The marina at Newport Dunes RV Resort

We stayed at Newport Dunes RV Resort several times from November 2004 through February 2005.

The park is located on a lagoon with a sandy beach and cabins to rent. There's a marina at the resort, a club house with gym, meeting rooms, a restaurant/bar, and a well-stocked store.

The park is adjacent to a wetlands preserve which has miles of hiking and biking trails. You can rent bicycles, kayaks and peddle boats at the park and explore the lagoons and byways of the area.

The spaces can be kind of tight in some parts of the park. The waterfront spots are nice and spacious but expensive and are not rentable for long-term stays. When possible we always tried to request an end space. The staff was always very nice and as accomodating as they could be.

Newport Dunes is located within walking distance of Balboa Island, a very upscale island neighborhood which describes itself as a place "where the cats are fat and lazy, the yachts are shiny and grand, the houses are quaint and enchanting, and the living is creative and carefree." We figure it's where CEO's go to retire.

There's a walking path that goes around the entire island which is only 2.6 miles around. From the Balboa Island you can take a ferry boat over to the other side of Newport Beach, where the Balboa Fun Zone is located. The Fun Zone has arcades, bumper cars, restaurants, and is within walking distance of the beautiful beach.

I've mentioned quite a few local haunts in this page, but the funniest thing about Newport Beach/Balboa Island is the frozen banana wars. On Balboa Island alone there are two within one block of each other. This unique phenomenom is brilliantly spoofed in Arrested Developement.

When we were there in the fall/winter of 2004/2005 the park had a wireless satellite system that was good if you were in the right spaces. There were several "dead" spots in the park, so we drove around with our laptops before we decided on a particular spot. Last time we checked in with them (2/05) the satellite system was down, so call and check before assuming it's available. There are several Starbuck's and other cafes that have wireless in the area.