Venice Beach, CA

Los Angeles offers many different seaside neighborhoods, but none quite like free-spirited Venice. An entirely different zest from family-friendly Santa Monica, the more bohemian beachfront community of Venice has always had an artistic zeal and inherent grittiness. That’s part of the edgy charm. Plus, it’s stocked with great food, hip bars, indie shops, colorful murals, and a legendary skate culture that speaks to its palpable cool factor.

Where to Stay:

Venice V Hotel

Diverse, chill, and beachy like the place it calls home, Venice V Hotel is on the short list of lodgings that sit right on the boardwalk. The building itself has a pretty eclectic history. At one point the Z-Boys skateboard team holed up here. That creative, counterculture heritage mixes with bursts of modern style to create an unmistakably local aesthetic.

Book Now

The Kinney Venice Beach

Falling squarely in the affordable and adorable category, The Kinney Venice Beach favors fun, color, and conviviality at every turn. The whole property feels like a party. Rooms are bright and cheerful with contemporary artwork. The courtyard with larger-than-life murals, ping pong tables, and fire pits is a social hub for kicking back before or after the beach.

Book Now

Where to Eat:

Great White

While Great White now has outposts in West Hollywood and Larchmont, the original is on Pacific Ave in Venice. And if you want to see—and taste—what made this all-day cafe popular enough to expand in the first place, it’s essential to eat at the OG location, where sun-kissed beachgoers swing by for breakfast burritos, ricotta hotcakes, pizza, and smoothies.

Gjusta

On weekends you’re likely to see a line wrapped around Gjusta, a hybrid deli/bakery/café/market rooted in all things California (the vast majority of ingredients come directly from the local purveyors) and a long-time staple of the community. Join the queue, order an egg sandwich or a banh mi Americano, grab a spot on the leafy back patio, and soak in the off-duty ambiance.

Felix

It’s hard—though certainly not impossible—to snag a table at Felix. Whether you’re able to secure a seat in the impeccably decorated indoor dining room or on the plant-studded terrace, incredible Italian food awaits. The menu is mapped out by region, with scratch-made pasta and pillowy focaccia as highlights. The curated wine list and cocktails also impress.

Where to Drink:

The Lincoln

A cool, cozy bar for cocktails, wine, and tunes, The Lincoln strikes a balance that’s often hard to find in a neighborhood drinking den. It’s vibe-y and has thrumming energy yet you can actually have a conversation (most of the time)—making it an ideal spot for a fun date or hanging out with friends.

High Rooftop Lounge at Hotel Erwin

Rooftop bars overlooking the ocean are surprisingly hard to find in Venice. High Rooftop Lounge at Hotel Erwin fills that void with drinks, sunset views, and an always-buzzy atmosphere. (Pro tip: if you don’t want to wait, be sure to make a reservation.)

What to Do:

Abbot Kinney Boulevard

Abbot Kinney Boulevard shows off a more polished side of Venice without losing its free-wheeling soul. The walkable, mile-long strip is full of fashionable boutiques, galleries, and eateries like Butcher’s Daughter to grab a bite or a beverage in between shopping.

Venice Beach Boardwalk

The Venice Beach Boardwalk is iconic. Yes, it’s sometimes sensory overload with all the entertainment, tattoo parlors, food, bicycles, and people, but it’s also such a vibrant, quirky reflection of its environs. Don’t forget to swing by the famous skate park, a requisite stop in a place credited with giving rise to SoCal board culture.

Mosaic Tile House Venice

The Mosaic Tile House Venice is an off-beat and eye-catching 1940s home that’s completely covered in colorful glass mosaics. Entry requires a reservation, though you can easily just pass by and admire it from the outside while walking around town.

Venice Canals

For a scenic walk through history, head to the Venice Canals. An homage to the city of the same name in Italy, the man-made waterways were dug by Abbot Kinney way back in 1905 to help with drainage and introduce some Europe-meets-SoCal flair into the new seaside community.

Animal House

Animal House also invites visitors, err shoppers, to go back in time but in a very different way. The long-standing boutique curates a selection of vintage clothes—notably covetable concert tees from past Grateful Dead and Pink Floyd shows—and stocks some new stuff that fits the Venice vibe, too.

Other articles you may like:

The last time I slept in a bunk bed, I was 13 years old. (I was at summer camp, where a rude girl in my cabin informed everyone that people can fart in their sleep.) But when I arrived at Stay Open, I still found myself hoping to get a top bunk.

