Origin
Bell Gardens, CA
Morning in Bell Gardens on Saturday
Local time
6:29 AM
PDT
Current temp
72°F
Unavailable
Live forecast
Trip from Bell Gardens, CA to Long Beach, CA
Compiled and reviewed by the Trip.ovh planning team at COD Solutions Oy · Last reviewed Apr 18, 2026 · Editorial standards
Drive Time
24m
Distance
17 mi
27 km
Drive Score
7/10
Good drive
Same Day?
Yes, doable
Fuel Cost
$4
one way
EV Charging
Unknown
Best Time to Leave
4 AM
0h 22m
★
6 AM
0h 25m
8 AM
0h 29m
10 AM
0h 26m
12 PM
0h 26m
3 PM
0h 26m
5 PM
0h 29m
8 PM
0h 23m
Estimated drive times based on typical traffic patterns. Actual times may vary with weather, construction, and real-time conditions.
Bell Gardens, CA
Carly King
Long Beach, CA
Wikimedia Commons
Trip Overview
If you are planning a quick excursion from Bell Gardens to Long Beach, you are looking at a manageable 17.2-mile trek. Expect to spend about 25 minutes behind the wheel, making this an ideal day trip that requires no overnight stops. Your journey primarily utilizes Florence Avenue and the I-710 South, also known as the Long Beach Freeway, to navigate through the Pacific Coast region. With a fuel budget of approximately $4, this is an incredibly economical route to navigate. It is a straightforward connection between two Southern California cities that keeps your travel time minimal and your planning stress-free.
About the Cities
Arriving in Long Beach, CA
Full guide →Founded 1888
Long Beach is a large port city in Los Angeles County in Southern California. Long Beach has some nice people-gathering amenities and genuine tourist attractions, such as a world-class aquarium and the Queen Mary floating museum/hotel. Special events are also held in the city like the annual Long Beach Grand Prix (a premier racing event held on city streets) and the annual Long Beach Lesbian & Gay Pride event. When compared to other areas like Hollywood, West Hollywood, Santa Monica and West L.A., Long Beach may not always be at the top of someone's tourist visit to the Los Angeles area, but the city draws its fair share of visitors and has proven it can definitely hold its own.
Top landmarks
- • RMS Queen Mary — retired British ocean liner
- • Terminal Island — island in Los Angeles County, California, United States
- • Aquarium of the Pacific — public aquarium in Long Beach, California
City content from Wikivoyage (CC BY-SA 4.0) and Wikidata (CC0).
Who Is This Route For?
Weekend Trip
Doable as a same-day drive at 24m. Total distance: 17 miles.
Family Friendly
Moderate complexity with 0 natural rest stops along the way.
Solo Traveler
24m drive, comfortable solo distance.
EV Driver
0 DC fast chargers along the route. Coverage: unknown.
First-Time Driver
Mostly highway driving (77%). Some complex stretches to watch for.
Drive Character
Expect a turn-heavy local drive that demands your full attention as you transition from city streets to the freeway. Since this route features zero highway share, you will be navigating urban infrastructure rather than cruising on wide-open interstates. The drive is compact and efficient, lacking any significantly long, uninterrupted stretches of road. You will find that the personality of the trip shifts quickly as you move off local thoroughfares and onto the I-710 corridor. It is a functional, no-frills transit that gets you from point A to point B without unnecessary complexity.
Most of the miles stay on highways, which makes pacing and fuel planning easier than turn-by-turn city driving.
There are about 12 navigation steps in the underlying route data, so the final approach matters more than the middle miles.
Long Beach Freeway is the longest continuous segment at about 12.5 miles.
How Hard Is This Drive?
This is a straightforward highway drive that stays mostly on Long Beach Freeway and Shoreline Drive. You will hit about 7 points where you need to pay attention to lane position or signs. The trickiest moment comes around 1 miles in.
Driving Effort
6/10
Moderate - straightforward overall, but long enough or busy enough to require pacing
Balances navigation complexity with total wheel time.
This drive requires moderate attention. Across 17 miles you will encounter 7 spots where lane choice or exit timing matters. Not difficult for experienced highway drivers, but worth previewing the tricky sections before you go.
Where does it get tricky?
The main spots that need attention: at 1 miles: Lane positioning matters here; at 1.3 miles: Highway fork - watch signs carefully. Lane positioning matters here; at 1.5 miles (I 710 / Long Beach Freeway): Merge point - match speed before joining. Lane positioning matters here.
Critical Maneuvers
5 of 7 key pointsThese are the spots where you need to pay the most attention. Preview them before you drive.
6
1 mi into trip
|
~2m in
Take the ramp toward I 710 South: Long Beach
Lane positioning matters here
Use the straight lane.
Toward I 710 South: Long Beach
8
1.3 mi into trip
|
~2m in
Keep slight left at fork toward I 710 South: Long Beach
Highway fork - watch signs carefully. Lane positioning matters here
Use the straight / slight right lanes.
Toward I 710 South: Long Beach
5
1.5 mi into trip
|
~2m in
|
I 710 / Long Beach Freeway
Merge onto I 710 / Long Beach Freeway
Merge point - match speed before joining. Lane positioning matters here
Use the straight / slight right lanes.
7
14.6 mi into trip
|
~19m in
Take the exit toward Downtown Long Beach, Convention Center, Aquarium
Exit ramp - move to the correct lane early. Lane positioning matters here. Multiple destination signs - pick the right one
Use the slight left / straight lanes.
Toward Downtown Long Beach, Convention Center,...
4
16.2 mi into trip
|
~22m in
|
South Chestnut Place
Turn left onto South Chestnut Place
Lane positioning matters here
Use the left / uturn lanes.
Towns Mentioned on Route Signs
Based on OSRM destination-sign hints, not a full list of every settlement the road passes.
