I's in further development of their lifeguard skills. Three quarters of a mile of the beach is designated as guarded swim area. The Imperial Beach designated guarded swimming area is within Palm Avenue to the north and Imperial Beach Boulevard to the south. The beach in Imperial Beach is easily accessible from virtually any of the street ends along its length. Permanent lifeguard towers are located at Palm Avenue Main Lifeguard Headquarters and the Pier Tower Lifeguard Dispatch.
Imperial Beach is an excellent swimming and surfing beach.
The municipal pier located at Evergreen Avenue is a popular tourist and fishing attraction. In the summer, Imperial Beach can become very crowded, especially around the pier area. Surf rescues are caused mainly by rip currents , inshore holes, and large surf. Due to its open ocean geography, rough water conditions can occur when any swell from any direction hits. In the summer when south swells hit the results are strong lateral currents from south to north along with large, hard breaking surf, and many rip currents.