To be clear, the sleeping quarters at Venice’s beachfront pod hotel aren’t exactly bunk beds — rather, they’re refrigerator-sized “pods” stacked atop one another, like giant Lego bricks. Opened in October 2021 in one of the old Snapchat offices, Stay Open is like a more grown-up version of a hostel, blending elements of Japan’s capsule hotels and more recent co-living experiments. The space is bright and modern, with massive windows, millennial pink bedding and a dangling disco ball that’s framed by a prime view of Venice Beach.

Steve Shpilsky, the CEO and co-founder of Stay Open, wants to help change the perception of the hostel, which he says is viewed as “kind of a bad word.”

Advertisement

“You poll the average American, ‘What do you think of a hostel?’ They’re like, ‘Oh, I’m gonna lose a kidney.’ Horror movie. It’s not a great first impression,” he said.

For the record:

10:52 a.m. May 31, 2023An earlier version of this article incorrectly stated that Steve Shpilsky financed and developed the Waldorf Astoria Beverly Hills and the Hyatt Regency. Shpilsky financed, but did not develop, the Waldorf. He also financed and developed the LAX Hyatt House/Place, not the Hyatt Regency.

Shpilsky, 45, worked in traditional hospitality for years — financing the Waldorf Astoria Beverly Hills and one of the Hyatts near LAX — before he came up with the idea for Stay Open. Though hostels are already quite popular on other continents, the model hasn’t changed much over the last century. “It’s like taxi cabs before Uber came along,” he said.

For my recent stay, an app on my phone allowed me to unlock the door, which opened to a colorful, multistory loft. With 12 custom-made “pods,” three bathrooms (with hotel-style products), several desks and monitors, and a washer and dryer, the space has the vibe of a large Airbnb filled with strangers. On the first floor, there’s a movie projector and a phone-booth-shaped office pod.

The first floor is also where David Draffin, the hotel’s operations manager, lives. He was hired after booking a pod at Stay Open — he started talking to Shpilsky about his experience working with hostel companies and the two found that they shared similar ideals.

Aside from being more affordable than traditional hotels (pods cost around $100 per night, depending on availability), Draffin said Stay Open appeals to digital nomads who need to keep working while they travel.

Advertisement

“I find, in my background in hostels, you look at a space and [it’s about], ‘How many people can we physically get in there and maximize the money?’ Whereas the approach here is, you’ve got to have enough living space to work space to social space,” Draffin said.

As I walked through the second floor, I got a glimpse into where I’d be sleeping that night. I had the top pod closest to the window, with an absolutely ridiculous view of the ocean.

With a sliding door and a curtain, the pods can be closed for privacy (but not locked, which is probably for the best in terms of claustrophobia). My pod had two small shelves, a white-noise machine and fan, and several outlets on both ends of the bed.

Shpilsky said he wanted the pods to “feel like your own little space,” upgrading standard bunk beds into pods with mattresses from Silk & Snow, dimmable lighting and even crown molding.

Advertisement

“What are the pain points of a hostel? [Terrible] mattress and bunk beds, and it feels like prison,” he said. “Pod hotels are good, but then you look at a lot of the concepts and it feels like you’re sleeping in a morgue. There’s no openness and social element.”

Shpilsky first contemplated the idea before the pandemic, but as work culture has shifted away from physical offices, he found a convenient silver lining. Instead of investing all the time and money to build new structures, he could take over empty spaces.

“There’s basically going to be the size of Manhattan in terms of available office buildings in the U.S. over the next five years,” Shpilsky said. “Why do you have to build something from the ground up if there’s a great building and a good location that could be used for something better than it was intended for?”

Sebastian Solari, 24, was working at one of the desks when I arrived. He’d been traveling from his home in Lima, Peru, for the last year and a half, staying in traditional hostels where it’s common to have anywhere from four to 24 people sleeping in each room. Many hostels use standard metal bunk beds, which means there’s little to no privacy beyond the communal bathrooms that travelers share.

Advertisement

“Staying at bigger hostels is nice because you are able to meet people, but sometimes after a while, it’s just too much,” Solari said. “You’re meeting people every day, they come and go, it’s hard sometimes to focus.”

After traveling through South America, Solari found himself at Stay Open, saying it has a nice vibe and an interesting setup that gives him more privacy, work space and socialization than conventional hostels.

“If I rented an Airbnb by myself, I’m going to be bored to death,” he said.

