Plan ahead to make your Big Sur beach camping dreams come true.
There are really no bad camping spots in the California wonderland that is Big Sur, but if you’re intent on a beach experience, there are some extremely popular campgrounds that savvy campers know take planning to score. The most coveted spots are in state parks, where reservations open six months in advance. These include Andrew Molera State Park’s trail camp, where you can access Andrew Molera Beach, and Limekiln State Park, which has both ocean sites and Redwood sites. Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park has two environmental campsites on top of the ocean cliffs—the beach is not accessible but you’re right on the ocean all the same. Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park’s campground does not have ocean access (it’s on the Big Sur River, instead) but is near the turn-off to Pfeiffer Beach from Highway 1. Additionally, a few other campgrounds along the coast aren’t state parks and run their own reservation systems.