thanks, which beach would be the most fun for teens? We live on the East coast and do many beach vacations--so going to the beach is more about the "cool factor" of seeing a CA beach.
Our ocean water is very cold compared to the east coast.
Here's a few descriptions on some of our beaches.
Oceanside: has a pier with a Rubys Dinner at the end, people fish off the pier. There's also a nice harbor where you can rent kayaks, different types of boats, etc and plenty of places to get some food.
Coronado: a significant drive from Welk, but has the historic Hotel Del Coronado, which a fun to visit and hang out at. The beach there was rated number one in the country, but I don't remember by which organization.
La Jolla: La Jolla shores is a very popular beach and you can walk to the tide pools from there. Going down south in La Jolla, you have the Cove, which is a protected underwater park, nice for snorkeling, but the waves can thrash you around and the seals at the Children's pool. There is a gift shop next to the Cove that has an underground staircase that you can walk down to get inside of of the ocean caves. It can be fun or gross, depending on how many birds are in there.
Cardiff by the sea: Nice beach with places to eat and enjoy sunset dining. I eat at Ki's, which is extremely casual and they use organic/local produce when available. They have stuff for vegetarians and gluten free diners, in addition to the regular meat and seafood stuff you find everywhere near the beach.
Mission Beach: Has a wooden roller coaster and some other stuff. The beach tends to have a rowdier type crowd. It's always very busy and there are lots of very colorful personalities walking around.