In terms of expansion, Shpilsky is hoping to launch Stay Open locations in Santa Monica and San Diego in the near future. Though the Venice location has only 12 beds, he’s hoping the next building, near Santa Monica’s Third Street Promenade, will be much larger.

“Our goal is to get our 100 beds up and running as quickly as possible,” he said. “Because I think it’s harder for us to go from the [12] beds we have here to 100 than it will be from going from 100 beds to 1,000.”

Advertisement

So far, he said that Stay Open has been running at 90% capacity. Shpilsky added the average age of its clientele is 33, and most of its guests are international travelers.

“Essentially everyone that comes here is the same person,” Draffin said. “They’re at a certain age where they don’t necessarily want to stay in a hostel dorm room. They don’t want to pay for a hotel, they might want some communal vibes happening. But they do want their own space.”

After I toured the space and left to grab a slice of salad pizza from Abbot’s Pizza Company, I decided to eat my dinner on the hotel’s rooftop to catch the sun setting over the ocean. Soon enough, Solari and Pasha Makhrinsky, from Kyiv, Ukraine, wandered upstairs to chat.

Once it was dark, some guests began disappearing into their pods. As I moved my things into my pod, I was pleasantly surprised by how comfortable and roomy it felt. With a twin mattress and enough room to sit up with no worry of hitting my head, I could understand the appeal.

Advertisement

Once quiet hours kicked in at 10 p.m., I found myself chatting in hushed tones on the mezzanine with Solari, Makhrinsky and Jasmine Dawes, a healer from Tynemouth, England, who had just returned to Stay Open after a trip to Mt. Shasta. Dawes said she enjoys staying at hostels since they often lead her to interesting people, and Stay Open felt more sophisticated than the average accommodation.

“I think this is a really nice level-up to do that in a really beautiful way,” she said.

Throughout the night, as we refilled cups of tea and exchanged stories, it felt a bit like I was back at summer camp, swapping snacks and late-night stories with new friends from around the world. Solari told us about a day when several guests rented bikes to explore the Venice canals, and I thought about how lonely L.A. can feel when you first arrive.

“Will you be here tomorrow night?” Dawes asked me at one point. “We’re going to make curry!”

By 1 a.m., when we all decided to shuffle off to bed, I realized I had forgotten a phone charger. Without skipping a beat, Dawes offered that I could borrow hers for the night. When I crawled into my pod, I decided to close the curtain but keep the door partially open, to allow some morning sunlight to wake me up.

Perhaps I’m just a heavy sleeper, but I snoozed peacefully through the night, unable to hear anyone else’s snoring or late-night TikTok scrolling. As I packed up my things to head home, a small part of me wished I would be around to eat curry for dinner with the rest of the group the next day.

VIDEO | 06:24

LA Times Today: This Venice Beach pod hotel wants to make sleeping in a box chic

Before I met Jeffrey, about a thousand years ago, I was new to California- a Florida transplant - living with my sister in the San Fernando Valley. But it wasn’t until I met Jeffrey that I really found my home. I met the guy on a blind date on a Monday, and he moved in on Tuesday. And then, he showed me Venice and there was no going back. It was a match made in heaven. Me, Jeffrey and Venice.

(1979, formerly The Sea N Shore Bistro. Today, The Waterfront Venice)

Jeffrey was born just three miles south of Venice Beach, in the township of Westchester, California. Jeffrey knew what it was to struggle. He grew up with a bi-polar disorder in a time when we thought crying was for sissies. In a sense, Venice saved him- it was his playground and the love of his life.

He knew everyone and everyone knew him. He was the guy with the pet tiger on a stake, walking circles around him, while he tanned on the beach. He was the guy you would catch shooting hoops on a Friday and skating around in his red roller skates on Saturday.

Jeffrey did a lot of walking as he moved around in his life. It gave him time for great reflection. He had a theory that “everything loose rolls West” and that’s what happened to him. He landed back here, back home, in Los Angeles, on the far western edge of the continent as far west as he could get - his back against the Pacific ocean and his heart facing the city. And that’s where he was, for over 45 years, living in and loving Venice, meeting its people, collecting its memorabilia, roller skating and- since 2008, when he founded Venice Beach Walking Tours- giving tours along the bike path and the world famous Ocean Front Walk.

He was never about this crowd or that group - he’d always been down to roll with anybody who was down to roll. And for me, that’s the essence of this project, and what I am humbly asking for your help with.

