Long Beach, California
Long Beach, California
They call it the ultimate Southern California waterfront playground
By Steven Skelley & Thomas Routzong
Long Beach, California is called “the ultimate Southern California waterfront playground” for a very good reason – it is the perfect description! Community leaders, business owners and residents have united to turn this former naval base suburb into an incredible vacation and convention destination.
Just minutes from Los Angeles LAX airport, Long Beach is a big city with a small city feel - energetic, healthy, welcoming and clean. The wide sidewalks, bicycle lanes, bike racks and bike rentals make it a pleasure to leave your car and explore on foot. There are so many hotels, restaurants, clubs and attractions within easy walking distance from the downtown convention center, you could spend a week here and never need a car. (The city is even planning a $19 million bicycle friendly focus and free bicycle rentals downtown.)
We stayed at the Long Beach Westin with its’ rooftop pool and hot tub, great evening views of the harbor from our room, and a large, comfortable lobby with free WiFi access. The suites are so impressive that the state’s governor stays there.
Just across the harbor from downtown sits the impressive and historically significant, transatlantic ocean liner – the Queen Mary. Her cabins have been converted into hotel rooms with modern conveniences but you can still feel the aura of days gone by when walking down her hallways and through her rooms. We recommend you purchase a tour of the ship and learn its’ amazing place in history not only with celebrities but as an important part of World War 2 when it was commissioned into service while passengers were still onboard! The Queen Mary’s Sir Winston’s restaurant offers an upscale dining experience and magnificent food.
Not far from the Queen Mary, the Hotel Maya offers unique architecture and harbor views from almost all of its rooms. The bar/restaurant Fuego is so stylish that it has been used for scenes in CSI:Miami, Dexter and NCIS. Fuego specializes in coastal cuisines of Mexico and Latin America.
The Aquarium of the Pacific nonprofit aquarium and animal hospital has something for everyone and attracts more than 1.5 million visitors a year. It houses over 11,000 animals and 500 species. You can pet sharks and stingrays here! This is a must-see attraction.
There are so many restaurants within walking distance, it is hard to choose which one to try next. We enjoyed a giant-portion, seaside lunch at Parker’s Lighthouse in Shoreline Village, a plate-filling breakfast at the Omelet Inn, amazing lamb and ouzo at George’s Greek Café, and tasty tapas and a Flamenco dance show at Sevilla.
Should you want something a little different, nearby Naples Island offers gondola tours through the canals complete with singing gondoliers and pizza! If you’d like to complement your Naples Island gondola ride with a fine dining experience, Michael’s offers Italian and Mediterranean cuisine in a smart casual dining atmosphere.
Long Beach has a huge annual Pride festival every year with over 80,000 participants. Their annual pride parade has over 200 floats and the city boasts more than a dozen LGBT bars and restaurants
We spent four days in Long Beach and didn’t even come close to seeing everything we wanted to see or eating everywhere we wanted to eat at this well-planned and redesigned waterfront playground.
Watch our video of Long Beach below.
By Steven Skelley & Thomas Routzong. Copyright 2010 Sunny Harbor Publishing. Contact Us: Sunny Harbor Publishing, PO Box 560318, Rockledge, FL 32956. Phone: 321-446-7552. Email:[email protected]
Keywords: gay, gay travel, Long Beach, California, Queen Mary, travel, tourist, attractions, Steven Skelley, Thomas Routzong, Queen Mary,
They call it the ultimate Southern California waterfront playground
By Steven Skelley & Thomas Routzong
Long Beach, California is called “the ultimate Southern California waterfront playground” for a very good reason – it is the perfect description! Community leaders, business owners and residents have united to turn this former naval base suburb into an incredible vacation and convention destination.
Just minutes from Los Angeles LAX airport, Long Beach is a big city with a small city feel - energetic, healthy, welcoming and clean. The wide sidewalks, bicycle lanes, bike racks and bike rentals make it a pleasure to leave your car and explore on foot. There are so many hotels, restaurants, clubs and attractions within easy walking distance from the downtown convention center, you could spend a week here and never need a car. (The city is even planning a $19 million bicycle friendly focus and free bicycle rentals downtown.)
We stayed at the Long Beach Westin with its’ rooftop pool and hot tub, great evening views of the harbor from our room, and a large, comfortable lobby with free WiFi access. The suites are so impressive that the state’s governor stays there.
Just across the harbor from downtown sits the impressive and historically significant, transatlantic ocean liner – the Queen Mary. Her cabins have been converted into hotel rooms with modern conveniences but you can still feel the aura of days gone by when walking down her hallways and through her rooms. We recommend you purchase a tour of the ship and learn its’ amazing place in history not only with celebrities but as an important part of World War 2 when it was commissioned into service while passengers were still onboard! The Queen Mary’s Sir Winston’s restaurant offers an upscale dining experience and magnificent food.
Not far from the Queen Mary, the Hotel Maya offers unique architecture and harbor views from almost all of its rooms. The bar/restaurant Fuego is so stylish that it has been used for scenes in CSI:Miami, Dexter and NCIS. Fuego specializes in coastal cuisines of Mexico and Latin America.
The Aquarium of the Pacific nonprofit aquarium and animal hospital has something for everyone and attracts more than 1.5 million visitors a year. It houses over 11,000 animals and 500 species. You can pet sharks and stingrays here! This is a must-see attraction.
There are so many restaurants within walking distance, it is hard to choose which one to try next. We enjoyed a giant-portion, seaside lunch at Parker’s Lighthouse in Shoreline Village, a plate-filling breakfast at the Omelet Inn, amazing lamb and ouzo at George’s Greek Café, and tasty tapas and a Flamenco dance show at Sevilla.
Should you want something a little different, nearby Naples Island offers gondola tours through the canals complete with singing gondoliers and pizza! If you’d like to complement your Naples Island gondola ride with a fine dining experience, Michael’s offers Italian and Mediterranean cuisine in a smart casual dining atmosphere.
Long Beach has a huge annual Pride festival every year with over 80,000 participants. Their annual pride parade has over 200 floats and the city boasts more than a dozen LGBT bars and restaurants
We spent four days in Long Beach and didn’t even come close to seeing everything we wanted to see or eating everywhere we wanted to eat at this well-planned and redesigned waterfront playground.
Watch our video of Long Beach below.
By Steven Skelley & Thomas Routzong. Copyright 2010 Sunny Harbor Publishing. Contact Us: Sunny Harbor Publishing, PO Box 560318, Rockledge, FL 32956. Phone: 321-446-7552. Email:[email protected]
Keywords: gay, gay travel, Long Beach, California, Queen Mary, travel, tourist, attractions, Steven Skelley, Thomas Routzong, Queen Mary,