Discover 8 hidden attractions, cool sights, and unusual things to do in Huntington Beach (United States). Don't miss out on these must-see attractions: Huntington Beach Pier, International Surfing Museum, and Huntington Beach Public Library. Also, be sure to include Newland House in your itinerary.
Below, you can find the list of the most amazing places you should visit in Huntington Beach (California).
Table of Contents
Huntington Beach Pier
The Huntington Beach Pier is a municipal pier located in Huntington Beach, California, at the west end of Main Street and west of Pacific Coast Highway. At 1,850 feet in length, it is one of the longest public piers on the West Coast. The deck of the pier is 30 feet above sea level, while the top of the restaurant structure at the end of the pier is 77 feet.
The Huntington Beach Pier is on the California Register of Historical Resources. It is one of 123 historic places and districts listed on the National Register of Historic Places in Orange County, California (Ref. No. 89001203).
One of the main landmarks of Huntington Beach, also known as "Surf City, USA", the pier is the center of the city's prominent beach culture. A popular meeting place for surfers, the ocean waves here are enhanced by a natural effect caused by the edge-diffraction of open ocean swells around Catalina Island, creating consistent surf year-round.[1]
Address: 315 Pacific Coast Hwy, 92648-5161 Huntington Beach
International Surfing Museum
The International Surfing Museum is a non-profit, 501 museum in Huntington Beach, Orange County, California. The museum's goal is to preserve the history of the surfing culture throughout the globe. It is dedicated to Duke Kahanamoku, who is generally regarded as the person who popularized the modern sport of surfing.
The International Surfing Museum displays historic surfboards, provides information about legendary surfers, and shows classic surf films. Visitors can examine artistic surfing sculptures and hear surf music. Admission to the museum is currently $2 per visitor.
The museum moved and opened in the 411 Olive Avenue location in June 1990. It was established in 1987 by Ann Beasley and Natalie Kotsch. In 1998 Ann Beasley and Natalie Kotsch were added to the Honor Roll, which "was created to honor those individuals who have contributed to surfing and it's culture and are deserving of recognition, but might not qualify to receive a stone on the Walk of Fame. Honor Roll recipients are selected by the Surfing Walk of Fame Board of Directors."[2]
Address: 411 Olive Ave, 92648 Huntington Beach (Huntington Beach)
Huntington Beach Public Library
Public library system. The Huntington Beach Public Library is a library system located in Huntington Beach, California. It offers online databases, print and electronic books and magazines, children's programs, computer lab, DVD movies, CD music, and audiobooks for anyone with a Huntington Beach Library card. Library cards are free to California residents. Free wireless access is available at all locations without a card.
The library is financed and governed by the City of Huntington Beach, California. Volunteers also subsidize the library system by selling used books, operating a gift shop, and running charitable events. In 2015, volunteers donated 57,731 hours towards the library. The first library in Huntington Beach opened in 1909 and has since evolved to a five-location library system: Central, Main Street, Oak View, Helen Murphy, and Banning.[3]
Address: 7111 Talbert Ave, 92648-1232 Huntington Beach (Huntington Beach)
Newland House
Museum in Huntington Beach, California. Newland House is an 1898 farmhouse in a midwestern adaptation of a Queen Anne architectural style in Huntington Beach, California, listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It is one of 123 historic places and districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Orange County, California. The Newland House is listed as the ninth historic place to receive a historical plaque from the Orange County Historical Commission in cooperation with the Orange County Board of Supervisors.[4]
Bolsa Chica State Beach
Beach in Orange County, California. Bolsa Chica State Beach is a public ocean beach in Orange County, California, United States. It is located north of Huntington Beach and south of the community of Sunset Beach. The beach extends 3 miles from Warner Avenue in Sunset Beach south to Seapoint Avenue, where the Huntington City Beach begins. The Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve is located across the busy Pacific Coast Highway from the beach and is a popular spot for birdwatching. The Bolsa Chica bicycle path runs along the length of the park through Huntington City Beach.
Activities include surfing, sunbathing, play volleyball, and water sports. Tent camping is not allowed at Bolsa Chica State Beach. Fire rings are available.
Surf fishing for perch, corbina, California corbina, croaker, cabezon, shovelnose guitar fish and sand shark is available. California grunion is a species that only spawns on sandy southern California beaches. Under state law, these fish may be caught by hand with a fishing permit. Wildlife and bird watching are also popular at this state beach.
Lifeguards from the California State Parks Lifeguard Service patrol the beach year-round and lifeguard towers are staffed during the summer.[5]
Friends of Shipley Nature Center
Nature and wildlife, Park, Relax in park
Address: 17829 Goldenwest St, 92647-6259 Huntington Beach (Huntington Beach)
Helme–Worthy Store and Residence
The Helme–Worthy Store and Residence is the former M.E. Helme House Furnishing Company and Helme–Worthy residence, a home and attached storefront in Huntington Beach, California. It was listed as a historic structure on the National Register of Historic Places on March 31, 1987.
Constructed in 1904, the M.E. Helme House Furnishing Company building is adjacent to the 1880s Helme–Worthy residence, both undergoing stabilization and historic preservation. The Helme–Worthy residence was moved 11 miles by mule team by Matthew and Mary Josephine Helme from the rural countryside near 5th and Verano (now Euclid Street) in Santa Ana, California, to its current location in downtown Pacific City, now Huntington Beach, in 1903.
The home and business belonged to Matthew E. Helme, one of the founders of Huntington Beach and one of the township's first mayors. Helme was elected to the board of trustees for the City of Huntington Beach (the city council) in 1909, the year the town incorporated, serving until 1917. He served as mayor in 1916.
As of 2017, the buildings are still owned by descendants of Matthew E. Helme, who are conducting the historic preservation work. The former M.E. Helme House Furnishing Company is now an antique store, M.E. Helme Antiques, and retains the original business' name on the building.
The National Register of Historic Places application describes the significance of the historic place as retaining "their integrity of location, setting, design, workmanship, materials, feeling and association with Huntington Beach's early settlement period. Although the residence is simple in style, it is the oldest house in town. Both provide the only visual picture of early Huntington Beach and its settlement period."
The M.E. Helme Furnishing Company and Helme–Worthy residence is one of 122 historic properties and districts listed on the National Register of Historic Places in Orange County, California.[6]
Huntington State Beach
City park in Orange County, California. Huntington State Beach is a protected beach in Southern California, located in the City of Huntington Beach in Orange County. It extends 2 miles from Newport Beach north to Beach Boulevard, where the Huntington City Beach begins. The 121-acre park was established in 1942.
This beach is a popular destination for many beach enthusiasts. This beach has moderate to good surf, fishing, volleyball courts, basketball courts, bathrooms, and fire-rings for bonfires. Lifeguard Services at Huntington State Beach are provided by the California State Parks Lifeguard Service. Lifeguards patrol the beach year-round while lifeguard towers are staffed roughly Memorial Day weekend through Labor Day weekend.
The beach also provides a nesting sanctuary for California least terns, an endangered subspecies, and snowy plovers, a threatened species on the West Coast.[7]