Location: Starting at Main St. and Pacific Coast Hwy, across from the pier

Parking: Metered parking on Main St. and on PCH, along with parking structures (paid) in the general shopping area (e.g., Walnut Ave. between Main and 1st St.).

Being in Southern California, we can take advantage of the beach—but not everyone thinks of shopping at beachfront shops. That’s part of what makes it so fun, and some shopping areas at the beach really have an ambience—to me, the Main St. shopping area is one of those places. Surf/beach-related stores, fashion and H.B. memorabilia can all be found in these Huntington Beach stores, so it’s a lot of fun for browsing and gift-shopping. Some notable shops there are listed below.

Since it’s right across from the Huntington Beach Pier, this shopping area is easy to find; the tough part is parking. I prefer to take PCH to 1st or 2nd street, turn left onto Walnut Ave. and park in the structure. Like most parking structures, it’s an hourly rate.

Opposite the clock tower on the corner is a statue memorializing Duke Kohanamoku, a huge name in the surfing world.

Notable Shops

It’s not only surf and sport–but style–at the Main St. shops.

Heavenly Couture: If you’re looking for fashion on a budget, you’ll probably take notice of the sign in the window stating “Yes! Everything really is $15 or less!”

Beach Islands: Residents and tourists alike will be in awe of the amount of Huntington Beach items in this shop–from mugs, to bags, to hats, to clothing, to artwork and beyond. This is basically a repository for anything H.B.-related that you might be looking for.

Harley, Billabong, Jack’s Surfboards: Casual/sports-type attire can found in this shopping area—it is Surf City, after all!

Fun windmills and kites are for sale at a shop right across the street and in the middle of the pier.

These are just a few of the shops I found noteworthy—there are other great clothes, souvenir shops and more, including outside vendors selling cute things like seashells.

If you’re interested in taking beach time to do a little shopping, there is fashion, fun and unique restaurants among these Huntington Beach stores (one restaurant, the Sugar Shack, was featured on an episode of California’s Gold with Huell Howser). This is a casual beachside environment with a surf-area feel that I find fun for just strolling around.