LOCAL

I’VE lived on Kent’s trendy coastline for more than five years, so I think I can legitimately call myself a local now.

After ditching London in my late twenties, I’ve lived in both Margate and Folkestone, while spending my weekends exploring the other seaside towns.

In the last 15 years, Kent’s seaside towns have arguably seen the biggest transformations of the whole British coast.

That’s due to a combination of new investment, an influx of ‘down from Londoners’ moving in and a reignited love of the traditional seaside break among Millennials.

But which town you should visit depends on what type of trip you’re looking for.

So here are my top tips for seven of the best Kent beach towns and villages, from what to do and where to eat, to the best hotel and things to do under a fiver.

Whitstable

One of the more established Kent seaside towns, Whitstable is famous for its annual Oyster festival and has been a popular tourist destination for the last few decades – long before towns like Margate saw a resurgence.

Eat and drink in Whitstable

Blueprint Coffee and Books is the kind of place where you’ll go in for a cappuccino but come out with magazines and a candle.

The pastel pink Wheelers Oyster Bar is where everyone goes for their seafood (and for good reason) but if you fancy something other than fish, Harbour Street Tapas is the place for Spanish sharing plates.

In the summer months, the Old Neptune pub is a must, where the pub garden is right on the beach. Or try Porto Wine Bar, tucked a bit further down for staff who really know their wines.

Don’t forget an ice-cream – Bear’s Ice Cream Imaginarium has everything from classics to more unusual flavours like celeriac and wasabi. Yes, really.

Best things to do in Whitstable

Harbour Street is home to some fantastic vintage shops to explore. I picked up a jumper worth £69 for a fiver, so it has some treasures if you look hard enough.

There’s also Whitstable Harbour, still a working harbour, to explore as well as the free-to-visit Whitstable Castle with beautiful gardens and a kids’ play area.

Really fancy a dip? Brave the water with the other cold water swimmers but make sure to warm up in the Sea Scrub Sauna, one of many around Kent.

Where to stay in Whitstable

The Marine Hotel is a classic coastal B&B, with big chunky king size beds and windows thick enough to keep out the sea breeze.

The restaurant is where you will join the locals on a Friday night with a classic but hearty menu making you grateful for the proximity of your room.

Rooms from £125. See marinewhitstable.com.

Under £5 in Whitstable

Why not test your crabbing skills?

Head to the end of the harbour and pick up a crabbing net from one of the stalls which are usually under a fiver and see what you can catch.

Margate

Nicknamed Shoreditch-on-Sea, Margate is known for being one of the trendiest beach towns in the country.

As well as having one of Kent’s rare sandy beaches (most are shingle) this has also seen a huge increase in cool wine bars and restaurants.

Eat and drink in Margate

Start your day at Big Shot Diner for a cup of tea while looking out over the beach, or the Bus Cafe for a great full English breakfast.

When it comes to fish, the best chippies in town are Peter’s Fish Factory and Beach Buoys, so expect queues out the door, or for a fancier sit down affair, head to Angela’s.

Pizza by the slice is best at Palm’s Pizzeria, best chased by a pickleback shot (whisky and pickle juice).

There are some great wine bars too but my favourite place to go are the pubs in Margate.

Try Rose in June for fun food and drink pop ups or the 18th century George & Heart House, which also has rooms above if you fancy staying the night.

Best things to do in Margate

The beach itself is beautiful but for more adrenaline-fuelled fun, head to the free-to-visit Dreamland.

You can pay for rides, or just take in the retro-style attraction – come in the summer for the fantastic live music line up ranging from Lovebox to Bastille.

Or did you know Margate is home to Europe’s only Crab Museum? It’s certainly quirky but one to visit as its free, although they rely on donations.

And of course there is the free Turner Contemporary art gallery as well, which is reopening on May 23 with a new exhibit.

Where to stay in Margate

Lots of boutique hotels have opened in Margate in recent years, and one of the best is Guesthouse No.42.

One of just four in the UK, it even has the town’s only rooftop bar, which overlooks the beach.

Rooms start from £141. See guesthousehotels.co.uk.

Under £5 in Margate

The bizarre Shell Grotto remains a mystery as to why or how it was built – but its a beauty to see.

Concession tickets start from £5, kids tickets are £2.

Folkestone

Named one of the best places to live in the UK last year, Folkestone has seen a huge rise in popularity in recent years, partly because of its speedy, 52-minute train from London.

There are some new openings to be excited about too, including the Lower Leas Cliff funicular.

