Manhattan Beach

Manhattan Beach is the most polished and prestigious of LA's South Bay beach communities — a beautiful, well-maintained stretch of wide golden sand backed by an affluent, walkable town known as one of the best places to live in California. The beach runs about 2 miles along the coast and is anchored by the iconic Manhattan Beach Pier — a T-shaped structure extending 928 feet into the Pacific that has been at the heart of the community since 1920, and is home to the Roundhouse Marine Studies Lab and Aquarium at its end.

Manhattan Beach is to beach volleyball what Melbourne is to Australian Rules Football — the home, the heart, the spiritual centre of the sport. The first official US beach volleyball tournament was held on the sand in front of the pier in 1960, and the court complex just north of the pier has hosted competitive play every summer since. The annual Manhattan Beach Open in August is the oldest professional beach volleyball tournament in the world — a week-long spectacle that draws elite players and tens of thousands of fans to one of the sport's most celebrated venues.

The beach itself is exceptionally clean and well-patrolled, with consistent surf providing a reliable beach break for intermediate surfers. The South Bay Bicycle Trail passes through the entire beach, making it easy to cycle between Manhattan Beach and neighbouring Hermosa and Redondo Beach, or north to Santa Monica and Venice. The town behind the beach is a genuine pleasure — Manhattan Beach Boulevard descends from downtown to the pier through a quarter mile of excellent restaurants, boutiques, and coffee shops, making the combination of beach and town one of the most appealing in Southern California.