Pier Lighting Starts ThePopular Downtown Holiday Stroll
The season in the South Bay section of Los Angeles starts with the annual Holiday Open House in Manhattan Beach.
This is a holiday stroll of downtown businesses on the evening of Wednesday, Nov. 18. It start with the lighting of the pier at 6 and goes until approximately 9 p.m.
It’s fun – and a great night for singles – yet it’s just the straw that stirs the drink for the holiday season in the South Bay.
There’s also the Redondo Beach Boat Parade in King Harbor (Saturday, Dec. 12) and the big one of them all, the spectacular Manhattan Beach Holiday Fireworks (Sunday, Dec. 13).
Along with the 12 Bars of Christmas pub crawl, plus lively bars full of people in the festive spirit.
Where To Find The Singles During The Downtown Stroll
But first, there’s the Holiday Open House. Downtown Manhattan Beach (just south of LAX for those of you not familiar with the area) is blocked off to traffic on Highland and Manhattan Beach Blvd. The shops and stores are open late and people stroll from place to place.
In the street there’s a band, carolers who stroll the area and sing on streetcorners, and even reindeer.
It was originally designed for people to get in a little early Christmas shopping and introduce them to the stores, which often have specials on merchandise. But to lure in the people, you need more than a few sales on merchandise. You need alcohol!
So some stores serve wine, punch, perhaps even beer. Naturally, it is in these places where you can find all the single people, who swarm over this event as if it were a beach party.
There’s no way to know which places are serving alcohol (and keep in mind it’s often little tastes, kind of like a wine tasting) so you just have to wander around and find them but here’s a tip: look for the crowded places with single people.
At one time this was full-on party but now it’s more subdued and DO NOT walk out onto the streets with your drink because the MBPD would like nothing more than to catch people coming out of a store with alcohol so that they can shut down the offending shop.
After the shops close at around 9, then all the single people go to Ercoles and Shellback Tavern to continue their partying because, well, once you’ve started getting into the holiday spirit, it’s hard to stop having that, well, spirit.
Other good bars on this night are Zinc Lounge in Shade Hotel and Rock ‘n Fish, which has half-priced Navy Grogs for the entire month of November.
Holiday Open House Stroll Details
• Wednesday, Nov. 18, 2015
• 6-9 p.m.
• Brief pier lighting ceremony at 6 p.m.
• Downtown Manhattan Beach, Manhattan Ave., between 8th & 12 Street and Manhattan Beach Blvd., from Manhattan Ave., to Valley/Ardmore.
• Link: Holiday Open House Review
Leave a Reply