The Holidays! From WeHo to Dana Point!

Southern Lights
There are holiday boat parades up and down the California coast, but they come and go. Now Dana Point Harbor has the answer: the inaugural of IlluminOcean, 40 nights of marine-themed holiday lights stretching a mile along the marina—whales, dolphins, mermaids, a galleon, a pixilated-looking crab in a Santa hat, and much, much more, including long tunnels of lights.

Kids, or kids at heart (no matter how grumpy or averse to holiday music), will be dazzled by the light sculptures, many of which can be entered for—say—the illusion of being swallowed by a glittering blue whale. For that extra bit of fantasy, shops in the harbor are selling holographic glasses. And this weekend, the last of the season’s two boat parades (FantaSea, now in its 40th year) will start at 9pm on December 12 and 13.

The lights are up nightly until January 4. IlluminOcean is sponsored by the Resorts of Dana Point, all of whom run shuttles down to the harbor: the St. Regis Monarch Beach, the Ritz-Carlton Laguna Niguel, the Marriott Laguna Cliffs Resort & Spa, and the DoubleTree Suites by Hilton.

Chocolate ornaments at the St. Regis Monarch Beach

While you’re in the harbor, grab a bite or a smoothie at Coffee Importers, owned by Jim Miller, one of the movers and shakers behind IlluminOcean.
And while you’re passing the day waiting for the magic of the lights, consider going on one of Captain Dave’s dolphin and whale-watching cruises. This time of year you’re pretty much guaranteed being surrounded by dolphins, and the grey whales are just starting to show up on their way south to Mexico.

Another must for kids is the Ocean Institute, a marine education center for children of all ages. At the moment it’s only open to the public on weekends, but on weekdays you can still get up close to one of its two tall ships, the Spirit of Dana Point. And on weekends you can tour the whole facility, visiting tanks of jelly fish, stingrays, and California scorpion fish.

The rest of the attractions you know about: Southern California beach life at its best.