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If you and your sweetheart both go gaga for the holiday season, then Santa Monica is stuffing the proverbial stocking full of novel to-dos that you’re sure to love, from annual series and festive drink specials to decadent desserts and romantic skating interludes.
There’s a little bit of everything, and a lot in between, but for sake of convenience we’ve rounded up a handful of our favorite (seasonal) date ideas over on the West Side that are right on time for your holiday enjoyment. Consider it an early gift!
16th Annual Santa Monica Pub Crawl
If you want to make your date more of a group thing, you can start things out this Saturday, December 14, with the largest holiday crawl on the West Coast. 20 of Santa Monica’s top bars and restaurants are synching up to help raise money for the Westside Food Bank as part of the 16th Annual Santa Monica Pub Crawl. There are multiple routes to choose from, including destinations centered around 3rd Street Promenade or Main Street. Wrist bands start at $28.81 per person, and that’ll get you one free drink (first 500 guests) plus $6-$9 food and drink specials at all of the designated locations along your selected route. Plus, there’s a big after party (also ticketed) at Mon Ami. And remember, it’s all for a great cause!
Locals Night at Santa Monica Pier
Every third Thursday of the month, the Santa Monica Pier activates with special performances and live entertainment, all free and open to the public. They call it Locals Nights, and for the upcoming December 19 event, the programming includes the Sandy Cane Lane car show, which will feature some of the most dazzling, holiday-decked cars you’ve ever seen. The pier makes for an awesome for a walk-and-talk date, and the festive atmosphere will be the cherry on top.
It’s a Wonderful Life at The Aero Theatre
If the key to your heart is just a bit of old school sentimentality, you and your date might want to scoop up tickets to a screening of the Christmas classic, It’s a Wonderful Life, which will be playing at The Aero Theatre on Monday, December 23. The Aero first opened in 1940, six years before audiences first set their eyes on Jimmy Stewart as George Bailey. Tickets for the holiday screening start at $17 for general admission.
Ice at Santa Monica
Ice Santa Monica has returned just in time for the holiday season, now open daily through January 20 at the corner of Arizona Avenue and 5th Street. It’s the perfect spot for you and your partner to get in touch with your inner kid, featuring some 8,000 square feet of shimmering ice a plus myriad themed activations including Classical Sundays, a Taylor Swift Birthday celebration, and special DJ-spun tunes every Wednesday evening, and a New Year’s Eve party. Skate rental and admission is $22 with locker rentals at $5.
Downtown Santa Monica Holiday Thursdays
Third Street Promenade has been hosting Holiday Thursdays throughout December, offering guests complimentary hot cocoa and cookies, performances by Toyland Brass, a pop-up holiday market, and a special “snowfall” to culminate the evening. The final edition edition of Holiday Thursdays takes place on December 19, and runs from 5 to 7 p.m. It’s all free to attend!
Christmas Afternoon Tea at Ye Old Kings Head
Want to fancy things up with your date? Celebrate the season with a Christmas afternoon tea at Ye Old King’s Head, a beloved British pub serving the community for over 50 years. This festive twist on their traditional tea includes a selection of finger sandwiches, sausage rolls, quiche, freshly baked scones with Devonshire cream and preserves, plus red velvet cupcakes, mince pies, and a chocolate dessert—all for $46. Guests can elevate the experience with a Christmas Champagne cocktail for an additional $6. The service runs Monday to Saturday, 11:30 AM–4 PM, through December 30.
Goodboybob Coffee Roasters
Get into the holiday spirit with Goodboybob Coffee Roasters’ festive drink menu, “The Naughty List,” featuring creative options like the BBL, a brown butter latte with house-made caramelized butter syrup; Fruitcake Tonic, crafted with house-made fruitcake syrup; and Got Nog?, an iced coffee topped with eggnog cream and freshly grated nutmeg. Coffee lovers can also take home the Goodboybob “Ugly Sweater” holiday blend, a medium roast blending Brazilian, Guatemalan, and Kenyan beans with notes of cocoa, tart cherry, cranberry preserves, marshmallow, and roasted chestnut—perfect for cozy winter mornings.
Peppermint Bark Hot Fudge Sundae at Ghirardelli
A brand new location of the Ghirardelli Chocolate & Ice Cream Shop just opened in Santa Monica last month, and it’s become the perfect destination for sweet-toothers looking for a bit of decadence. Just in time for the holiday season, the menu now features the Peppermint Bark Hot Fudge Sundae, an indulgent combo of vanilla ice cream layered with handmade hot fudge and peppermint bark chunks topped with whipped cream, festive red sugar, and a Peppermint Bark chocolate square. And yes, it’s great for sharing.
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