Nice walk along the sea front to Santa Monica pier , very crowed near muscle beach and full of crappy tourist shops. Loads of homeless and smack heads about but didn’t bother anyone. It’s One to tick off the list but won’t return

We visited Venice Beach on a Saturday. There were to be honest alot of very interesting and colourful people there, unfortunately many were high on marijuana. There were many homeless people around and although we needed to use the toilets, they were so filthy that we probably would have needed a hepatitis shot afterwards, so we held on. There were nice areas and there were unclean areas. There were plenty off people selling things (some beautiful, some that a 2 year old could have done better) in the area where the shops were. For parking - park in the parks on the beach, not inland as the beach parking is $8 - $9 per day. The 'parking places' further inland are a rip off charging well over $10. If you're walking - stick to the beach or footpath, not the bike / scooter / Rollerblade path and you will be safe.

Venice Beach and the walk to Santa Monica Pier were interesting and the path is nice. You need to ensure that you stay off the bike path if you are walking. There are nice clean areas and there are unclean areas where the homeless people hang out. DO NOT USE THE TOILETS IN THIS AREA as they are filthy. There are alot of homeless people at Venice beach and area where they live are full of rubbish and offensive smells from urine and alcohol. There were many interesting people at Venice Beach and unfortunately alot of cannabis was also being smoked and this stench hung in the air in many places, particularly where people were selling things. Unfortunately Venice Beach is not as pretty as it is seen in films and pictures. I would not recommend visiting Venice Beach after dark. When parking, use the car parks on the beach that charge $8 - $9 per day rather than car parks further back that rip you off.

A great place to visit during daylight hours. As soon as the sun went down the atmosphere changed and we didn’t feel particularly safe. Definitely not somewhere I’d bring small children. Looking somewhat run down, too.

I lived in the Los Angeles area for 16 years. During that time family would go to Venice Beach. I enjoyed the eclectic Oceanside shops and the “muscle men” pumping iron! I enjoyed watching the skaters and skateboarding antics! I got free food from the Hare Krishnas serving on the beach! I watched people from all walks of life hanging out on the beach. It’s been a few years since I had returned to the LA area and my daughter and I decided to visit several beaches. We parked more than 8 blocks away and walked! When we walked a wonderful thing happened! We discovered that there are canals to meander through! There are these quaint canals that allow for a good walk! We walked, visited open houses for homes selling between $3 to 6 million dollars!! My! We met cool people and found a rainbow walkway too! I’m thrilled to have discovered these canals at long last! We discovered that “Cold Stone” ice cream 🍨 now has a vegan option on the menu!! We visited restaurants, shopped with a vendor from Senegal 🇸🇳 and listened to music 🎶 coming from some establishments. We had a funky good time!

If you’re up for strolling while people watching, take a trip to Venice Beach. Our party of four meandered around the side streets, canals and along the beach itself. We paused to watch the muscle builders and skate boarders; both were a source of entertainment. Many shops including Tarot and Psychic Readings, Henna Tattoos, sunglasses and souvenirs provided beach goers with many options for remembering their visit. Since we spent an afternoon during early April there, it was not “beach weather”. No sunning or dipping in the ocean for us! There was no love lost there, as the time there was worthwhile in and of itself. We got a slice of a different part of L.A. culture.

There is a certain chill vibe to this beach that is different from its neighbor Santa Monica beach to the north. Still at daytime it felt safe. Lots of people exercising or strolling, just doing their own thing. This beach is about acceptance and tolerance, as long as you go in thinking that way, you’ll enjoy it. For example, there’s a scent of cannabis lingering always. The retail stores (many of them renting bikes or motorized vehicles, incense, tattoo, etc) are eclectic and fun to see but not necessarily to buy. Funny that this is where Barbie and Ken arrived in the movie. The skate park is fun to watch the skills and creativeness in front of you especially when the sun sets. Within a block from the beach there are private parking lots - we paid $10 for 3 hour - but we prob could have found the public parking.

You gave to do this! We walked probably 2 miles from Santa Monica down to Venice. Santa Monica is nothing you’ve not seen before, fairground rides etc. but Venice beach is something you would not if experienced before, food, music, skaters, the skate park you’ll see as you walk along is fun to watch as it the skateboard area. We walked the whole way along it was something I’d not seen before or likely to again

Great day walking the strip at Venice beach. Seeing the famous muscle beach was cool and the basketball courts. Lots of neat little shops and eateries. Walked between Venice and Santa Monica peir was relaxing. Also can rent scooters, bikes etc..

Came with a tour on a Sunday morning, there was a lowrider show going on. Venice Beach is a grimmer, grittier cousin to Santa Monica, but that’s what gives it its charm. Only bad part was the lack of benches or places to sit, which might be to keep the homeless folks out…But it also keeps people from really enjoying the Venice Beach Boardwalk. I liked watching the people and seeing the cars