Hot Fun in Malibu: The Best Attractions in SoCal's Famous Beach Playground

Hailed as the first ever World Surfing Reserve by the non-profit Save the Waves Coalition, Surfrider Beach boasts amazing surf breaks right in the shadow of the Malibu Pier. As part of the Malibu Lagoon State Beach, the impressive swells created by Malibu Point draw waveriders of all ages and experience. Non-surfers can pack a picnic and play in the sand, bird watch on a walk through the lagoon and even try saltwater fishing up on the pier. You can even check in to the Surfrider Hotel across the street and sleep with the waves crashing nearby. But make advance plans to do that, as the cozy little hotel only has 20 rooms.

With over 40 retail shops, plenty of eateries and even a playground filled with fun, the Malibu Country Mart is a year-round shopping destination on Pacific Coast Highway. The buildings that make up the shopping complex suggest a rustic country market, yet the shops inside reflect sophistication and high fashion. Shops include John Varvatos, Toy Crazy, Ron Herman, Oliver Peoples, Madison and Nomad Malibu. Malibu Country Mart is also home to some of Malibu's best restaurants, including top-notch Italian cuisine at Tra di Noi and steak and seafood choices at Lucky's, as well as 5 Point Yoga, a spot for both traditional yoga and aerial arts, too.

The Carbon Beach Club Restaurant is one of the most romantic places in Southern California to while away an afternoon. Located on the beach overlooking the Malibu Pier, the restaurant is part of the Malibu Beach Inn, a lovely boutique hotel. At the restaurant, which serves breakfast, lunch, dinner and/or drinks (if that's all you're in the mood for), you'll be swept up into the wonderfulness of it all, watching the waves crash along the shoreline, seeing the birds swoop and soar overhead and, if you are really having a lucky date, catching a humpback whale breach as it makes it way along the shoreline during migration seasons. Even if all you see are your lover's star-struck eyes, this is a place that has love in the air. Plan an overnight stay at the award-winning hotel with their "Romantic Retreat" package, complete with champagne and strawberries.

If you're a fan of famous and beautiful college campuses, you'll want to swing by Pepperdine University during your time in Malibu. The campus is situated on the side of a hill above Pacific Coast Highway and overlooks the ocean, providing panoramic views and making Pepperdine University one of the most expensive schools in the country. The college is also one of the nation's best, a Christian university that has an ongoing calendar of faith-based special events that take place on its campus, many of which are open to the public. Pepperdine is also the home of the Frederick R. Weisman Museum of Art, which showcases the work of California artists from the 1960s to present day and is open every day except Monday.

The Adamson House is the fully restored home of the Rindge family, who owned all of Malibu in the late 1800s and well into the 1900s. The lovely Spanish Colonial Revival style beach house sits right on Pacific Coast Highway and is both a California Historic Landmark and a National Historic Site. Adamson House is filled with original furnishings, looking just as it did when the family built it in 1929, using many of the Spanish tile manufactured by the family's famed Malibu Potteries. As you take guided tours of the house, gardens and nearby museum, you'll learn more about the family, as well as the Spanish settlers and Chumash Tribe that went before.

Open since 1972, the Malibu Surf Shack rents all the water sports toys you need to get into the real Malibu groove, communing with the ocean up close and personal. Give paddle boarding, kayaking or surfing a try; if you're not sure just how to ride a board or paddle a kayak, the experienced folks at Malibu Surf Shack are ready to show you how with private lessons. Once you've mastered your chosen sport, head out on a guided tour with one of the Surf Shack's experts. And if you're already a pro at stand-up paddle boarding or kayaking, simply head out on your own to see Malibu from a very different perspective â€" on top of the water.

Paradise Cove Beach Cafe is literally right on the beach in the northernmost reaches of the Malibu community, almost to Point Dume. The inside of the cafe that has been on this spot for generations has funky booths with a beach-inspired vibe and large windows overlooking the Paradise Cove Beach. You also have the option of choosing lounge chairs right on the beach, giving you a chance to enjoy their famous Fruit Boba Rum Drinks and take in the Malibu sunshine with your feet in the soft sand. The menu has plenty of choices, with a focus on seafood options and BBQ specialties, both of which have sampler options ideal for sharing.

The Rosenthal Malibu Estate Wine Bar and Patio is a hugely convivial spot located right on PCH, where their outdoor garden literally rocks all weekend, as live bands keep things hoppin'. They have lots of shady tables and pour all their wines, both the Malibu Estate and Surfrider labels. No food is served, but you can bring your own to pair with their excellent estate wines grown in the specific AVA of Malibu - Newton Canyon. Rosenthal is the only winey in that AVA, and their Estate Wines label guarantees you're sipping wines from there. Try the Petit Verdot or the Cab Franc for a slightly different (and delicious) red wine experience; or go more traditionally with their luscious Cabernet Sauvignon or the oaky Chardonnay.

The long Malibu Pier is an ideal place in Malibu to go for a relaxing walk. The pier is refreshingly uncluttered compared to most piers in California, with just a few restaurants and shops. As you walk down Malibu Pier you'll pass fishermen trying to catch their own personal catch of the day. From the pier you can see down the coastline, the multi-million dollar beach homes of Malibu hugging the edge of the sandy cliffs. The end of the Pier is worth a good long stop so you can gaze out at the ocean, unobstructed save for a few ships and revelers enjoying some exciting water sports.

The Getty Villa is an incredible architectural masterpiece, the repository for the J. Paul Getty Foundation's extensive Greek and Roman antiquities collection, as well as ancient art from other cultures ranging from the Stone Age to the fall of the Roman Empire. Located just up the hill from Pacific Coast Highway on the way to Malibu from the south, it's the perfect place to begin a day of sightseeing up the coastline. The villa's four gardens are beautiful, the buildings are marvels of Italian marble, a faithful recreation of the Villa dei Papiri in Herculaneum, Italy, a first century A.D. Roman country house. Admission is free, as are the various tours offered each day, both of the artistic treasures and of the special gardens.