Victoria Beach Pirate Tower

Laguna Beach (; Laguna, Spanish for "Lagoon") is a city in Orange County, California, United States. Located in Southern California along the Pacific Ocean, this seaside resort city has a mild year-round climate, scenic coves, and environmental preservation efforts. The population in the 2020 census was 23,032.Historically settled by Paleoindians, the Tongva people, and then Mexico, the location became part of the United States following the Mexican–American War. Laguna Beach was settled in the 1870s, officially founded in 1887, and in 1927 its current government was incorporated as a city. The city adopted the council–manager form of government in 1944. The city has remained relatively isolated from urban encroachment by its surrounding hills, limited highway access, and dedicated greenbelt. The Laguna Beach coastline is protected by 5.88 miles (9.46 km) of state marine reserve and an additional 1.21 miles (1.95 km) of state conservation area.Tourism is the primary industry with an estimated six million people visiting the community annually. Large annual events include the Pageant of the Masters, Festival of Arts, Sawdust Art Festival, Art-A-Fair, Bluewater Music Festival, and Kelpfest.

The 1993 Laguna Fire or Laguna Canyon Fire was a destructive wildfire in Orange County, California. After igniting on October 27, the fire burned more than 16,000 acres (6,500 hectares) and destroyed hundreds of homes before it was contained on October 31. The fire caused $528 million in damages, becoming one of the most costly fires in U.S. history. It was part of a larger outbreak of wildfires that week in Southern California, driven by Santa Ana winds.

Aliso Creek is a 19.8-mile (31.9 km)-long, mostly urban stream in south Orange County, California. Originating in the Cleveland National Forest in the Santa Ana Mountains, it flows generally southwest and empties into the Pacific Ocean at Laguna Beach. The creek's watershed drains 34.9 square miles (90 km2), and it is joined by seven main tributaries. As of 2018, the watershed had a population of 144,000 divided among seven incorporated cities.Aliso Creek flows over highly erosive marine sedimentary rock of late Eocene to Pliocene age. What would become the Aliso Creek watershed originally lay at the bottom of the Pacific Ocean, before being uplifted as recently as 10 million years ago. About 1.2 million years ago, the San Joaquin Hills began to uplift in the path of Aliso Creek. Occasionally swollen by wetter climates during glacial periods, the creek carved the deep water gap known today as Aliso Canyon, the main feature of Aliso and Wood Canyons Wilderness Park. Historically, Aliso Creek served as the boundary between the Acjachemem (Juaneño) and Tongva (Gabrieleño) Native Americans. Spanish explorers and missionaries reached the area in the 1700s and established Mission San Juan Capistrano, whose lands included part of the Aliso Creek watershed. In the 1840s the watershed was divided between several Mexican land grants. After California became part of the United States, the ranchos were gradually partitioned and sold off to farmers and settlers; starting in the 1950s, real estate companies acquired most of the land for development. By the 21st century, more than 70 percent of the Aliso Creek watershed was urbanized. Most of the creek's course has been channelized or otherwise impacted by development. Pollution and erosion from urban runoff have become chronic issues. However, parts of the creek remain free flowing and provide important regional wildlife habitat, especially in the Aliso Canyon section. The creek has recently been the focus of projects to restore the stream channel and improve water quality.

Hangover House (also known as the Halliburton House) was designed and built by William Alexander Levy for his friend the travel writer Richard Halliburton. Halliburton had first spotted the ridgetop site while riding on horseback on the beach in 1930. In 1937, Halliburton stated he had purchased a house in Laguna Beach, California. Constructed in 1938 on a hilltop, the house, boasting commanding views of the Pacific Ocean and Aliso Canyon, was built with three bedrooms, one each for Halliburton, Alexander, and Halliburton's secretary and friend Paul Mooney, who was also the explorer's editor and ghostwriter. Halliburton reportedly spent US$42,000 (equivalent to $870,000 in 2022) on the purchase of the site and construction of the house.

Laguna Beach High School is a 4-year public high school located in Laguna Beach, California. It is the only high school in the Laguna Beach Unified School District. It was established in 1934 and is accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges.

