Fiesta Island Park is the most important island on Mission Bay – a manufactured leisure waterway with 27 miles of shoreline and 4,235 acres.
The island contains 463 acres of undeveloped public park and leisure land. Known for its huge open areas, each giant grassy areas and sandy seashores, it’s an out of doors wonderland that welcomes exercise. Open to people, horses, and canines, there may be a lot to do and discover.
Fiesta Island Park: Breakdown of Where to Go
Fiesta Island Park resulted from dredged sand ensuing from increasing Mission Bay. It has since been untouched and stays an undeveloped peninsular island that draws over 5 million guests yearly.
You enter the island from the east and exit the island to the west. I’ll present you what to anticipate as you journey alongside this loop.
Fiesta Island Park: East Side
The entrance is on the east facet of the island. This half is understood for having seashores with calm waters which might be nice for households with young children.
Tecolote Cove is the primary seaside you’ll come throughout. Enchanted Cove is a bit additional up within the island’s southeast nook. Both are nice spots for water actions like fishing, stand-up paddleboarding (SUP), rowing, and slow-moving watercraft. The most velocity restrict at these seashores is 5 mph.
Fiesta Island Youth Camp and Youth Aquatic Center can also be positioned in a protected cove on the island’s east facet. Sandy bayfront seashores and entry to the Pacific Ocean border the favored facility.
However, it’s only out there to be used by San Diego youth teams corresponding to Seascouts, Boys & Girls Club, and YMCA Indian Guides. Children can study to canoe, sail, kayak, row, SUP, swim, and windsurf.
The Fiesta Island Youth Camp is adjoining to the Aquatic Center, offering 25 campsites to accommodate as much as 250 campers. Each campsite has a firepit, barbecue, and picnic desk. The campsite has rinsing showers, ingesting water, and a centrally positioned restroom. There can also be a bonfire ring and amphitheater ultimate for big campfire gatherings. Again, that is solely out there to youth teams. Other guests can’t launch, anchor, or use the seaside right here.
Once you cross the aquatic heart and campgrounds, you possibly can launch your small private watercraft into Fiesta Bay. The velocity restrict stays 5 mph on the East facet of Fiesta Island Park.
Fiesta Island Park: Center
Once you attain the middle of Fiesta Island Park, you’ll discover the San Diego well-known Over-The-Line (OTL) fields. This can also be the place the enduring Over-The-Line Tournament is hosted annually.
The esteemed Old Mission Bay Athletic Club has hosted the legendary occasion for the reason that mid-Fifties. If you’re unfamiliar with OTL, it’s a bat-and-ball sport performed in groups of three within the sand.
The Over-The-Line fields can be used to launch mannequin rockets. However, you could get hold of a allow from the town beforehand.
The wonderful thing about central Fiesta Island is that there are fewer crowds since individuals want to be shoreside. We wish to discover the sand dunes taking within the lovely native and non-native flora. Some native crops you’ll come throughout are massive saltbush, pickleweed, coastal goldenbush, and seaside night primrose. You might even bump into individuals using horseback alongside the way in which.
Fiesta Island Park: West Side
The west facet of Fiesta Island Park is for the high-energy, adventurous, thrill-seeking watercraft and watersport fanatics. On the west facet, you’re not restricted to the 5 mph restrict within the water. Watercraft can go sooner (inside purpose) from morning to nighttime on this space of Fiesta Island.
The laxer guidelines of those seashores make them a scorching spot for motor and sailboats. Waterskiing and kitesurfing are among the many hottest watersports on the west facet. However, to waterski, you could first get hold of a allow that requires you to be a member of a waterskiing membership. You’ll typically discover watercraft velocity competitions right here.
Local Tip: There is an remoted cove within the southeastern tip of the west facet known as Hidden Anchorage. It’s a premier waterski place, so make sure you get that let.
After passing the seashores on Fiesta Island’s west facet, you’ll encounter Stoney Point, adjoining to the canine park.
Stoney Point is the California Least Tern Nesting Area and is gated off with a no trespassing/don’t enter signal. Due to the world’s isolation, it supplies a very good meals supply and safety for this endangered chook species. Additional signage asks pet house owners to maintain their canines from coming into the location or barking on the gate to keep away from disturbing the birds.
In 2021, the City Council accepted a plan to increase and renovate the island. Fiesta Island Park can be expanded from 463 acres to 470 acres. After renovations are accomplished, Fiesta Island will embody an off-leash park, a number of restroom areas, a number of devoted wildlife areas, a campground, and a concession stand.
How to Get to Find Fiesta Island
Situated on Mission Bay, within the seaside neighborhood of Mission Beach, Fiesta Island is simple to search out.
You’ll take Interstate 5 and exit Sea World Drive. After exiting, head southwest to make a proper on East Mission Bay Drive earlier than lastly making a left at Fiesta Island. This is a one-way street that loops across the island. The velocity restrict on this street is 25 mph.
Where to Park at Fiesta Island Park
There is free parking all through Fiesta Island Park. You can park anyplace alongside the street as you drive alongside the one-way loop.
There aren’t any parking tons presently on the island. You can park straight on the seaside should you can’t discover parking alongside the street. No parking is allowed on the island from 10 p.m. – 4 a.m.
Things to Do at Fiesta Island Park
Fiesta Island Park is a tranquil space of uninhabited land and peaceable pure environment amid an in any other case city panorama. With plans to increase and revitalize Fiesta Island, it’s solely destined to enchantment to a greater diversity of vacationers and locals.
