Santa Monica offers a vibrant mix of a lively urban scene and a relaxed, charming beach town. It provides a versatile playground for adventure, culture, art, shopping, dining, and more. Additionally, its walkable streets make Santa Monica an ideal spot for exploration, a coastal destination suitable for all ages.
Santa Monica Pier
The Santa Monica Pier is a must-visit attraction in Santa Monica that truly sets the city apart as an ideal destination for families and visitors of all ages. Dive in and explore the Pier’s Pacific Ocean views, souvenir shops, arcade with more than 200 games or grab a bite or a drink at one of the many restaurants. If you are looking for some excitement, check out Pacific Park, a full-service amusement park, perfect for families with kids. The park’s solar-powered, over-water Ferris wheel makes it the only one of its kind in the region. The park also features a five-story West Coaster roller coaster and a nine-story Pacific Plunge tower ride. More than 6 million visitors a year stop at this iconic Santa Monica attraction.
Yoga on the Beach
What could be a more soothing start to the day than yoga on the beach? If you enjoy moving your body, being on the beach and breathing in the fresh air, then beach yoga is for you. Escape from your day and experience a yoga retreat right in your backyard. Walk away feeling rejuvenated and fulfilled, after feeling the sand in your toes, listening to the sounds of the ocean, and of course, doing yoga. Beach Yoga SoCal provides private lessons as well as group classes, so you can get your flow on with locals.
Third Street Promenade
Just east of the Pier, the 3rd Street Promenade consists of three open-air, car-free blocks that are anchored by upscale Santa Monica Place, home to more than 80 retailers. With everything from fresh farmers’ market produce to designer fashions, it is a shopper’s nirvana. Likewise, foodies rejoice in the numerous restaurants and bars, featuring locally sourced ingredients and craft cocktails. There is excitement around every corner as street performers, tourists, locals, diners, moviegoers, and more flock to the area.
Original Muscle Beach.
Celebrities such as Jack LaLanne, Jayne Mansfield and Mae West were frequent visitors to Muscle Beach and helped to establish Southern California as a bodybuilder’s paradise and the home of the international fitness boom in the early 1920s. Today, Muscle Beach serves gymnasts, acrobats, and youth with an extensive gymnastics training area. Other features include chinning bars at various heights, parallel bars, rings, a small jungle gym for children and a padded gymnastics area.
Palisades Park
Running the full length of downtown Santa Monica, the beautiful 26-acre Palisades Park is the ideal spot to watch the sunset from cliff level before exploring its sculptures, rose garden and more. Stroll through Palisades Park to take in the many historical monuments that stand testament to the city’s history and culture, or watch a stunning California sunset from one of the many fantastic vantage points along the sand or cliff level in Palisades Park.
Heal the Bay Aquarium
Located beach-level, just below the Carousel at the Santa Monica Pier, Heal the Bay Aquarium is Heal the Bay’s marine education facility, which inspires understanding and conservation of Southern California coastal waters, watersheds and marine life through education, interaction, and discovery. In operation for 20 years, the Aquarium has welcomed more than one million visitors during public hours, and in-house education programs have reached close to 200,000 students.
Annenberg Community Beach House
The Beach House is a unique community destination with spectacular views, a splash pad, a playground, a gallery, the Marion Davies Guest House, beach courts and fields, community and cultural events, a historic pool, free wi-fi, and more, offering something for everyone to enjoy! The Beach House grounds are open daily, including the playground, splash pad, beach area, courtyard, view deck, and volleyball courts.
McCabe’s Guitar Shop
Hang out and strum a vintage guitar at legendary McCabe’s Guitar Shop, a musical instrument store, concert venue, repair shop, and music school that opened in 1958. McCabe’s specialises in acoustic and folk instruments and offers thousands of books and recordings. They have guitars, ukuleles, banjos, mandolins, dulcimers, both hammered and plucked, fiddles, bouzoukis, sitars, ouds, ethnic percussion, electrics, amps, and accessories, hitting all the right notes for music lovers.
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