Santa Starts Redondo Beach Tour

Santa Claus will once again ride his sleigh through the streets of Redondo Beach with the help of the Redondo Beach Police Officers and Firefighters associations from Monday through Dec. 19.

Santa and his elves will start Monday in North Redondo Beach and make their way down to South Redondo Beach by Dec. 19. (Click here for the full route.) The sleigh generally departs from the "North Pole" at about 5:30 p.m. and wraps up the night's journey at about 9 p.m.

For safety reasons, Santa won't stop on busy streets like Manhattan Beach, Aviation and Artesia boulevards; Grant, Prospect and Catalina avenues; 190th Street and Pacific Coast Highway. If a night's journeys are canceled due to weather conditions, the route will be made-up Dec. 20, 21 or 22.

Residents in the Hollywood Riviera—where properties have Redondo Beach addresses but technically are within Torrance city limits—will also have a chance to meet Santa.

Officers with the Torrance Police Department began their Santa escort on Sunday and will complete it Dec. 16. He will pass through South Torrance and the Hollywood Riviera from Dec. 8-11. (See the complete schedule.)

The Redondo Beach street-by-street tour, which began decades ago, was canceled in 2011 due to staffing issues, causing a small controversy. Instead of the three-week route, Santa scheduled two stops at local parks.

For more information on the Redondo Beach route, visit redondobeachpd.com.