Eat and drink in Folkestone

After it’s success in Margate, Pomus opened their second small plate restaurant in Folkestone. It’s one of the smarter places in town, but service is just as friendly with a rotating menu of locally caught produce.

Award-winning Rocksalt is the place for fish lovers, overlooking the harbour (and the oysters are a must).

Or for something more low-key, there is the local-loved Morley’s which has a small but classic menu – think burgers and pastas.

If there is one thing Folkestone isn’t short of, it’s pubs – try the Harbour Inn or The Pullman for friendly staff and local ciders.

And splash out for the evening by heading to the end of the harbour for a glass of fizz at The Lighthouse Champagne Bar, or a cocktail at Gaia Studios.

Best things to do in Folkestone

The Harbour Arm celebrated 10 years this year, and you can easily spend a day in the shipping container yard.

Along with food and drink stalls, there are independent shops selling everything from locally-made wine to clothing and dog treats. It also has lots of live music throughout the year and live screenings of films and sports.

Also nearby is The Boardroom for darts and shuffleboard (currently closed for a renovation), while the new Sea Scrub Sauna is the largest of its kind in the UK. Otherwise go for a wander along to the Lower Leas Coastal Park, which is getting a huge new playground too.

Where to stay in Folkestone

The London & Paris Hotel is one of the few boutique hotels in town, where every room overlooks the harbour.

Each room is coastal chic – think blue striped walls and vintage bathtubs – and they come with little touches such as complimentary binoculars and breakfasts delivered by hamper.

Rooms start from £71. See londonandparishotel.co.uk.

Under £5 in Folkestone

Grab an ice cream from Herbert’s Gelato with a rotating menu of interesting flavours such as hot cross bun or malted milk. From £3.90.

Ramsgate

From welcoming Queen Victoria in the 1800s to having the UK’s only Royal Harbour, Ramsgate has a rather regal history.

Now, it is a popular seaside town still slightly overlooked by its trendier neighbours Margate and traditional Broadstairs, but it is a great weekend break.

Eat and drink in Ramsgate

Get your morning coffee at Staple (along with an irresistible cruffin to go) with cafes also open in Westgate and Broadstairs.

But for the best places to eat, there are two top choices. First up is Marc-Pierre’s Kitchen restaurant where you will find some of the best seafood in town (with enough awards to show for it).

Otherwise curry fans should head straight to Flavours by Kumar.

It’s tucked down a tiny hidden side street but with big restaurants under his belt, including London’s famous Cinnamon Club, you’re in good hands (make sure to save room for the chocolate samosas).

End your evening at Noa Rooftop, which opened last year, for a crisp glass of wine to watch the sunset.

Best things to do in Ramsgate

Ramsgate has the UK’s only Royal Harbour, so it is the best place to spot the boats coming in and out for the day.

But its wartime history is best learned about at the Ramsgate Tunnels.

There are daily tours of the underground system that is also the largest UK network of wartime tunnels.

Search the knick-knacks of Petticoat Emporium, one of Kent’s biggest indoor markets with 200 traders and where you can pick up everything from vintage spoons to huge wicker chairs.

Where to stay in Ramsgate

Ramsgate is more B&Bs than boutique hotels, but one of the best in town is the The House at Ramsgate which dates back to 1780. With just 14 rooms which are cosy but modern, choose the Queen Victoria Room where she spent three months in 1835. Make sure to stay for the roast dinners too…

Rooms from £90. See thehouseatramsgate.co.uk.

Under £5 in Ramsgate

Of course, a visit to Ramsgate isn’t complete with a trip to the Victorian Pavilion – the UK’s (and technically) the world’s biggest Wetherspoons pub, so spend around £4.50 for a pint of Corona and head to the rooftop for views over the beach.

Broadstairs

With strong connections to Charles Dickens (who raved about the place while holidaying there), Broadstairs is your more traditional seaside town.

It has seven sandy beaches to choose from, so you’re spoilt for choice.

Eat and drink in Broadstairs

If you love a good coffee, you’re in luck – there’s Giant Coffee, who do unique hot drinks like cloud matchas (and are also in Ramsgate and Margate) to Forts who are known for their great coffees across Kent.

Fish and chips are a must at the beach and everyone heads to The Mermaid who do very large portions.

Chase it with an ice cream at Morelli’s Gelato which dates back to 1907, they sell huge towering sundae with all the trimmings.

But for dinner, you can’t go wrong with the award-winning Bar Ingo, a tiny restaurant with just a few tables but serving small plates inspired by basque dishes.

