Malibu is a beach city in the Santa Monica Mountains region of Los Angeles County, California, about 30 miles (48 km) west of downtown Los Angeles. It is known for its Mediterranean climate, its strip of beaches stretching 21 miles along the Pacific Ocean coast, and for its longtime status as the home of numerous affluent Hollywood celebrities and executives. Although a high proportion of its residents are entertainment industry figures with multi-million dollar mansions, Malibu also features several middle- and upper-middle-class neighborhoods. The Pacific Coast Highway traverses the city, following along the South Coast of California. As of the 2020 census, the city's population was 10,654. The ongoing 2025 Palisades Fire devastated Malibu, with almost all of the beachfront homes near its center destroyed.
Pacific Palisades is a neighborhood in the Westside region of the city of Los Angeles, California, situated about 20 miles (32 km) west of downtown Los Angeles. From January 7-31, 2025, the majority of Pacific Palisades was severely affected and destroyed by the Palisades Fire, a part of the wider Southern California wildfires.
Will Rogers State Historic Park is a California State Historic Park in the Santa Monica Mountains, in the Pacific Palisades area of Los Angeles. The 186-acre (75 ha) park was established in 1944 to preserve the estate of American humorist Will Rogers, including his ranch and the surrounding countryside. The ranch house was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1971. The ranch house and other structures were destroyed in the 2025 Palisades Wildfire.
Santa Monica Bay is a bight of the Pacific Ocean in Southern California, United States. Its boundaries are slightly ambiguous, but it is generally considered to be the part of the Pacific within an imaginary line drawn between Point Dume, in Malibu, and the Palos Verdes Peninsula. Its eastern shore forms the western boundary of the Los Angeles Westside and South Bay regions. Although it was fed by the Los Angeles River until the river's catastrophic change of course in 1825, the only stream of any size now flowing into it is Ballona Creek. Smaller waterways draining into the bay include Malibu Creek, Topanga Creek, and Santa Monica Creek.
Topanga is an unincorporated community in western Los Angeles County, California, United States. Located in the Santa Monica Mountains, the community exists in Topanga Canyon and the surrounding hills. The narrow southern portion of Topanga at the coast is between the city of Malibu and the Los Angeles neighborhood of Pacific Palisades. For statistical purposes, the United States Census Bureau has defined Topanga as a census-designated place (CDP). As of the 2020 census the population of the Topanga CDP was 8,560. The ZIP code is 90290 and the area code is primarily 310, with 818 only at the north end of the canyon. It is in the 3rd County Supervisorial district.
Topanga State Park is a California state park located in the Santa Monica Mountains, within Los Angeles County, California. It is part of the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area.
The Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area is a United States national recreation area containing many individual parks and open space preserves, located primarily in the Santa Monica Mountains of Southern California. The SMMNRA is in the greater Los Angeles region, with two thirds of the parklands in northwest Los Angeles County, and the remaining third, including a Simi Hills extension, in southeastern Ventura County.
State Route 27, commonly known by its street name Topanga Canyon Boulevard, is a state highway in the U.S. state of California that runs from the Pacific Coast Highway at Topanga State Beach near Pacific Palisades, through the Topanga Canyon in Topanga, and continuing through Woodland Hills, Canoga Park, West Hills, and Chatsworth to the Ronald Reagan Freeway.
The Western Los Angeles County Council (WLACC) (#051) is one of five Boy Scouts of America councils in Los Angeles County, California. Headquartered in Van Nuys, the council services over 30,000 youth spanning six districts including the San Fernando Valley, Santa Clarita Valley, Antelope Valley, Malibu, and much of West Los Angeles.
Rustic Canyon is a residential neighborhood and canyon in eastern Pacific Palisades, on the west side of Los Angeles, California. It is along Rustic Creek, in the Santa Monica Mountains.
Zuma Beach is a county beach at 30000 Pacific Coast Highway (PCH) in Malibu, California. One of the largest and most popular beaches in Los Angeles County, California, it is known for its long, wide sands and excellent surf. It consistently ranks among the healthiest beaches for clean water conditions in Los Angeles County.
Gladstones Malibu is an American seafood restaurant located on the Pacific Coast Highway in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles.
The 1978 Agoura-Malibu firestorm was a firestorm fueled by at least eight significant wildfires in the Los Angeles area on October 23, 1978. At around noon that day, an arsonist started a fire that eventually burned 25,000 acres (10,000 ha) from Cornell to Broad Beach in Malibu. The first fire alarm in Agoura was reported at 12:11 pm, and by 2:30 pm, the fire had reached the Pacific Ocean 13 miles (21 km) south in Malibu. It had been declared a Level 2 fire at 1:57 pm.
The Hueneme, Malibu & Port Los Angeles Railway was a standard-gauge, 15-mile railroad (24 km) in Malibu, California. It was founded by Frederick Hastings Rindge (1857–1905) and operated on his 13,000-acre ranch (5,300 ha) along the coast, which encompassed most of what is today Malibu. He struggled for years to keep trespassers off of his land, and feared that the Southern Pacific Company would use the power of eminent domain to build a railroad through his property. That threat animated Rindge to plan his own railroad to thwart the efforts of the Southern Pacific. It was part of his overall effort to keep outsiders off of his ranch, who he believed would spoil what he considered to be paradise.
The Palisades Fire was a highly-destructive wildfire that began burning in the Santa Monica Mountains of Los Angeles County on January 7, 2025, which grew to destroy large areas of Pacific Palisades, Topanga, and Malibu before it was fully contained after 24 days on January 31. One of a series of wildfires in Southern California driven by hurricane-force Santa Ana winds, it burned 23,448 acres, killed 12 people, and destroyed 6,837 structures, making it the tenth-deadliest and third-most destructive California wildfire on record.
Topanga Ranch Motel was a historic seaside motel located within Topanga State Park in Los Angeles County, California. The motel was built in 1929 by William Randolph Hearst. On January 8, 2025, the motel was destroyed by the Palisades Fire.
Topanga Beach is a state beach at 18700 Pacific Coast Highway, in California, United States, situated at the mouth of Topanga Canyon, approximately midway between Santa Monica and Malibu; it is known for its closeness by automobile to the San Fernando Valley, its windsurfing and SCUBA diving, and its reputation for welcoming a bohemian lifestyle. It consistently ranks among the beaches with the cleanest water conditions in Los Angeles County.
The Reel Inn was a seafood restaurant on the Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu, California. It was opened in 1986 by Andy Leonard; twenty years later, it was described as a "landmark of glorious decrepitude" in the New York Times. It was destroyed in the Palisades Fire in January 2025.
The Malibu Feed Bin was a pet supply and gift store in Malibu, California. The building was destroyed in the Palisades Fire on January 7, 2025.
