Hermosa Beach Pier is always a fun spot! From sunset walks on the pier to happy hour drinks with an…read moreocean breeze, this pier is quite the scene Heads up it leans toward a younger and sometimes rowdier crowd (especially during weekends and late nights), so it gives a more lively party energy than a quiet retreat. (Pro tip stay away from the elevators in the parking structures that can become smelly - ugh). Overall going here is always an experience.

A super fun and lively area! The beach was clean and had a lot going on. Tons to see around the…read morepier, they had a lot of shops and restaurants. The water did have more of a pungent smell, and was more murky/green tinted than some other beaches I've been to. Still a solid place to visit!

The Strand is amazing!…read more When in doubt, head out...to The Strand! Biking. Walking. Strolling. Bench sitting. Dog walking. Running. Skateboarding. Rollerblading. And yes, even ROLLERSKATING! Go to see or be seen, The Strand has it all! 5 Stars

Whether you're a local or just visiting for the weekend, you must check this one off your list and…read morehave cocktails and dinner here. If you can score a reservation, try to get seated on the balcony to enjoy the sunset. You really can't go wrong with any of the dishes - the risotto is amazing as is the dessert - donuts, a specialty if you weren't fortunate enough to go up the street to Blue Star. Parking -Allow plenty of of time for parking since this is a hotspot for beach access as well as other restaurants. Metered parking is available for up to 2hrs in most spots and a parking lot nearby which may be a better option. Bon appétit!

Sometime last year my wife and I stumbled across Rat Beach by accident and when we decided we…read morewanted to hit one up last week to hangout, eat some snacks, and read, we figured why not spend the morning at Rat Beach? We showed up here around 8am on a Sunday and this place already had a good amount of people laying out, surfing, and just hanging out. The free parking seemed to be gone so we turned into the main lot and found a spot no problem. It was far from a hot day, but the perfect day to put some beach chairs down, read a book, and just enjoy the wonderful pacific ocean. We spent about two and a half hours just relaxing and it was a really enjoyable time. Overall, Rat Beach is not one of those California tourist beaches packed with people and super loud, oh no, it's a quiet place to hang out and have a relaxing time. I'll absolutely be back here with some more snacks and books soon.

Love this beach and will come here more often. Some of the major state beaches can be so overrated…read moreand too much of a hassle when all you want to do is arrive and sit at the beach. This beach is a big, long stretch of land. It is clean and has more of a peaceful, and intimate atmosphere. More of the locals frequent this beach. At the parking lot, there is a white railing bordering a cement pathway to head towards the beach. I believe there are some other ways to enter the beach from the opposite ends though I've not tried them. Came to surf and was surprised by how fun the waves were. There are several pockets of waves to ride throughout the entire stretch of beach but you just have to look for those spots. Be mindful that if you do plan to go in the water, there is a separate swim and surf zone and orange flags indicating boundaries. I did not know this and the signs are hard to miss. The lifeguard on duty was attentive letting me know to shift a little more to the left and I appreciated the alertness to keep safety at hindsight

Nice park, took me and my girl here last summer bike riding. Its really fun, safe, quiet without…read moreanyone bothering you. So much nature and green here. Smell of the ocean really make you feel unreal. Nice place to cool off in the summer from all of the heat. Most peaceful park in all of Los Angeles.

Admiralty Park is a strip of green space running along Admiralty Way in Marina del Rey.  It is also…read moreknown as Yvonne B. Burke Park.  The park features a bike path and a Par Fitness Course.  We enjoy walking through the park rather than on the Admiralty Way sidewalk.

This was my second time here, my kids brought me to celebrate my birthday. From the moment we…read morearrived, everything was amazing! The food and drinks were absolutely delicious Great service! We had a great table with the view of the palm trees and ocean I highly recommend this place, and I'll definitely be coming back!

Food 3 Service 3…read more There was a miss on the hospitality service tonight. We were constantly asking for water, utensils, and attentive service. Not sure if they were short-staffed, but we were utterly disappointed with the experience. For the price point, we expected elevated service for a party of 10 with a mandatory 20% gratuity. I'm not going to blame the servers, as I feel like the service is a reflection of management and how they train and execute the experience for customers. Management, please make sure the glasses are full and that when serving dishes, we have the proper utensils. Now the food , I loved my dish, but my husband and sister did not like theirs.

