South Coast (California)

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For the California wine region, see South Coast AVA.
South Coast
The South Coast: San Diego to Oxnard, and east to Riverside-San Bernardino
Country  United States
State  California
Population ~ 20 million

The South Coast is a term used in the West Coast region of the United States to refer to both the south Pacific Coast of California and the adjacent resort and residential communities.

It refers for the most part to the Southern California coastal counties of Los Angeles, Orange, and San Diego due to the cosmopolitan "SoCal" atmosphere and location of major urban coastal centers. Of these counties only the western two thirds of San Diego, most of Los Angeles and all of Orange are included.[1]

However, some sources include the coastal half of Ventura, western part of Riverside, and southwestern part of San Bernardino Counties because of their proximity to the Pacific Coast and because they are in the same bio-region and watershed.[2]

South Coast culture[edit]

The South Coast is a very popular area with tourists and is the home base for Hollywood and the entertainment industry. Many amusement parks such as Disneyland, Legoland, and SeaWorld are located in the area. Beach culture is very prominent in the region and residents and tourist alike engage in many water sports such as surfing and bodyboarding. Famous beaches and resort towns include Malibu, Santa Monica, the Beach Cities, Huntington Beach, Newport Beach, Del Mar, La Jolla, Pacific Beach, and Coronado. The area is also a very popular fashion location, anchoring the west coast in the fashion industry.

Many television shows such as The Hills, Beverly Hills, 90210, Laguna Beach, The OC, 90210 and Melrose Place have helped popularize the region and its districts, depicting stereotypical SoCoast and SoCal living.

Just as the region is known for its entertainment and nightlife, so is it known for its colleges, universities and involvement in the military and research sectors. The area also features many museums, zoos, wildlife parks and refuges.


During the prohibition era the waters of the South Coast were a popular smuggling route in for alcohol.[3] Largely forgotten in the later parts of the 20th Century, with increased security at the Mexico–United States border smuggling has increased;[3] during the 2011 fiscal year, more than 200 smuggling vessels were observed.[3] Most of the vessels attempt to off load their cargo of drugs and/or illegal immigrants in San Diego County, however destinations are as far north as the California Central Coast.[3] Often, vessels used for smuggling operations are abandoned upon making landfall.[4]

Location and region[edit]

The South Coast has a Mediterranean climate. That means the seasons consist of warm summers, mild wet winters, cool pleasant falls, and warm springs. Summers do not get extremely hot because the ocean serves as a coastal climate mediator, nor do the winters ever get extremely cold. Storms sometimes drench the coast, but the rain falls in short, heavy bursts.

More information[edit]

For more information on South Coast see:

See also[edit]


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