Gaspar de Portolá, governor of Baja California, visited the area in 1769 during the Portolá expedition[6] and met residents from the nearby Kumeyaay village of Jeyal[7] (or Heyal), near the San Elijo Lagoon.

[8] Portolá named the valley Los Encinos for the oak forest along El Camino Real, where there was also a village that was likely known as Hakutl in New Encinitas.

In the north of the city, the coast rises in elevation and the land is raised up in the form of many coastal bluffs, which are subject to collapsing on the narrow beach.

Old Encinitas is a small beachside area featuring a mix of businesses and housing styles.

Sitting along Coast Highway 101 (Historic US 101), the Encinitas welcome arch, the famous surf break Swamis, and the early 20th-century La Paloma Theatre are located here.

Olivenhain is a semi-rural region in eastern Encinitas, composed of mostly single-family homes, a 4-H Club, and several private equestrian facilities.

German immigrants established the Olivenhain Colony in the late 19th century under the Homestead Act of 1862.

Leucadia is a coastal community of the city, featuring tree-lined streets and boulevards, art galleries, unusual stores, and restaurants, along with single-family homes and beaches such as Beacons and Grandview.

Cardiff-by-the-Sea is the southernmost oceanfront community, which features streets named after British cities and classical composers, the Lux Art Institute, and the San Elijo Campus of Mira Costa College.

Average daytime temperatures hit 65 °F in winter and spring, when rain and marine layer (fog, known locally as May Gray/June Gloom) are common.

The dry season lasts from summer through fall, with average daytime temperatures ranging from 75 to 85 °F, and nighttime lows being from the upper 50s–60s°F.

[citation needed] In 2011, Mark Patterson and Robert Nichols illegally installed a 10 by 10 feet (3 m × 3 m) mosaic of a surfing Virgin de Guadalupe on the north concrete support wall of the train bridge on Encinitas Boulevard, leading to a battle over whether it should be removed or preserved.

Other points of interest include San Diego Botanic Garden, Self-Realization Fellowship temple and Hermitage, the historic La Paloma Theatre, Moonlight Beach, and one of California's classic downtown areas along historic Coast Highway 101.

Surfing is a popular activity in Encinitas, particularly at Swami's, which is rated in the top five surf locations in the world and is mentioned in a verse of The Beach Boys' song "Surfin' U.S.A." The bronze statue Humanity by Maidy Morhous was installed at J Street Overview in 2018 as a donation from Sue and Jay Vicory.

Magic Carpet Ride, affectionately known by Encinitas locals as the Cardiff Kook, is a 16-foot (4.9 m) bronze statue located in Cardiff-by-the-Sea.

At various times during the year, the Kook is "vandalized" and dressed up (wearing a lucha libre mask, being eaten by a papier-mâché shark, wearing a full Uncle Sam costume for Independence Day, used by local high school students to ask each other to school dances, etc.

Downtown Encinitas is vibrant and full of thriving local salons, restaurants, shops, bars, and art galleries.

In elections held in November 2012, Encinitas voted yes on ballot measures to allow them to directly elect its mayor, with term lengths of two years, rather than the mayor being chosen by members of the city council for one-year terms.

The city has been repeatedly sued over policies that are allegedly aimed at undermining state affordable housing laws.