1. Spend a free day at one of our libraries, and the enjoyment doesn’t have to stop when you walk out the door. A little-known source of affordable entertainment Long Beach Public Library offers is movie and CD rentals. Call or click to find a library in your part of town.

562.570.7500
lbpl.org



2. Rancho Los Alamitos is a 7.5-acre historical site with four acres of beautiful gardens, an adobe ranch house build around 1800, and five agricultural buildings.

Historic site Rancho Los Cerritos is a public museum which features tours, programs and events. It features one of the few remaining two-story adobe structures in Southern California.

Both Ranchos are free of charge, and open Wednesday through Sunday, 1 - 5 p.m.

6400 E. Bixby Hill Rd.
562.431.3541
rancholosalamitos.com

4600 Virginia Rd.
562.570.1755
rancholoscerritos.org



3. Zen out at the Earl Burns Miller Japanese Gardens. Feed the fish, enjoy the tranquility and leave without opening your wallet. Tuesday through Friday: 8 a.m – 3:30 p.m. Sunday: Noon – 4 p.m. Closed: Mondays and Saturdays

1250 Bellflower Blvd.
562.985.2169
csulb.edu/~jgarden



4. Shops and galleries in the East Village Arts District in downtown Long Beach hold their monthly art openings and artists exhibit in street galleries on the second Saturday of the month during Artwalk.

artwalklb.com



5. Long Beach Community Concert Association is a volunteer organization that provides quality musical entertainment appealing to seniors and people on a fixed income, four Sunday afternoons a year at the Carpenter Performing Arts Center at CSULB. Prices are less than $25 if you subscribe to an entire season.

lbcca.org



6. In addition to our city’s resident larger theater companies, Long Beach is home to a number of smaller and more affordable theaters, including the Found Theatre, Alive Theatre, the Garage Theatre and California Repertory Company that performs at the National Guard Armory in downtown Long Beach. Google any for information.



7. Sit on the rocks next to the Long Beach Yacht Club on Appian Way and watch the boats sail/motor by.



8. Get onto the water with help of Kayaks On The Water. For only $8 per hour and group discounts ($5 per hour with groups of 20 or more), you can afford to paddle around for a few hours. And while you’re not exactly allowed to venture as far your energy and spirit of adventure will take you (renters are not allowed to exit the bay or enter the open ocean), your aching arms will let you know that you’ve had your fill probably as you’re somewhere in the middle of the canals of Naples.

5411 E. Ocean Blvd.
562.434.0999
kayakrentals.net



9. Play golf at the three (18 hole) great Long Beach city courses — nine holes are often under $25, so you can still afford refreshments while hitting the links.

lbcgolf.com



10. Hop on your bike and ride on the great bike paths from the Peninsula to Shoreline Village. Pack a picnic and stop at any number of scenic rest points.



11. Reel in the fun at the Municipal Fly Casting Pool, a 260-by-135-foot clear water pond built in 1925 by the Long Beach Casting Club. It’s fishless so you can’t bring home any tales about the one that got away, but you can practice your casting without those pesky fish getting in the way.

5201 E. Seventh St.
longbeachcastingclub.org



12. There’s no place like Om, with free yoga classes offered weekly at Svastha Health.

3141 E. Broadway
562.856.YOGA
svasthahealth.com/free-yoga-1



13. If you can leave your must-have-it impulse at home, walking and windowshopping in Belmont Shore on Second Street or Retro Row on Fourth Street is a great way to spend an afternoon.



14. “Last Saturdays” on Fourth: Shops On Fourth Street (from Junipero to Cherry Avenues) host A FREE evening of art openings, live music, in-store specials, movies (Shelter), food and libations on the last Saturday of the month.

4thstreetlongbeach.com.



15. Go on a self-guided architecture walking tour. Walk around Naples Island, and pretend you’re in Italy. Check out the nation’s slimmest house at 708 Gladys Ave. – the Skinny House was registered as a city landmark of Long Beach in 1983.

For further inspiration, see our stories about Cliff May homes in the October issue, and storybook architecture written about in March.



16. Or rather, the dog parks with our two new downtown spaces for your furry friends.

The Lincoln Dog Park features spaces for large and small dogs along with benches for owners. And K9 Corner, located at the corner of Pacific Ave. and Ninth St., is a sustainable, eco-friendly dog park, featuring drought-tolerant landscaping, solar panel-powered lighting, and faux grass to save on water.



17. The Second St. Starbucks “coffee clutch” guys set a great example for how to multitask (they sip, chat and check out babes all at once). Walk by the Starbucks at 5251 E. Second St. on any given morning, and you’ll spot 3-5 men standing around the newspaper box with coffee in hand, engrossed in idle chatter. Walk up, introduce yourself and join in on the conversation!



18. Slurp and sip in a stylish setting. Number nine noodles and beer will run you around $13 + tax and tip.

562.434.2009
numberninenoodles.com



19. 4th Street Vine offers inexpensive wine tasting and special weekly/monthly events (like $3 glasses from around the world).

562.343.5463
4thstreetvine.com



20. Contributed by a twitter reader: @FAUXMUSEUM My favorite thing to do is go to Seva Cafe Sunday’s on Fourth St. Dinner is FREE! It’s a hidden gem.

Editor’s note: According to the website, the meal isn’t exactly free. Diners get an empty envelope at the end of the meal in order to “donate” for the next person’s meal. Still, a fun way to enjoy dinner and pay it forward.

sevacafe.org



21. {open} is always up to something fun, that won’t cost an arm and a leg. Book release parties and readings, and acoustic-eclectic perfomances like the recent one exclusive concert featuring Billy Corgan (Smashing Pumpkins) and Dave Navarro (Janes Addiction) are what you can look forward to. Most shows are donation only.

2226 E. Fourth St.
562.499.6736
thestoryofopen.com



22. The “Best coffee in the LBC!”, “Most Awesome Vibes” and “Unexpectedly Cool” headlines of Google reviews pretty much say it all. On top of the great coffee, vibes and cool factor, Portfolio Coffeehouse offers exceptional free music (from jazz to rock) most Friday and Saturday nights.

2300 E. Fourth St.
562.434.2486
portfoliocoffeehouse.com



23. Contributed by Martha Wittenberg. “We have two small children (ages 5 and 2), and have learned to take advantage of what local festivals have to offer. This past summer, The Pirate Festival at Shoreline Village was a huge hit. I jogged there with the kids in the stroller to squeeze in my “ME TIME”, then took the Passport Bus back home for free. There was so much to keep the kids entertained (the fire breather was their favorite), and it didn’t cost a thing. The only money spent was on ice cream and face painting. The fact that the kids napped afterwards was priceless!”



24. Art Theatre A night at the movies is so much more here. Check on the calendar to see what is coming up — recent examples of fun events include the creepy silent vampire film Nosferatu with a live score. For some events you can go in costume and get a free small popcorn, and tickets are cheap: all shows before 5 p.m. $6.50. Adult $10, Student/child $7.50 for later showings.

2025 E. Fourth St.
562.438.5435
arttheatrelongbeach.com



25. All of the shows (except for special events) at Long Beach’s newest comedy venue, the Laugh Factory, are under $20. Pick up a calendar and it comes with a $5 discount coupon off the price. For this you pay general but get VIP access — early access to club and priority seating.

151 S. Pine Ave.
562.495.2844
laughfactory.com