The largest expanse of coastal sand dunes in North America, stretching for 40 miles along Oregon’s coast. This unique landscape offers diverse recreational opportunities from exhilarating dune buggy rides to tranquil hiking through diverse ecosystems including beaches, dunes, forests, and lakes. The contrasting environments create a visually stunning and ecologically rich experience.
Oregon Beaches
Under Oregon’s landmark 1967 Beach Bill, the entire 362-mile Oregon Coast from Astoria and Cannon Beach south through Newport, Florence, Bandon, and Brookings is free and open to the public from the water’s edge to the statutory vegetation line. Framed by basalt sea stacks, Sitka spruce headlands, and coastal dunes, Oregon beaches are renowned for low-tide intertidal tide pooling (at designated Marine Gardens such as Haystack Rock, Yaquina Head, and Cape Perpetua), cold-water surfing (requiring a 4/3mm or 5/4mm hooded wetsuit in 50 F to 56 F water), agate hunting, whale watching, and year-round state park camping. Because cold Pacific swells, sneaker waves, and rolling drift logs pose year-round hazards on open sand, visitors should never turn their backs on the ocean and should always check NOAA minus-tide tables before exploring coves or tide pools. Most Oregon State Parks coastal day-use viewpoints offer free parking, with small day-use fees at select developed parks. Use the filters below to browse Oregon Coast beaches from the North Coast (Astoria, Seaside, Cannon Beach, Manzanita) through the Central Coast (Lincoln City, Newport, Yachats, Florence) to the South Coast (Bandon, Gold Beach, Brookings) by tide pooling, surfing, camping, fishing, and agate hunting. Always check NOAA tide predictions for minus tides before visiting intertidal Marine Gardens, watch for sneaker wave advisories from the National Weather Service, and check the Oregon Health Authority Beach Monitoring Program.