I have spent several years living in the beautiful Inland Northwest. While a part of my heart will always be on the Palouse, there is something truly magical about the Oregon Coast. This 363-mile coastline is home to 79 state parks, 11 lighthouses, countless bridges, and the most charming small towns.

While I have explored the Oregon Coast in its entirety, my children have not. So, my husband and I bought a few plane tickets, rented a beach house, and planned a five-day visit to my favorite small coastal town in Oregon — Oceanside. It’s tiny, peaceful, and absolutely beautiful. Here are some of the best things to do in Oceanside, Oregon.

My name is Courtnie, and I write and edit for OnlyInYourState. From Southern Utah to the Panhandle in Idaho, I’ve lived in what I believe are the best (and the most beautiful!) areas in the country. I have traveled all over the United States, but the Pacific Northwest is easily one of my favorite places to explore.  Enough about me — welcome to OnlyInYourState’s Everyday Explorers.

Oceanside is one of those true hidden gems. In fact, not many people even know that this small town in Oregon exists. It is tucked away, approximately 10 miles west of Tillamook.

It is surrounded by rocks and near multiple state parks, and the beach here is quiet, beautiful, and perfect. To reach Oceanside, you will travel west of Tillamook on Highway 131 for approximately 10 miles. You will drive through the small town of Netarts and right into Oceanside.

The minute you arrive in Oceanside, you will realize this isn’t like other beach towns.

This charming town is home to less than 500 people and only a handful of businesses. The town is situated on a steep hill, so no matter where you stay, it is easy to capture an incredible ocean view.

As you drive into town, you’ll immediately come to Oceanside Beach Recreation Site.

This area provides parking and easy access to the sandy, beautiful beach that Oceanside boasts.

If you have spent any time on the Oregon Coast, you know one thing — the ocean is cold yet beautiful. While my family didn’t get into the water, we visited this beach area multiple times to build sandcastles, search for sand dollars, and watch a playful seal swim in and out of the waves.

When you visit the beach in Oceanside, Three Arch Rocks are located just offshore and immediately capture your attention.

They are stunning and provide a stunning backdrop for sunsets.

Three Arch Rocks is also a national wildlife refuge and a protected sanctuary for all types of seabirds and other wildlife.

During one of our visits to the beach, we decided to explore a little.

Rather than stay on the main beach, we walked through a man-made tunnel in a massive basalt cliff. This tunnel took us to a hidden beach in Oregon aptly named — Tunnel Beach. The tunnel is approximately 90 feet long and was built in the 1920s. Parts of the tunnel are made of concrete, but then you move into a more natural setting with rock walls and a rocky path. My children (my youngest is three years old), were able to navigate through the tunnel with ease, but flashlights were needed.

Tunnel Beach was certainly rockier than the beach in Oceanside, but it was peaceful and quiet. We were one of the few people on the entire beach, making for a private and relaxing experience.

When we weren’t at the beach, we were at one of the beautiful nearby attractions like Cape Meares State Scenic Viewpoint.

Located just three miles outside of town, this is a must-visit destination when in Oceanside and easily one of my favorite places we visited during our trip. Cape Meares State Scenic Viewpoint is one area where you can enjoy some of the most remarkable ocean views. It isn’t uncommon to see wildlife such as whales, sea lions, dolphins, and hundreds of seabirds from the overlooks.

While I loved the viewpoints, I may have loved the lighthouse just a little bit more.

You can hike to Cape Meares Lighthouse on a paved 0.2-mile path. This is the shortest lighthouse on the Oregon Coast, but it has quite a history as it was first lit on January 1, 1890. This lighthouse featured the first-order Fresnel lens, making it one of the most powerful lighthouses of its day. In fact, you could see the light more than 21 miles away.

As mentioned before, Tillamook is approximately 10 miles outside of Oceanside, and we spent an entire day exploring this Oregon town. Of course, we had to stop by the Tillamook Creamery.

Tillamook Creamery offers a self-guided tour that is not only free, but it gives you a look at the entire cheese-making process. You can even watch workers prepare and package cheese to ship around the country. During our visit, we enjoyed lunch featuring macaroni and cheese, cheesy pizzas, fried cheese curds (my favorite!), and ice cream cones.

Our afternoon in Tillamook was spent hiking to Munson Creek Falls. This impressive waterfall drops approximately 319 feet, making it one of the tallest waterfalls in the Coast Range.

And while the waterfall was certainly magical, the hike was just as picture-perfect. The hike to Munson Creek Falls is only 0.25 miles one way and quite easy. There are only a few inclines you must conquer, and you follow along the beautiful Munson Creek, which provides a soundtrack of trickling water and small waterfalls. Plus, we also came across a bunch of banana slugs, which my children thought were just as remarkable as the waterfall.

Approximately eight miles outside of Oceanside is Cape Lookout State Park, one park that we did not spend nearly enough time exploring.

This state park was one of my children’s favorite stops on our entire trip. This state park is actually located on a sand spit between Netarts Bay and the ocean. Here, there is a beautiful campground right on the shore and a popular day-use area. There are several hiking trails you can explore, but we simply spent our time walking up and down the beach, which was quiet and covered in sand dollars.

When visiting Oceanside, you must come prepared with food as there are not many eateries in town.

But each morning, I would walk to the Three Arch Inn, a beautiful self-service inn with the Current Café and Lounge on its main floor.

While the menu was very limited, the food portions were large and delicious. And while I would wait for my meal, I would sit at its outdoor tables and enjoy views of the ocean and town. The views and slower pace of the area certainly gave me the break I needed from real life.

And with all there is to do and see in Oceanside and the surrounding area, you certainly need a good base camp, and we stayed in one of the best — an oceanfront cottage.

This vacation rental gave us incredible views of the ocean, Three Arch Rocks, and wildlife in the ocean. It was perfection.

The Oceanside vacation rental comfortably sleeps up to eight guests, has two full bathrooms, and is fully stocked so we could enjoy our stay without extra packing. We can't wait to stay there again.

While we spent multiple days in Oceanside and the surrounding area, you could easily make this small town a one-day visit by spending time at the beach and nearby state parks.

But no matter how many days you choose to stay and explore, you are going to fall in love with the area. I certainly did.

For a glimpse into the wonder we saw on this trip, check out the footage we shared on our OnlyInYourState YouTube channel.

To discover more incredible adventures and experiences across America from our team of local travel experts, check out all of the articles in OnlyInYourState’s Everyday Explorers series. And, if you choose to stop by Oceanside on an Oregon Coast road trip (which I would highly recommend!), make sure you pack for the journey. Check out our ultimate road trip packing list with all of your adventure must-haves.