I cannot stress enough how amazingly fantastic my day at the beach and Santa Monica Pier was.  It was, bar none, the highlight of my trip to Los Angeles.  I’d go back just for the beach.  I’d leave right this moment if I could!

I was staying in a small hotel in the down town area of LA, so I was anything but close to a beach.  Even so, I would not be deterred!  My friend and I hopped ourselves onto one of the city’s buses and hunkered down for the ride.  We arrived at Venice beach just over an hour later and immediately knew that we had made the right choice by heading to the beach.  The sand was smooth and clean, the water warm and the waves crashing up against the rocks were a sight to see.

There were quite a few people out on the beach, but even so it was well worth the trip.  Venice Beach was less crowded then Santa Monica Beach, so if you’d prefer fewer crowds that might be the way to go.  However, Santa Monica Beach has a lot more perks, but then I’ll get to that in a minute.

There’s lots to do on the beaches of LA.  From making epic sandcastles for the kids, to sunbathing, swimming, and even surfing.  The surf looked pretty good the day I was there, but then I’m no surfer!  There were a lot of people trying to catch a wave though.  We even saw a dolphin swimming along with the surfers, trying to join in.

My recommendation: bring an old towel that you don’t mind throwing out.  Spend some time on the beach, lounge, get a tan, go for a swim or surf.  Then throw your towel in the trash so you don’t have to carry around the sandy, soggy thing and head on up to Santa Monica Pier!

After trekking along Venice Beach the amazing structure of the amusement park on a pier came into focus.  This is what I had been waiting for.  Santa Monica Pier has a lot to offer any visitor.  From amusement rides like the roller-coaster or the famous Ferris wheel to games, shopping, an arcade and of course, great food. Our first stop was clearly food.  We saw Bubba Gump’s Shrimp Factory and knew we had to eat at the Forrest Gump inspired restaurant at the end of route 66, where the man himself had run in the movie.

We spent hours on the Pier.  We stuffed our faces, perused through the little shops, checked out the games and arcade, and soaked in the views of the sea and the surrounding mountains and cityscape.  The best views of all can be found at the top of the Ferris wheel. It’s located within Pacific Park, a small amusement park on the Pier. Admission into the Park is free, but it will cost you a bit to get on any of the rides.  Even with that in mind I recommend that you pay the slightly steep price of about 10 dollars, and take a ride on the wheel yourself.

The Santa Monica and Venice Beach area is one not to miss out on, whether you want to take a week there or make it a single day outing in a much larger trip to Los Angeles. Either way you’ll find there is plenty in the area to occupy your time.  So take the time to relax, enjoy the sun and have some fantastic beach fun!