Netarts is located just north of Cape Lookout State Park, a favorite hiking and camping destination for Oregon Coast connoisseurs. The park includes the long, sandy Netarts Spit that stretches north of the cape itself, protecting the ecologically rich bay from the crashing waves of the Pacific. Beachcombers consider it a prime location for collecting glass floats and unusual shells. Cape Lookout is part of the Three Capes Scenic Route, a popular driving tour of panoramic ocean views, historic lighthouses, and rural dairy farms.

In addition to fishing, crabbing, and clamming, the surrounding area offers plenty of opportunities to enjoy the great outdoors. Along the beach, visitors enjoy kite-flying, sandcastle-building, surfing, kayaking, and beach combing; further inland, some truly excellent hikes can be reached within a half an hour. Make sure to visit the highest waterfall in the Coast Range, at Munson Creek Falls State Park.

Of course, catching your own dinner is the best way to experience the rich bounty of Netarts Bay; but for the less adventurous, local institution The Schooner offers a more hands-off way to enjoy fresh oysters, clams, and crab. Additional dining options, such as the highly-regarded Roseanna's Cafe, are only two miles up the beach in Oceanside, or Tillamook's numerous choices are only a fifteen minute drive away.

Netarts is optimally located, with all of the region's most popular destinations easily reached within an hour and a half: Astoria, Seaside, and Cannon Beach to the north; Pacific City, Lincoln City, and Depoe Bay to the south. Portland itself is also only an hour and a half from little Netarts. To explore the best of the Northern Oregon Coast while returning home each night to a peaceful little fishing village, Netarts is an unexpectedly delightful option.