Cabrillo National Monument
In 1542, Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo climbed out of his boat and onto shore, becoming the first European to set foot on what is now the West Coast of the United States. Cabrillo National Monument not only tells the story of this 16th-century exploration but also houses a wealth of cultural and natural resources. Join us and embark on your own Voyage of Exploration.
About under an hour from San Diego by car.
Fees & passes
| Type | Cost | |
|---|---|---|
| Private VehicleAdmits one single, private, non-commercial vehicle and all its passengers. | $20 | |
| MotorcycleValid for 7 days. Admits up to 2 private, non-commercial motorcycles with up to 4 total passengers. | $15 | |
| Per PersonAdmits one individual when entering by foot or bicycle. Groups of up to 4 people walking in or on bicycles are capped at $20 total. Individuals 15 years old and younger are admitted free of charge. | $10 | |
| Non-commercial GroupsOrganized Non-Commercial Groups include church groups, college/school groups, scouts, service organizations, military, etc. Vehicles with a capacity of 16 or less are charged the $20.00 vehicle permit fee. Vehicles with 17 or more seats will instead be charged the $10 per person individual rate for any passengers that are not free. | $20 | |
| Commercial tours · by vehicle capacity | ||
| Sedan1 to 6 / ($30) | $30 | |
| Van7 to 25 / ($45) | $45 | |
| Mini-bus7 to 25 / ($45) | $45 | |
| Motor Coach26 or more / ($100) | $100 | |
Credit / Debit cards are preferred. We will be moving to a cashless park, but no timetable has been set yet. Passes are valid for 7 days from the date of purchase.
Hours
| Cabriilo National Monument | Daily · 9:00AM - 5:00PM |
Hours by date. Standard hours apply on every date not listed.
| Dates | Hours |
|---|---|
| Standard hoursNow | 9:00AM - 5:00PM |
| Nov 26, 2026Thanksgiving | Hours not published |
| Dec 25, 2026Christmas | Hours not published |
| May 31, 2027Memorial Day |
|
When to go
July draws the most visits here and October the fewest, averaged over 2021 to 2025.
Visitor centers
- Visitor Center and View BuildingPassport stamp
The Visitor Center at Cabrillo National Monument is the perfect place to get oriented to the park. Rangers and volunteers are always available to answer questions and provide suggestions on what to do.
Explore
Things to do
- Visit the Cabrillo Tidepools
Learn about visiting the tidepools at Cabrillo National Monument!
Opens on the Park Service site - Oceanside Trail45-60 Minutes
The Oceanside Trail significantly increases recreational opportunities by providing an entirely new trail that increases the park’s trail network by over 20% while also offering a car-free mode of access to the tidepool area.
Opens on the Park Service site - Earn Your Cabrillo Junior Ranger Badge30-90 Minutes
How to earn your Cabrillo National Monument Junior Ranger badge
Opens on the Park Service site - Bayside Trail1-2 Hours
Learn about what you can see and do while hiking the Bayside Trail at Cabrillo National Monument.
Opens on the Park Service site - Coastal Trail30-60 Minutes
Learn about hiking the Coastal Trail at Cabrillo National Monument!
Opens on the Park Service site - Whale Watching at Cabrillo
Learn about Whale Watching at Cabrillo National Monument!
Opens on the Park Service site
Films
National Park Service productions, public domain.
Events
- The Story of Cabrillo National Monument10/1610:00 AM · runs through Dec 28 · free
- Open Military Bunker10/1710:00 AM · runs through Dec 26 · free
- Guided Walking Tour of Cabrillo10/1711:00 AM · runs through Dec 19 · free
- Guided Bird Watching11/0609:30 AM · runs through Nov 5 · freeTidepool parking lot one of the coastal area.
- Open Tower Day11/1510:00 AM · free · registration required
- Park Open - New Year's Day01/01Cabrillo
Map
Interactive map by the National Park Service
Historic landmarks nearby
Public land nearby
Distances are approximate. Wilderness Atlas publishes a center point and an acreage for each area rather than a boundary, so each area is treated here as a circle of the same size and the figure is the gap to that circle.
Guidebooks for California's national parks
We earn a small commission if you buy through these links. It does not change what we list.
