Doheny State Beach

We enjoyed the two nights we stayed here. Close to the beach and close to all things in the area. Sites are small (we struggled to back into the space) and very close together. Our neighbor's tent was literally about 10 feet or less from our site's picnic table. Showers were clean and had hot water. They took tokens, which is annoying and it was $.50/2 minutes. The visitor center had a super small aquarium and nature center, which our young kids enjoyed and it is technically walking distance to a few restaurants, but we didn't try any of those restaurants. We'd stay again if ever in the area, but there are also probably better options nearby with a bit more space and privacy. Oh and the no dog on the beach thing meant we actually didn't spend a ton of time at this beach. But it was a nice beach.

Perhaps we’re more noise sensitive than most, but I’ve been in Cracker Barrell parking lots that had less transportation noise. Cars are constant, trains are frequent and sound like low flying aircraft. The beach access is great. Sunsets were awesome. Sites are close with little privacy. Ours was not clean. Restrooms were minimal and not the cleanest. Half the campground is closed for maintenance right now (south loop), perhaps that has an impact on other maintenance. Lots of rodents running around but didn’t seem to be troublesome at this time, just a little off putting. Left ground lights under the vehicle/camper at night.

Was able to grab a last minute, mid-week reservation (lots of open spots mid-week in November). Sites are basic and close together, but have bushes between for some privacy. Can’t beat the beach access, though! I didn’t get a beachfront spot this time, but #38 looks like the best to me.. as others have noted, the bluff blocks the direct ocean view from most sites, but 38 looks right out on it. I found bathrooms to be clean and well maintained, facilities overall were great.

This is one of several beach campgrounds along the southern border of Orange County and stretching down into San Diego County. The sites are close together so you’ll get to know your neighbors.

While it’s a beautiful spot with only a short walk to a nice sandy beach and good surfing, it’s extremely difficult to reserve a site, especially between May and September or on virtually any weekend throughout the year. The new reservation system (Reserve California) is woefully inadequate and nearly impossible to get a space. For those willing to put in the effort, the reward is some of the best beachfront camping in SoCal.

I was lucky enough to book a beach front site for the weekend. I've done about 20 days of next to water camping (lake, river, ocean) in the last year alone and this has been our favorite. Previous water sites: Seacliff SB, Yosemite NP right on Merced River, lakeside sites at Millerton SRA, Carpinteria SB.

January weather was amazingly warm with 60 degrees and sunny all weekend, so had enough solar input that I didn't need to run the generator.

For our site, we are right on the beach. There's is a little sand bluff so you couldn't see the ocean from the pavement. Large bench is nice. 6-7 ft shrubs gave some privacy. Plenty of kids so our boys had fun with the neighbors all weekend.

We did not use the bathroom facilities since we're dry camping pros and live without a shower for 2 days. There's only one dump station and we had to wait a good 15 min cause the guy in front of us decided he wanted to rinse his black tank.

Pros are the strict enforcement of campground rules including generator use (10-8pm), parking, space (about 8000 sf including the beach area), close to OC including 35 minutes from Disneyland (where we spent the Friday before check-in).

Main Cons are that it's quite a walk to the north beach area for restaurants, some sites are pretty small and mainly for car and tent campers.

Overall, it's 5 stars if you get a beach site, otherwise it's probably 3.5-4 stars.

We have really enjoyed our stay at Doheny.
We stayed in campsites 4, 60, 52
Getting a reservation was challenging but not impossible. I find that people make reservations 6 months out and then end up canceling a few days before their arrival date or a no-show. After our arrival we learned that there is a daily 'lottery' for camp sites that open up. The lottery for open campsites happens at 12 noon at the entrance.
$40 for non-beach sites
$60 for beach sites
No hookups. Free dump station.
Campsites furthest from the beach are less desirable. A good bit of road noise, sirens, train, and occasional loud drunk person on the other side of the fence.
Beach sites are really awesome. Hear the ocean all night and enjoy each morning right on the beach. Downside to beach sites... when it rains they all flood! Experienced this today. Lucky for us we had already moved to site 52 a row over from the beach.
Showers are on a token system. $1 gets you 4 minutes of hot water. The showers and bathrooms are cleaned daily. Flushing toilets. No hand soap?! What's up with that?
Firewood is $7 from the campsite host. Logs had a good weight and came with a couple pieces of kindling wrapped in newspaper. Nice touch ;)
Fire pits are clean and have removable grates.
Picnic tables were cleaner than other campgrounds I have visited recently.
Privacy is acceptable. There are tall shrubs separating your campsite from your neighbors.
Activities: The beach is steps away making it great for young families. The surf is great for beginners. Awesome surfing spot and recreational area just up the beach. SUP is good as well.
Convenience: Ralphs and Trader Joes for groceries right up the road. Good cell service as well.
Coffee! Coffee Importers along the marina has great outdoor seating, bagels, and good coffee in a relaxed setting. Walk or drive a little further up and check out the Tall Ships at the Ocean Institute and 'baby beach'.

If you are on a roadtrip between San Diego and Los Angeles this might be a good Campspot to spend a night. We arrived there in the afternoon and went to see Laguna Beach (20min North) which was nice. The spot itself is comfortable with a firepit and picknick table. The table though was very dirty. Walk to the beach is just a few feet. Toilets are not good equipped and maintained (no soap, no bin) and you have to pay for the showers. In summary you pay to have a secure spot at the beach in a rural area close to LA. For a night it is OK but I wouldn’t spent many days there for holiday