Secret Side of Santa Monica Summer

SANTA MONICA, Calif. ( TheStreet) -- It's one of Southern California's largest and most famous beach towns, forming L.A.'s western front and jutting out into the Pacific with its historic Santa Monica Pier.

To the north, the exclusive neighborhoods of Santa Monica Canyon are home to celebrity villas and CEO compounds; in the south its Main Street neighborhoods are home to artists lofts and bohemian yoga compounds.

While many pack it into an afternoon visit while in L.A. or just a trip to the beach during summer, Santa Monica has grown into its own travel destination -- especially for those who know how to avoid the tourist masses.

Santa Monica has a wide variety of overnight options, ranging from historic to boutique chic, but many don't know it has as many five-star hotels as Beverly Hills. The city's most luxurious hotels are directly on the sand, including Hotel Casa del Mar.

Once the city's hottest beach club, it now lures guests with an oceanfront pool, direct beach access -- don't get run over by passing inline skaters and bicyclists -- and hospitality. A cadre of local surfer dude valets offering a "Welcome to Casa del Mar" with each opening of the doors under an iconic brick facade.

Once the hottest beach club in Santa Monica, Calif., the Hotel Casa del Mar now lures guests with an oceanfront pool.

The California elegance just starts there. A lobby designed by L.A. architect Charles F. Plummer oozes 1920s Hollywood, replete with handpainted tile floors and Art Deco and Moorish design influences. The two-story reception area captures historic Santa Monica unlike any area hotel.

Another appealing Santa Monica hotel experience supplements beachfront location with residential charm: Hotel Oceana. Not really part of a chain, unless you count its Santa Barbara sibling, it's on a residential stretch of Ocean Avenue of Santa Monica Pier fame, on a grassy bluff above the city's main beach. A light-filled lobby is pure California design -- stone floors and cheery pastel walls under a glass atrium, with head-on views of blue Pacific horizon. And the rooms feature bright Palm Springs-meets-Palm Beach decor with touches of a private home: scattered chessboards, Frette sheets and bathroom fixtures by Waterworks. Best of all, the hotel is in walking distance to locally loved Montana Avenue, with its high-end shops and cafes.