Titles come from Open Library's catalog, matched by subject.
Reference
Wildlife
Seen this monthBrown Pelican 96× · California Sea Lion 74× · Eastern Fox Squirrel 49× · Osprey 45× · Belted Kingfisher 26× · Harbor Seal 21× · Great Horned Owl 16× · Coyote 13×Research-grade observations within 25 km, last 30 days, via iNaturalist
Full checklist: 367 birds, 30 mammalsHide
Raptors & owlsAmerican Kestrel · Bald Eagle · Barn Owl · Broad-winged Hawk · Burrowing Owl · Cooper's Hawk · Ferruginous Hawk · Flammulated Owl · Golden Eagle · Great Horned Owl · Long-eared Owl · Merlin · Mississippi Kite · Northern Harrier · Osprey · Peregrine Falcon · Prairie Falcon · Red-shouldered Hawk · Red-tailed Hawk · Sharp-shinned Hawk · Short-eared Owl · Swainson's Hawk · Turkey Vulture · White-tailed Kite · Zone-tailed Hawk
Waterfowl & wadersAmerican Coot · American White Pelican · Black Rail · Black-crowned Night-Heron · Blue-winged Teal · Brandt's Cormorant · Brown Pelican · Bufflehead · Canada Goose · Cattle Egret · Cinnamon Teal · Clark's Grebe · Common Goldeneye · Common Loon · Common Merganser · Double-crested Cormorant · Eared Grebe · Great Blue Heron · Great Egret · Greater Scaup · Greater White-fronted Goose · Green Heron · Green-winged Teal · Horned Grebe · Lesser Scaup · Long-tailed Duck · Northern Pintail · Pacific Loon · Pelagic Cormorant · Pied-billed Grebe · Red-breasted Merganser · Red-throated Loon · Ruddy Duck · Snow Goose · Snowy Egret · Western Grebe · White Ibis · White-faced Ibis
Shorebirds & seabirdsAmerican Avocet · American Oystercatcher · Ashy Storm-Petrel · Black Oystercatcher · Black Skimmer · Black Storm-Petrel · Black Tern · Black Turnstone · Black-bellied Plover · Black-vented Shearwater · Blue-footed Booby · Bonaparte's Gull · Brown Booby · Buller's Shearwater · California Gull · California Least Tern · Caspian Tern · Common Murre · Common Tern · Dunlin · Elegant Tern · Fork-tailed Storm-Petrel · Forster's Tern · Glaucous Gull · Glaucous-winged Gull · Greater Yellowlegs · Heermann's Gull · Herring Gull · Killdeer · Laughing Gull · Leach's Storm-petrel · Least Sandpiper · Least Storm-Petrel · Lesser Golden-plover · Long-billed Curlew · Long-billed Dowitcher · Magnificent Frigatebird · Marbled Godwit · Mew Gull · Parasitic Jaeger · Pink-footed Shearwater · Pomarine Jaeger · Red Phalarope · Red-necked Phalarope · Rhinoceros Auklet · Ring-billed Gull · Royal Tern · Ruddy Turnstone · Sabine's Gull · Sanderling · Semipalmated Plover · Short-billed Dowitcher · Short-tailed Shearwater · Snowy Plover · Solitary Sandpiper · Sooty Shearwater · Spotted Sandpiper · Thayer's Gull · Western Gull · Western Sandpiper · Willet
Gamebirds & dovesBand-tailed Pigeon · California Quail · Common Ground Dove · Mourning Dove · Rock Dove · Spotted Dove · White-winged Dove
WoodpeckersAcorn Woodpecker · Downy Woodpecker · Hairy Woodpecker · Lewis' Woodpecker · Northern Flicker · Nuttall's Woodpecker · Red-breasted Sapsucker · Red-naped Sapsucker · Williamson's Sapsucker · Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
Hummingbirds & swiftsAllen's Hummingbird · Anna's Hummingbird · Black Swift · Black-chinned Hummingbird · Broad-tailed Hummingbird · Calliope Hummingbird · Chimney Swift · Costa's Hummingbird · Rufous Hummingbird · Vaux's Swift · White-throated Swift
