I have a 7 - 5 - 2 year olds. I was planning on going to Huntington but someone mentioned Newport (Balboa) was better. If you've been to both help me decide which one. I heard Huntington has some free parking does the Balboa area? Does Huntington have bathrooms?
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Huntington or Newport Beach?
- Thread starter michray
- Start date
MagicalMomAZ
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Aug 17, 2006
Huntington has more bathrooms & has all day parking w/ ample space. Newport is great but stay close to the pier for bathrooms & eateries. Parking is metered unless a parking lot nearby is charging (awesome if they are) - near the Spaghetti Factory there's 2 but the fill fast.
Newport is closer to Balboa. You can go to Balboa but because of The Wedge the waves are huge. Great for surfers, bad for little ones.
Balboa Fun Zone has a Merry Go Round & Ferris Wheel, after that it's boat tours & arcades. We love it, but our kids are older now too.
Corona del Mar Big Beach (look it up) isn't TOO far from there & the waves are tame there and there's also ample parking.
Because we hang at all those beaches in the summer, near 4th of July I've seen them at their best & their worst. I see HB (near Main St only) as party central..NB is a close second unless you go to the low numbers (8th St) away from the pier. Balboa is fun for families, but again, the waves can be daunting. My choice for families w/ little ones is Corona del Mar Big Beach...ALL the way!
Newport is closer to Balboa. You can go to Balboa but because of The Wedge the waves are huge. Great for surfers, bad for little ones.
Balboa Fun Zone has a Merry Go Round & Ferris Wheel, after that it's boat tours & arcades. We love it, but our kids are older now too.
Corona del Mar Big Beach (look it up) isn't TOO far from there & the waves are tame there and there's also ample parking.
Because we hang at all those beaches in the summer, near 4th of July I've seen them at their best & their worst. I see HB (near Main St only) as party central..NB is a close second unless you go to the low numbers (8th St) away from the pier. Balboa is fun for families, but again, the waves can be daunting. My choice for families w/ little ones is Corona del Mar Big Beach...ALL the way!
MagicalMomAZ
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Aug 17, 2006
If you park in the residential area & walk down.
Otherwise it's like HB or BB - a fee per car. Which I beleive is $10 at BB & $15 at HB.There is a site of all the beaches online with info regarding rules, fire pits, etc.
http://www.parks.ca.gov/default.asp?page_id=652
PHXscuba
Mouseketeer since birth!
- Joined
- Jul 7, 2008
The amount of walking to get from the free parking to the beach in HB is going to be more than small kids are capable of. Balboa has some metered parking (by the pier) if you're not planning to stay all day, but I don't know how quickly that would add up near the daily fee of either beach.
PHXscuba
PHXscuba
DeluxePrincess
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jul 5, 2005
My family enjoyed Huntington Beach. There were plenty of other families having a blast there too. We didn't have to search for parking and the parking rate was reasonable. My kids thought eating at Ruby's on the pier was cool.
- Joined
- Dec 15, 1998
Hi and welcome to the DIS. I'm going to move this to our Southern California section of the boards. You have received some great information, and might find some other threads that will interest you regarding oru beaches. 
rockethouse
Earning My Ears
- Joined
- Feb 1, 2011
In the past, the lot at Warner & PCH in HB has been free. I generally bike to the beach so it's been a couple of years since I've tried to park there.
pixarmom
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Oct 20, 2009
I'd definitely recommend Newport. I've been vacationing there since childhood and my husband and I return with our three boys regularly. Our boys are now ages 4 to 12, but we've taken them to Newport as young as 6 months old. The Wedge is at the very tip of the Newport peninsula and we only go there to watch the surfers - not to get in the water with kids.
Because Newport is a peninsula, it has two sides - the calm, quiet waters of the bay side and the waves on the ocean side. Since childhood, I've been boogie boarding in the waves on the ocean side and swimming in the bay. While Huntington beaches are situated between the ocean and a busy street, Newport beaches are situated between the ocean and the sidewalk or the bay and a quiet residential street. I've been to Huntington several times and I'm far more comfortable at Newport with kids. If you park near 15th Street in Newport, you'll have relatively clean public restrooms, the Stuft Surfer for burgers or snacks, the 15th Street Surf Shop for rentals and Fry's Market for sunscreen, sand toys, snacks, etc. - all right there! And the Newport Elementary School playground is right there at 13th Street on the beach. Perfect for kids! If you prefer the quiet, calm bay side, visit the public beach at 10th street on the bay - it doesn't get much more calm than the Newport Harbor!
Then add the Balboa Fun Zone - arcades, rides, Ruby's restaurant on the pier. And then throw in the ferry ride to Balboa Island from the fun zone - great views of the harbor, followed by a walk along the bay to Marine Avenue on the island. Once on Marine Avenue, our kids love the toy store, the candy store and the frozen bananas and ice cream at Dad's. And for dinner, there's the Crab Cooker near the Newport Pier. Great seafood, but very casual and highly kid-friendly!
For all these reasons, I highly recommend Newport!
Because Newport is a peninsula, it has two sides - the calm, quiet waters of the bay side and the waves on the ocean side. Since childhood, I've been boogie boarding in the waves on the ocean side and swimming in the bay. While Huntington beaches are situated between the ocean and a busy street, Newport beaches are situated between the ocean and the sidewalk or the bay and a quiet residential street. I've been to Huntington several times and I'm far more comfortable at Newport with kids. If you park near 15th Street in Newport, you'll have relatively clean public restrooms, the Stuft Surfer for burgers or snacks, the 15th Street Surf Shop for rentals and Fry's Market for sunscreen, sand toys, snacks, etc. - all right there! And the Newport Elementary School playground is right there at 13th Street on the beach. Perfect for kids! If you prefer the quiet, calm bay side, visit the public beach at 10th street on the bay - it doesn't get much more calm than the Newport Harbor!
Then add the Balboa Fun Zone - arcades, rides, Ruby's restaurant on the pier. And then throw in the ferry ride to Balboa Island from the fun zone - great views of the harbor, followed by a walk along the bay to Marine Avenue on the island. Once on Marine Avenue, our kids love the toy store, the candy store and the frozen bananas and ice cream at Dad's. And for dinner, there's the Crab Cooker near the Newport Pier. Great seafood, but very casual and highly kid-friendly!
For all these reasons, I highly recommend Newport!
bobistheman
Earning My Ears
- Joined
- Dec 29, 2011
isnt parking in HB free near the dog beach?
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