Playa del Rey, California

In the City of Los Angeles, Playa del Rey is the section of beachfront just south of Ballona wetlands and Ballona creek and Marina del Rey; thus the beach population is divided here. This makes Playa del Rey an enclave and keeps the crowds a little smaller. For beachgoers, one danger is the uncontrolled water runoff from the creek.

The lifeguard and park services are uniform across the entire twenty mile stretch of beach, a fact which goes unremarked in Los Angeles. Skaters and bikers probably have the best chance of traversing the sidewalks of the beaches here.

Topographically, Playa del Rey sits just above sea level, beneath the Westchester hills on a flood plain which slopes gradually, north to the Santa Monica Mountains. Westchester and the beach cities to the south (Manhattan Beach, Hermosa Beach, Redondo Beach, and Palos Verdes), which lie on dunes which rise at least 50 feet above sea level. The Palos Verdes Peninsula serves as the southwest 'corner' of Los Angeles, and rises several hundred feet above sea level.