Also on the checklistAmerican Crow · American Goldfinch · American Pipit · American Redstart · American Robin · American Tree Sparrow · Ancient Murrelet · Ash-throated Flycatcher · Baird's Sparrow · Baltimore Oriole · Bank Swallow · Barn Swallow · Bay-breasted Warbler · Bell's Vireo · Belted Kingfisher · Bendire's Thrasher · Bewick's Wren · Black Phoebe · Black Scoter · Black-and-white Warbler · Black-chinned Sparrow · Black-headed Grosbeak · Black-legged Kittiwake · Black-necked Stilt · Black-throated Blue Warbler · Black-throated Gray Warbler · Black-throated Green Warbler · Black-throated Sparrow · Blackburnian Warbler · Blackpoll Warbler · Blue Grosbeak · Blue-gray Gnatcatcher · Blue-winged Warbler · Bobolink · Brant · Brewer's Blackbird · Brewer's Sparrow · Brown Creeper · Brown Thrasher · Brown-headed Cowbird · Bullock's Oriole · Bushtit · Cactus Wren · California Gnatcatcher · California Thrasher · California Towhee · Canada Warbler · Cape May Warbler · Cassin's Finch · Cassin's Kingbird · Cassin's Vireo · Cedar Waxwing · Cerulean Warbler · Chestnut-collared Longspur · Chestnut-sided Warbler · Chipping Sparrow · Clark's Nutcracker · Clay-colored Sparrow · Cliff Swallow · Common Grackle · Common Poorwill · Common Raven · Common Yellowthroat · Connecticut Warbler · Craveri's Murrelet · Dark-eyed Junco · Dickcissel · Dusky Flycatcher · Eastern Kingbird · Eastern Phoebe · Eastern Wood-pewee · European Starling · Evening Grosbeak · Fox Sparrow · Golden-crowned Kinglet · Golden-crowned Sparrow · Grace's Warbler · Grasshopper Sparrow · Gray Catbird · Gray Flycatcher · Gray-cheeked Thrush · Great Crested Flycatcher · Greater Pewee · Green-tailed Towhee · Hammond's Flycatcher · Harris' Sparrow · Hepatic Tanager · Hermit Thrush · Hermit Warbler · Hooded Oriole · Hooded Warbler · Horned Lark · House Finch · House Sparrow · House Wren · Hutton's Vireo · Indigo Bunting · Kentucky Warbler · Lapland Longspur · Lark Bunting · Lark Sparrow · Lawrence's Goldfinch · Lazuli Bunting · Least Flycatcher · Lesser Goldfinch · Lesser Nighthawk · Lincoln's Sparrow · Little Bunting · Loggerhead Shrike · Lucy's Warbler · Macgillivray's Warbler · Magnolia Warbler · Mallard · Marsh Wren · Mountain Bluebird · Mountain Chickadee · Mourning Warbler · Nashville Warbler · Northern Fulmar · Northern Mockingbird · Northern Parula · Northern Rough-winged Swallow · Northern Shoveler · Northern Waterthrush · Olive-sided Flycatcher · Orange-crowned Warbler · Orchard Oriole · Ovenbird · Pacific-slope Flycatcher · Painted Bunting · Painted Redstart · Palm Warbler · Phainopepla · Philadelphia Vireo · Pine Siskin · Pine Warbler · Plain Titmouse · Plumbeous Vireo · Prairie Warbler · Prothonotary Warbler · Purple Finch · Purple Gallinule · Purple Martin · Pygmy Nuthatch · Red Crossbill · Red Knot · Red-breasted Nuthatch · Red-eyed Vireo · Red-faced Warbler · Red-throated Pipit · Red-winged Blackbird · Rock Wren · Rose-breasted Grosbeak · Ruby-crowned Kinglet · Rufous-crowned Sparrow · Rusty Blackbird · Sage Sparrow · Sage Thrasher · Savannah Sparrow · Say's Phoebe · Scarlet Tanager · Scissor-tailed Flycatcher · Scott's Oriole · Song Sparrow · Sora · Spotted Towhee · Steller's Jay · Sulphur-bellied Flycatcher · Summer Tanger · Surf Scoter · Surfbird · Swainson's Thrush · Swamp Sparrow · Tennessee Warbler · Thick-billed Kingbird · Townsend's Solitaire · Townsend's Warbler · Tree Swallow · Tricolored Blackbird · Tropical Kingbird · Varied Thrush · Vermilion Flycatcher · Vesper Sparrow · Violet-green Swallow · Virginia's Warbler · Wandering Tattler · Warbling Vireo · Water Pipit · Western Bluebird · Western Kingbird · Western Meadowlark · Western Scrub Jay · Western Tanager · Western Wood-Pewee · Whimbrel · Whip-poor-will · White-breasted Nuthatch · White-crowned Sparrow · White-eyed Vireo · White-throated Sparrow · White-winged Scoter · Willow Flycatcher · Wilson's Warbler · Winter Wren · Wood Thrush · Worm-eating Warbler · Wrentit · Xantus's Murrelet · Yellow Warbler · Yellow-breasted Chat · Yellow-green Vireo · Yellow-headed Blackbird · Yellow-rumped Warbler · Yellow-throated Vireo · Yellow-throated Warbler
