Crescent Bay Park in Santa Monica

Santa Monica is known for its world famous beaches, but when you want to avoid the crowds, check out Santa Monica’s Crescent Bay Park on the beach.

Located half a mile south of the Santa Monica Pier– with its shaded picnic area and benches lining the sidewalk– it provides the perfect vantage point to access the beach, spread out a blanket and view the ocean’s horizon and beauty, sit and read, or just get some rays.

At the base of the stairs–form meets function– as the stairs and walkway arch and mold into the park and Palm Trees, and provide the dual access of either coming or going to the parking lot and beach.

At the base of the stairs–form meets function– as the stairs and walkway arch and mold into the park and palm trees, and provide the dual access of either coming or going to the parking lot and beach.

I rode my bike to Crescent Bay Park because it’s one of the entry points to the Santa Monica State Beach bike path. Although often crowded on the weekends, the weekdays on the bike path afford an obviously less crowded corridor. At the end of the pillars is my bike in all of its glory.

As you can see, the great part about the bike path is that there’s a clear separation between walkers and bicyclists. Of course, nothing in life is perfect, so I still had to share my portion of the path with skateboarders and rollerbladers. After biking, rollerblading, walking, and skateboarding, you can still go swimming, play beach volleyball, and catch some waves surfing.

Conveniently close to Crescent Bay Park is one of the many surfing spots at Santa Monica State Beach. Surfers from all over the world come here to catch a wave from its miles of beach breaks. This photo shows just how close Crescent Bay Park is to the beach:

So grab your bike, board or book, and head for Crescent Bay Park. When Travelin’ Local, we’re always prepared to be active because it’s a hell of a lot better than sitting in traffic!