
  • Hug Point has a parking lot directly next to the beach making it unique in how easy it is to access. It is such a short walk to one of the best beaches on the Oregon coast! Go during low tide to enjoy the secret part of the beach where you can see a waterfall (season dependent) and explore caves. This beach is accessible during high tide, something I had worried about, however you won’t be able to round the cliff to see the waterfall or secret beach. It is still an excellent place to spend the day and such a short drive from both Manzanita and Cannon Beach.
  • Short Sand beach is more difficult to access but the reward is a half mile hike through the breathtaking lush greenery of a Sitka forest. Don’t worry about exactly which hiking trail to take from the parking area. Most of them ultimately will lead you to the Pacific Ocean, you may just end up having to hike a little further! If you are nervous, I recommend parking the larger northern parking area. We accidentally parked in the smaller southern parking area on our first visit and got a little nervous when the paths seemed to fork over and over again. But we made it to the beach and found a better way on our second trip! You’ll know you are on the right path if you take the trail from the parking area under the highway right at the start. You’ll finish your hike at the access point where you’ll find restrooms and a picnic area with spectacular views of the beach. Short Sand beach is the ideal spot to spend a long beach day. Honestly, if I could only pick one of the best beaches in Oregon for families as my favorite, it would be Short Sand beach.
• Oswald West State Park: Short Sand beach is part of Oswald West State Park but there is so much more to do in the state park then just visit Short Sand beach! In fact one of the most famous (and rewarding) hiking trails, Cape Falcon, will provide you with incredible views of Short Sand beach and the Pacific Ocean. If you are looking for something a little shorter, tackle Elk Flats (2.9 miles) to the Devil’s Cauldron, a swirling pool of ocean foam.

Expert Tips for Manzanita

The main draw to Manzanita is the miles of sandy beaches. However, be warned that the wind in Manzanita is intense. My best advice is to visit the beach early in the morning and then again in the early evening.

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A Few tips for visiting any of these best oregon beaches for families:

stay for low tide!

Your children will love playing in the shallow waters between sand bars and having plenty of room to run and play. Some of our best memories from the Oregon coast are during low tide. Between the tide pools, the shallow water, and the tide pools it really can’t be beat!

Book A year in advance

The summer months are a very popular time to visit the Oregon coast. While the shoulder season is spectacular (September), if you have young children in traditional schooling there is a good chance you are looking at the Oregon coast for the summer months. These are some of the best beaches in Oregon for families but they aren’t necessarily hidden gems so you are going to find rental homes and hotels booking up as early as a year in advance. While you can definitely book something with less notice, I highly recommend you book a year out to have your first choice of lodging.

I’ve left the hard part to you – picking your homebase for your oregon family vacation! My recommend: try all three! You won’t regret it.