Page 131 - 2020 Travel Guide to California

OCEAN IMAGE PHOTOGRAPHY/SHUTTERSTOCK; JON BILOUS/SHUTTERSTOCK; KIT LEONG/SHUTTERSTOCK. OPPOSITE: JON BILOUS/SHUTTERSTOCK
VIEW FROM Crescent Bay
Point Park, Laguna Beach,
opposite; preparing to snorkel
in San Clemente, left; Hilltop
Park in Dana Point, top;
Anaheim Regional Intermodal
Transit Center, above.
SPECIAL
»
EVENTS 2020
DANA POINT FESTIVAL OF WHALES March 7-8, 14-15, Dana Point festivalofwhales.org
SWALLOWS’ DAY PARADE AND MERCADO STREET FAIRE
March 21, San Juan Capistrano swallowsparade.com
BATTLE OF THE MARIACHIS May 9, Mission San Juan Capistrano missionsjc.com
SAWDUST ART & CRAFT FESTIVAL June 26-Aug. 30, Laguna Beach sawdustartfestival.org
HUNTINGTON BEACH 4TH OF JULY PARADE & FIREWORKS
July 4, Huntington Beach huntingtonbeachparade.com
PAGEANT OF THE MASTERS July 8-Sept. 3, Laguna Beach foapom.com
TALL SHIPS FESTIVAL Sept. 11-13, Dana Point Harbor ocean-institute.org/tall-ships-festival
NEWPORT BEACH CHRISTMAS BOAT PARADE
Dec. 16-20, Newport Beach christmasboatparade.com
»
MUST
SEE,
DO
» Disneyland Resort Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge is
the Magic Kingdom’s top draw now—who could pass
up a smuggling operation in the Millennium Falcon or
battling the First Order with the Resistance? Pixar,
Marvel Comics and Twentieth Century Fox acquisitions
may overshadow classic Disney characters, but
princesses, witches and cute animals galore still
enchant youngsters. There’s also a new carousel and
Emotional Whirlwind ride at Pixar Pier in California
Adventure. Look for Mickey, Minnie and Goofy to make
a big comeback in 2022 with their own high-tech ride
in Toontown.
› disneyland.disney.go.com
» Orange County Great Park Marked by a huge
orange balloon floating 400 feet overhead, the
continually evolving 1,300-acre park on a former
Marine air station is a family favorite offering open
space, educational play areas, art galleries and studios,
summertime movies on the lawn, a performance plaza
and a weekly farmers market. 2019 brought one of the
nation’s largest public ice facilities and 1.5 miles of
walking/biking trails through restored native
landscape that includes a playground and picnic area.
Also last year, the 194-acre Sports Complex, which
opened in 2017 with a soccer stadium and fields and
tennis and volleyball courts, added baseball, softball
and basketball facilities.
› ocgp.org
» Lot 579, Huntington Beach Just south of “Surf
City’s” downtown, steps from Huntington Beach Pier
and the city’s famous sands, the sidewalk cafés and
markets of this waterfront food hall offer a delicious
variety of towering gourmet sandwiches, fresh fish,
Vietnamese comfort food, gelato on a stick and other
treats. Lot 579 is an anchor of Pacific City, the two-year-
old shopping, dining and entertainment complex
whose Craftsman-style bungalows pay homage to the
early oceanfront village that became Huntington
Beach. The communal space upstairs offers plenty of
seating and a killer ocean view.
› gopacificcity.com/lot579
» Laguna Beach’s Pageant of the Masters Art
literally comes to life in the unique Pageant of the
Masters, in which living actors take up positions
against painted backdrops to re-create world
masterpieces in eerie 3-D fidelity. It’s the pièce de
résistance among the festivals, workshops, galleries
and proliferation of public art in the picturesque beach
town that began life in the early 1900s as a small
artists’ colony.
› visitlagunabeach.com
› foapom.com
» Old Towne Orange Not to be missed in this
square mile of Early California homes, sporting
handsome Victorian, Craftsman, Bungalow and Spanish
architecture, is the Old Towne Orange Walking Food
Tour. The county’s oldest operating bank and soda
fountain can also be found among the locally owned
shops, galleries, fountains and pretty sidewalk cafés.
› oldtownorangewalkingfoodtours.com
2020 TRAVEL GUIDE TO CALIFORNIA 129