Orange County Attractions
Orange County is famous for many things. From Surf City USA at Huntington Beach, to Disneyland, to historic arts neighborhoods, attractions here have become some of the nation's most recognized household names.
The area is even a paradigm in itself these days, as the setting for the popular television drama The O.C., based on the local high-end lifestyle. The reason for Orange County's popularity is simple: it's just a great place to be, offering a year-round sub-tropical climate, a green oceanside setting, and dozens of carefully developed communities. Here's a guide to some of the most visited attractions in Orange County:
Huntington Beach is one of the best surfing spots on the West Coast and is home to the U.S. Open of Surfing. But this large seaside city also offers a wide variety of recreation opportunities beyond wave riding.
Residents here enjoy eight miles of sandy beaches open to all kinds of sports, like volleyball, frisbee golf, and biking. Events like the Vans World Championship of Skateboarding, and AVP Pro Beach Volleyball are also based right here on the beach. The city is also home to the longest recreational pier in California, extending out into the ocean from main street.
Disneyland is the world's iconic theme park, having attracted more than 515 million guests since opening in 1955. Located in Anaheim, the park brings to life the rich worlds of Disney stories in myriad theme parks and rides.
Disney created its own architecture style, known as the School of Imagineering, to help its designers come up with unique and memorable concepts for its parks. In one famous example of Imagineering, architects designed buildings in their Main Street U.S.A. with a "forced perspective," to make them appear taller than they actually were, by reducing the scale of their size with each floor in height.
Laguna Beach is Orange County's artistic hotspot, home to many famous galleries, art festivals, and historic districts. The oceanside town became a popular artists' colony for painters from upstate California in the early 1900s, and it hasn't looked back.
Laguna Beach is now home to a nice variety of artists and arts supporters. The local beach has also been designated a marine life refuge, famous for its beautiful tide pools.
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