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The wealthiest community among North County’s beach towns, Del Mar is filled with sidewalk cafés, restaurants, and boutiques.

At one of North County’s most popular beach towns, Fletcher Cove Beach Park is perfect for swimming and walking.

Surfers enjoy the reef break at Cardiff, while RV campers kick back at a beachside campground. The San Elijo Lagoon offers hiking trails through an ecological reserve.

Voted one of the “Top 10 Surf Towns in the US” by Surfer magazine, local highlights include the Self-Realization Fellowship Retreat and Hermitage and the Quail Botanical Gardens.

The 21st century hasn’t yet hit this sleepy little town. Sidewalk-less roads haven’t changed in decades.

In spring, large areas of hillside explode with brilliant-colored blossoms of the giant tecolote ranunculus. The ranch harvests 6-8 million bulbs for export.

This theme park is devoted to the plastic brick. Little ones enjoy the hands-on activities, rides, and models (see Legoland).

In the 1880s, Captain John Frazier discovered that the water here had the same mineral content as a spa in Karlsbad, Bohemia. Curative spas attracted the health-conscious and gave life to the village.

Town fortunes are tied inevitably with adjoining Camp Pendleton. The California Surf Museum presents a history of the sport.

Several endangered species and abundant wildlife thrive at the largest US Marine Corps base and amphibious training facility in the country.