Malibu Private Tour With Driver: How to Get to Malibu by Car, PCH Timing and Where a Chauffeur Can Stop

How do you get to Malibu by car?

The City of Malibu is a narrow band of coast in the Santa Monica Mountains, roughly 21 miles (34 km) long, with canyon roads climbing inland and Pacific Coast Highway running along the sand. Visitors come for the beaches, the pier, the surf, the bluffs at Point Dume and the Getty Villa on its southern edge. They also come for a particular quiet that Los Angeles rarely has, which is exactly why the one road can be crowded.

This guide is for travelers booking a Malibu private tour with driver, or comparing how to get to Malibu by car with the alternatives. It covers the road, the beach lots and their closing times, the pier district, the west end and a few practical rules about privacy, because Malibu is also a residential community that is still rebuilding after wildfire.

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Check the road before you plan the route

In Malibu the most important planning step is checking conditions. Wildfire, flood and mudslide risk close roads at short notice, and the City of Malibu publishes alerts on its website. On the day this guide was written, the City's alerts page was reporting an active brush fire with evacuation warnings in western Malibu, a Coastal Flood Warning for Los Angeles County, and a local emergency declared in September over forecast El Niño storms that could bring flooding, mudslides and coastal erosion. Los Angeles County's beach pages that day also listed the Zuma Beach lots and the Point Dume beach access road as closed.

None of that makes Malibu unvisitable; it means the plan must be flexible. The desk checks the City of Malibu alerts and Caltrans conditions before every Malibu pickup, and may suggest a different beach, a different order or a different date. Pacific Coast Highway has reopened since the January 2025 Palisades Fire, and recovery work continues, so expect lane closures, work vehicles and areas where stopping is not allowed.

PCH from south to north, with distances

Pacific Coast Highway runs the length of the city. The distances below are approximate road distances from the Malibu Pier, which sits at the heart of town.

1. Santa Monica to the Malibu Pier. About 21 km (13 mi), 30 to 60 minutes. See our Santa Monica Pier guide.
2. Getty Villa (Pacific Palisades). About 9 km (5.5 mi) before the pier, at the southern edge, on the right-hand side heading north.
3. Malibu Pier and Surfrider Beach. The center of town, with the lagoon, the pier and the Adamson House.
4. Point Dume and Zuma Beach. About 11 km (7 mi) west of the pier, at the broad western beaches.
5. El Matador and Leo Carrillo. Another 8 to 13 km (5 to 8 mi) beyond, at the city's western edge.

From Los Angeles International, the drive is 38 km (24 mi) via the I-405 north and the I-10 west to Pacific Coast Highway; allow 50 to 90 minutes, and more on weekend afternoons. Our LAX transfer page explains pickups. From Hollywood the distance to the pier is about 40 km (25 mi), 55 to 95 minutes via Sunset Boulevard.

Where a car can legally stop

Pacific Coast Highway is not a place to pull over. It is a state highway with traffic lanes, narrow shoulders in places and signs prohibiting stopping or parking along long sections. Left turns across traffic are limited, and a driver heading the wrong way may need to drive some distance to turn around. In practice there are three kinds of stopping point.

• County and state beach lots. Paid lots at the main beaches. These are signed to close at dusk, and a car left inside the gates after closing time can be locked in or ticketed. The lots can also close early when full or when conditions require.
• Commercial lots beside the pier. Paid, with limited spaces and heavy demand on sunny weekends.
• Restaurant and hotel entrances. These are for patrons only.

A chauffeur drops you at a lot or at a restaurant, then parks away from the front and returns when you message. Do not ask the driver to wait on the shoulder: it is unsafe, and enforcement is active. The Los Angeles County beaches website lists the county-run beaches, including Zuma, Point Dume and Dan Blocker, with their fees and any closure notices.

Malibu Pier, Surfrider Beach and the Adamson House

The pier district is the usual first stop. The wooden Malibu Pier reaches out past the surf, with a restaurant and a fishing rail, and Surfrider Beach, beside it, is the best-known surf break in the area. The Malibu Lagoon State Beach area includes the lagoon, the pier and the beach, and the tile-decorated Adamson House sits at the edge of it. Hours at the house and the pier restaurants vary by season, so check before you build a plan around them.

Allow an hour for the pier and the beach, two with lunch. This is the point of the day where parking is hardest on a good weekend, so aim to arrive before 11 am, or use a drop-off and pickup by text. The Santa Monica to Malibu run is a good early start to beat the summer afternoon crowds on the road.