Between Bell Gardens, CA and Long Beach, CA, road signs point toward Convention Center and Aquarium.
Convention Center
14.6 mi in
|
~19m
Aquarium
14.6 mi in
|
~19m
Main Roads
| Road | Distance | Duration |
|---|---|---|
| Long Beach Freeway | 12.5 mi | 15m |
| Shoreline Drive | 1.3 mi | 2m |
| Florence Avenue | 1 mi | 2m |
| West Ocean Boulevard | 0.5 mi | 1m |
| Seaside Freeway | 0.5 mi | <1m |
| South Chestnut Place | 0.2 mi | <1m |
| East Ocean Boulevard | 0.1 mi | <1m |
Longest stretch:
Long Beach Freeway
— 12.5 mi, about 15m
Turn-by-Turn Driving Directions
Step-by-step road directions between Bell Gardens, CA and Long Beach, CA.
1
Start on Florence Avenue
0.8 mi
·
1 min
·
Florence Avenue
2
Continue on Florence Avenue
0.2 mi
·
22 sec
·
Florence Avenue
3
Take the ramp
0.3 mi
·
29 sec
Toward I 710 South: Long Beach
Use the straight lane.
4
Keep slight left at fork
0.2 mi
·
17 sec
Toward I 710 South: Long Beach
Use the straight / slight right lanes.
5
Merge onto I 710
13 mi
·
15 min
·
Long Beach Freeway
Use the straight / slight right lanes.
6
Continue on I 710
0.5 mi
·
40 sec
·
Seaside Freeway
Use the straight / slight right lanes.
7
Take the exit
0.3 mi
·
37 sec
Toward Downtown Long Beach, Convention Center, Aquarium
Use the slight left / straight lanes.
8
Continue on Shoreline Drive
1.3 mi
·
2 min
·
Shoreline Drive
9
Turn left onto South Chestnut Place
0.2 mi
·
30 sec
·
South Chestnut Place
Use the left / uturn lanes.
10
Turn right onto West Ocean Boulevard
0.5 mi
·
1 min
·
West Ocean Boulevard
11
Continue on East Ocean Boulevard
0.1 mi
·
21 sec
·
East Ocean Boulevard
Use the left lane.
12
Arrive at destination
East Ocean Boulevard
Fuel & Cost
Regular Gas
$3.91 one way
$7.81 round trip
$5.84/gal
25.4 MPG avg
6 kg CO2
| Fuel Type | $/gal | One Way | Round Trip |
|---|---|---|---|
| midgrade | $6.02 | $4.03 | $8.05 |
| premium | $6.18 | $4.13 | $8.27 |
| diesel | $5.61 | $3.75 | $7.51 |
No toll roads detected on this route.
Drive Cost (one way)
Fuel
$4
Estimated CO2 emission: 5.9 kg one way. Prices: EIA weekly data, 2026-04-13.
Driving Electric?
About $2 in charging · 0 stops · 67% less CO2
| Vehicle Type | kWh | Stops | DC Fast | Home Charge |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Average EV | 5.1 | 0 | $1.78 | $0.82 |
| Efficient EV | 4.3 | 0 | $1.49 | $0.68 |
| EV Truck/SUV | 6.8 | 0 | $2.38 | $1.09 |
Gas CO2
6 kg
EV CO2
2 kg (67% less)
This trip is well within single-charge range for most EVs. No charging stops needed if you start fully charged.
DC fast charging avg $0.35/kWh. Home charging avg $0.16/kWh. US grid CO2: 0.39 kg/kWh.
Travel Intel
Current conditions at both ends of the drive.
Destination
Long Beach, CA
Morning in Long Beach on Saturday
Local time
6:29 AM
PDT
Current temp
56°F
Unavailable
Live forecast
Time zone
Same local time
Origin and destination are on the same clock, so arrival timing is easier to judge at a glance.
Temperature spread
16 degrees cooler at arrival
A meaningful temperature swing is a good cue to rethink layers, water, and how soon you want to arrive.
Road read
24m on the road
Use the two city cards together: check the sky where you start, then compare it with the local time and temperature at arrival.
Weather data from the National Weather Service. Conditions may change; check closer to your travel date.
Frequently Asked Questions
The drive from Bell Gardens, CA to Long Beach, CA covers 17 miles and takes about 24m without stops. Add 15-30 minutes for a fuel or rest stop on longer drives.
The main roads are Long Beach Freeway, Shoreline Drive, Florence Avenue. Most of the drive stays on highways, so watch for ramps and exits.
This is a comfortable same-day trip.
The midpoint is about 8.5 miles from Bell Gardens, CA. Look for rest areas, gas stations, or food options near the halfway mark.
At current regular gas prices, expect to spend about $3.91 one way. This estimate uses 25.4 MPG — your actual cost will vary with your vehicle's fuel efficiency and current gas prices.
Leave by 9 AM and you'll arrive before lunch. Even a 4 PM departure gets you there before dark in summer.
This drive requires moderate attention. Across 17 miles you will encounter 7 spots where lane choice or exit timing matters. Not difficult for experienced highway drivers, but worth previewing the tricky sections before you go.
The main spots that need attention: at 1 miles: Lane positioning matters here; at 1.3 miles: Highway fork - watch signs carefully. Lane positioning matters here; at 1.5 miles (I 710 / Long Beach Freeway): Merge point - match speed before joining. Lane positioning matters here.
Between Bell Gardens, CA and Long Beach, CA, road signs point toward Convention Center and Aquarium.
How this page is built
Compiled by the Trip.ovh planning team at COD Solutions Oy from open government datasets — OSRM over OpenStreetMap for geometry, and EIA for fuel prices. See our methodology for refresh cadence and limitations.
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