Snapshots from Our California Vacation (LA, Malibu, Santa Monica, and More!)

So it goes, I’m months behind on sharing vacation photos again (oops). Though it’s been six months since I toured the Los Angeles, California area with my mom, dad, and my mom’s family, I couldn’t resist writing a post and sharing photos of beautiful coastal California. I really, really enjoyed my first trip to the Pacific coast, and I’m already California dreaming about the next one. Here’s a little recap for you — along with 25 of my favorite snapshots from our travels.

Sunday

We kicked off our trip with a bright and (very) early direct flight from RDU to LAX on Sunday morning. Once the whole crew landed and we secured our rental cars (a whole hours long process coming from LAX, let me tell you), we stopped by Roscoe's House of Chicken and Waffles for a late lunch. After lunch, we drove up the Pacific Coast Highway to our Airbnb in Oxnard, gawking at the stunning ocean and mountain views along the way. Our Airbnb had a very curious house design, but it was big and spacious and had an open rooftop that featured 360 degree views of the ocean, the harbor, and the mountains. At dusk, we went for a nice evening sunset walk along the beach. But… unbeknownst to us, the beach contained lots of tar balls, which ended up ruining some of our shoes. I had tar on the bottoms of my feet and under my nails, and it was horrible because it wouldn’t come off — and the smell lingered on me forever!

Monday

After a good night’s rest (haha, just kidding, I had a hard time adjusting to California time), we kicked off Monday with donuts from Spudnuts (so good). Following our well balanced breakfast, we drove across the bay for our first California adventure — whale watching with Channel Island Sportfishing. I have a whole separate blog post recapping that excursion, but I’ll tell you here, it was fun! Super overcast day, but fun nonetheless. We saw many different humpback whales and even a dolphin mega pod. Post-tour, we stopped back at the Airbnb, then went to a couple different breweries in the surrounding area. We had beer flights at Topa Topa, then ordered one sample of every beer at Casa Agria. The guy at Casa Agria said he’d never served one of everything on the menu before, but hey, there’s a first time for everything.

Tuesday

Tuesday brought our second adventure — a guided tour of Los Angeles with Surf City Tours. The tour took us through several city highlights — Beverly Hills, the Farmers Market, the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and the Hollywood Hills. Our tour guide was super friendly and knowledgable, and she really gave us a good showing. We didn’t see any celebrities or anything crazy, but that’s okay. It was fun to ride around and stop at different points to sightsee and take pictures. We saw a movie being filmed near the Beverly Hills sign (not a major production, can’t even remember the name lol), I had really good food at the Farmers Market (empanadas, tacos, and a Nutella crepe), and we saw the iconic Hollywood sign from a lookout point (because tours vehicles aren’t welcome up close anymore). After the tour, we walked over to the Santa Monica Pier and of course I rode the Pacific Wheel! Had to convince my mom to ride with me — and she conquered her fears like a champ! I also learned the Santa Monica Pier marks the end of Route 66 — did not know that. On the way back to the Airbnb that evening, we pulled off at a spot in Malibu (a small part of Leo Carrillo State Beach) and walked around while watching wind surfers do their thing.

Wednesday

Wednesday was probably the most fun day. With no real plan but to explore and explore more (my favorite), my mom, dad, and I set off on a spontaneous travel day. First stop was in Malibu, where we walked the Malibu Pier and had a delicious breakfast at Malibu Farm (thanks Barbara for the recommendation). We sat outside on a perfect corner table and drank our coffee with a breezy, beautiful view. Our next destination was Venice Beach. We saw the Venice Beach sign, walked the Venice Beach Canals, and took a stroll down the boardwalk (which was quite dirty and filled with homeless people, kind of sad). On our drive back up the coast, we stopped for an hour or so at El Matador State Beach (steeper climb but worth it), then had dinner at Malibu Brewing Company (literally YUM, even Mom and Dad approved — good beer, great food). To end the day, we caught the most picturesque sunset by the Malibu Sand Dunes. Mom and Dad stayed down in the car, but I ran up the dunes for the best view and it was a workout, whew!

Thursday / Friday / Saturday

After three days on the go, Thursday we chilled in Oxnard. At lunch time, we grabbed tacos at House of Tacos Grill and those were some goooood tacos. I had the Oxnard special taco — it was delicious! We stopped by another nearby beach for a quick walk, then drove around the harbor and watched the sea lions splash and play and lay on the beach. They’re kind of cute from afar. We went out for dinner at a local restaurant, then enjoyed a quiet evening. I woke up Friday morning to a beautiful, sunny, classic California day, so I went up to the rooftop for an hour or so to read and relax. We grabbed lunch at In-N-Out (when in California, how could we not?), then came back to the Airbnb to get ready for my cousin’s wedding. The wedding venue was up on the top floor of a local tower, and the window-filled room showcased a gorgeous, gorgeous mountain sunset post-ceremony. Of course, we had fun night dancing and celebrating! Our trip was very front end stacked, but that allowed us little to no expectations the back few days. On Saturday, our last day, my aunt hosted a get together/farewell lunch for my cousin and his wife. Then, we packed our bags and went for one last sunset beach walk, this time free of tar!

And that’s a wrap on our seven days in California! For me, I loved Malibu most — the coastline, the water, the surrounding parks, everything. We didn’t spend much time in Los Angeles, but honestly, that’s okay. I much preferred the outskirts anyways. Have you ever been to the Los Angeles, California area? If so, let me know what you loved!

Enjoy!

JBW