Hotels in Newport Beach, California

A little about Newport Beach...

Newport Beach, incorporated in 1906, is a city in Orange County, California, 10 miles south of downtown Santa Ana. The Current OMB metropolitan designation for Newport Beach and the Orange County Area is Santa Ana-Anaheim-Irvine, CA. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 70,032. The area code for Newport Beach is 949. The city is home to several well known communities and recent annexations including Balboa Island, Corona del Mar, San Joaquin Hills, and Newport Coast.

Attractions include beaches on the Balboa Peninsula (featuring body-surfing hot-spot The Wedge) and in Corona del Mar. Crystal Cove State Park is located at the southern end of the coast.

The Catalina Flyer, a giant 500 passenger catamaran, provides daily transportation from the Balboa Peninsula in Newport Beach to Avalon, California located on Santa Catalina Island. The historic Balboa Pavilion, established in 1906, is Newport Beach's most famous landmark.

The Balboa Fun Zone, located on the Balboa Peninsula, features a ferris wheel, an old-time Merry-Go-Round, and bumper cars as well as quaint shops and restaurants.

The Orange County Museum of Art is an art museum that exhibits art from a variety of modern artists.

Balboa Island is an artificial island in Newport Harbor that was dredged and filled right before World War I. The Balboa Island Ferry transports cars, bicycles and pedestrians across the harbor channel between Balboa Island and the Balboa Peninsula.

The Back Bay is a wildlife sanctuary, while nearby Fashion Island provides shopping experiences with department stores like Bloomingdale's. The Newport Beach public library's spectacular architecture has been featured in the movie Romy and Michele's High School Reunion.

The Newport Aquatic Center offers kayaking, rowing, and canœing. It has been a training ground for many Olympians throughout the years, and runs several programs for the youth of Orange County, including programs for at-risk youth.

The Pelican Hill area has two golf courses, both of which are closed for the construction of a resort hotel, golf clubhouse and residences by the Irvine Company. It is located on a small 1.2 square mile sliver of land, and contours the Pacific Coast.