South Palisades Park is a dream. It has an abundance of palm trees, benches, and a long lawn. The views from each bench are glorious. The bluest water stretches out to Port San Luis. The hills slant up at a perfect angle. A staircase leads down to the beach. A curvy paved pathway adds to the magical curves and angles everywhere. The light is lovely here- the sky a fantastic blue behind whisps of clouds. A heart-shaped planter adorns one of the benches- you can sit and think about your lover.

There are many, many weddings every weekend on this coastline, and this park is the perfect spot to hold one. The curved path is nice for kids on tricycles. And the lawn is fun for kids to run with all their might! Surfers enjoy a surfbreak close to shore, kids explore the tide pools, and college students work on their tans. The south end of this beach is below Dolphin Bay Resort Walkway.
There is a nice 1.7 mile walk you can do from this park (3.4 miles there and back)!  At the west end of the park, follow the path to Indio Drive, where you can walk along the road. There is no sidewalk, but because the road dead ends at the park, there aren't many cars. It's nice to look at the beach houses and their pretty gardens. After 250m, you come to Florin Ocean Overlook, where a bench offers perfect views of the coastline and the crashing water below. Continue on Indio Drive another 250m to Topaz Ocean Overlook, where you will find another bench with an amazing view! After another 300m, you come to an overlook at the end of Encanto Ave- this one doesn't have a bench. Continue 400m and you come to the Cave Landing Trail Parking Lot, where you can hike along the Shell Beach Bluff Trail! It goes for 0.4 miles along the cliffs over the ocean with the most stunning views. You can hear the ocean crashing below, and it soothes your nerves. There are lovely plants like agave americana and red bougainvillea along the way. Beach houses that make you envious are on your right. The spiffy path ends, and at this point you can turn around. Or you can continue on a very steep, more rugged path all the way to Cave Landing and Smuggler's Cave. Not many people continue to the end because it's very steep.
Next to South Palisades Park is a cafe called Marisol at the Cliffs, with lovely views of the ocean. One building further is Lido, a fine dining restaurant in Dolphin Bay Resort, which has a happy hour 2-5pm with an ocean view. And one further than that is Spyglass Inn, with happy hour on M-F 4:00-6:30pm, with half off the pizza and appetizers.
While you're in the Shell Beach/ Pismo area: For a place to eat, check out the restaurants and the lively scene at Pismo town and pier. For some wonderful sand dunes and a monarch butterfly preserve, check out the North Beach Campground area. For a super fun playground, head over to Dinosaur Caves Park.

Directions

South Palisades Park is located at 198 Beachcomber Drive, Pismo Beach CA. There is plenty of parking along the road.

Click on map for interactive view