Los Angeles, one of the gems of the Pacific, is famed for its beaches…but if you live more than a couple miles inland, visits to the ocean can be a bit of an all-day process.
Luckily, the old basketball fan’s joke about “the Lakers being in a city without any lakes” isn’t true – LA has its fair share of tranquil bodies of water! Though most of our city’s “lakes” are man-made and/or reservoirs, they can still slake your craving for a summertime lake visit.
Our lakes are perfect for a solo stroll, a family picnic, or a get-together with friends. Here are a few:
Echo Park Lake – 751 Echo Park Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90026
With its swan boats, Art Deco-style Lady of the Lake statue, and adorable families of baby waterfowl, Echo Park Lake has been beloved by locals since 1860. Originally a reservoir for drinking water, the lake is now open for all sorts of non-potable fun (to be very clear: do not drink the water in Echo Park Lake!) The lake served as an aquatic backdrop for numerous Silent Era films, back when the neighborhood – then known as Edendale – was the heart of the movie colony. And this starlet still has all her charms: Echo Park Lake is one of our city’s most iconic staycation destinations, generation after generation!
And summertime at the lake is particularly special: the 45th Annual Los Angeles Lotus Festival will be taking place July 11-12, 2026 at Echo Park Lake.
Safe Clean Water Program Spotlight: Echo Park Lake’s Operations and Management is funded by the SCWP, which means that the program pays to keep the lake clean and accessible for your summertime visits, and all year long!
Hollywood Reservoir (Lake Hollywood Park) – 6381-6399 Weidlake Dr, Los Angeles, CA 90068
Also known as Lake Hollywood, the reservoir was created by the installation of Mulholland Dam over a hundred years ago. The story of how Mulholland brought water to LA isn’t a pretty one – it’s been fruitful territory for New Hollywood classics and ‘80s experimental auteurs alike – but the views walking around the reservoir are hard to beat. The lake is also a pollinator paradise, with a multitude of plants and habitats designed for bees and butterflies.
To learn more about the lake’s history and to see its glamour shots from years past, visit Water and Power Association’s page here.
Hansen Dam Aquatic Center – 11798 Foothill Blvd., Lake View Terrace, CA 91342
Located in Lake View Terrace, the aquatic center may not be an official lake…but it’s still a pretty awesome body of water. There’s a pool onsite, which is open daily throughout the summer! And the aquatic center is only a stone’s throw from the Discovery Cube, one of our city’s best educational experiences for young science enthusiasts. It’s a staycation idea the whole family can get behind – and learn a bit about water systems in the process.
Silver Lake Reservoir Complex – 1850 W Silver Lake Dr, Los Angeles, CA 90026
Another manmade treasure, this is actually two lakes in one: Ivanhoe Reservoir and Silver Lake. Like many of the lakes featured in this article, Silver Lake is the beating heart of its same-named neighborhood. That said, if you don’t live in the area, you might not have much of a reason to make your way to its not-literally-silver waters – which is the beauty of a staycation. For much less than you’d spend on a day trip to Castaic or Pyramid Lake, you can journey (maybe even by bus?) out of your neck of the woods and get a fuller picture of what life is like in other corners of our city.
MacArthur Park Lake – 653 S Alvarado St, Los Angeles, CA 90057
MacArthur Park is a central hub for the neighborhood that bears its name. A staycation visit to MacArthur Park is never boring; you might stumble across an impromptu jam session, meet a fantastic food vendor, and get some steps in with a stroll around the large lake. The lake is fed by natural springs and a concrete bottom was installed when Metro constructed the B Line in the early 90s.
And for the Donna Summer fans out there: while we don’t have an official stormwater best management practice for what to do when your cake gets left out in the rain, it’s probably safest to scoop it off the park grounds and dispose of it far from any storm drains. The sweet green icing flowing down could contain some toxins that are best left out of our waterways.
Safe Clean Water Program Spotlight: Funded by the SCWP in 2020-21, the MacArthur Lake Rehabilitation Project aims to harvest watershed stormwater as well as water from the lake’s natural spring. The goal is to “recreate a California native oasis…in a drought-impacted region.”
Debs Lake/Peanut Lake – 4235 Monterey Rd., Los Angeles, CA 90032
A bite-sized treat of a pond known to locals as Peanut Lake, this body of water is accessible via a moderate hike through Debs Park. If you typically go for adventure-based vacations, why not try this trek in your own backyard? You’ll be rewarded with some amazing views of Northeast LA – and you might even spot a turtle or two along the way!
Lincoln Park Lake – 3501 Valley Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90031
DId you know: this used to be called East Park and then Eastlake Park? In fact, Lincoln Heights was known as East LA until 1917, when residents voted to change the name in honor of Abraham Lincoln. Many ducks and geese call this lake home, but remember: feeding waterfowl is very detrimental to these birds’ health and ecosystems.
Safe Clean Water Program Spotlight: In 2021-22, SCWP funded the Lincoln Park Neighborhood Green Street Network, which aims to implement a multi-benefit stormwater project for Lincoln Heights and the lake at Lincoln Park.
Lake Balboa – 6300 Balboa Blvd, Lake Balboa, CA 91406
A San Fernando Valley favorite, this lake has it all: bike paths, paddle-boats, and plenty of space for a picnic. Whether you plan to park yourself down on a bench or blanket, or take to the water in a swan-shaped vessel, this is a great spot for a Valley staycation.
Lake Balboa shares the Sepulveda Basin Recreation Center with the newly-reopened Japanese Garden at Tillman Water Reclamation Plant. The Japanese Garden is chisen-style, meaning it was designed with water at the very heart of it. This meditative space shows that reclaimed water doesn’t need to be potable to be nourishing. You can learn more about the garden, including info on how and when you can visit, here.
Machado Lake – 25820 Vermont Ave., Harbor City, CA 90710
A 45-acre natural lake nestled within South LA? It almost sounds too good to be true – but that’s not even the most interesting thing about Machado Lake. This honor would have to go to Reggie the alligator, who evaded capture for two years in and around the lake, where he’d likely been illegally dumped by exotic animal breeders. (He’s been living at the LA Zoo since 2007.)
But it’s not just beloved local icons who are winding up in Machado Lake via inappropriate means: the lake has suffered for years due to accumulated toxins. Remember that when you dispose of old pesticides, paints, solvents, or other chemicals down the storm drain, they’ll eventually make their way to our city’s bodies of water.
To learn more about the city’s optimization efforts, and to see some of the lake’s many birds and flowers, visit LAMachadoLake.org
For more about lakes in the greater LA area, visit this article from PBS SoCal. And to help preserve all our city’s waterways, remember to do your part to keep our storm drains pristine. If your dog’s accompanying you on your lakeside staycation retreat, don’t forget to scoop the poop – and if you’re an LA resident traveling by car, you can request one of our car trash bags here so you won’t be a litterbug.
We’d love to see your staycation snapshots! Email photos of your favorite local waterways to LAStormwater@LACity.org.
This article is one of three in our 2026 Summer Staycations series highlighting LA’s beaches, lakes and rivers. To learn more about LA’s Beaches, visit Summer Staycations: Beaches Galore and Summer Staycations: Rivers and Creeks of LA.
