Pacific Coast Highway Road Trip - Part I - Long Beach

A year ago we were looking at travel bans and stay at home orders. As those have been relaxed they have been replaced with such onerous restrictions that we think twice. Whether it be concerns about the restrictions or fears of being in a confined space when the virus may not be under control, getting on a plane or a cruise ship isn’t on the list of things most of us want to do.

Please subscribe to our YouTube channel

Welcome back to the great American road trip. For the longest time road trips were the rage. You see the country you would otherwise miss when you are 30,000 feet in the air. You can pull off the main roads and explore the byways. You’re the master of your own journey. That’s how it should be.

This is part of a multi-part series on driving the California Pacific Coast Highway. In this episode we explore the areas in and around Long Beach. Some of the key attractions here are:

Goldenshore RV Park: The first thing we come to in the video as we enter Long Beach on Shoreline Drive is the Goldenshore RV Park. If you are traveling by RV there isn’t a more convenient place to park for a few days as you explore Long Beach. The address is 101 Golden Shore in Long Beach. You’ll see a turnoff to it on Shoreline Drive if you are headed south entering Long Beach. Pricing and reservation on their website.
The Catalina Express: If you are here long enough, the Catalina Express to Catalina Island is right here. Taking the trip to Catalina Island is the perfect day trip excursion. The address is 320 Golden Shore, Long Beach. Visit their website to book reservations.
Clustered together you’ll find the Aquarium of the Pacific, Shoreline Aquatic Park, Lions Lighthouse, Shoreline Village and Parker Lighthouse. You can also rent boats to take out in the harbor at Shoreline Village. There are also several shopping plazas here including restaurants, bakeries, bars and gifts. Across the street is the Pike Outlet Mall with high end designer store, a ferris wheel and more. On this side is a very cool shopping and entertainment district in Long Beach. You could easily spend a day or two here checking out the things to do. Address to Shoreline Aquatic Park is 200 Aquarium Way. You can easily access all of the spots mentioned from here. Here is a video we did on Shoreline Aquatic Park for a better look at the area.

4. The RMS Queen Mary: The Queen Mary can be seen from any of the places you are above. To get to it you’ll want to drive though. It offers historical guided tours, events, themed dining and hotel rooms. It’s also said the Queen Mary is the most haunted place in Southern California and they offer an overnight stay in the spookiest of staterooms. The address is 1126 Queens Highway, Long Beach.

5. We turn off of Shoreline onto Ocean Boulevard where Alamitos Beach is. This is where the Astronaut Islands are located. These have caught the attention of tourists and locals for a long time as they wonder what the structures and beautiful landscaping is for. Most think the islands are luxury resorts. Not so. They are man made islands for offshore oil drilling operations. The landscaping was done to prevent them from marring the scenery of the beautiful Long Beach coast. Here is a short video of the Astronaut Islands below.

6. The Belmont Veterans Memorial Pier: Built in 1966, this pier offers fishing without a license and awesome views of the Long Beach coastline and downtown Long Beach. There is street parking and a parking lot at the pier. The address is 15 39th Place, Long Beach

Be sure to join us for Part II of our Pacific Coast Highway Road Trip when we take you through the cool Belmont Shore business district and to check out the peaceful luxury living in the island community of Naples.

This site does contain some affiliate ad links from various companies including Amazon and I do earn a small commission from qualifying purchases. I try to only recommend products and services I believe are of good value.