Malibu walking tour & town guide

Malibu Pier and Surfrider Beach

The wooden Malibu Pier, first built in 1905, is the closest thing the city has to a center. Beside it, Surfrider Beach is one of the most famous surf breaks in California, with long, peeling waves that helped launch the surf culture of the 1950s and 60s, and Malibu Lagoon behind it attracts herons and other shorebirds.

Beaches along the coast

To the east, Carbon Beach is nicknamed Billionaire's Beach for the houses that line the sand; the beach itself is public and can be reached through marked access paths. To the west, Point Dume is a rocky headland with a short trail to a viewpoint over the ocean, and beyond it the wide sands of Zuma Beach and the sea stacks and coves of El Matador State Beach.

Wildfires in January 2025 destroyed many homes along the eastern part of the Malibu coast, and some of the videos here show the town before the fires. Rebuilding is ongoing, so check that beaches and access paths are open before you go.

The Pacific Coast Highway

Highway 1, known here as the PCH, is the only road through Malibu and one of the great coastal drives in the United States, with the ocean on one side and canyons and mountains on the other. It is at its most beautiful in the late afternoon and at sunset, but it gets very busy on summer weekends.

A classic walk: Malibu Pier and the lagoon

Start at Malibu Pier and walk out over the water to watch the surfers, then follow the sand west to Surfrider Beach and the edge of Malibu Lagoon. A short drive away, the Point Dume trail and the long beach walk at Zuma are good for a second outing. Distances are long in Malibu, so most visitors combine a car or bus along the PCH with walks at each beach.