Santa Monica is a lovely place to visit right on the California coast. It’s a top destination for those in LA to head out and enjoy a laid back afternoon of shopping, eating and seeing the sea. It’s full of familiar landmarks, most notably the Santa Monica pier which is packed with rides, food stalls and fisherman. The beaches here a beautiful and there are plenty of walkways along the seafront to enjoy. Pictured below is part of the Palisades Park which offers a wealth of greenery from which to see the sea. We enjoyed just strolling along the pathways here. A really exciting way to see the sights of Santa Monica and Venice Beach is on the regular Segway Tours.
The shopping and eating experience is centred around a small central area and is easy to walk around. The centre piece is Santa Monica Place, a purpose built shopping complex. Here you’ll find big name brands and smaller boutiques along with all kinds of restaurants to suit every culinary taste! It’s a great place to be day or night and has a fantastic atmosphere.
Staying in Santa Monica is our “Top Tip” for your trip to Los Angeles. This is because the sights of LA are all spread out and it doesn’t really have a centre. This gives you somewhere nice to base yourself, plus the beach is nearby and you can still get to all the major attractions of LA by driving to them. We stayed at the Hyatt Delfina which offered affordable luxury in a great location.
Using Santa Monica as a base, you can take a walk along the beach path to see Muscle Beach or drive up the coast road (Highway 1) to see places noted for celebrity houses like Malibu.
LOCATION & MAP
To get to Santa Monica from LA, take Freeway 10 (Santa Monica Freeway) and follow it all the way to its junction with Pico Blvd where we’d recommend you leave the Freeway. If you stay on, you’ll end up on Highway 1 with some great views of the beach. The main parking lot is just by the pier. This map shows the location of Palisades Park but you can move it around to see other locations in Santa Monica.
MORE ON SANTA MONICA
Santa Monica – Official Website
Santa Monica – Wikipedia
Hotels in Santa Monica – Hotels.com
Books on Santa Monica – Amazon.co.uk