The Top 5 Ways to Get Around Santa Monica
Santa Monica has so much to see and do. Lucky for us, there are many transportation options to help us get there. Sure, hopping in your car and driving is an option. But, there are many other ways to get around that are easier, and dare we say…more fun? Different modes of transportation allow you to see and experience Santa Monica in an entirely different way. Here, we outline five of the best Santa Monica transportation options.
Walk
Lace-up your walking shoes. If you want to really explore Santa Monica, doing so on foot is definitely the way to go. You have the leisure to just see where your curiosity takes you. You may discover a boutique shop that you’d never heard of and spend hours perusing the shelves. Then hunger strikes, and you can take a short walk to one of Santa Monica’s many raved-about restaurants. Or, you can take a walk along the beach or head to one of the city’s lush parks for a picnic. The possibilities are endless, and walking gives you the flexibility and freedom to see and experience Santa Monica up close and personal.
Hop a on bike
With its oceanside vibes, Santa Monica is the neighborhood to bike around in. You’ll feel the cool ocean breeze touch your face as you buzz through the streets. Santa Monica boasts more than 100 miles of bike paths, lanes, and bikeways. You can either invest in your own two-wheeler to zip around in or rent one. The Santa Monica Bike Center offers bike rentals, tours, bike parking spaces, and repairs. Lyft also has shared electric pedal assist bikes sprinkled throughout the city as part of a shared mobility pilot program launched in 2020.
Ride an e-scooter
The convenience of riding an electric scooter around Santa Monica is unmatched, not to mention it makes you feel like a kid again. You’ll spot hundreds of dockless scooters hanging out all over the neighborhood available for you to just hop on and go. Scooter operators in Santa Monica include Bird and Lyft. To locate a scooter, simply download the respective apps. It’s a fun way to get around with the added benefit of being environmentally friendly, too.
Take a train
Traffic ain’t got nothin’ on you when you’re speeding through Santa Monica by train. The Metro Expo Line connects Santa Monica to Downtown Los Angeles with stops along the way in the USC area, Exposition Park (where the California Science Center and Natural History Museum are located), Culver City, the Santa Monica Pier, the Third Street Promenade, and more. You can also use the train to commute to work and cut your drive time using the Park and Ride lots.
Take a bus
Santa Monica also has many bus options you can enjoy when you want to get around. There are 16 Big Blue Bus routes that cover the Westside, with some connecting to Koreatown, Downtown Los Angeles, and LAX. You can make contactless payments with a tap or mobile ticket. Visit bigbluebus.com to see all the different routes and schedules. There are also Metro buses that run pretty much anywhere you may want to go in Los Angeles County.
