The Venice Canals offer a completely different side of the famed beachfront neighborhood. Take a stroll through these three canal-lined blocks—hence the name, Venice—and you'll discover an idyllic scene: arching pedestrian bridges, charming beach houses, bunches of ducklings and the occasional paddle boarding bulldog. Though you won't find boat rentals anywhere along the canals, you can bring your own non-motorized vessel to tour the neighborhood at water level (enter via the launch ramp at Venice Boulevard).

Abbot Kinney Boulevard is a mile of popular shops, restaurants, and galleries, inhabiting eclectic century-old bungalows and modern architectural buildings — in the heart of famed Venice Beach, California.

Celebrities, foodies, local artists and bohemians mingle at top-chef eateries and neighborhood haunts alike.

Abbot Kinney is a local community mainstay that attracts international tourists. Cutting-edge design easily mixes with quirky style. Abbot Kinney Boulevard is an expression of the celebrated Venice arts community.

The street's lined with the gamut of International flagship stores and boho-beach chic boutiques, the best of rare and vintage discoveries, renowned art galleries, stylists, salons, health and fitness choices to nurture the mind-body-soul. The street's nightlife draws the hip, edgy and celeb-sophisticated from all over LA and beyond.

Just east of the Pier, the Third Street Promenade consists of three open-air, car-free blocks that are anchored by upscale Santa Monica Place. With everything from fresh farmers-market produce to designer fashions, it’s a shopper’s nirvana. Likewise, foodies rejoice in the numerous restaurants featuring locally sourced ingredients and craft cocktails. Life pulses around each corner with hotel guests, street performers, shoppers, office workers, diners, barflies, and moviegoers.

When one thinks of Santa Monica, the attraction of the Pier inevitably comes to mind. Its red and yellow Ferris wheel is a city icon. The Pier offers Pacific Park, a full service amusement park, combined with plenty of restaurants, bars, and souvenir shops, as well as an entertaining arcade with more than 200 games. Pacific Park’s solar-powered Ferris wheel makes it the only one of its kind in the region. By day, marvel at the historic Looff Hippodrome Carousel, check out the street performers, or snag a stick of puffy cotton candy. The views of Malibu and the South Bay are pretty outstanding and make for the perfect evening when watched with a beer in hand. Stick around past sunset and you might just catch live local music to the sound of the nearby waves. The Pier is a must-visit Santa Monica attraction that really sets Santa Monica apart as an ideal destination for families and visitors of any age.

Point Dume State Beach features headlands, cliffs, rocky coves and vast beach access. The facilities are noted for swimming, surfing, scuba diving and fishing. Point Dume is a perfect place to watch for California gray whales during the December to mid April migration period.

At the end of Westward Beach Road, access to Point Dume Nature Preserve begins from the cul-de-sac. A gradual ascending trail leads to an ancient coastal bluff sand dune. An incredible view encompassing the entire Santa Monica Bay, north Malibu Coast, inland Santa Monica Mountains and distant Catalina Island may be enjoyed from the top on a clear day. A boardwalk, just below the summit, leads to a viewing platform - it tends to be more sheltered on a windy day. A stairway from the east side of the bluff-top preserve allows access to a more isolated beach and fine tidepooling opportunities.

Like the tides of the Pacific just a few blocks away, Main Street is characterized by a slow shift in personalities: By day, it’s a favorite of up-at-dawn locals, who come for breakfast or coffee after a sunrise surf session or to patronize the eclectic collection of businesses with their dogs and children in tow. Visitors can join in, easily filling an afternoon at laid-back patio-lined cafés and indie boutiques. In the evening, trendy restaurants and watering holes glow with a lively mix of options for nightlife lovers.

The Getty Center, in Los Angeles, California, is a campus of the Getty Museum and other programs of the Getty Trust. The $1.3 billion Center opened to the public on December 16, 1997 and is well known for its architecture, gardens, and views overlooking Los Angeles. The Center sits atop a hill connected to a visitors' parking garage at the bottom of the hill by a three-car, cable-pulled hovertrain people mover.

The Getty Villa is one of two locations of the J. Paul Getty Museum. Located at the easterly end of the Malibu coast in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, United States, 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 collection is documented and presented through the online GettyGuide as well as through audio tours.

Located just west of Downtown Los Angeles, Santa Monica beach is an iconic example of the famed Southern California beaches. With few Los Angeles beach options offering both large expanses of beach, bike trails and nearby activities, Santa Monica Beach has exactly what you’re looking for.

A coastal canyon of the Santa Monica Mountains where the creek flows directly to the ocean shore, Corral Canyon Park rests on a 1,000 acres of land and includes various hiking trails with gorgeous views. The Sara Wan Trailhead is a popular spot with a 2.5 mile hiking loop, and easy access to parking and picnicking facilities. This area is abundant with wildlife that includes quail, deer, and Red-Tailed hawks. Across from the park is Dan Blocker State Beach, accessed by a culvert under the Pacific Coast Highway. In the early 90's, Bob Hope owned a portion of the lower canyon and planned to build luxurious homes and a golf course on site. Before these plans were implemented, the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy purchased the land and opened it to the public.