Small mammalsCactus Mouse · California Ground Squirrel · California Mouse · California Vole · Deer Mouse · Desert Cottontail · Desert Shrew · Dusky-footed Woodrat · House Mouse · San Diego Desert Woodrat · San Diego Pocket Mouse · Western Harvest Mouse
Marine mammalsCalifornia Sea Lion · Gray Whale · Harbor Seal
PredatorsCoyote · Gray Fox · Raccoon · Striped Skunk
BatsBig Brown Bat · Big Free-tailed Bat · California Myotis · Hoary Bat · Mexican Free-tailed Bat · Pocketed Free-tailed Bat · Western Mastiff Bat · Western Pipistrelle · Western Red Bat · Yellow Bat
Also on the checklistVirginia Opossum
Activities
Activity guides for this park Birdwatching in the national parks · Hiking in the national parks · Wildlife watching in the national parks
All 13 activitiesHide
Weather & climate
Check the current weather from the National Weather Service at https://www.weather.gov/. San Diego's climate is characterized by warm, dry summers and mild winters, with most of the annual precipitation falling between December and March. The city has a mild climate year-round, with an average of 201 days above 70 °F (21 °C) and low rainfall (9–13 inches [230–330 mm] annually).
Questions people ask
How much does it cost to enter Cabrillo?
Entrance is $20 per private vehicle, $15 per motorcycle, and $10 per person on foot or bike. Admits one single, private, non-commercial vehicle and all its passengers.
Source: National Park Service
Which passes work at Cabrillo?
The $80 America the Beautiful pass covers the entrance fee here.
Source: Is the pass worth it
Can I pay the entrance fee in cash?
No. Cabrillo takes cards only at the entrance.
Source: National Park Service
When is entrance to Cabrillo free?
Next on October 27, Theodore Roosevelt's birthday. 2 fee-free days are left this year, for US residents only.
Source: Free entrance days
Do I need a reservation to enter Cabrillo?
No. There is no timed-entry or entrance reservation at Cabrillo. Camping and some tours have their own reservations.
Source: National Park Service
What are the hours at Cabrillo?
Standard hours are 9:00AM - 5:00PM, every day. Dated exceptions are listed under Hours.
Source: National Park Service
How busy is Cabrillo?
769,336 recreation visits in 2025, number 85 of 387 units that report visitation.
Source: Most visited parks
Is there cell service at Cabrillo?
At the park's reference point, FCC coverage maps show Verizon 5G, AT&T 4G LTE, and T-Mobile 5G. Coverage inside the park varies by location.
Source: FCC Broadband Map
When was Cabrillo established?
1913.
Source: Wikipedia
What is the weather like at Cabrillo?
Check the current weather from the National Weather Service at https://www.weather.gov/. San Diego's climate is characterized by warm, dry summers and mild winters, with most of the annual precipitation falling between December and March.
Source: Weather & climate
Follow this park
- Alerts feed (RSS)
- Every active Park Service alert for this unit, one item each, rebuilt with the nightly data refresh.
- Add dates to your calendar (.ics file)
- Fee-free entrance days that apply here and each published hours exception, as all-day events.
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