This is a superb place to discover quieter seashores, benefit from a large canine park, and benefit from the island’s distinctive charms. Fiesta Island supplies the liberty and area to take pleasure in a wide range of outside actions each on land and within the water. It’s additionally residence to a number of one-of-a-kind and recurring occasions.
Fiesta Island Dog Beach
Fiesta Island Dog Beach is by far the preferred and notable side of Fiesta Island and one of many finest issues to do with canines in San Diego.
It’s such a distinguished fixture that Fiesta Island’s unique growth and redesign plans had been denied as a result of they would cut back the scale and accessibility of the canine park. Instead, the brand new plan will honor the pup-friendly historical past by upgrading the off-leash space.
Open every day, 24 hours a day (the island is closed to autos between 10 p.m. and 4 a.m.), the expansive park has loads of sand dunes your canine will like to romp round in. Play catch and frisbee together with your playful pooch throughout the 90 acres. This features a calm water seaside so your pup can splash round with reckless abandon or simply cool off.
To totally admire its significance to canine lovers, you must know that the park was voted the primary canine park within the nation by USA Today readers.
SeaWorld San Diego is positioned close by, so in case your canine is very delicate to noise, I like to recommend checking their night fireworks schedule. Additionally, there aren’t any clear water sources but, so make sure you carry water to your canine with you.
Tip: Make positive you carry waste baggage with you. Respect the park, and choose up after your pup (or horse). There can also be a canine bag station on the park entrance should you neglect to carry your personal. Make positive to seize some once you enter, because the park is kind of giant.
Watercraft at Fiesta Island Park
Though Fiesta Island Dog Park could be the most notable characteristic on the island, the seashores on the island’s west facet are the preferred.
Personal watercraft house owners flock right here. You’ll typically see motorboats, sailboats, and jet skis launching into and cruising across the water.
Watersports At Fiesta Island Park
There are so many water and land actions to get into at Fiesta Island Park. Fun issues to do in Mission Bay like swimming, sunbathing, fishing, SUP, kayaking, and canoeing are standard on the island’s east facet.
This is as a result of the water is way calmer and watercraft should not allowed to go above 5 mph close to these seashores. This additionally makes them the perfect seashores for households with youngsters. You can play within the water through the day and have a bonfire to roast s’mores when you watch the sundown.
The west facet seashores enable watercraft to go at greater speeds making jet snowboarding, waterskiing, and crusing standard actions. The greater winds and extra intense waves make it a scorching spot for kiteboarding and windsurfing.
Kayakers, canoers, and paddleboarders may also use these seashores, however the intense waves make it more difficult, and, frankly, not as enjoyable.
Run, Walk, Or Bike the Loop
The Fiesta Island Park loop is 2 miles of largely flat land, making it an excellent path to run, stroll, or bike. Since all the park is dog-friendly, they’ll train alongside you in the event that they’re on a leash.
If you might have a horse, carry it alongside and discover the park through horseback. You may also play seaside volleyball, Over-The-Line, corn-hole, frisbee, and different widespread beach-friendly video games.
Bird Watching at Fiesta Island Park
Fiesta Island is a well-liked location for novice and avid chook watchers alike. There is an abundance of untouched land and water sources. This supplies a wholesome meals provide that pulls in each native and non-native chook species.
The most typical chook varieties embody the Lapland Longspur, Eared Grebe, Chestnut-collared Longspur, Semipalmated Plover, Black Turnstone, and Horned Lark. And, in fact, there’s the Least Terns talked about above.
Picnics at Fiesta Island Park
Picnics are a enjoyable and pleasing expertise at Fiesta Island. I encourage you to plan and pack a meal once you go to. For instance, you possibly can have lunch seaside after spending the morning on the water.
Watching the Sunset at Fiesta Island Park
Though there are plenty of unimaginable locations to look at the sundown in San Diego, Fiesta Island is a hidden gem. You’ll have your alternative of vantage factors, from the tranquil seashores on the east to the vigorous seashores on the west. Some of my favourite sundown snaps have been from this unassuming island.
Fiesta Island Park Events
A preferred spot for tournaments and occasions, Fiesta Island Park hosts charity walks, bicycle races, marathons, and time trials.
The greatest occasion the island hosts is the annual Over-The-Line Tournament which brings in scores of gamers and spectators. Recently, “fun runs” have exploded on Fiesta Island with occasions just like the annual Resolution and Mermaid runs.
What to Know Before You Go
Fiesta Island Park is open every day between 4 a.m. – 10 p.m., and the Fiesta Island Dog Park is open 24 hours a day.
There are no public restrooms out there on the island but. However, transportable bogs could also be out there throughout particular occasions. Glass containers, possession and consumption of alcohol, and smoking are strictly prohibited, like in any respect San Diego parks.
Please use trash cans to eliminate undesirable waste. Large group gatherings require permits from the town and require transportable bogs to be supplied by the host. To study extra about how one can host an occasion and/or pay the allow charge, name 619-235-1169.
You are solely allowed to make use of the firepits supplied on the island, and they’re on a first-come, first-served foundation. No fires or transportable hearth containers are allowed straight on the sand.
Campsites and the Youth Camp Aquatic Center should not open to the general public. Camping outdoors of the Youth Center just isn’t permitted on the island.
The total island is canine and horse pleasant. You can carry your horses to the island, however you could choose up after them.
What are your favourite issues to do at Fiesta Island in San Diego?