Back
Palos Verdes Drive, Palos Verdes Peninsula, California
Photo: Sergei Gussev · CC BY 2.0 · cropped

Drives California Los Angeles

Palos Verdes Drive

Palos Verdes Drive · Redondo Beach → San Pedro

Sweeping10.9 mi25 min900 ft climbHigh point ≈ 400 ftOne way
Scan to drive it in CarvePoint a phone's camera here. It opens ready to drive.
Drive it in Carve, free

Opens this route in the app, or where to get it.

Drive this road
in the appOpen

The drive

Palos Verdes Drive circles the Palos Verdes Peninsula, and this drive covers its western and southern shore from Redondo Beach to San Pedro. It starts at Palos Verdes Boulevard and follows Palos Verdes Drive West along the bluffs, with the ocean on your right and Catalina Island on clear days. Point Vicente is the stop on the way: the lighthouse, built in 1926, stands beside the city's Interpretive Center, a well-known spot for watching the gray whale migration from December through April.

Farther on, Palos Verdes Drive South crosses the Portuguese Bend landslide. The slide was set off in 1956 by a road built along the top of an ancient slide complex, and the ground here still moves. The city describes about two miles of the road as severely damaged by land movement and has a reconstruction project planned. The drive ends in San Pedro.

Along the way

  1. Redondo Beach (Palos Verdes Boulevard)
  2. Point Vicente
  3. San Pedro
Elevation
900 ft of climbing · high point ≈ 400 ft
Redondo BeachSan Pedro
Curves
Mostly gentle, with one twisty stretch
Redondo BeachSan Pedro
GentleHairpins

Good to know

  • The city of Rancho Palos Verdes has temporarily banned bicycles, motorcycles and similar wheeled vehicles from about two miles of Palos Verdes Drive South, and has been extending the ban in 60-day steps. Check the city's updates before you go.
  • The road through the Portuguese Bend area sits on moving ground; the city says it sometimes floods in storms and has closed it temporarily for drainage and survey work.
  • Point Vicente has free daytime parking at the Interpretive Center lot.

Open all year, weather permitting. Roads close for snow, fire, storms and repairs: before you set off, check City of Rancho Palos Verdes: community updates.

Questions about this drive

How long does Palos Verdes Drive take?

Palos Verdes Drive from Redondo Beach to San Pedro is 10.9 miles and takes about 25 minutes without stops. Add time for Point Vicente.

Is Palos Verdes Drive twisty?

It is a sweeping drive rather than a tight one: mostly gentle ocean-bluff curves with one short twisty stretch near the start. It is more about the coast than the bends.

Why is Palos Verdes Drive South damaged?

Palos Verdes Drive South crosses the Portuguese Bend landslide, which began moving in 1956. The city says about two miles of the road have been severely damaged by land movement and plans to rebuild them.

Where can you watch whales from Palos Verdes Drive?

Point Vicente, on Palos Verdes Drive West, is a known whale-watching spot. The Interpretive Center there points to the Pacific gray whale migration from December through April.

What you get in the app

Turn by turn, on this roadSpoken directions along the exact route. Carve never reroutes you onto a faster one.
Preview it in 3DFly the whole drive over satellite and terrain before you go.
Drive it with no signalAPEXDownload the map and every turn before you go.
Live Group TrackingAPEXEveryone on the route, on the map, by name.
Road conditionsAPEXWet or dry, ice, fog and wind along the road before you go.
Record your drivesAPEXRecord a drive and turn it into a route to drive again or share.

Free on iPhone and Android. CarPlay and Android Auto come with Apex.

Download on theApp StoreEarly access onGoogle Play

More drives near here

All 126 drives in California ›

Distance, time, elevation, curves and intensity are from Carve's route. Checked 2026-10-28.

+ Plan a new route
Map of Palos Verdes Drive, from Redondo Beach to San Pedro