Seaside Promenade and Turnaround

Seaside has drawn beachgoers since the Victorian era, and its earliest oceanfront walk was a wooden boardwalk with a pier reaching out over the surf. The ocean was hard on it, battering the timbers and eventually claiming the pier, which finally gave way to the waves in 1914, right where the Turnaround stands today.

In the early 1920s the town replaced the failing boardwalk with the concrete promenade that endures now, finishing the Prom in 1921. More than a century later it is still doing its job, a durable, gently curving ribbon of pavement along the dunes that has become one of Oregon's most recognizable coastal landmarks and the stage for the town's whole summer life.

The Turnaround sits at the foot of Broadway, where the town's main street runs straight to the sea and cars once needed a place to circle back. Today it is a gathering spot as much as a road feature, a place to meet friends, take a photo, and watch the beach, framed by the wide Pacific and the headlands beyond.

At its center stands the statue of Meriwether Lewis and William Clark, commemorating the end of the Oregon Trail and of the explorers' long westward journey. The choice of spot is no accident. During the expedition's wet winter on the coast, three of their men, the salt makers, set up an operation a short walk from here to boil seawater down into the salt the party needed to preserve meat for the return east. Their reconstructed salt cairn still stands a block off the Prom, open to view, tying this cheerful beach town to a pivotal moment of American exploration.

The pleasure of the Prom is its ease. It is flat, paved, and free, welcoming to walkers, runners, cyclists, skaters, and wheelchairs alike, and it runs a full mile and a half along the beachfront so you can go as far as you like and turn back whenever. On one side the wide, gently sloping beach spreads to the surf, with Tillamook Head rising to the south, and on the other the beach cottages and hotels give way, near the center, to the arcades and shops of downtown.

Time your walk for sunset and the whole Pacific sky puts on a show; come in the morning and you may have the boardwalk nearly to yourself. Where the Prom meets Broadway, the town's old-fashioned seaside fun spills out, so it is easy to fold the walk into a full day of beach, browsing, and people-watching in a town built for exactly that.

The Prom runs the length of Seaside's beachfront, with the Turnaround at the foot of Broadway right in the center of town. It is open at all hours and free to enjoy, though parking near the Turnaround fills fast on summer weekends, so it is often easiest to park a little farther out and walk in along the boardwalk.

Bring a windbreaker even on bright days, since the coast can turn cool and breezy in a hurry, and give yourself time to detour a block off the Prom to the reconstructed Lewis and Clark salt cairn. Just to the north lies the quieter beach village of Gearhart, and a short drive south brings the iconic Haystack Rock at Cannon Beach, so the Prom makes a perfect anchor for exploring the whole of Oregon's north coast.

The closest Boutel™ stays, so you can turn this stop into an overnight. Each is a place we chose through independent editorial review, never a paid placement.

The Prom, as locals call it, is a paved oceanfront walkway running about a mile and a half along the beachfront in Seaside. First built as a boardwalk in the early 1900s and rebuilt in concrete in the 1920s, it is one of the coast's most iconic strolls, lined with beach houses and offering wide views of the Pacific, the dunes, and rainforest-covered Tillamook Head. It is made for walking, jogging, biking, and people-watching.

The Turnaround is the famous traffic circle where Seaside's main street, Broadway, dead-ends at the beach, marking the center point of the Prom. In its middle stands a statue of Lewis and Clark, commemorating the expedition's time on this coast, and it is often called the most photographed spot in town. It marks the symbolic end of the Lewis and Clark Trail and is a natural meeting and photo point for visitors.

The statue honors the Corps of Discovery, who wintered nearby in the early 1800s and sent a crew to this stretch of coast to boil seawater into salt for preserving food on the long journey home. That salt-making camp is remembered a short distance south at the Salt Works site. The Turnaround statue makes Seaside a fitting endpoint marker for the great westward expedition.

The Prom is a pleasure year-round, but summer brings the liveliest, most festive atmosphere, full of families and vacationers. Sunset is a local favorite, especially from the north end, where the light over the ocean and Tillamook Head is spectacular. Mornings are quieter for a peaceful jog or walk, and the paved, level path makes it easy and accessible in almost any season, though a wind layer helps.

Plenty. The Turnaround connects to Broadway's shops, arcades, and eateries just a block away, the wide sandy beach right below has outdoor showers to rinse off, and the level path is perfect for a family bike ride or a stroll. Watch for the historic markers along the way, take in the ocean views, and time an evening walk for one of the coast's memorable sunsets.