Beaches and harbors offer lots of action in the South Bay and Long Beach. 

Some of the prettiest oceanfront in Southern California is 20 miles southwest of downtown, in the picturesque beach towns of Manhattan Beach, Hermosa Beach and Redondo Beach. Visitors are drawn to the scenery, laid-back attitude and active lifestyle, which includes swimming, sailing, beach volleyball and cycling or in-line skating along the beachfront path called the Strand. Quaint San Pedro, on the south side of the Palos Verdes peninsula, is Cruise Central. The historic Queen Mary is permanently berthed in Long Beach.

Manhattan Beach
The Manhattan Beach populace seems armed both with discretionary income and a philosophy that life just has to be fun.

Most of the action is downtown, along Manhattan Avenue and Manhattan Beach Boulevard. Popular restaurants include Café Pierre, which recently celebrated its 30th anniversary. Boutiques reflect the intersection of beach lifestyle and luxury tastes. Manhattan Beach Brewing Co. is steps from the sand.

The Metlox Plaza, on the site of the former Metlox Pottery factory, opened recently. Fresh Produce and True Religion boutiques, Trilogy Spa (designed by acclaimed architect Hagy Belzberg) and Petros Greek Cuisine are draws; design elements—including a 16-foot recreation of a 1940 Metlox cubist dog—recall the site's history. Find hip Zinc Lounge at the Shade Hotel, adjacent.

The picturesque Manhattan Beach Pier, which extends 928 feet into the ocean, is at the end of Manhattan Beach Boulevard. At pier's end is the octagonal Roundhouse Aquarium; check out the shovelnose guitarfish! Beach volleyball is practically a religion here, and the beachfront on both sides of the pier is lined with nets. Many top women's and men's professional beach volleyball players got their start in the South Bay, and high-caliber tournaments and championships return every summer.

North of downtown on Highland Avenue, clubs and eateries such as Baja Sharkeez offer a real slice of South Bay life. Manhattan Village at Sepulveda Boulevard and Rosecrans Avenue offers Macy's and shops including Diane's Swimwear.

Hermosa Beach
Traveling south, Manhattan Avenue jogs west and becomes Hermosa Avenue, leading to lively Hermosa Beach. The intersection of Pier and Hermosa avenues is the dining and entertainment epicenter; west of Hermosa Avenue, Pier Avenue becomes Pier Plaza, a pedestrian promenade.

Pier Plaza is essentially one big block party. Locals hang out on the patios of Hennessey's Tavern and Sangria. Scantily clad fitness buffs on the Strand weave in and out on bicycles, on in-line skates and on foot. If you need wheels, rentals are available in the vicinity.

The Comedy and Magic Club (1018 Hermosa Ave., 310.372.1193) offers top-notch entertainment; Jay Leno often makes Sunday night appearances testing new material for The Tonight Show.

Redondo Beach
Early in the last century, visitors came to Redondo Beach for its offshore gambling aboard ships reached by water taxis and for dancing in big-band ballrooms. The ambience has changed, yet the city—at the southern end of Santa Monica Bay, right below the breathtaking cliffs of the Palos Verdes peninsula—is just as visitor-friendly.

As Sepulveda Boulevard enters Redondo Beach, it changes its name to Pacific Coast Highway (PCH). Near the intersection of PCH and Palos Verdes Boulevard is a collection of shops, galleries and restaurants including Chez Melange and Gina Lee's Bistro, two of the South Bay's finest restaurants.

Redondo's most famous landmark is the Redondo Beach Pier, where Torrance Boulevard meets the ocean. An attraction for more than a century, the horseshoe pier has souvenir shops and eateries selling everything from T-shirts and fishing bait to boiled shrimp and seashells. Old Tony's is a fantastical ship-shaped restaurant that has sweeping ocean views.

King Harbor has four marinas. The Redondo Beach Marina, north of the pier, offers boat rentals, sportfishing, harbor cruises, parasailing, whale-watching charters (January through March) and a Venetian gondola ride around the harbor.

The Chart House and Cheesecake Factory are among dining options offering marina views on the adjacent restaurant row. One of artist Wyland's famous Whaling Walls graces the Edison International building at the harbor's entrance. The length of two football fields, the mural depicts the California gray whale.

To the south, Trump National Golf Club, the only Trump course open to the public, recently opened in Rancho Palos Verdes.

Inland, off the 405 Freeway at Avalon Boulevard in Carson, pro soccer teams the L.A. Galaxy and Chivas USA call the Home Depot Center home, as does L.A. Riptide, one of the inaugural teams of the newly organized Major League Lacrosse.

San Pedro
San Pedro, with its funky-meets-blue-collar vibe and seafaring history, is the antidote to Big City Syndrome. Few chain stores taint downtown ‘Pedro, which boasts the Warner Grand Theater, an art deco movie palace and a mom-and-pop coffeehouse, bookstore and antique shop.

New is the Cruise Ship Promenade, a boardwalk by the ocean liners at the Port of Los Angeles. Attractions include the Los Angeles Maritime Museum and Ports O' Call Village, a New England–style waterfront village of shops and restaurants connected by cobblestone streets.

Wave at cruise ship passengers as the huge ocean liners pass by. Or get out on the water: Sport-fishing tours, romantic dining cruises and narrated harbor tours of the WorldPort L.A.—the largest working port in the nation and a massive feat of engineering—depart frequently. Catalina Express offers daily ferries to Catalina Island, 26 miles away.

A trolley runs to Cabrillo Beach, great for swimming, scuba diving and windsurfing, and to the educational Cabrillo Marine Aquarium.

The ornate, pagoda-styled Korean Bell of Friendship, given to the U.S. by South Korea in 1976, is on a bluff-top park at the southernmost point of Gaffey Street, above Point Fermin park. The setting has been used in films including The Usual
Suspects.

Long Beach
The harborside city of Long Beach, 25 miles south of downtown Los Angeles, is a gem for both cultural and business travelers. Both downtown Long Beach (at the end of the 710 Freeway) and the Long Beach Airport offer free public WiFi zones as part of a progressive city agenda.

The Long Beach Performing Arts Center, adjacent to the convention center downtown, hosts Broadway musicals, theater and rock concerts. Shop and dine at the Pike at Rainbow Harbor. Pet live sharks at the outstanding Aquarium of the Pacific nearby. Exhibits at the Long Beach Museum of Art focus on California–based art movements and craft and folk arts.

Long Beach may best be known as the permanent home of the Queen Mary, which made its maiden voyage in 1936. Tour the mighty ship or the historic Russian Foxtrot Submarine, adjacent.

East of downtown, pedestrians stroll along East 2nd Street in the upscale Belmont Shore neighborhood, browsing through eclectic boutiques and taking a meal at any of the numerous restaurants.

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