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Voykit pocket guide · United States
Half Moon Bay
Give it one full day and one night: a coastal drive plus the bluff trail, or skip it if you want warm beaches — summer fog keeps highs near 18°C.
Half Moon Bay is a small coastal town on the San Mateo County coast, about 45 km south of San Francisco on Highway 1. It is a cool, foggy stretch of state beaches, a working harbour at Pillar Point and a walkable Main Street. Most visitors come for one day from the city or stay one or two nights; the coast is a driving destination, not a transit one.
- Country
- United States
- Best months
- Sep–Oct (clearest, warmest); May–Jun for wildflowers
- Avoid
- Jul–Aug if you want sun (fog); Oct festival weekend for cheap rooms
- Stay
- 1–2 nights
Checked 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change; anything marked (check) is not confirmed.
Essentials
- Currency
- USD
- Money
- Currency is the US dollar (USD, $). Cards and phone payments work almost everywhere; carry a little cash for tips and small vendors.
- Daily spend
- Budget $70–110 excl. bed · Mid $120–200 excl. bed · High $250+ excl. bed (estimate; check)
- SIM and data
- AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile cover the country; prepaid SIMs at their stores and Walmart/Target (passport required), or an eSIM before you fly.
- Emergency
- Police, fire, ambulance 911 · San Mateo County Sheriff (non-emergency) 650-363-4911 · Half Moon Bay Police (non-emergency) 650-726-8286
- Plugs
- Types A, B · 120 V · 60 Hz · Chargers are dual-voltage; hair dryers and straighteners from 230 V countries need a converter.
- Tipping
- Sit-down restaurant: 18–22% of the pre-tax bill.; Bar: US$1–2 per drink or 20% of the tab.; Taxi / ride-hailing: 15–20%, in the app.; Hotel housekeeping: US$3–5 a night.; Porter / valet: US$2–5 per bag or car.; Tour guide: US$10–20 per person for a day tour.; Counter service / tablet prompts: Optional; 0–15%.
- Water
- Tap water is drinkable nearly everywhere; boil or treat water from streams in parks.
- Toilets
- Free public toilets are scarce in big cities; use cafés, department stores, libraries, stations. Rest areas on highways are free.
What things cost
| Item | Price |
|---|---|
| Coffee | $4–7 |
| Seafood lunch main (chowder house or harbour) | $18–35 |
| Lobster roll | $30+ |
| Pint of local beer | $8–10 |
| State beach day-use parking | $10 |
| Rideshare, downtown to Pillar Point Harbor | $15–25 |
| eSIM or data SIM, about a week | $10–30 |
Desk estimates, checked 2026-09; check locally.
Get in
By air
- SFO · San Francisco International
- About 30–45 min by car via I-280 and Highway 92; no direct rail link
- SJC · San José Mineta International
- About 1 h by car; usually a worse choice than SFO for this coast
- OAK · Oakland International
- About 1 h by car via the Bay Bridge and I-280
Typical fares
- SFO → Half Moon Bay, rideshare
- $60–90, about 35 min
- SamTrans 294, Hillsdale Caltrain → Half Moon Bay
- about $2.50 Clipper, 45–60 min
- State beach day-use parking
- $10 per car
Get around
A car is the practical choice: Highway 1 runs the length of the coast and Highway 92 is the only fast link over the hills to I-280 and US-101. SamTrans route 294 connects Hillsdale Caltrain to Half Moon Bay, and routes 110/117 run up from Pacifica, but service is infrequent and slow. In town, Main Street and the beach trail are walkable; taxis and rideshare are thin, so book ahead for late nights.
See and do
Known for
- Mavericks surf break
- Pillar Point Harbor
- Waterfront Coastside Trail
- Art & Pumpkin Festival
- Foggy summer beaches
Day trips
| Where | How | Time |
|---|---|---|
| San Francisco | Car via Highway 1 and I-280, about 45 min off-peak | About 1 h |
| Pescadero | Car south on Highway 1, about 20 min | About 30 min |
| Moss Beach and Montara | Car north on Highway 1, about 15 min | About 20 min |
| Santa Cruz | Car south on Highway 1, about 50 min | About 1 h |
Sleep
- Main Street / downtown
- Walkable to shops and cafés; 5–10 min drive to Francis State Beach. Best for a car-free evening.
- Pillar Point Harbor / Princeton
- Harbour views, seafood and the coastal trail; 10 min north of downtown by car.
- Highway 1 south (Miramar, El Granada)
- Motels and inns along the coast road; quieter, still a short drive to town.
- North coast (Montara, Moss Beach)
- Cheaper beds and a lighthouse hostel; 10–15 min north, needs a car.
Phrase card
| English | Say or show |
|---|---|
| Thank you | Thank you |
| Where is the beach access? | Where is the beach access? |
| Can I pay by card? | Can I pay by card? |
| Is there parking here? | Is there parking here? |
| The check, please | The check, please |
Etiquette, safety and scams
Etiquette
- Greeting: Handshake and 'hi, how are you?' — reply 'good, thanks'; avoid: Treating the question as a real health enquiry
- Restaurants: Tip 18–22% and wait for the check; avoid: Leaving without tipping
- Personal space: Keep an arm's length in queues; avoid: Standing close to strangers
- Politics and religion: Listen more than you speak; avoid: Opening with hot-button topics
- Smoking: Smoke only in marked areas; avoid: Smoking near doors or in parks where banned
Scams and watch-outs
- Summer fog: pack a jacket even in July and August; beach temperatures stay near 18°C.
- Mavericks and the outer reefs are for experts only — do not swim there; never swim alone and watch for rising tides.
- Check for ticks after walking through coastal grass; Lyme disease is present in the Bay Area.
- Highway 92 backs up badly on Sunday afternoons and holiday weekends heading back to the Bay Area.
- Pumpkin Festival weekend in October fills every room and closes Main Street — book months ahead or avoid it.
Low street crime; the real risks are cold water, rip currents and fog on Highway 1. Do not swim at Mavericks or alone anywhere, lock the car at trailheads, and carry a layer.
One and two days
No timed day plan for Half Moon Bay yet. Suggested stay: 1–2 nights. Build a day from the list below, mornings for the big sight.
- Mavericks surf break
- Pillar Point Harbor
- Waterfront Coastside Trail
- Art & Pumpkin Festival
- Foggy summer beaches
Sources
Written by Voykit; facts cross-checked against these sources, last desk check 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change: check on the day.
- Wikivoyage: Half Moon Bay, revision 5262345 (CC BY-SA 4.0): en.wikivoyage.org/w/index.php?oldid=5262345
Pocket card
Cut along the border and keep it in your wallet. Show the local-script lines to a driver.
Half Moon Bay
To this address, please
To this address, please
My hotel (write the name and address in the local script)
- Police, fire, ambulance911
- San Mateo County Sheriff (non-emergency)650-363-4911
- Half Moon Bay Police (non-emergency)650-726-8286
No embassies here; consulates-general are in San Francisco (about 45 min north).
Tipping: 18–22% at sit-down restaurants, $1–2 a drink, 15–20% taxis.
Voykit · checked 2026-09
Printed from Voykit (/half-moon-bay). Written by Voykit; checked 2026-09. Estimates only: confirm prices, hours and entry rules on the day.