Orange County
Next door to Knott's Berry Farm is this water park, boasting a 750,000-gallon wave pool, dozens of high-speed slides, tubes and flumes, and one of the…
Must-see attractions in Orange County
Newport Beach
This 10,000 sq ft center in the Upper Newport Bay Ecological Preserve is made from sustainable materials. Inside, you’ll find displays and information…
Disneyland Resort
Pirates of the Caribbean is the longest ride in Disneyland (17 minutes) and one of the longest running, opened in 1967. That's half a century of folks…
Coastal Orange County
Just south of the Laguna Beach boundary, this 18-acre county-run park is popular with surfers, sunbathers, bodysurfers and tide poolers. Families make the…
Newport Beach
In the middle of the harbor sits the island that time forgot. Its streets are still largely lined with tightly clustered cottages built in the 1920s and …
Coastal Orange County
One block southwest of the mission, next to the Capistrano train depot, this peaceful assemblage of a few dozen historic cottages and adobes now mostly…
Anaheim
A quietly splashy redeveloped neighborhood. There's a futuristic ice rink and a couple of blocks packed with hipster-friendly shops selling everything…
Laguna Beach
A nonprofit organization dedicated to rescuing and rehabilitating injured or ill marine mammals, this center northeast of town has a small staff and many…
Upper Newport Bay Ecological Preserve
Newport Beach
The brackish water of this 752-acre reserve, where runoff from the San Bernardino Mountains meets the sea, supports more than 200 species of birds. This…
Coastal Orange County
San Clemente City Beach stretches alongside this historic 1296ft-long, wood-built pier. The original 1928 pier, where Prohibition-era bootleggers once…
Laguna Beach
South of downtown Laguna Beach, the locals’ favorite Aliso Beach County Park is popular with surfers, boogie boarders and skimboarders. With picnic tables…
Disneyland Resort
The vintage Enchanted Tiki Room's main attraction is the kitschy, corny, good-natured show of wisecracking, singing audio-animatronic birds and plants in…
Coastal Orange County
The renowned sculptor Isamu Noguchi designed this 1.6 acre sculpture park, steps from the arts center near South Coast Plaza and the Segerstrom Center…
Newport Beach
In the Balboa Fun Zone, this newly refurbished museum was recently taken over by Santa Ana's Discovery Cube and runs educational programs for local…
Bolsa Chica Conservancy Interpretive Center
Huntington Beach
Galleries in this 1400 sq ft facility feature tanks showing off local marine life and reptiles, and there's taxidermy of land and bird species. It's on…
Coastal Orange County
Adjacent to the southern border of Dana Point Harbor, this mile-long beach is great for swimmers, surfers, surf fishers and tide poolers. You’ll also find…
Newport Beach
If you're seeking an escape, head down the steep hill to this secluded beach known for its tide pools. Kids love the tide pools, but be aware that the…
Disneyland Resort
Critter Country’s main attraction is this flume ride through the story of Brer Rabbit and Brer Bear, based on the controversial 1946 film Song of the…
Surfing Heritage & Culture Center
Coastal Orange County
This foundation gives a timeline of surfing history by exhibiting surfboards ridden by the greats from Duke Kahanamoku to Kelly Slater, and its photo…
Coastal Orange County
Where Main St ends, Seal Beach Pier begins, extending 1865ft over the ocean. The 1906 original fell victim to winter storms in the 1930s and has since…
Laguna Beach
Jealously guarded by locals, Thousand Steps Beach is about 1 mile south of Aliso Beach, hidden off Hwy 1 just south of Mission Hospital. At the south end…
Newport Beach
For a striking architectural specimen, stroll past the 1926 Lovell House, designed by seminal modernist architect Rudolf Schindler, a student of Frank…
Disneyland Resort
Until recently a gallery dedicated to futurists Jules Verne, HG Wells, and Leonardo da Vinci, today this building is all Star Wars, all the time. On…
Newport Beach
At the end of the Balboa Peninsula, the Wedge is famous for its perfectly hollow waves that can swell up to 30ft high. The waves are shore-breakers that…
Huntington Beach
The world's biggest surfboard (in the Guinness World Records) fronts this small museum, an entertaining stop for surf-culture enthusiasts. Temporary…
Newport Beach
A variety of lush gardens awaits at Corona del Mar's prize attraction. On 2.2 acres, the profuse orchids, a rose garden, a koi pond and even a desert…
Laguna Beach
This breezy museum has changing exhibitions featuring contemporary California artists, and a permanent collection heavy on California landscapes, vintage…
Disneyland Resort
A total of 999 ‘happy haunts’ – spirits, goblins and ghosts – appear and evanesce while you ride in a cocoon-like ‘Doom Buggy’ through web-covered…
Huntington Beach
Dogs can romp in the surf at Huntington Dog Beach, between Goldenwest St and Seapoint Ave, north of Huntington City Beach. Nearly a mile long, it’s a…
Newport Beach
Locals enjoy impromptu, though not quite legal, cocktail parties at Lookout Point, perched above the beach with views of Pirate's Cove and the Balboa…
Newport Beach
Take the stairs off the north end of the Main Beach parking lot down to hideaway Pirate's Cove, a waveless beach that’s great for families. Scenes from…
Disneyland Resort
The most visible ride at Disney California Adventure is this 15-story Ferris wheel. As you get a bird's-eye view of the park, the gondolas pitch and yaw…
Disneyland Resort
A statue of Walt and Mickey graces the circle at the end of Main Street USA. Countless folks have taken photos here with Sleeping Beauty Castle in the…
Laguna Beach
Near downtown’s village, Main Beach has volleyball and basketball courts, a playground and restrooms. It's the first beach you see as you come down Laguna…
Disneyland Resort
Italian roadster Luigi from the Cars films orchestrates a dance in his back yard. Humans ride inside cars choreographed to classic retro tunes like Mambo…
Disneyland Resort
In this topsy-turvy mini-metropolis, kiddos can traipse through Mickey and Minnie’s houses and dozens of storefronts with activities, character meet-and…
Huntington Beach
Want even more surf and sand? South of the pier, Huntington State Beach extends 2 miles from Beach Blvd (Hwy 39) to the Santa Ana River and Newport Beach…
Laguna Beach
South of central Laguna, this beach has long been a hangout for Laguna's (and the OC's) LGBT community (with an emphasis on the G). The eye candy can be…
Disneyland Resort
Younger kids love taking a spin around this old-time merry-go-round. Choose from 68 wooden horses or a chariot to ride, to the music of a classic carnival…
Disneyland Resort
This old-school attraction is inspired by Mr Toad of The Wind in the Willows fame. It's a loopy jaunt in an open-air jalopy through London.
