ORANGE COUNTY: EXQUISITE BEACHES, DIVERSE CITIES, AND THRIVING ARTS SCENES MARK THIS SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA COUNTY

BY CHRISTINE DELSOL

Days when Disneyland, 42 miles of idyllic beaches and swaths of orange groves were all that lifted “The O.C.” out of Los Angeles’ shadow are long gone. Orange County today is a diverse collection of cities counting famous surf breaks, historic missions, art colonies and scenic marinas among its attractions.

While beach towns—from surf-centric Huntington Beach to tony Newport to artsy Laguna to serene San Clemente—still embody the casual, creative California of popular imagination, inland cities have grown into shopping, entertainment and sports meccas. Irvine—encompassing a University of California campus, the evolving Orange County Great Park and several “villages”—was the vanguard of a trend toward master-planned communities in recent decades.

Defying the suburban stereotype, Orange County cities possess distinct personalities. Even Anaheim, with its modern convention center, revival of the historic Center Street Promenade commerce district, and bustling Packing House food market, has distinguished itself from the Magic Kingdom. About 30 percent of OC residents hail from another country, and English is a second language for 45 percent; Little Saigon is the largest Vietnamese community outside of Vietnam. A true melting pot, the county hosts a dizzying array of ethnic food, festivals, markets and cultural events.

Performance venues such as the Orange County Performing Arts Center and the South Coast Repertory are sprinkled throughout the county. Destination shopping malls, including Irvine Spectrum, Costa Mesa’s South Coast Plaza and Fashion Island in Newport Beach, vie with dozens of local shopping districts.

Sports fans cheer the Los Angeles Angels at the Angel Stadium of Anaheim and the Anaheim Ducks hockey team at Honda Center, which doubles as a big-name concert venue. More than 40 championship courses and a temperate climate await golfers, while hotel and day spas stand ready to soothe aches and tone muscles.

CITY & TOWN

Anaheim is the largest of Orange County’s 34 cities. None has a typical downtown, though Huntington Beach offers a vibrant seaside city center. History buffs gravitate to San Juan Capistrano’s beautifully preserved 18th-century mission, Yorba Linda’s Nixon Presidential Library and the restored Victorian homes and historic city centers in Santa Ana and Orange.

THE GREAT OUTDOORS

The coastline with its world-famous surf spots (Huntington Beach, the Wedge at Newport Beach, Trestles in San Clemente), yacht harbors (Newport Beach, Dana Point) and protected areas (Crystal Cove State Park’s underwater reserve, the wetlands of California’s first state beach, Doheny) are just the beginning of Orange County’s natural wonders. Inland canyons and parks teem with wildlife and hiking and biking trails, such as Irvine’s 300-acre San Joaquin Wildlife Sanctuary.

FAMILY FUN

Disneyland and Knott’s Berry Farm are a given, but don’t overlook fun at Sky Zone Anaheim’s indoor trampolines and Pretend City Children’s Museum in Irvine, where kids go to “work,” collect their pay from ATMs and buy groceries. Santa Ana’s Discovery Science Center offers more than 100 hands-on exhibits, and Dana Point’s Ocean Institute runs marine science and history expeditions on a tall ship or a research vessel.

5 MUST SEE, DO

Disneyland Resort
Walt Disney would hardly recognize his “happiest place on Earth” today. At California Adventure, Marvel’s “Guardians of the Galaxy—Mission Breakout” replaced the Tower of Terror, and the new Pixar Pier overtook the former Paradise Pier with an “Incredicoaster” and Pixar-themed neighborhoods; a new Inside Out neighborhood is due this summer. In the original park, part of Frontierland gives way to the hotly anticipated Star Wars Land this year, bringing such adventures as a secret mission on the Millennium Falcon and an all-out intergalactic battle.
disneyland.disney.go.com

Orange County Great Park
The 1,300-acre park slowly evolving from the former El Toro Marine Corps Air Station is already a popular family destination. In addition to 2017’s opening of the first phase of a 194-acre sports park (stadium, soccer fields, tennis and volleyball courts; baseball and softball fields to come), 200 acres already were occupied by the now-iconic orange Great Park Balloon rising 400 feet into the air, a hand-painted carousel, a Kids Rock play area, a hands-on Farm + Food Lab, Palm Court Arts Complex gallery and studios, a shaded performance plaza, and a weekly farmers market. One of the nation’s largest public ice facilities was scheduled to open in December 2018.
cityofirvine.org/orange-county-great-park

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, authentic Aussie meat pies, 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/lot-579

Laguna Beach and 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.
iheartoldtowneorange.com