This park was almost my selection for my next milestone review…read more Because it's the very first park I ever set foot in, in LA. Story coming up in a sec.......hahaha..... you knew that.... Ocean View Park is just south of Ocean Ave., where it deadends at the ocean. Lotsa oceans here! The words "Ocean View Santa Monica" are spelled out in foliage, in sculpted hedges, all along the west side of the park grounds. That did not exist several years ago & it's awesome, eye-catching. Better than a wooden sign by far. This is not a huge park, area-wise. It's sandwiched in among the Sea Colony condos, and there are entrances off Barnard Way, and also 2 paths to enter on from the east, from Pacific/Neilson Way. There's a basketball court, and a big outdoor tennis facility that is used for tournaments. I didn't count the number of courts, but there are several. (See photos) My fave attraction in this park is the hill surrounded by a winding sidewalk. You circle the hill, around and around, as the view gets better and better......until you reach the top. Your reward is a sweeping view of the beach across the street, one of my favorite wide beaches in LA. (See my photos.) Here's where my story begins: I came to LA on a plane with 3 suitcases, some 8 years ago, never having been here before in my life, not knowing a soul. I was attracted to the promise of a lengthy bike path that ran along the coast, as well as an endless summer-type of lifestyle. I checked into the Cadillac Hotel on Venice Beach, lived there for several weeks before renting an apt. a few doors away. But on my first day in LA I headed for the sand on Venice Beach. On my second day I began to explore the surrounding area, and ended up here, in Ocean View Park, a couple blocks to the north of my hotel. I walked up the winding sidewalk to the top of the grassy hill and threw down my towel to sunbathe a little. Within 5 minutes I was covered from head to toe.....with biting ants. Holy crap I will never forget! I was screaming and jumping around in my bathing suit on top of the hill, putting on a show for everybody within a two-block radius. It must have looked like the dance of a crazy person. Being LA, and being that close to Venice Beach, no one paid all that much attention. I was amazed. Back in the Midwest, they would have called the cops. It was the beginning of my love affair with this remarkable free-spirited city. And it all began in a park.

NICE & CLEAN! (compared to Venice)…read more This place is for the clean ppl.. :) Venice is for the yuppies and uppies.. (not to offend anyone b/c I mean it in the nicest way possible). I can go either way but I prefer to stroll around here or manhattan beach..wait or malibu or hermosa.. Venice is when I'm feeling a little bit more daring and if I feel like to get solicitated at the beach. Good for a morning jog or just to walk around at sunset. :) Will be back.

Cute little beach area that has no waves which makes it safer than a regular beach. There is also a…read morechildren's park nearby and on the weekends a farmers market. I highly recommend coming here for playtime or to just relax. When you're done you can walk to other parts of the Marina to enjoy!

Venice Fishing Pier A wonderful…read more Place to experience the amazing sunset over the mountains! You can walk the Pier Or see the amazing view of the pier from the beach! Highly recommend

It's nice to just walk to the end and see the ocean in all it's green blue glory. Lots of pigeons…read moreat the end and some seagulls here and there too. I don't fish, so I don't have much to say about that, but I definitely saw a lot of people who had fishes in a portable cooler or even a super fancy one that had a small tub with a water filter in it to keep the fish alive. Pretty neat. But lots of people grabbing seaweed. I think at the end, not sure if it's along the way, but there's signs with the species of fish and other marine related information. On the way down the pier, there's maritime and thought provoking quotes from various authors and others, and other information as well. It's just some of them on the pier side bars are a bit damaged. Very bad, but I would be slightly wary walking the pier with open toed shoes (I know you're next to a beach and most people are wearing sandals), but who knows if there are any sharps on the ground AND there was a lot of chum, fish guttyworks, squid pieces, mussels and other shellfish and their broken shells, and people's fishing lines and maybe hooks, who knows. I would be wary walking your dog down the pier too just in case. At the front of the pier, the lifeguard and other info is there. No electric bikes or scooters or technically wheeled items unless you're walking them, but I saw a video of a car piling through so there's that... It's alright to walk through once to experience it, but as non sunshine and non fishing person, once is enough.