Palos Verdes is often used to refer to a group of coastal cities on the Palos Verdes Peninsula in the Los Angeles/South Bay area of California.
Palos Verdes Estates, Rancho Palos Verdes, Rolling Hills, and Rolling Hills Estates are the predominant cities in the area, with a part of San Pedro protruding on the eastern end of the peninsula. The area is home to several golf courses and country clubs, and the South Coast Botanic Garden. On the coast is the location of the former Marineland of the Pacific, an aquatic theme park. There is a lighthouse on Point Vicente, and Point Vicente Park is a popular spot for watching the migration of gray whales to and from their breeding lagoon in Baja California. There is also a lighthouse at Point Fermin in San Pedro.
The Wayfarers Chapel, designed by architect Lloyd Wright (son of Frank Lloyd Wright) opened in 1951 and is a well-known landmark overseen by the Swedenborgian Church. The chapel is located at the western entrance of Portuguese Bend, one of the most geologically unstable areas in all of California. Constant tectonic shifts and rock slides mean that Palos Verdes Drive South, the main road through the bend, is under constant repair. And for years, the wreck of the Dominator, a freighter that ran aground in 1961, was a rather bizarre attraction for those willing to hike down the cliffs to the shoreline. Very little is left of the ship today.
The area is a very affluent one, with expensive homes overlooking the Pacific Ocean and with Santa Catalina Island almost always visible just across the channel.
The Palos Verdes Peninsula maintains its own unified school district, with two high schools, Palos Verdes Peninsula High School (formerly called Rolling Hills High School) and Palos Verdes High School (the latter located just a half block from the Pacific Ocean). Marymount College, a co-ed Roman Catholic two-year college is located in Rancho Palos Verdes. A private K-12 school, Chadwick School, is also located there.
The Peninsula is served by the Palos Verdes Library District which operates the Peninsula Center, Miraleste, and Malaga Cove Libraries.
The Korean Bell of Friendship and the Fort Macarthur Military Museum are both located near Point Fermin in San Pedro.
The area is frequented by runners, hikers, horseback riders, bird watchers, surfers, scuba divers, and bicyclists. The infamous Palos Verdes surf spots have been in the spotlight many times over localism. The "Bay Boys" (or simply PV surfers) have been known to harass, intimidate, and assault outsiders seeking to surf the perfect winter waves of "the hill." A non-local might find his tires slashed (very common) upon returning from a PV break. The most notorious surf spot for localism in PV is Lunada Bay, which can hold any winter swell and has been known to rival Sunset Beach, Hawaii on a big day.
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