Neighborhood Overview
Victoria Beach is anchored by one of the most distinctive landmarks on the California coast: La Tour, popularly known as the Pirate Tower — a 60-foot concrete tower with a spiral wooden staircase built in 1926 by California State Senator William Edward Brown as a private passage from his clifftop Norman-style estate to the beach below. The tower sits directly on the sand and has been photographed millions of times, making Victoria Beach one of the most recognizable beach settings in the state. The tower is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Beyond the landmark, Victoria Beach is exceptional on its own terms: wide, sandy, relatively uncrowded compared to Main Beach, with excellent surfing, dramatic rock formations, and crystal-clear water. Prices range from $2.5 million for hillside homes set back from the coast to over $28 million for direct oceanfront bluff properties. Residential streets are narrow and parking is a persistent challenge — a trade-off that residents accept for the extraordinary coastal setting. The beach itself is publicly accessible during daylight hours despite being frequently described as 'private.'