I’m still dreaming of the miso mushrooms after my last visit.

Best things to do in Broadstairs

Broadstairs has the beautiful curved Viking Bay sandy beach, so hanging out there is a must. Grab a paddleboard or rent a deckchair; you can do what you like to while away the day.

There are also the retro arcades at the top of the hill, which are a surefire hit with the kids.

Or you can explore some of the independent shops selling trinkets and gifts on the high street (my favourites are Home by SP and Arrowsmiths).

Where to stay in Broadstairs

One of the newest hotels in Broadstairs is Smith’s Townhouse, with just six bedrooms in the Georgian building. Stylish east London interiors are across the downstairs cafe and the rooms – Room Five even has Elton John’s former wardrobe.

They have some of the best coffee in town – perfect for a breakfast pick me up – but stay for a vibe in the evening where you can get cocktails and nibbles too.

Rooms start from £140. See smithstownhouse.co.uk.

Under £5 in Broadstairs

Broadstairs was once raved about by Charles Dickens, so a visit to the Dickens House Museum is a must.

Inside is the inspiration for Betsey Trotwood’s home from the novel David Copperfield.

Tickets cost £5 for adults of £2.50 for kids.

Deal

The town of Deal is quickly becoming a foodie hub, with some critically-rated restaurants popping up.

It also has a great art scene, with numerous galleries and frequent exhibitions from local artists.

It’s on the smaller side than Whitstable or Folkestone, but also makes it far more walkable.

Eat and drink in Deal

Popup Cafe is, despite it’s name, not a pop-up but a fantastic coffee shop where you’ll be hanging with young families and coworkers on their laptops.

Mostly known only to locals, the local Jenkins & Son Fishmongers opens at certain days to offer street food dishes; I regularly make a trip for the Monkfish Tacos.

For pubs, try the Caribbean style roast at The Port Arms, which shares an outdoor seating area with the nearby Kings Head pub – also worth a drink in.

The recently revamped Le Pinardier wine bar will transport you to a French bistro (without the snobby staff when you ask for a Pinot Grigio, however).

Best things to do in Deal

The high street is full of art galleries and independent sellers, my favourites being The Hoxton Store, Mileage and 123 High Street for gifts.

Explore the brutalist Deal Pier, restored twice in its history and now one of the last remaining of its kind, where you can weave between the fishermen for some of the best views in town.

Kids will love Deal Castle where they can explore the hidden tunnels and even play pretend with wooden muskets.

Otherwise try and visit on a Saturday morning to catch the local market that dates back to 1699 – and fill your pockets with antiques and cinnamon buns.

Where to stay in Deal

The Rose Hotel is one of the UK’s best boutique hotels, with just nine cosy rooms. Make sure to try the restaurant too, its one of the finest in town with a previous menu highlight being the chicken shnitzel.

Rooms from £110. See therosedeal.com.

Under £5 in Deal

Grab a bottle of beer at the stunning Deal Pier Kitchen to get beautiful ocean views, while being protected from the sea winds.

Hythe

The military history of Hythe shapes it, being one of the UK Cinque Ports.

Now, its a sleepy seaside town, less crowded due to it being off the beaten track and having no major train station.

Eat and drink in Hythe

Arrive early and get a coffee from the tiny, locally-run Mit Milche Coffee although expect queues out the door by mid-morning.

Gorge on some moules mariniere at The Waterfront with a table outside by the promenade, where you can expect a range of live jazz and DJ music on certain days.

If you’re in the mood for something fancier, just on the outskirts is Hide & Fox which gained a second Michelin star last year.

Just come hungry if you opt for the eight-course menu.

If the sea air is a little brisk, warm up in the Kings Head pub, one of the oldest and cosiest in town dating back to 1583.

Best things to do in Hythe

The Royal Military Canal is prime for low-key strolling, running for 28 miles and made as an anti-invasion defence again Napoleon in 1803 (although it was never used.)

There are also the Hythe Sound Mirrors which were huge structures build to “listen” for enemy planes and have now been left abandoned – but worth a visit to see the sheer scale of them.

Make sure to take kids to the famous Romney, Hythe and Dymchurch Railway, with small train carriages running a small route via Dungeness.

Want to get your shopping kicks? Head to Malthouse Arcade on Fridays and Saturdays with trinkets galore across two floors.