Fahrenheit 451 Books was a bookstore, formerly located on 509 South Coast Highway in Laguna Beach, California. It was described by the Los Angeles Times as a "literary landmark" of the region. It closed in 1994.

St. Francis by-the-Sea American Catholic Church (St. Francis Cathedral Chapel; American Catholic Church) is a historic church in Laguna Beach, California, United States. It was built in 1934 and was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1988. It now houses the National Sick Call Set Museum. It was designed by English-born Percy Wise Clarkson (1875-1942), who was also the founder and first bishop of the church. He was an Episcopal priest but left the priesthood in 1928. He became a bishop in the American Catholic Church in 1933. He also built the first Episcopal church in Laguna Beach, a small chapel which served as a summer chapel in the 1920s, also named St. Francis by-the-Sea.

Laguna Canyon, also called Cañada de las Lagunas (Spanish for 'Canyon of the Lakes'), is a gorge that cuts through the San Joaquin Hills in southern Orange County, California, in the United States, directly south of the city of Irvine. The canyon runs from northeast to southwest, and is drained on the north side by tributaries of San Diego Creek and on the south by Laguna Canyon Creek. It is deeper and more rugged on the southwestern end near Laguna Beach. Geologically, the canyon likely originated millions of years ago as the result of San Diego Creek cutting through the San Joaquin Hills. Uplift diverted that stream to its present course, leaving Laguna Canyon as a wind gap. California State Route 133 runs the entire length of the canyon connecting Laguna Beach and Irvine, while California State Route 73 crosses it, running southeast–northwest. A majority of the canyon is located within the Laguna Coast Wilderness Park; small portions are part of Aliso and Wood Canyons Wilderness Park and the cities of Irvine, Laguna Beach, Laguna Woods and Aliso Viejo.

The Lynn Theatre is a historic former movie theater on Pacific Coast Highway in Laguna Beach, California, United States. Walter J. Saunders of W. J. Saunders & Son designed the original structure. The Lynn opened in 1922 as a replacement for a former venue of the same name. An extensive renovation in 1935 introduced a new Mediterranean Revival style facade designed by James Neil Conway. The Lynn remained in operation under the founding family until the 1970s when Pacific Theatres acquired it. In 1976, the venue's single auditorium was split into two. Edwards Theatres and Regency Theatres later operated the Lynn until its closure in 2015. At the time, it was the only remaining movie theater in Laguna Beach. In 2023, the Lynn was listed on the National Register of Historic Places and acquired by car manufacturer Rivian to be converted into a showroom.

Temple Hill is the second highest peak in the San Joaquin Hills area of Orange County, California, United States. Its elevation is 1,038 feet (316 m). The hill is bordered on the west by Laguna Canyon and on the east by Aliso and Wood Canyons Wilderness Park, to which it provides hiking and biking trailheads. It dominates the southern portion of Laguna Beach between downtown and Aliso Creek. The summit provides views of Saddleback Valley to the east, the Pacific Ocean to the south, and most of Orange County up to the San Gabriel Mountains to the north. Temple Hill has 7 amateur radio repeaters and a beacon at its summit that are maintained by South Orange Amateur Radio Association

The Festival of Arts is a seasonal art festival in Laguna Beach, California. The festival, which occurs annually in the summer, is home to a collection of booths operated by local painters, sculptors, photographers, and other artists. The festival grounds are also home to the Irvine Bowl, where the Pageant of the Masters is performed. On most evenings, the festival will offer live music, typically before a showing of the Pageant of the Masters. The festival currently holds a 40-year lease with the city of Laguna Beach and is scheduled to remain in the city through at least 2041.

The Sawdust Art Festival, also known as The Sawdust or The Sawdust Festival, is an art festival held annually from late June through August in Laguna Beach, California. The festival features handicrafts as well as traditional fine art. It is non-juried, but exhibitors are required to be Laguna Beach residents. About 200,000 visitors attend each year. The Sawdust also hosts an annual Winter Fantasy art fair in mid-November through December, which is open to non-resident exhibitors.