Page 113 - 2014 Travel Guide to California

»
MUST
SEE,
DO
» Newport Beach This beach community
is a classic, with two piers, a boardwalk, an
amusement park, a yacht-filled harbor and the
Wedge—one of the biggest surf spots in SoCal.
› visitnewportbeach.com
» South Coast Plaza Far more than a
shopping mall, this sprawling center encompasses
a 21-screen movie theater complex, including an
IMAX theater, comedy club, 108-foot-tall Giant
Wheel visible for miles, carousel with gorgeous
antique-design animals and countless gardens,
fountains and courtyards. And yes, there are stores
and restaurants galore.
› southcoastplaza.com
» Mission San Juan Capistrano This
beautifully preserved, 18th-century mission covers
ten acres filled with gardens, fountains and adobe
buildings in the center of a scenic town famous for
the swallows that return every spring.
› missionsjc.com
SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO MISSION, above;
Huntington Beach pier at sunset, opposite.
SPECIAL
»
EVENTS 2014
» Disneyland Resort Walt Disney’s 1955
amusement park has completed a five-year
expansion of its Disney California Adventure Park,
adding a much-anticipated 12-acre Cars Land re-
creation of Radiator Springs from the Disney Pixar
movie Cars and a re-creation of Los Angeles in the
1920s in its Buena Vista Street entrance. Of course,
the resort also includes the original and ever-
changing Disneyland, Downtown Disney’s wide
array of restaurants and clubs and the acclaimed
Grand Californian Hotel.
› disneyland.disney.go.com
DANA POINT WHALE FESTIVAL March 1-2, 8-9, Dana Point festivalofwhales.org
SWALLOWS’ DAY PARADE March 22, San Juan Capistrano swallowsparade.com
ORANGE COUNTY MARATHON May 4, Newport Beach ocmarathon.com
HUNTINGTON BEACH 4TH OF JULY PARADE July 4, Huntington Beach hb4thofjuly.org
PAGEANT OF THE MASTERS July 7-Aug. 30, Laguna Beach foapom.com
» Laguna Beach Laguna began as a small
artists’ colony in the early 1900s and has retained
its devotion to the arts with festivals, galleries,
a scenic seaside park and abundant public art.
› lagunabeachinfo.com
2014 T R AV E L G U I D E T O C A L I F O R N I A 111