20 Attractions to Explore Near Downtown Santa Monica

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Santa Monica State Beach

Santa Monica State Beach

0.6km from Downtown Santa Monica

A wonderful beach located just west of Downtown Los Angeles. The beach is two miles long, has a picnic area, shops and pier. Visitor activities include volleyball, basketball and a running strip along the beach.

Santa Monica Pier

Santa Monica Pier

0.7km from Downtown Santa Monica

Large double-jointed pier containing a small amusement park, concession stands, and areas for views and fishing.

Pacific Park on the Santa Monica Pier

Pacific Park on the Santa Monica Pier

0.88km from Downtown Santa Monica

Pacific Park is the family place to play! It's the West Coast's only amusement park located on a pier. Millions of visitors each year enjoy all the rides, games and fun you'd expect from one of Southern California's Leading attractions. There are a total of twelve rides in Pacific Plunge, including the world's first and only solar powered Ferris wheel that provides a view of the Pacific Ocean and a roller coaster that circles the majority of the park.

Abbot Kinney Boulevard

Abbot Kinney Boulevard

4.23km from Downtown Santa Monica

Abbot Kinney Boulevard is a mile-long road lined with shops, restaurants, and galleries located in the southern part of Venice, Los Angeles, California. It stretches from Washington Boulevard to Main Street and is home to one-of-a–kind local goods as well as internationally recognized brands. The street has numerous international flagship stores, boutiques, art galleries, salons, and fitness studios. Abbot Kinney is also a popular nightlife spot.

Venice Canals

Venice Canals

4.54km from Downtown Santa Monica

The canals are located right off 25th street in Venice Beach. The area is primarily a neighborhood of houses that line four canals about a quarter-mile long each. Along these channels are sidewalks and bridges you can walk to take in the views of this beautiful area. Read all about the canals below so you can check them out for yourself. The Venice Canals are one of the city’s quirkiest neighborhoods as well as a picturesque reminder of the grandiose beginnings of Southern California.

Hammer Museum

Hammer Museum

6.85km from Downtown Santa Monica

An art museum and cultural center known for its artist-centric and progressive array of exhibitions and public programs. Particularly important among the museum's critically acclaimed exhibitions are presentations of both historically over-looked and emerging contemporary artists.

Getty Research Institute

Getty Research Institute

7.01km from Downtown Santa Monica

The Getty Research Institute , located at the Getty Center in Los Angeles, California, is "dedicated to furthering knowledge and advancing understanding of the visual arts". This centre features works of art dating from the eighth through the twenty-first century, showcased against a backdrop of dramatic architecture, tranquil gardens, and breathtaking views of Los Angeles. The collection includes European paintings, drawings, sculpture, illuminated manuscripts and so more.

The Getty Villa

The Getty Villa

7.08km from Downtown Santa Monica

The Getty Villa is an educational center and museum dedicated to the study of the arts and cultures of ancient Greece, Rome, and Etruria. The collection has 44,000 Greek, Roman, and Etruscan antiquities dating from 6,500 BC to 400 AD, including the Lansdowne Heracles and the Victorious Youth. The UCLA/Getty Master's Program in Archaeological and Ethnographic Conservation is housed on this campus.

The Getty

The Getty

7.16km from Downtown Santa Monica

Well known for its architecture, gardens, and views overlooking Los Angeles. The Museum features pre-20th-century European paintings, drawings, illuminated manuscripts, sculpture, and decorative arts; and photographs from the 1830s through present day from all over the world. The Museum's collection includes outdoor sculpture displayed on terraces and in gardens.

The Fowler Museum

The Fowler Museum

8km from Downtown Santa Monica

The Fowler Museum explores global arts and cultures with an emphasis on works from Africa, Asia, the Pacific, and the Americas—past and present. It is generally home to three to six art exhibitions and also acts as a venue for lectures on cultural topics, musical performances, art workshops, family programs, festivals and more.

