Hailing from New England,, we admit a bias toward our own magnificent--and, yeah, sometimes chilly--ocean, the Atlantic. However, in the interest of fairness, we decided to expose our kids to that other little pond, the Pacific. And so it was that two travel-writer moms and two East Coast kids, Charlotte, age 13, and Connor, age 10, discovered the Technicolor-blue water and sun-kissed sand of Newport Beach, California. The fact that our sweatshirts (typical beach attire back where we come from) never left the rental car was just one way that we knew we weren't in Massachusetts anymore. We could learn to like this.
It's helpful to know that Newport Beach, located in the heart of southern California, is made up of several neighborhoods, including Balboa Peninsula, where we stayed, and Balboa Island, a cottage colony on the bay side with lots of small shops along its main street, Marine Avenue. Families do best staying on the Peninsula, we think, because you can park your car in the municipal lot and walk everywhere. To us, there's nothing relaxing about circling town for hours, looking for a parking space.
Although we were about 50 miles from Tinsel Town, our hotel, the Balboa Inn, looked like a movie set. Built in 1929, this Mission-style stucco building is painted salmon pink with green trim and topped by two towers. It also offers a feature that we consider an absolute must: a pool. We awarded bonus points for the hot tub and the complimentary continental breakfast served on a patio with a view of the Pacific Ocean.
Our room didn't have air conditioning, but ceiling fans did the job just fine. When we left our windows open, we could hear the soothing sound of the surf, but also sometimes the Top 40 music from the Inn's café in the courtyard below. No doubt, there are quieter places to stay, but this one is only 50 yards from the beach and boasts a celebrity connection--it was once owned by basketball star Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Rumor has it, his suite featured an extra-long bed. (Double room rate--including two normal-sized double beds--is $199 to $269, depending on the time of week; 877-BALBOA-9 or click here.)
Just beyond the Inn is a boardwalk that runs along Newport Beach. The boardwalk is pure SoCal: surf shops, palm trees, and everyone in bikinis and board shorts, whizzing along on in-line skates, bikes, and scooters. The most attention-getting forms of transportation, though, are beach buggies, which are ridden in the street. They're available for rent (call 949-675-2999 for rental rates) and look like something out of a Dr. Seuss book--sort of a bicycle built for four, sporting a canopy. Of course, we had to try it. "Needs an ooh-gah horn; otherwise, perfect," Charlotte declared.