Where to stay in Hythe

You don’t get much grander than the Hythe Imperial Hotel, overlooking the English Channel. Inside an 18th manor house, there are 92 rooms to choose from. Save time for a cuppa in the Snug or a trip to its Moet & Chandon Bar.

Rooms from £146. See hytheimperial.co.uk.

Under £5 in Hythe

Why not have a free game of tennis, with five courts open to the public at South Road Sports Facility (although save a few quid to buy some more tennis balls for any rogue hits).

Brace yourself, Coronado. The hospitality maven who brought San Diego its most over-the-top maximalist hotel — the Lafayette in North Park — is back with another glitzy project, this time in the wealthy island city known for its traditional bent.

Opening Thursday, Baby Grand includes a 35-foot faux rock wall, a 20-foot waterfall, a Mediterranean restaurant that feels like a Greek ruin being consumed by a jungle and a hidden oyster bar full of crystal and mirrors. All of this, including the Spanish statuary, Moroccan fixtures and Murano glass, is squeezed onto an Orange Avenue lot that once held a 1950s motel. If Liberace had run away with an art historian, they might have landed here.

The idea was “to create this little mirage within the mirage that is Coronado,” said Arsalun Tafazoli, founder of CH Projects, the group behind a multitude of design-intensive establishments across San Diego including the speakeasy Raised by Wolves, the hi-fi listening bar Part Time Lover and the Middle Eastern restaurant Leila.

The Baby Grand hotel and its restaurant Night Hawk stands along Orange Avenue about a block from the Hotel del Coronado.

The patio dining area of Coronado’s new Night Hawk includes seating for about 150.

Baby Grand’s high-density, high-gloss environment, which cost about $17 million and took about five years to complete, will come as no surprise to those who have followed Tafazoli’s earlier ventures.

Asked about the design philosophy behind the 2023 renovation of the Lafayette — the company’s first hotel — Tafazoli had a simple answer: “More is more.”

The Baby Grand project, put together in collaboration with design studio Post Company, is cut from the same cloth, describing itself as a “polychromatic pastiche” on its website. The goal, Tafazoli said, is to enrich Coronado’s culture and give people a respite in an anxiety-ridden time. But “it is different,” he said. “I don’t know if it is going to be embraced.”

Getting the necessary city permissions “was definitely a struggle,” Tafazoli said. “Had I known how difficult this was going to be, I don’t know …”

In the days before the hotel’s opening, Tafazoli, 44, led a tour of the site. The entrepreneur, whose heritage is Persian, wore his hair in braids and a button-down Supreme shirt featuring Barack Obama.

The Baby Grand hotel’s guest rooms feature separate tub and shower.

“I have a very one-dimensional existence. I’m single. I have no kids. This is what I do,” said Tafazoli, who grew up in San Diego and studied at UC San Diego. He lives now in downtown San Diego’s East Village, where his company is based and where his first CH venture, Neighborhood, opened in 2007.

Though his company started with eating and drinking establishments, Tafazoli said, his goals were always to create and run hotels, “the pinnacle of hospitality.” As a child of divorce, he said, he may have a heightened awareness of when the energy feels right in a room and when it doesn’t. Creating social environments, he said, gives him some control over that. Moreover, he added later, “beauty is important to me, because it conveys care.”

To make the most of Baby Grand’s compact location (2/3 of an acre), the CH team has exported parking. Instead of leaving their cars on site, guests will hand keys to valets who will deposit vehicles in a Bank of America parking structure a block away. That move freed up space for not only palm trees, torches, tables, booths and 21 pieces of statuary from Spain, but also a little faux beach with a 4-foot-deep wading pool that can hold a handful of people.

“I can’t tell you how many iterations of sand were brought in and taken out,” Tafazoli said. “Sand is its own universe. You want local sand. But local sand was not conducive to that feeling.” So the sand is from Turkey.

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1. Guest shower in an en suite bathroom. 2. Hotel design touches include guest bathroom door handles. 3. Fiberglass clamshells serve as headboard in guest rooms.

The property’s main restaurant, Night Hawk, is Mediterranean, with cooking by open fire, a Greek ruins vibe and seating for about 150. The second restaurant lurks behind the lobby — a hidden oyster-and-Champagne bar that holds about 35 people, reservation only. The space, called Fallen Empire, features red mohair booths, built-in Champagne buckets, mirrored walls and chandeliers, sconces and lamps from the Italian glass-blowing island of Murano. The floor is a custom mosaic of sea creatures.

