Downtown Walking Tour

The 1st and 3rd Saturday of the month at 10 am
Free for members / $10 general public
1436 Second Street, Santa Monica

NEW: Tours are free for guests at Hostelling International!

Click here to register!

Discover downtown Santa Monica’s architecture, history and culture with our team of highly-rated docents. From Art Deco to Victorian and Romanesque Revival, you’ll explore the various styles that fill the streets of our city.

A Downtown walking tour docent faces talks to a small tour group while standing in front of an exterior brick wall covered with faded advertisements.

Photo: Stephanie Plomarity for SMTT

Learn about the start of the modern movie industry, visit a lavish Art Deco hotel that attracted Hollywood celebrities with its speakeasy and see where Jim Morrison played his first show. The walking tour covers about 6 blocks in 2 hours and is open to all ages. The tours are limited to 10 people.

There’s so much story to tell. It just fills me with enthusiasm and a kind of a joy when I’m telling that story and I think all the other docents feels the same way. –Kay Pattison, former docent

Two views of the turquoise Georgian Hotel are side by side; to the left, the front elevation of the eight-story art deco building and to the right a closeup of the top story with yellow-gold ornamental detailing near the roofline.

Built in 1931, the Georgian Hotel quickly attracted a stylish clientele and Hollywood celebrities with its lavish design and speakeasy. Photo: The Georgian Hotel

We thank our sponsor Downtown Santa Monica Inc., a private 501c(3) non-profit that that promotes economic stability, growth and community life within Downtown Santa Monica and the Third Street Promenade.Downtown Santa Monica Third Street Promenade logo.

Check out some of our tour sites here:

 

 

Orange link button reads, register.

 

More Details

Docents lead guided tours on the first and third Saturdays of the month at 10 am. Meet at 9:45 am at Hostelling International, 1436 Second Street (between Broadway and Santa Monica Boulevard). Reservations are suggested. Convenient paid parking is available directly across the street in Garage #6 at 1433 Second Street. Approach the parking structure from Broadway as only right turns are allowed into Garage #6.

Walking shoes, a hat, sunscreen and water are recommended.

Group or private tours may be booked by leaving a message at 310-496-3146 or sending an email to [email protected] at least two weeks in advance.

Self-guided Tours

Self-guided Tour booklets with maps and information about 24 historic sites are available for $3 at the following Santa Monica Travel and Tourism sites: Main Visitors Center (2427 Main Street), Visitor Information Cart (1300 block of Third Street Promenade), and the Palisades Park Kiosk (1400 Ocean Avenue). Click here for information on these centers.