The Los Angeles Parks Foundation, in concert with the City of L.A. and a handful of local businesses and organizations, is kicking off a major effort to revitalize and repair Ocean Front Walk - “the boardwalk” along the beach. The strip of cement along the sand that has given so much meaning, expansive joy and fun to Jeffrey’s and my life.

These last few years, the double and dueling swords of Covid and gentrification have left many of our public amenities in disarray, while simultaneously threatening to chip away at the soul of Venice. That’s what makes this revitalization project so special- because, with your help, we can reinvest in the community in a way that will improve a shared quality of life for everyone here. The long-term project will include repaving, re-landscaping and more consistent maintenance. But the anchor project and very first step will be… wait for it… a new bench in honor of and dedicated to Jeffrey Solomon.

Two years ago, Jeffrey had to leave the beach community he loved so much to reside in a memory care facility for Alzheimers. He still smiles when he looks at photos of anything Venice. The bench will be right outside my patio window, at the very northern border of Venice. So when you step into Venice from Santa Monica - Jeffrey will be there to welcome you. Because that’s what he did. He welcomed everyone. And of course, it’s Venice, so the bench will be durable; made out of 2,000 lbs of concrete expertly affixed to the ground and maintained by L.A. City Parks and Recs. It will include this inscription:

Now, this where I ask you to please consider making a donation so we can raise the funds for the LA Parks Foundation to take this first step in revitalizing our community in honor and spirit of Jeffrey. We need to raise $25,000 in order to kick off this project with a bang and a bench. We will be adopting that portion of Ocean Front Walk. Funds raised will not only buy the bench, but will also support youth programming at the Venice Beach Rec Center. So many people have asked me over the years how they can help, and now I finally have an answer- this is how! Please make a donation to help us reach our goal and help this vision become a reality.

Thank you, and we hope to see you sitting on the bench!

Hurricane Hilary Currently A Category 4 Storm, First Ever Tropical Storm Watch Issued For Southern California

By Keemia Zhang and Dolores Quintana

This article has been updated as of Friday, August 18, at 11:00 a.m. Hurricane Hilary is expected to make landfall in Southern California by Monday, the fourth such storm to ever hit Southern California and the first hurricane since 1939. According to the National Weather Service of Los Angeles, the storm has already been declared a Category 3 hurricane on Thursday evening and was upgraded to a “powerful” Category 4 storm later that night. It remains Category 4 this morning.

The National Weather Service has declared the first-ever tropical storm watch for the Los Angeles area. The warning states, “A Tropical Storm Watch has been issued for Catalina and Santa Barbara Islands, Antelope Valley Foothills, San Gabriel Mountains, Interstate 5 Corridor, Santa Clarita Valley, and Highway 14 Corridor.”

The watch includes significant warnings about the possibility of flooding and high winds in Los Angeles County, “Prepare for life-threatening rainfall flooding having possible extensive impacts across Los Angeles and Ventura Counties and possibly Santa Barbara County. The most dangerous conditions are expected over the mountains.”

Potential impacts include: “Major rainfall flooding may prompt many evacuations and rescues. Small streams, creeks, canals, arroyos, and ditches may become dangerous rivers. Destructive runoff may rage down mountainvalleys while increasing susceptibility to rockslides, mudslides, and debris flows. Flood control systems and barriers may become stressed. Streets and parking lots could become rivers of moving water with underpasses submerged. Driving conditions become dangerous. Many road and bridge closures with some weakened or washed out.”

A tropical storm can have winds anywhere between 39 to 73 mph. According to the NWS Los Angeles, the types of wind damage can include “Damage to porches, awnings, carports, sheds, and unanchored mobile homes. Unsecured lightweight objects are blown about. Many large tree limbs could be broken off. A few trees could be uprooted, but with greater numbers in places where trees are shallow-rooted. Some fences and roadway signs were blown over. Some roads could become impassable from debris, particularly within urban or heavily wooded places. Hazardous driving conditions on bridges and other elevated roadways. Possible scattered power and communications outages.”

Weather services stress that it is too early to predict the storm’s path, which could change.

The National Weather Service of Los Angeles is “still expecting significant impacts for Southern California Sunday through Monday.” and notes that the storm will likely bring “the potential for significant marine issues Sunday-Monday: High surf – Strong winds – Dangerous rip currents – Coastal flooding/beach erosion – Dangerous conditions for S and SE facing harbors.”