There are 31 guest rooms, beginning at $350 per night. Each is dominated by a custom-made clamshell headboard (fiberglass). Beds are surrounded by animal-print seating, parquet oak flooring, marble tables, mirrored cabinets and custom wallpaper. The rooms measure roughly 300 square feet each, nearly half of that space taken up by their elaborate bathrooms, each with separate tub and shower, sinks from Morocco.

Now picture all of that placed in the heart of Coronado (population 20,192), which sits next to Naval Air Station North Island and is known for attracting well-heeled retirees. The median home value is $2.5 million.

Up the block from the Baby Grand is the grand dame of San Diego County tourism, the Hotel del Coronado, which went up in 1888, completed a $550-million renovation last year and starts its rates north of $600. Another option is the Bower Coronado, also a dramatically upgraded motel that reopened in 2025 with prices similar to Baby Grand’s but a much more buttoned-down style.

This view from above at the Night Hawk restaurant space shows a stone booth, elaborately patterned cushion and table top.

All of those properties stand close to Coronado’s wide, sandy beaches — which means they all face challenges as waters are often fouled by the northward flow of untreated sewage from greater Tijuana. The longstanding problem has worsened in recent years, and Coronado’s Central Beach was closed to bathers on 129 days in 2025 because of unsafe bacteria levels. The U.S. and Mexican government say they have sewage-treatment projects in progress, with improvements expected by the end of 2027.

“We are, unfortunately, not marine scientists just a group of deeply overcaffeinated hoteliers with strong opinions about lighting, linen textures, and good design. So please check local water conditions before swimming,” Tafazoli wrote in a statement.

Asked his target market for the new hotel, Tafazoli said he was looking close to home.

“I see this as a staycation for locals” from San Diego County, Tafazoli said. “The big risk is that we don’t get locals and it doesn’t resonate with tourists who like the status quo.”

That said, Baby Grand and Coronado might be a better match than some imagine. Christine Stokes, executive director of the Coronado Historical Assn. and Museum, sees at least a few parallels to Baby Grand in local history, beginning with the historical association’s own building. From the 1950s into the 1990s, Stokes noted in an email, Marco’s Restaurant operated in the space, with a “Roman Room” bar — “a dark and immersive hidden gem where bartenders performed sleight-of-hand magic tricks.”

Guest rooms, including No. 103, are labeled with inscribed brass clamshells.

Then there was the Hotel del Coronado’s Circus Room restaurant, open from the 1930s into the 1960s. That was “an immersive environment, using specialized murals and striped tents on the walls,” Stokes wrote. It’s also where, in 1950, the manager of an L.A. TV station spotted a promising young piano player and decided to give him a chance on screen. The pianist’s name was Liberace.

However people respond to the particulars of the new hotel, Tafazoli said, he knows that the larger setting of Coronado is a special place.

From his office in San Diego’s East Village, “it’s a six-minute drive,” he said. “I come off that bridge, and I feel like I’m in a different place.” It’s amazing, he said, “to be so close and feel so far away.”

A KEEN traveller is determined to visit EVERY country that flies from his local airport – and is more than halfway there already.

Savvy jet-setter Neil Loft is attempting to tick off all 120 destinations that fly from Bristol Airport.

Follow The Sun’s award-winning travel team on Instagram and Tiktok for top holiday tips and inspiration @thesuntravel. 

So far, Neil has ticked off 86 locations offered by Bristol Airport, leaving him with 34 left – although he does have an advantage working as cabin crew.

But not all of his travelling is done through work. Neil also spends lots of his free time exploring the world – last year he managed to visit 21 destinations.

Neil has only upped his efforts this year visiting as many as three places in one day, which he managed to do for as little as £3.

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He travelled from Basel in Switzerland, to St Louis in France, and Weil am Rhein in Germany all within 24 hours.

Neil said: “It was quite straightforward, really. Without even realising, I had crossed the bridge and walked into a new country.”

On day two of his trip to Basel, Neil caught the tram to the French border, where he walked over to St Louis to enjoy a local delicacy: croque monsieur.

Neil then returned to Basel before hopping on a tram across the border to Weil am Rhein in Germany.

There, he had a beer at a rooftop bar before heading back to his Swiss hotel.

Despite travelling to three different countries in 24 hours, the entire day trip cost him just £3 thanks to the travel pass he got on arrival in Basel.

Neil explained: “It was shockingly easy. I took a bit of time in each to have a drink and a mooch about but you could have done all three countries in two or three hours if you wanted to.”

Other spots in Europe that Neil has visited include Zurich, Vilnius, Kaunas, Almeria, Bilbao, Turkey, Innsbruck, and Bucharest.