The Museum of Jurassic Technology

The Museum of Jurassic Technology

9.43km from Downtown Santa Monica

This is an is an educational institution dedicated to the advancement of knowledge and the public appreciation of the Lower Jurassic.The museum's collection includes a mixture of artistic, scientific, ethnographic, and historic items, as well as some unclassifiable exhibits; the diversity evokes the cabinets of curiosities that were the 16th-century predecessors of modern natural-history museums

Rodeo Beach

Rodeo Beach

10.43km from Downtown Santa Monica

Rodeo Beach is a wide pebble beach on the sand spit that separates Rodeo Lagoon from Rodeo Cove on the west side of the Marin Headlands in Golden Gate. This beach is unique among California beaches in that it is largely made up of coarse, pebbly chert grains, both red and green in color. The beach features free entrance, free parking, wheelchair-accessible public restrooms, showers, and picnic tables. Dogs are allowed.

Rodeo Drive

Rodeo Drive

10.46km from Downtown Santa Monica

This place is is a must for any visitor to Los Angeles who wants to walk the iconic streets and visit the famous storefronts that have been featured in movies since the birth of Hollywood. With more than 100 famous stores on Rodeo Drive comprising its three palm-fringed blocks within the Golden Triangle, it is easy to become lost in the street's unique splendor and charm.

Sunset Boulevard

Sunset Boulevard

10.51km from Downtown Santa Monica

A beautiful boulevard in the central and western part of Los Angeles. The boulevard roughly traces the arc of mountains that form part of the northern boundary of the Los Angeles Basin, following the path of a 1780s cattle trail from the Pueblo de Los Angeles to the ocean. It is a major thoroughfare in the cities of Beverly Hills and West Hollywood, as well as several districts in Los Angeles.

Dockweiler Beach

Dockweiler Beach

11.09km from Downtown Santa Monica

Dockweiler State Beach is a beach in Los Angeles, California. It features a three mile long shoreline with a picnic area and concession stand. The park boasts the Dockweiler Hang Gliding Center and the Hang Gliding Flight Training Concession. The Dockweiler State Beach bicycle path is maintained by the Los Angeles Department of TransportationAlthough this is a State Beach, there are no camping sites that are reserved through ReserveCalifornia. The park is operated by a local agency.

Topanga State Park

Topanga State Park

11.93km from Downtown Santa Monica

Topanga State Park is part of the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area and is located between West Los Angeles, Topanga Canyon and Malibu. Covering 11,000 acres, with thirty-six miles of trails and unimproved roads, the park's boundaries stretch from Topanga Canyon to Pacific Palisades and Mulholland Drive. There are more than 60 trail entrances.

Skirball Cultural Center

Skirball Cultural Center

12.18km from Downtown Santa Monica

The Skirball is a dynamic Jewish cultural center with exhibitions and programs that foster human connections and promote social justice.The center, named after philanthropist-couple Jack H. Skirball and Audrey Skirball-Kenis, features a museum with regularly changing exhibitions, film events, music and theater performances, comedy, family, literary and cultural programs. The Skirball presents a range of music, theater, poetry, literary, film and other performing arts.

Greystone Mansion

Greystone Mansion

12.19km from Downtown Santa Monica

Greystone is one of the largest mansions in Beverly Hills and an important landmark for American cinema. It became a city park in 1971, and was subsequently added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1976 as Doheny Estate/Greystone. The house and grounds are often used as locations for film and television shows. The house's descending staircase is one of the most famous sets in Hollywood.

Mulholland Drive

Mulholland Drive

12.78km from Downtown Santa Monica

Mulholland Drive is a scenic route on the Hollywood Hills. Here you can enjoy the best Los Angeles views.The road is featured in a significant number of movies, songs, and novels. David Lynch, who wrote and directed a film named after Mulholland Drive, has said that one can feel "the history of Hollywood" on it.

Petersen Automotive Museum

Petersen Automotive Museum

13.45km from Downtown Santa Monica

One of the world's largest automotive museums with over 100 vehicles on display in its 25 galleries. The remaining half of the collection is kept in a vault, located on the basement level of the building. Age restrictions and an admission premium are in effect to view the vault collection.

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Know more about Downtown Santa Monica

Downtown Santa Monica

Downtown Santa Monica

1351 3rd Street Promenade, Santa Monica, CA 90401, USA

This is a worldclass shoppig, dining and entertainment destination located jus steps from the beautiful pacific ocean. It is home to hundreds of businesses catering to your every need.