Los Angeles County Department of Social Services has already sent out an alert that reiterates to residents that the storm will cause “rough surf and dangerous winds to L.A. County beginning late this Sunday through Monday. Some areas could see up to five inches of rain. DPSS urges residents to take precautions and stay updated by signing up for emergency alerts at ready.lacounty.gov and following the department on social media @ReadyLACounty.” For tips on storm preparedness, you can check Ready LA County.gov Rain.

The City of Santa Monica issued an alert today about the storm noting that The National Weather Service of Los Angeles has issued a flood watch for Los Angeles County. “from Sunday afternoon to Monday evening.” and urges residents to “take action now to prepare for storm activity.” directing people to the city’s extreme weather preparedness webpage.

The advice on the page states, “Heavy, prolonged rainfall and thunderstorms along the California coast can result in coastal and large-scale urban flooding. Monitor weather reports via www.weather.gov and take action if an active weather alert is issued for Santa Monica. If major rain events are in the forecast, stay home as much as possible. Never drive through standing water or areas closed by public officials.

Thunderstorms and other weather events, like windstorms, can have additional impacts, such as power outages and downed trees and power lines. Avoid downed power lines and anything that may be touching them – especially water. If power outages are detected, please contact SoCal Edison for outage updates via SCE.com/outage. Stay updated on local weather impacts by signing up for SMAlerts notifications.”

Tropical cyclones have rarely made landfall in Southern California – the San Diego Hurricane of 1858 was the only one to have landfall as a hurricane, followed by the Tropical Cyclones of El Nino in 1938 and 1939. Other tropical storms affecting Los Angeles-area residents include the Long Beach Tropical Storm in 1939, Nora in 1997, Kathleen in 1976, and Kay in 2022.

The National Hurricane Center estimates that Hilary will come onto American soil with 60mph sustained wind and 40-60 wind gusts in Southern California. Local concerns include flash flood warnings in other counties – with particular caution to residents near former fire sites – and rainfall varying from 2-8 inches, depending on the area. Risks of lightning also indicate a possible fire hazard.

​​Southern California is typically protected from full-level hurricane-intensity storms due to colder seawater and upper-level searing winds – however, this year’s El Nino indicates that ocean temperatures are warmer. August is typically one of the months on the California coast with limited rainfall.

VENICE, LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- A massive homeless encampment is being cleared out from Venice.

Homeless people living in tents along Venice Boulevard near Dell Avenue were warned to clear out by 6 a.m. Wednesday and told any property left behind would be removed.

Later in the day, city crews were seen clearing out any tents and property still on the street.

Efforts were underway to find shelter for those living in the tents. But at least one human-rights group says the communication was inadequate, and some encampment residents don't like how the situation was handled.

"Social workers are supposed to be helping us out to get into somewhere," said Nathaniel Prenters, who was living at the encampment. "But if we keep moving, how are they gonna find us? They can't find everybody if we gotta keep moving."

Bev Weise, a homeowner in the area, says the problem has prompted her to put her home on the market.

"It's awkward living in this community, Venice Canals, that is very upscale, lovely homes and all that," Weise said. "And you go outside and you're faced with the reality of what it's like for a lot of other people."

The solution is not easy, she acknowledges.

"I think the city is trying to do their best but it's not fast enough. I'm very mixed. I want them gone - and I want them housed."

City Councilwoman Traci Park says the work is part of efforts to beautify the parkway along Venice Boulevard. She said work is underway to find shelter for those in the encampments.

Park wrote on Facebook:

"Since taking office, my team and I have been working with local residents to fulfill a longtime community wish - the beautification of the parkway along Venice Boulevard at Dell Avenue, which serves as gateway to Venice Beach for local residents and all of Los Angeles. Leading up to this work, which starts tomorrow, we have been actively working to bring the individuals living at this site safely indoors in partnership with CIRCLE, LAHSA, St. Joseph and SHARE. This is in addition to a CARE+ service day to restore public health, safety and accessibility along this important thoroughfare. We will continue our tireless work to bring people indoors."

The area along the parkway is expected to be fenced up to prevent the tents from returning.

The effort is not a part of Mayor Karen Bass' Inside Safe program, a citywide initiative she launched in December to find housing for the city's homeless.

Park says shelter options have been offered to more than 30 people in the area and so far six who qualified have received permanent supportive housing. City staff members were continuing to talk to people in the encampments to convince them to accept shelter even as the cleanup was ongoing.

"I'm sorry we took up this space here," said Marcio Harger, who was living in the encampment. "We just needed a place to live."