Things to do / Places to see in Irvine, CA

Serious Business 6 replies 261 views
Scarlet_Buckeye's avatar
Scarlet_Buckeye
Posts: 5,264
Sep 7, 2010 2:28pm
My boss is flying me out to Irvine, CA for the 2nd time in 4 months. When I went out there the first time, it was totally sprung on me and I really had a lot to do while I was out there so I didn't have much time to do any personal traveling. Well, this time I have a little notice (in advance) and I'm pretty confident that I will have some time to do some personal traveling.

Seeing as how I really know nothing about the area, I was hoping I could turn to this message board and find some great tips on things to do, places to see, etc.

For more helpful information, Huntington Beach, Newport Beach, and Laguna Beach are well within driving range. Last time I was there we did manage to make it out to all three of these beaches (we basically drove down the coast line), but I didn't really do any exploring.

Any recommendations are greatly appreciated.
Scarlet_Buckeye's avatar
Scarlet_Buckeye
Posts: 5,264
Sep 9, 2010 11:07am
Bump.
KR1245's avatar
KR1245
Posts: 4,317
Sep 9, 2010 11:52am
I'm currently in Irvine as well. I've been here for a few weeks. Do you hike/bike? There are plenty of good trails out here.

We have biked Crytsal Cove (near Laguna) and Blackstar Canyon.
Corona Del Mar is a nice beach about 15 minuites away.
We rented a couple paddle boards to take through Newport Harbor
Its a pretty busy season for whale watching. We went last week and saw about 5 Blue whales, a Finn whale and over 100 dolphins.
The Spectrum is a nice outdoor mall in Irvine, reminds me of Easton but its much larger. Wasnt really my thing but my girlfriend loved it.
Scarlet_Buckeye's avatar
Scarlet_Buckeye
Posts: 5,264
Sep 9, 2010 12:27pm
Hmmm... I wouldn't mind doing the biking and paddling, but my fellow co-workers are not the types who would really be into that. Spectrum sounds pretty cool. I know the one lady who I work with would really be excited about that.

Any other ideas?
KR1245's avatar
KR1245
Posts: 4,317
Sep 9, 2010 12:50pm
Scarlet_Buckeye;476955 wrote:Hmmm... I wouldn't mind doing the biking and paddling, but my fellow co-workers are not the types who would really be into that. Spectrum sounds pretty cool. I know the one lady who I work with would really be excited about that.

Any other ideas?

Hmmm. I think we might do some surfing and parasailing tomorrow morning. My brother and I usually look for outdoor activities like biking, surfing etc. My girlfriend seems pretty happy sitting at the pool all day.

Places to eat:
El Ranchitos...excellent mexican
Rubios has some awesome fish and shrimp tacos
In-N-out
First Class Pizza

If you're looking for a place to watch the Buckeyes the Dave and Busters at the Spectrum is where the Irvine/Inland Empire alumni club meets
Scarlet_Buckeye's avatar
Scarlet_Buckeye
Posts: 5,264
Sep 10, 2010 7:59am
KR1245;476995 wrote:Hmmm. I think we might do some surfing and parasailing tomorrow morning. My brother and I usually look for outdoor activities like biking, surfing etc. My girlfriend seems pretty happy sitting at the pool all day.

Places to eat:
El Ranchitos...excellent mexican
Rubios has some awesome fish and shrimp tacos
In-N-out
First Class Pizza

If you're looking for a place to watch the Buckeyes the Dave and Busters at the Spectrum is where the Irvine/Inland Empire alumni club meets

Thanks KR1245
gerb131's avatar
gerb131
Posts: 9,932
Sep 10, 2010 8:48am
Can ya send me an Anteaters shirt please. I'm being serious too.