La Jolla (IPA pronunciation [laˈhoia], i.e. “lah-HOY-yah”) is a seaside
resort community of 42,808 residents within the city of San Diego,
California. La Jolla borders Pacific Beach to the south and extends
north to Torrey Pines State Reserve and Del Mar, California. Along the
way it encompasses neighborhoods like Bird Rock, Windansea, The
Village of La Jolla (including "downtown La Jolla"), La Jolla Shores, La
Jolla Farms, Torrey Pines, Mount Soledad and La Jolla Village (including La Jolla Village Square). Interstate 5
forms La Jolla's man-made border to the east, with the exception of some University of California, San Diego
and commercial property east of I-5 and north of La Jolla Village Drive, which is also part of La Jolla.
The Central San Diego beaches are known to be the party
beaches. A lot of the residents of Pacific Beach (PB), Ocean
Beach (OB) and Mission Beach are college students, or
around the age of a typical college student. The bar scene is
very popular in all 3 of these beach towns. PB is best known
for the stip of bars on Garnet Avenue. OB is best known for
the Sunshine Bar. Mission Beach is best known for its dive bars and its roller coaster in the
middle of the city.
Known as a biker town for its rough atmosphere and
seedy beachfront area throughout the 70s, Imperial
Beach has undergone a significant makeover in the last
ten years. However, the town is still a low-key beach
community, with a growing population of Latinos who make up the majority of the population.
For years the town was controlled by pro-growth elected officials, but over the years
environmentalists and other activists helped elect a group of smart-growth and no-growth
elected officials. The City of Imperial Beach is now implementing an ambitious community
redevelopment plan to improve the badly developed commercial corridor along Palm Avenue.
Beaches in the North County are known to be more
family oriented, and very low key in comparison to the
rowdy beaches in central San Diego. These beaches
also attract a lot of surfers.
