Parking in Avila Beach can sometimes be challenging in the summer months. There is some beach front parking but that usually fills up first thing in the morning. Your next parking option is the parking lot. It sits in the center of town and is controlled by the Port San Luis Harbor District. It's currently the only place in Avila that charges for parking. Parking rates are $6.00 for all day. It is closed from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. If that is full or you still want free parking the long stretch of main road that runs through Avila is all free. Just keep in mind that its a few minutes walk to the beach so if you have a lot of stuff you might drop it off with one of you party members first. If you don't want to drive or deal with parking on the weekends, the Avila Free Trolley runs every weekend duing the busy season from Avila Beach to Pismo Beach.
If you continue down Avila Beach drive about 1.5 miles past Avila Beach, you will dead-end into Port San Luis Harbor and a parking lot. You can park during the day all along Avila Beach Dr, the port parking lot or in the few spots at the very end of the Harford Pier. All parking in the Port is currently free.
All parking in the Port San Luis Harbor and the Avila Beach parking lot is run by the Port San Luis Harbor district. You should check out their vehicle restrictions and parking regulations.
