Ogunquit Beach earns its Abenaki name—"beautiful place by the sea"—the moment you crest the dunes and see the sweep of blonde sand stretching toward Moody Point. The beach divides into three zones: Main Beach bustles with umbrella rentals and the vintage Beach Street pavilion; Footbridge Beach lies across the tidal river, quieter and favored by families who let children float in the warm, shallow current; and North Beach tapers toward rocky headlands where tide pools bloom with periwinkles and hermit crabs.
“The pedestrian drawbridge over the Ogunquit River connects two distinct beach personalities—lively main strand and quiet family retreat—within a single shoreline.”
Credit: FlickrHello ocean. It has been a while.
You'll share the shore with multi-generational clans who've staked the same dune-side spots for decades, their coolers packed with Italian sandwiches from Amore Breakfast and lobster rolls wrapped in checkered paper. The sand holds its firmness even at high tide, perfect for barefoot jogs past weathered beach cottages and the occasional piece of sea glass glinting green in the wrack line. When the nor'easters retreat, the beach rebuilds itself grain by grain.
Summer brings water temperatures that climb—slowly, stubbornly—into the mid-sixties, cold enough to make you gasp but swimmable once you commit. Lifeguards patrol the main stretches from late June through Labor Day, their stands painted white against the dune grass. In shoulder seasons, you'll have the sand nearly to yourself, watched only by harbor seals bobbing beyond the breakers and the occasional osprey hunting the river mouth.