When it comes to being savvy with flights, Neil says his jobs as a holiday rep and then cabin crew for 10 years helped.

Through this, he knows how to get the best flight and pair them up with the hotels and transfers.

Neil added: “I am well on track to achieve [all 120 destinations]. I have only got a handful more to do.

“I have no commitments to hold me back, so I am just an intrepid traveller really.

“I have to go on my airline apps to remind myself where I am going some of the time. I just tend to see a deal and go book it.”

Movie theaters are no longer just for watching stories — they’re becoming live entertainment portals. In a pivot toward live music entertainment, AMC is launching a real-time, interactive concert experience across 300 of its locations.

Unlike the static concert films of the past, the new tech allows artists on a remote stage to see, hear, and respond to the theater audience, effectively turning your local cinema into a stadium.

Pop stars Bebe Rexha, Paris Hilton, Kim Petras and Maren Morris are the first headliners for the concert series hitting AMC screens this June. The program moves away from pre-recorded content, opting instead for live broadcasts that allow artists to perform for a national theater audience in real time.

The movie theater chain is partnering with live entertainment company, Arena One, to bring this technology to 89 markets across the country.

“This is a highly immersive, communal experience, combining the energy of a live concert with the scale, comfort, accessibility and affordability unique to AMC,” Adam Aron, the chief executive officer of AMC Entertainment said during an earnings call Tuesday afternoon.

These one-night-only live events are meant to simulate the look and feel of going to a concert in-person — without the often-pricey cost of admission. According to AMC, the prices for these tickets will range from $40 to $75, depending on the artist and the market.

“The next chapter of live shows isn’t about proximity to big venues, it’s about creating visceral, intimate, affordable live connection between artists and fans no matter where they are,” Rohit Kapoor, Arena One’s founder, said in a statement.

“Arena One gives artists a new cinema-native canvas to create live performances, while amplifying the raw energy and shared fandom that makes live shows unforgettable.”

Music has been a hot topic for movie theaters of late as the industry continues to navigate rough waters amid hopes of a durable post-pandemic recovery.

Between box office-topping biopics like “Michael,” documentaries like “EPiC: Elvis Presley in Concert” and concert films like the forthcoming Billie Eilish movie “Hit Me Hard and Soft: The Tour,” movies rooted in music are consistently drawing sizable and enthusiastic theater audiences.

Aron, AMC’s CEO, added, “We believe that this innovation can open an entirely new chapter in live entertainment while driving incremental attendance and revenue across our circuit.”

May 5 (UPI) — Colombian singer Shakira drew an estimated 2 million people to a free concert on Copacabana beach, generating an estimated $160 million economic impact, according to data from the city government and municipal agencies.

The show, held Saturday in front of the Copacabana Palace hotel, was part of the third edition of the “Todo Mundo no Rio” program, an initiative led by the Rio city government to attract tourism and economic activity during May, traditionally a low season.

According to Riotur and the Municipal Secretariat of Economic Development, the event boosted sectors such as hospitality, food services, transportation and retail. The city deployed a comprehensive operation covering security, logistics and public services, with the Operations and Resilience Center running at full capacity.

The concert opened with a show of 1,500 drones — described as one of the largest displays of its kind at a music event — forming a she-wolf in the sky, a symbol associated with the artist. Minutes later, Shakira appeared on stage dressed in the colors of Brazil.

During the show, the artist spoke in Portuguese and recalled her early years in the country.

“Brazil, I love you. It is magical to see millions of souls together, ready to sing, feel and dance,” she told the crowd.

The performance included more than two hours of hits spanning different stages of her career, along with segments dedicated to women.

“Women don’t cry anymore. Alone we may be more vulnerable, but together we are invincible,” she said.

The show also featured appearances by well-known Brazilian artists, such as Anitta, Caetano Veloso, Maria Bethania and Ivete Sangalo.

The “Todo Mundo no Rio” program aims to position Rio as a global destination for large-scale events. It was launched in 2024 with Madonna, who drew 1.6 million people, and continued in 2025 with Lady Gaga, who attracted 2.5 million.

Copacabana has also hosted some of the largest concerts in the world. Rod Stewart drew 3.5 million people in 1994, The Rolling Stones, about 1.5 million in 2006, and Stevie Wonder, some 2 million in 2012.

According to official data released by Agencia Brasil, medical services handled about 400 cases during the event, with 64 transfers to hospitals due to general discomfort, minor injuries and alcohol consumption. Cleanup crews collected about 362 tons of waste, with nearly 2,000 workers deployed.