If your day includes a swim, sort out the changing arrangements before you leave the car. Beach lots have restrooms, but the sand is a walk from the lot, so wear swimwear under your clothes, carry a small bag and leave towels and spare clothes with the driver until you need them. The car can wait at the lot or return when you message, which spares you carrying a full beach kit between stops.

Zuma, Point Dume and the west end

Zuma Beach is the largest of the county beaches, with about 1.8 miles (2.9 km) of frontage, and has food stands, restrooms and a very large lot that fills early on summer weekends. Point Dume State Beach is a short drive west, with more than a mile of ocean frontage, sandy areas and bluffs. Cliff-top viewing platforms give good views of the coast, and the whale season in winter and early spring brings visitors to the headland. Access roads and lots are subject to closures, and as noted above, parts of this area can close with little notice.

Further west, El Matador and Leo Carrillo reward the longer drive. El Matador has a small lot at the top of a bluff and a stairway down to the sand, so it is best for fit visitors in flat shoes. Leo Carrillo has a larger park and a campground. Our desk will confirm the current lot status before the day.

The Getty Villa

The Getty Villa, at Pacific Palisades on the southern edge of the Malibu coast, is the Getty's museum of ancient Greek, Roman and Etruscan art, housed in a replica of a Roman country house. The Getty has described admission as free with a timed reservation, and the museum has been closed on Tuesdays; check the Getty Villa page for current hours. A detail that matters for car travelers is the entrance: the Villa can be entered only from the northbound, right-hand lane of Pacific Coast Highway, so a southbound driver must turn around first. The Getty also operates the Getty Center in Brentwood; see our Getty Center guide for the current schedule.

Lunch, shops and the country-club side of town

Malibu's restaurants range from beach cafes to formal dining rooms on the water, and Cross Creek Road, near the pier, has a shopping village with cafes and boutiques. Reservations are advisable for weekend lunch and any dinner. Many restaurants offer their own valet or have private lots, so the driver can drop at the door. The inland canyon roads, including Malibu Canyon and Topanga Canyon, connect to the San Fernando Valley; they are scenic but winding and can close in storms.

Seasons on the coast

Malibu's weather follows a pattern that is useful to know before you book. In late spring and early summer a low marine layer often covers the beaches until late morning, so a 9 am start can be gray while the inland valleys are already hot. Late summer is the warmest and busiest time. Autumn brings clear days and, in some years, strong offshore winds that raise fire danger and lead to red-flag warnings, when roads and parks can close and the desk may recommend postponing. Winter storms can bring heavy surf and mudslides, and between storms the air is often the clearest of the year, with good views to the Channel Islands. Whale-watching from Point Dume and other headlands is usually best from winter into early spring.

How to get to Malibu, compared

For a single beach day with a rental car, driving yourself is a good option. A chauffeur is the better way to see several places in a day, especially when the highway is slow and cell signal is patchy west of the pier, which makes rideshare pickups unreliable.

A chauffeured coast day

This schedule assumes a clear day and a Tuesday to Sunday.

1. 9:00 am, start at the Santa Monica Pier. A quiet walk before the crowds.
2. 10:15 am, drive PCH to the Getty Villa. About 9 km (6 mi), 15 to 25 minutes, for a timed visit of up to two hours.
3. 1:00 pm, lunch near the Malibu Pier. Book ahead.
4. 2:30 pm, Point Dume and Zuma, about 11 km (7 mi) west. Walk the bluffs if the access road is open.
5. 4:30 pm, return along PCH before the late-afternoon crawl.

Extend the day with the Getty Center by driving over the mountains on Sunset Boulevard, or end it at Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills, about 35 km (22 mi) east. Heading north, Santa Barbara is a further 125 km (78 mi) and can be a separate day. See the Los Angeles limo service page, our private tours with driver and the North America directory.

Book a driver for the day

Privacy, rebuilding and respect

Malibu is a residential community, and many homes along the highway are private beachfront properties. Chauffeurs do not stop at private homes or offer celebrity-home tours, and they do not photograph clients or post about trips. Public beach access exists at signed access points, and the City publishes the locations; please use them rather than crossing private land.

Large parts of Malibu and neighboring Pacific Palisades were burned in the January 2025 Palisades Fire, and rebuilding is under way. There are work crews, closed streets and homes in various states of recovery. Please do not treat damaged areas as sightseeing; follow road signs, keep to public routes and be considerate to residents.