Current conditions
Weather, tides, and dated warnings
Dated heat or swim notes live on the Hilton Head guide — open that first if a warning is posted.
At the beach
Check today’s beach conditions
Live weather and tides, then the field notes from the guide you’re on. If you skip picking, we start on Hilton Head.
Change destination
Hilton Head Island
Safety and flags
Trust the local sources
Lean on SCDES water-quality advisories, Town swim areas in season (typically Apr–Sep), and Shore Beach Service flags (typically Mar–Oct). After heavy rain, give swashes about 48 hours.
Parking
Coligny fills early — have a backup
Town parks generally 6am–10pm. Coligny’s free lot at 102 Pope Avenue fills early in season; pivot to another Town park. Peak paid window is Mar 1–Sep 7, 7am–5pm.
Best access
Coligny day one, mid-island after that
Coligny for the first orientation. Burkes, Driessen, and Folly Field for regular ocean days. Fish Haul / Mitchelville for sound-side walks — not classic Atlantic swimming.
Food nearby
Island tables with gravity
Barnacle Brews after a Burkes day, Hudson’s, Skull Creek Boathouse — the short list with island gravity.
Siesta Key
Current conditions
Weather, tides, then a water check
Gulf water still needs a same-day check — red tide and bacteria change.
Safety
Check the water before you swim
FWC red tide, visitbeaches.org or 941-BEACHES, and Florida Healthy Beaches. Don’t treat last week’s sample as forever-green.
Parking
Free main lot if you beat mid-morning
948 Beach Road — about 950 spaces, free, roughly 6 a.m.–10 p.m. Holiday and weekend pattern: aim ~8–8:30 a.m. Breeze Transit route 77 is the free trolley fallback when the lot is full.
Best access
Hub, quieter sand, or Turtle
Siesta Beach Park for facilities and lifeguards. Crescent when you want less main-stage. Turtle Beach for quieter, darker sand and often an easier lot — no lifeguards.
Food nearby
Village tables for a proper meal
SKOB, Captain Curt’s, Ophelia’s, Toasted Mango — mix village tables with a proper meal. Hours shift; confirm before you go.
Waikīkī
Current conditions
Weather, tides, and the surf note
Dated High Surf or brown-water notes live on the Waikīkī guide.
Safety and flags
Towers first, then the water
City Ocean Safety towers roughly 8:00 a.m.–6:30 p.m. Check hawaiibeachsafety.com. Purple flags are a hard stop. After heavy rain, stay out at least 72 hours, especially near the Ala Wai west end.
Parking
Midmorning is already a fight
Plan to walk from your hotel, rideshare, or grab a spot early. Treat the day as a stroll corridor.
Best access
Swim pockets, Duke–Hilton, Kapahulu
Family wading at the Duke / Hilton end. Protected ponds at Kūhiō / the Wall (Kapahulu Groin). Soft-top lessons at Canoes / Populars — stay shoreward if you’re swimming.
Food nearby
Hop up Kapahulu
Ono Seafood, Leonard’s Bakery, Rainbow Drive-In — a short hop off Kalākaua beachfront.
Tybee Island
Outer Cape
Current conditions
Weather, then the NWS rip line
Dated rip and surf notes live on the Outer Cape guide — open that first if Saturday’s High rip risk is still in the window.
Safety
Flags on the sand, SRF for the outlook
NWS BOX SRF for MAZ022 is the rip / surf / east-coast water line. Beach flags are on the sand only. Stay 150 feet from seals.
Parking
Little Creek in summer, not the station lot
Coast Guard’s beach lot is residents and handicap only mid-June through Labor Day. Everyone else parks at Little Creek and takes the shuttle. Nauset Light typically fills by 10 a.m.
Best access
Coast Guard, Nauset Light, or Marconi
Coast Guard via Little Creek for families and wheelchairs. Nauset Light if you can arrive before 10 a.m. Marconi for the large lot and official surf.
Names
Nauset Light is not Nauset Beach
Nauset Light is Eastham, NPS. Nauset Beach is Orleans, town, $35. GPS “Nauset Beach” often routes to the wrong town.
Santa Monica–Venice
Current conditions
Weather, then the NWS rip line
Dated rip and surf notes live on the Santa Monica–Venice guide — open that first if Saturday’s High rip risk is still in the window.
Safety
DPH sign, open tower, NWS rip
LA County DPH is the posted warning on the sand. NWS LOX SRF for CAZ364 is the same-day rip and surf. Heal the Bay is weekly, not a live flag. Swim near an open County tower.
Parking
PCH into Lot 1 North — Colorado is closed
The Ocean Avenue → Colorado drive-on is closed through late 2027. Cars: Pacific Coast Highway into Lot 1 North, or Lot 4 South / Lot 3 North. Venice lots are 300 / 2100 / 3100 Ocean Front Walk.
Best access
State beach, Ocean Park, or Venice
State Beach north or south of the pier, at an open tower, if you want sand plus the landmark. Ocean Park if you want playground and picnic. Venice if you meant the boardwalk — then swim west of Ocean Front Walk.
Names
The pier is not the swim
200 Santa Monica Pier is the deck. Sit and swim on the state beach, north or south. Do not swim within 100 yards of the Pier or Tower 12 (DPH Aug 13).