As a young teenager, I lived on South Pacific St. in Oceanside, and dreamed of living in one of the Saint Malo Beach Homes a few doors down.

Nestled along the banks of the blue Pacific Ocean and the fresh water Buena Vista Lagoon, is this exclusive beach community St. Malo Beach.
Storybook Fairytale Cottages or Chalet’s with the shingled roofs and the animal shaped weather vanes, it was a beacon of Europe having emigrated as a teen.

Saint Malo Beach in Oceanside was inspired by the French Island City Saint -Malo in the Brittany region of North-West France. Saint Malo was named for Maclou, or Malo, a Welsh Monk and the architecture is in the French Normandy Style.

Build in 1928 on 28 acres by Kenyon Keith, it was the first private beach community in San Diego.

Residents were invite only and if a property sold it was usually to family and friends. Most of the owner’s at the time were from Pasadena. 

Notable persons whom have owned homes or stayed here, are Julia Child’s parents, Ben Hecht the author of “ Scarface”, Harpo Marx, Al Capone, Princess Anne and Prince Andrew and the Kennedy’s vacationed here in the sixties.

Amenities in this prestigious and exclusive community are 5 tennis courts, a volleyball court and a sandy private beach with a clubhouse. The beach in front of St. Malo is public.

Aerial photo by Aerial9 Media- aerial9.com