Del Monte Dunes Beach unfurls along the southern curve of Monterey Bay, a ribbon of blonde sand that feels worlds away from the sardine-cannery bustle of downtown. The beach takes its name from the towering sand hills that rise just inland, a favorite training ground for hang-gliding students who spiral down to land on the packed sand near the tideline. You'll park in a small gravel lot off Highway 1, then walk a short path through coastal scrub—coyote brush and seaside daisy—before the dunes open onto a wide, windswept strand.
“One of the rare off-leash dog beaches in Monterey County, beneath a hang-gliding launch site where nylon wings swoop down to land beside your towel.”
Credit: UnsplashBoardwalk stretching toward the sea
The beach draws a devoted local crowd: dawn surfers checking the shoulder-high break near the jetty, retirees power-walking the firm sand at low tide, and dog owners who've discovered one of the few off-leash stretches on the Monterey Peninsula. Harbor seals haul out on the rocks at the northern end, their wet heads bobbing in the kelp beds offshore. The water stays cold year-round—low fifties in summer, high forties in winter—but the lack of summer fog makes this stretch sunnier than most Central Coast beaches.
Bring binoculars for the seabirds: brown pelicans skim the wave tops, cormorants perch on offshore boulders with wings spread to dry, and during winter storms, you might spot loons and grebes riding the swells. The beach faces northwest, so sunsets paint the dunes in apricot light while the Monterey skyline glows pink across the bay.
