The Pier Sign Is Away for Restoration. Here's How the Santa Monica Pier Works This Holiday Season

The neon arch at the top of the Pier Bridge was unveiled on June 17, 1941. Crews began taking it down on Oct. 20 so it could go to YESCO in Las Vegas, where the plan is to restore the neon tubing, remove rust, repaint it and repair the structure. On Wednesday, Nov. 18, more than 60 chalets open on the Pier's Event Deck, along with an ice rink by the water and a raclette counter.

The two changes overlap. The market arrives while the Pier is a construction site, and the city wants it to bring visitors and business back after the summer crowds leave. Together they change where you park this December, which entrance you use, and which holiday events need a ticket.

A holiday market arrives in the middle of construction

The Pier Bridge Replacement Project is replacing the 1939 bridge, which no longer meets modern structural or seismic standards. The new bridge will be seismically sound, will include a 15-foot sidewalk for pedestrians and cyclists, and is scheduled to reopen before the 2028 Summer Olympics. The city expects construction to wrap up in late 2027.

That leaves more than a year of cranes, flaggers and detours at the busiest entrance on the coast. In its Nov. 2 announcement, the city calls the market a "two-month activation" designed to draw visitors to the Pier after summer and to bring more foot traffic to nearby businesses. Mayor Caroline Torosis tied it to the city's Realignment Plan in the same release:

"Every visitor who comes for a cheese tasting and stays for dinner Downtown helps power our economic recovery."

The village is run by Fever and Swiss Xmas, Inc., whose team has organized several Christmas markets in Switzerland. The city's agreement with them includes terms aimed at the businesses already on the Pier. Pier tenants get priority for booths, the Pier Tenants Union is consulted, permanent Pier businesses are cross-promoted on site, and visitors get coupons to spend at participating businesses. Santa Monica businesses get extra weight in vendor selection, and one rotating stall is reserved for first-time local creators. Time Out Los Angeles also reported the Fever partnership and the Nov. 18 to Jan. 3 run.

The space it takes over is the parking deck

The market is set up at 200 Santa Monica Pier. Because of that, the Pier parking deck is closed for the whole run, from Nov. 18 through Jan. 3. If you usually drive down PCH and park on the Pier, plan on parking somewhere else until after New Year's.

There are two sets of parking suggestions. The Fever event page points to the Civic Center Garage and Lot 1N, or the Metro E Line, which is about a 10-minute walk from 4th Street and Colorado Avenue. It suggests 1550 Appian Way for rideshare drop-off and lists accessible parking at Beach Lot 1 North and Lot 1-S. For construction-related closures, the city recommends Beach Lot 4 South, Beach Lot 3 North and Parking Structure 8.

Walking in has changed too. The old entrance facing Ocean Avenue closed after the city opened a temporary pedestrian bridge in June. You can now reach the Pier these ways:

1. The temporary pedestrian bridge, about 30 feet south of the old entrance. This is now the main way in, with artwork and wayfinding signs along it.
2. Ocean Front Walk, from the beach level.
3. The protected walkway next to the temporary vehicle ramp in the Pier parking lot.
4. The stairs near Bubba Gump Shrimp Co.
5. Seaside Terrace, which is the route for bikes, skateboards and other small vehicles. They are not allowed on the temporary bridge.

Two more things matter for timing. Ocean Front Walk under the Pier bridge has intermittent closures on weekdays from 5 a.m. to 1 p.m. for as long as construction lasts, with flaggers guiding people around the work. The Moomat Ahiko Way on- and off-ramps closed on Sept. 28, and the city's posted closure window runs through Nov. 28. Until then, detour signs send drivers to Pacific Coast Highway and Ocean Avenue. So a weekday afternoon visit starting after 1 p.m. avoids the beach-level closures.

What a ticket costs, compared with the rink downtown

The village charges admission. Fever lists adult entry at $12.90, ages 4 to 12 at $8.90, and $10.90 for seniors, students, military, Metro riders and Santa Monica residents. Children 3 and under get in free. The city's agreement also includes planned free and discounted admission for local residents, plus 1,000 tickets donated to Santa Monica nonprofits through the city's Housing and Human Services Department.

Skating is sold as part of entry bundles. The cheapest is the Silver "Skate & Go" bundle, which includes entry and rink access starting at $20.90. A Family bundle starts at $18.90. Santa Monica has had a downtown holiday rink before, and this season it has two. Frost on 5th opened Thursday, Nov. 5, at Arizona Avenue and 5th Street.

The skating prices are within a couple of dollars of each other, so the bigger difference is the hours. Apart from opening night, the Pier rink opens at 11 a.m. every day, so it is the one that works on a weekday morning or at lunch. Frost on 5th stays open into January after the village has closed. At the village, about thirty of the chalets serve food, from raclette and Swiss sweets to mulled wine, so it can cover dinner as well as skating. The village has shorter hours on Christmas Eve, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., and stays open late on New Year's Eve, 11 a.m. to 1 a.m. Opening night, Nov. 18, starts at 5 p.m.

The Pier Corporation's own programs run on three Thursdays

While the market is on the deck, the Santa Monica Pier Corporation's Holiday Cheer on the Pier runs from Nov. 19 to Dec. 17. It starts with the windows of the historic Merry-Go-Round Building decorated for the season. Most of the programming is on three Thursdays: Dec. 3, 10 and 17.

• Letters to Santa and crafts with Paint:Lab, 3:30 to 7 p.m. inside the Merry-Go-Round Building. The letters are mailed to the North Pole.
• Books & Cookies musical storytime, at 3:30 and 4:30 p.m. at Patio 66 in Pacific Park, across from Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf.
• Bob Baker Marionette Theater, with shows at 5 and 6:30 p.m.
• Locals' Night: Sandy Cane Lane, Thursday, Dec. 17, 4 to 9 p.m., with live music, photos with Santa, a holiday sand sculpture and the Pier's car-decorating contest, which has a cash prize.

The village fills its deck with ticketed food and shopping most days. The Pier Corporation's events are short, family-oriented and centered on the Merry-Go-Round Building, all on weekday evenings. A Thursday after school on Dec. 3 or Dec. 10 covers the marionettes, the storytime and a letter to Santa in a single afternoon. If you have time afterward, the village's gates are a short walk away.

What's quieter this season, and what's coming back

Some regulars will find parts of the Pier quieter. As of Oct. 19, Heal the Bay Aquarium has paused its regular weekend public hours and birthday parties because of bridge construction. Other programs continue, and special events and open houses are filling some of that time. The organizers of Swiss Winter Village gave $3,500 to Heal the Bay, which paid for free admission to one of the aquarium's October events and discounted tickets for its wider community. The restaurants, shops and attractions are open throughout construction.

For holiday photos, the city has put up a half-scale replica of the sign. Walk down the bridge toward the Pier and it is on the left just before Pier Burger, with the Pacific Park roller coaster and the shoreline behind it. It lights up at night.

The original sign was designed by the Pan Pacific Neon Sign Company and is listed on the California Register of Historical Resources. The Santa Monica Daily Press reported that it is being refurbished, not replaced. When the bridge is finished, it will go back up higher than before, so it is easier to see and gives vehicles more clearance underneath. For this December and the next, the Pier will look different, and the replica, the temporary bridge and the market on the parking deck are what will show up in this year's holiday photos.

The Pier Bridge project will shape this part of Ocean Avenue through 2027. Robert Edie follows changes like these as they happen, street by street along the Westside coast. If you're thinking about what the Pier's next couple of years mean for a home nearby, let's connect.