Newport Beach Christmas Light Parade

[Kyung]

Newport Beach Christmas Light Parade

As a freelance court reporter, I don't have a company-sponsored holiday party that I go to every year. And the economy being what it is, some companies may be scaling back.

So I thought I'd post a link if you guys are looking for an event with some holiday flair. Looks like fun. Also if you buy tickets through this website, you'll get a discount.

[Karen Margolis]

My son and I went on a boat a few years back in Newport Beach to view the holiday lights. Other than the fact that it rained the whole time and I slipped and fell on the boat, it was beautiful!

[Kyung]

Oh, that's a bummer. But at least the lights were beautiful.

[Kyung]

Review -

If you're going to do this, try to get there early and go on the Nautilus out of Newport Landing. My friend got there early and was able to get tickets for the Nautilus. But since my family and our other friends wouldn't have made it on the Nautilus, she turned her tickets in and joined us the Western Pride out of Davy's Landing. It was a much smaller boat and did not have covered outdoor seating. Thank goodness, the night was clear and dry. It was cold though, so defintiely dress warmly. The boat stank!!! It also stinks down by the Davy's Landing area. It smelled like a sewage pipe had broken.

Due to a confusion in scheduling, our trip was supposed to start at 5:45. Unfortunately, no one mentioned that to the crew. When they discovered the mistake and got the crew back, it was 6:30 when they started boarding. There were some very angry people. So about 85 percent of the people left. Which was a good thing bec. the boat is tiny. Now, it was like we had our own charter with less than 30 people on board. I'm telling you, the boat looked very small for the amount of people milling about on the dock beforehand.

But patience was rewarded and we boarded and were on our way. It was cold and clear. If you dress warmly, you will be fine. They offer wine, coffee, hot chocolate, popcorn, and hamburgers and cheeseburgers and cup o'noodle. I did not see anyone purchase any of the food, except for the microwave popcorn. I suggest you eat before you get on board.

The captain went out for an extended period to make up for the wait. So the cruise which was to last an hour 45 to 2 hours went about 2 hours 15, which is a lovely gesture, but people were cold and tired and wanted to go home. There are some beautifully decorated houses. And perhaps for the period of the parade, all the houses would be decorated and lit up, but there were quite a few houses that were not. Some of the houses that were lit up were fabulous. You could also see into some of these homes, and they are gorgeous.

So all in all, it was worth. But I'm not sure I'd do it again. Maybe if we got on the Nautilus and maybe if it was during the Christmas Parade itself. Oh, btw, we got our tickets through GoldStar Events. They were discount tickets so we did not pay full price, which probably made it more worthwhile. After all, it was a 2 hour cruise of the Newport Harbor.