Scalpers are already cashing in on Santa Monica’s upcoming Ocean Way Festival — and most don’t even have tickets yet.
Pre-sales opened Wednesday for local residents. The cheapest way in: a two-day general admission pass priced at $399 all-in. But within hours, resale sites were already trying to squeeze fans.
By mid-morning, Vivid Seats was listing the same two-day pass for $611. StubHub — the publicly traded ticket giant (STUB), which reported $48 million in net profit in the first quarter of 2026 — was offering single-day tickets for as much as $364.
There’s just one catch: many of those tickets don’t actually exist in the sellers’ hands.
The practice, known as “speculative selling,” occurs when resellers list tickets they don’t yet own, betting they can secure them later at a lower price. Meanwhile, buyers are left paying a premium for seats that aren’t guaranteed.
The Ocean Way Festival, produced by Goldenvoice, is set for September 26 and 27 and will transform the Santa Monica shoreline into a massive beachfront venue. The event stretches along Ocean Front Walk between Bay Street — where the main entrance will be — and the Santa Monica Pier.
More than a dozen acts are slated to perform, including Olivia Dean, The Killers, Sublime, and Jack White. Organizers expect crowds of roughly 25,000 people per day.
The general public sale doesn’t even begin until Thursday, July 23 at 10 a.m.
Lawmakers in Sacramento are already moving to crack down on the practice. Assembly Bill 1349, authored by Assemblymember Isaac Bryan (D-Culver City), would ban speculative ticket listings and require sellers to actually possess — or have the legal right to sell — the tickets they’re offering. The bipartisan measure is now under consideration in the state Senate.
Another pice of legislation, Assembly Bill 1720, is also under consideration by state lawmakers. If passed, it would make it illegal to resell concert or event tickets for more than ten percent above the original face value.
Until then, buyers beware.
Never miss a single story!
- Movie night gets a glow up at Regent’s Cinema by the Sea - July 22, 2026
- Ocean Way Festival: Scalpers cash in as resident pre-sale begins - July 22, 2026
- You never know who—or what—you’ll find at Santa Monica’s Truetone Music - July 21, 2026