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Car Rentals LAX and the Port of Los Angeles

The Port of Los Angeles is located on the San Pedro Bay in the San Pedro neighborhood of Los Angeles, which is about 20 miles south of downtown with your LAX car rental. The port stretches along 43 miles of waterfront and occupies 7500 acres of water and land.

All aboard!

San Pedro Bay was originally a shallow mudflat that was too soft to support a wharf. Ships had two choices to make it to land: either stay far out and put down the anchor and send small boats of people and goods to shore, or they could beach themselves. Neither choice was very good. In 1871, Phineas Banning improved shipping when he dredged the channel to Wilmington to a depth of 10 feet. This greatly improved shipping in the area was the process was used to improve the Port of Los Angeles. With the addition of a railroad connecting San Pedro Bay to Los Angeles in 1868 made the area much more profitable.

Traveling today through the Port

Today, the port is one of the busiest you can visit with your LAX car rental. It has record-setting cargo operations, groundbreaking environmental initiatives, excellent security measures, and recreational and educational activities. The port is home to a popular beach, several museums, bike paths, and even a historic trolley line that you can visit while you are here with your LAX car rental.

Relax on the hot sand

Cabrillo Beach is a popular swimming, fishing, and boating area on the West Channel. This is a large recreational center that you can visit with your LAX car rental, and the only one within the port complex. The water here is calm and relaxing inside the breakwater, but there is ocean surf on the pier if you are looking to do some fishing. During whale watching season you can catch a tour from here with your LAX car rental to see the migration of the Pacific grey whale. These tours take place from December through March.

Learn about the port

There are seven museums within the area of the Port complex that you can visit with your LAX car rental. They include:

• Banning Residence Museum - the mansion that was once the residence of the "Father of the Los Angeles Harbor"
• Cabrillo Marine Aquarium - a museum that will give you an understanding of the marine life in Southern California
• Drum Barracks Civil War Museum - learn about California's role in the civil war
• Fort MacArthur Museum - a museum dedicated to the history of Fort MacArthur, which guarded the Los Angeles Harbor from 1914 until 1974.
• Los Angeles Maritime Museum - set up to help you explore California's nautical heritage and the history of the port.
• Point Fermin Lighthouse - A lighthouse that served as a beacon for the city until World War II.
• S.S. Lane Victory - a perspective of wartime in the 1940s on a restored cargo ship.

The Port of Los Angeles is not just a place for ships to visit. There are many activities for you to visit with your LAX car rental.