After her stop in Brazil, Shakira will head to the North American leg of her tour, with concerts in the United States between June and July. These include dates in Inglewood, Palm Desert and San Jose, Calif., Dallas, Atlanta, Miami, Baltimore, Boston, Newark, N.J., and New York, before ending this leg in Atlantic City, N.J. on July 25.

Good morning, and welcome to L.A. on the Record — our City Hall newsletter. It’s David Zahniser, giving you the latest on city and county government.

We’ve got a month left before the June 2 primary election, with mail-in ballots already heading to voters’ mailboxes.

As if on cue, the big campaign money is pouring in from an array of well-funded interests: business groups, labor unions, hotels, taxicab companies and even one candidate’s mother.

To get around the city’s strict fundraising limits, those donors are putting much larger sums into “independent expenditure” campaigns that operate separately from their favored candidates.

Let’s take a look at some of the outsized spending to emerge in recent weeks.

Police union targets Raman

Things had been pretty sleepy in the L.A. mayor’s race, even with Mayor Karen Bass facing challenges from Councilmember Nithya Raman, reality TV personality Spencer Pratt and 11 other opponents.

That all changed after the Los Angeles Police Protective League, the union representing rank-and-file officers, dropped more than $400,000 on ads targeting Raman, who was elected to the council twice with support from Democratic Socialists of America, which isn’t endorsing in the mayoral primary.

Bass has been aligned with the union on a number of issues, supporting the hiring of more cops, signing off on higher police salaries and vetoing a ballot proposal to let Police Chief Jim McDonnell fire officers.

Raman, on the other hand, has been campaigning on her opposition to a package of police pay increases, saying the decision by Bass and the council to approve them was “politically motivated.”

Bass and others said the increases were needed to keep police from leaving a department that has lost 14% of its officers since 2020.

The league tried and failed to unseat Raman two years ago. This time around, the union is texting voters a campaign video highlighting her opposition to a city law barring homeless people from setting up encampments within 500 feet of a school.

The ad, which appears on YouTube, Hulu and other platforms, cites Raman’s recent vote against a new “no-camping” zone in Venice, in an area plagued by assaults and other crimes.

“Raman has voted over 75 times to allow homeless camps next to schools, daycares, parks and other sensitive locations, undermining public safety,” the ad’s narrator says.

Raman responded with her own campaign video saying Bass gave the union “more money than the city could even afford,” forcing city leaders to cut other services “to the bone.”

“This is what happens when a city governs for powerful interests rather than working people,” she said.

The league is planning to spend more than $1 million opposing Raman, and it’s already gotten some help. For example, office building owner Kilroy Realty Group has given $100,000 to the anti-Raman campaign.

A mother of a campaign

Real estate executive Zach Sokoloff has a not-so-secret weapon as he seeks to unseat City Controller Kenneth Mejia: his mom.

Sheryl Sokoloff is the spouse of Jonathan Sokoloff, managing partner of the Los Angeles-based private equity investment firm Leonard Green & Partners. She recently dropped $2.5 million into a committee promoting her son, which has produced digital ads accusing Mejia of performing too few audits.

“Zach Sokoloff will actually do the job as controller,” the ad’s narrator says in one 30-second spot.

Mejia, in an email, called the attacks “baseless” and accused Sokoloff’s family of “using their extraordinary wealth to try to buy the Controller’s position.”

“Unlike my opponent, I do not have any millionaire family members who can bankroll my campaign,” he said. “Just like last time we ran, we’re relying on small dollar donations from LA residents who are inspired by our record of providing unprecedented transparency and accountability on their tax dollars.”

Spending surge in the 11th

We already knew the race for the 11th District, which covers L.A.’s coastal neighborhoods, had gotten outrageously expensive.

Last week, Councilmember Traci Park reported raising nearly $1.3 million. Human rights attorney Faizah Malik, Park’s lone challenger, took in her own impressive haul of $454,000.

Turns out the independent expenditure campaigns in the race are nearly as costly.

Two city employee unions — the Police Protective League and United Firefighters of Los Angeles City Local 112 — have spent nearly $900,000 on efforts to get Park reelected. And they’re getting help.

The firefighters, a Park ally since her 2022 campaign, collected $150,000 for their pro-Park effort from Western States Regional Council of Carpenters, a construction trade union. The police union picked up $150,000 from restaurateur Jerry Greenberg and $200,000 from real estate company Douglas Emmett Properties, which gained notoriety for its push to evict tenants from West L.A.’s Barrington Plaza.

