VENICE BEACH
It is a district of the city of Los Angeles located between Santa Monica and Marina del Rey. Known as "the Venice of America," it was founded in 1905 by developer Abbot Kinney as a beach resort town, which experienced a boom in the 1920s. As its name suggests, it was inspired by the city of Venice, Italy.
Our visit there began upon arriving in Los Angeles. We had to wait to check in, so we decided to spend some time enjoying Venice Beach.
Ocean Front Walk is a paved path stretching nearly 5 km along Venice Beach. Along nearly 1.5 km, there are plenty of shops of various kinds (clothing, food, cafes, bike rentals, travel souvenirs, medical marijuana dispensaries), and one thing you can’t miss are the street vendors luring tourists with their handicrafts. As you walk along, you can watch street performers entertain visitors.
You can also check out Muscle Beach (an outdoor gym for $10 a day), its sports area with basketball and volleyball courts, and an excellent skatepark that’s bustling all day long. Many people gather to watch every trick the skaters have to offer.
You could say that Venice is one of the places you can’t miss if you’re visiting Los Angeles.
SANTA MONICA
It’s located next to Venice Beach, west of Downtown. There you’ll find the pier where the historic Route 66 ends. Inside this historic wooden pier, you’ll find Pacific Park, so well-known from Hollywood movies. Inside this park, you’ll find many amusement rides, attractions, and a “World Tour” ride where you can enjoy incredible views of Los Angeles.
Another interesting spot in the area is Ocean Drive (a boardwalk that runs along the entire Santa Monica coastline). It’s a stretch that connects Santa Monica Beach with Venice. You can explore this route by bike, on roller skates, or on foot. Along the way, you’ll see plenty of places where you can rent bikes, skateboards, roller skates, scooters, etc. (in Los Angeles, these are very common modes of transportation for people).
A tip: if you can, go before the sun sets—the sunset views of the pier and the World’s Fair are indescribable.
At night, you can see Pacific Park all lit up with beautiful views of the Pacific.
HOLLYWOOD SIGN
A must-see if you’re visiting Los Angeles. There are some tours that take you right up to the sign; we didn’t do that and just went to the viewpoint where you can take plenty of photos. It’s best to have a car since there are several uphill streets and it can be tiring, though we’ve seen plenty of people walking up without any trouble.
The view isn’t incredible, but you can take some great photos of the famous sign we see in movies.
I hope you enjoyed it!
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