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 2007, the population was 84,218. 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, Santa Ana Heights, and Newport Coast.
Attractions include beaches on the Balboa Peninsula (featuring body-boarding 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. There are a variety of options that include fishing, arcade games, and nice restaurants.
The Balboa Fun Zone, located on the Balboa Peninsula near the Balboa Island Ferry, features a ferris wheel, an old-time Merry-Go-Round and several quaint shops and restaurants.
The Orange County Museum of Art is a 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 canoeing. 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. Update, the golf courses and the Pelican Grill Restaurant have been reopened since November 2007.
Since the hit FOX drama The OC, many tourists from around the globe have explicitly increased Newport Beach's tourist rate, hoping to match sights from the show with sights in the city. However, though set in Newport Beach, the show is actually filmed an hour north in Hermosa Beach. Continuing in the spotlight, another television show about Newport Beach, Newport Harbor: The Real Orange County, airs on MTV.
City of Newport Beach
http://www.city.newport-beach.ca.us/
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