Malik, backed by Democratic Socialists of America, accused Park of doing the bidding of her donors at the expense of “everyday working Angelenos,” by supporting police raises and fighting stronger renter protections.

Hotel workers take aim at Park

Meanwhile, a different union is doing its own sizable spend.

Unite Here Local 11, which represents hotel workers, has put nearly $340,000 so far on efforts to promote Malik and tear down Park. The union’s leadership has been furious with Park, who voted against a hike in the minimum wage for tourism workers to $30 per hour.

Park said the wage hike would harm the city’s hospitality industry, costing hotel workers their jobs.

Like the police and the firefighters, Unite Here is not going it alone. The union picked up $50,000 from United Teachers Los Angeles and another $50,000 from Smart Justice California, a group focused on less punitive public safety strategies.

Unite Here has attempted to portray Park, a Democrat, as a Trump sympathizer, highlighting remarks she made to the president when he visited Pacific Palisades in the wake of the Palisades fire. The union also pointed out that she voted against making L.A. a sanctuary city for undocumented immigrants.

Park told news radio station KNX in 2024 that the state already has a sanctuary law, and that she considered the ordinance to be an act of “symbolic resistance” — one that would jeopardize federal funding.

On Thursday, Park accused Unite Here of using a picture of her with personnel from the Army Corps of Engineers to falsely imply that she was standing alongside ICE. The Army Corps removed debris from thousands of burned-out properties in the Palisades.

Park, in a statement, called the mail pieces “dishonest and disgusting.”

Unite Here didn’t directly address Park’s allegation, but told The Times that “Local 11 believes that our local elected officials should not collaborate with the Trump administration in any way.”

Speaking of the hotel wage

Unite Here isn’t the only player in the hotel wage fight to leap into this year’s council races.

Two L.A.-based hotels, working with the California Hotel and Lodging Assn., have put a combined $300,000 into a political action committee supporting Maria Lou Calanche, who is seeking to unseat Councilmember Eunisses Hernandez; political aide Jose Ugarte, who is running to replace Councilmember Curren Price; and Park in the 11th.

The group, which goes by the name Fix Los Angles PAC, doesn’t seem to be sweating all the details. Its phone script to voters, which was filed recently with the Ethics Commission, got Calanche’s name wrong, referring to her as Mary instead of Maria.

State of play

— EXPANDING THE VOTE: L.A. voters could be asked in November to take the first step toward giving noncitizens the right to vote in city and school board elections. City Councilmember Hugo Soto-Martínez, now running for reelection, wants voters to give the council the authority to let noncitizens vote in elections for mayor, council and other city offices, as well as the school board.

— HOME SHARING HOLDOUTS: Bass is looking to relax the city’s rules on home-sharing, by letting residents rent their second homes on a short-term basis through Airbnb and other platforms. Some council members were cool to the idea, saying this week that they fear such a move would shrink the city’s housing supply.

— EYE IN THE SKY: The LAPD deployed drones more than 3,000 times last year, using them mostly for emergency calls or officers’ requests for help, according to a report submitted to the Police Commission. The 3-foot-wide surveillance devices are being used by a department already known for its sizable fleet of helicopters.

— SEIZING CONTROL: Bass and Councilmembers Tim McOsker and Ysabel Jurado want the city of L.A. to obtain majority control over the embattled Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority, a city-county agency that delivers services to the region’s unhoused population. That proposal comes a year after the county’s Board of Supervisors voted to pull more than $300 million out of LAHSA.

— A GLOOMY OUTLOOK: L.A. voters lack confidence in the ability of city, county and state officials to make housing more affordable, according to a survey conducted by the Los Angeles Business Council.

— READY FOR OUR CLOSE-UP: L.A. plans to install 125 speed cameras by the end of July, in the hope of catching misbehaving drivers. But there are already some takeaways from San Francisco, where the technology is being credited with getting drivers to slow down.

QUICK HITS

• Where is Inside Safe? The mayor’s signature program to combat homelessness returned to South Los Angeles, sending outreach workers to areas around 23rd and Broadway, Adams Boulevard at Main Street, and Washington Boulevard at Main Street.
• On the docket next week: The major candidates for mayor are set to square off Wednesday at a forum sponsored by NBC4 and Telemundo 52, in partnership with Loyola Marymount University and the Skirball Cultural Center.

Stay in touch

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