The Sea Cliff Coastal Trail in Del Mar During the Beautiful Spring Bloom

A San Diego bucket list item, the short walk along the Sea Cliff Coastal Trail in Del Mar makes for such a cinematic moment. During the Spring, you’ll be surrounded by the iconic Sea Lavender blooms, offering a picture perfect view for a beautiful sunset stroll.

The above photo was taken near one of the trail entrances by the Carmel Valley Rd and S Camino Del Mar/N Torrey Pines Rd intersection on May 5, 2024. We went around sunset (from 6:30-7:30pm). It features the Torrey Pines Bridge, Sea Lavender, Amtrak train railroad, beach and ocean views all in one frame. If you’re lucky or happen to check the Amtrak schedule, you will be able to see the train pass by below for the ultimate photo op! See my video below of the train passing through this epic scenery!

Quick Info for the Sea Cliff Coastal Trail in Del Mar

Key Map Coordinates:

Train & Bridge View: 124 S Camino Del Mar, Del Mar, CA
Official Google Location: 4th St, Del Mar, CA
Second Google Location: Sea Cliff Way, Del Mar, CA
Sunset Seat: 130-210 S Camino Del Mar, Del Mar, CA

Trail Info:

Level: Easy
Distance: .5 miles
Conditions: Uneven grounds, no guard-railings

Pro Tip:

-Time the train schedule to get it in the shot
-Go during the Spring for Sea Lavender Blooms
-Time it for sunset and golden hour (around 7-7:30pm)
-Get there a bit earlier, there may be crowds

Driving Times :

Downtown San Diego: 30 minutes
Orange County: 1 hour
Los Angeles: 2 hours

About the Sea Cliff Coastal Trail in Del Mar

My favorite type of hikes and walks are along the coast. The ocean and I go together like peanut butter and jelly. As soon as I found out about this trail walk along the bluffs in the Del Mar Village (thanks to TikTok), I instantly made plans to see it for myself, and it is still one my favorite places visited in Southern California. The city of Del Mar is a cute and upscale seaside village, where a lot of old Hollywood moved to. I love the all European coastal small town vibes here!!

The official name on Google for this trail is Sea Cliff Coastal Bluff Trail in Del Mar. You can check out some more information and reviews from others in the link to the Google page. The trail is officially listed to start on 4th Street on Google Maps, but we began further south towards Carmel Valley Rd (south of the Sunset Seat location) for the view, as seen in the above photo, and walked north along the bluff. There’s a secondary listing here with a trail start on Sea Cliff Way.

The trail may not be too kid-friendly since there are no guard railings along the cliffs. Other than that, it’s such a stunning walk. Just an FYI, the path and grounds is not even and a bit bumpy, but it is an easy and short trail — approximately 0.2-0.5 mile.

The Sea Cliff Coastal Trail in Del Mar is just north of the famous Torrey Pines State Beach and Reserve. There are quite a few hikes, with higher difficulty that I would love to take on in the future. Getting here was pretty easy from Orange County. It was about an hour drive south for us and we were able to easily find street parking once we’ve arrived. I believe you do need to pay for parking!

Sea Lavender on Sea Cliff Coastal Trail in Del Mar

Cacti on the Sea Cliff Coastal Trail in Del Mar

Plant Life Along the Sea Cliff Coastal Trail in Del Mar

My Experience at Sea Cliff Coastal Trail in Del Mar

I had planned to get to the location a little bit before sunset, so I can walk the trail and find everything before the sun started to go down. Of course, for photos and videos, I waited until golden hour and sunset, but by that time, I’ve already meandered around and found my favorite spots to shoot at. As I mentioned earlier, once I arrived to the GPS point, parking was pretty easy to find. There were many people coming and going at this trail point.

Yes, a lot of people! You’re going to be prepared to take your turn at the iconic bridge and train location on this sea cliff trail. There were quite a few people taking photos at this spot. I even witnessed the sweetest proposal while filming nearby! It was mix of locals doing their evening walks/hikes and people coming for photos, like me.

I am not sure if I actually intentionally wore a dress to match the environment, but the purples of both the dresses and sea lavender blooms worked so well for these photos! Sea Lavender plants can be found along the coasts of Southern California and the San Francisco Bay Area. With the sunset hues hitting the flowers, it was just so dreamy to hang out and enjoy the view. I know I’ve already said it, but I must mention it again. This has to be one of my favorite places that I’ve visited in California!

Afterwards, I found an OMOMO Tea Shoppe in the Del Mar Highlands Town Center. It’s still my favorite matcha in California and I’ve tried so many coffee and tea shops! Luckily, there was no wait for my OMOMO Matcha drink! There’s usually so much waiting in the Irvine location. The ending of my night was just perfect.

I highly recommend visiting the Sea Cliff Coastal Trail in Del Mar during the spring if you have the time. I would say, you need to spend half an hour minimum to really take the scenery in, but I recommend watching the sunset there and getting there a bit before. It was just so stunning!

If you’re interested in more Southern California flower destinations, be sure to check out the Carlsbad Flower Fields, for the massive fields of ranunculus blooms. The city of Carlsbad is just north of Del Mar, and we passed it on the way down from Orange County. If you’re coming from San Diego, it’s just another 15-20 mins north from Del Mar.