Welcome to the Cvent Meeting and Event Planning Guide to Dana Point, a city guide written expressly for meeting professionals. With seven miles of coastal bluffs and beaches, Dana Point is a strikingly beautiful and posh enclave with magnificent luxury properties that look out upon Orange County's dramatic coastline. Dana Point sits next to Laguna Beach, one of SoCal's oldest arts colonies, where even shopping and dining have evolved into art forms. The area is anchored by fabulous beaches, historic Pacific Coast Highway and such popular places as Dana Point Harbor, a shopping, dining and entertainment center with slips and mooring for 2,500 boats.
Intrinsic to this luxe lifestyle are Dana Point's four distinctive resorts: The Ritz-Carlton, Laguna Niguel; St. Regis Monarch Beach Resort; Laguna Cliffs Marriott Resort & Spa; and DoubleTree Suites by Hilton Doheny Beach-Dana Point. Not only do these resorts contribute to the area's 530 total acres of manicured grounds, their championship golf courses and destination spas are frequented by residents as well as visitors.
Dana Point is situated halfway between Los Angeles and San Diego, which gives it easy access to five major airports. Visitors arriving to Dana Point by air can opt to fly into the nearby John Wayne Airport. Situated within a 30-minute drive of Dana Point, John Wayne Airport is the only commercial service airport in Orange County. The three-terminal airport operates 280 daily flights and offers nonstop service to and from such destinations as Atlanta, Chicago, Denver, Phoenix, Seattle and more. Once in Orange County, delegates can board the Orange County Transportation Authority's Metrolink and bus systems, both of which serve Dana Point. The four other airports located within 70 miles are LA/Ontario International Airport, Long Beach Airport, Los Angeles International Airport and San Diego International Airport.
Located within 13 miles of John Wayne Airport and a 45-minute drive from Dana Point, the Anaheim Convention Center serves as the nearest convention center to Dana Point. Known as the largest convention center on the West Coast (thanks to its more than 1.6 million square feet of space), the Anaheim Convention Center hosts approximately one million people each year. Delegates can gather in the center's 7,000-person arena, 815,000 square feet of exhibit space and 38,085-square-foot ballroom, among many other options. (The convention center is slated to open its highly anticipated, 100,000-square-foot outdoor Grand Plaza in early 2013.)
Aside from the nearby Anaheim Convention Center groups can gather, meet and simply have fun at the many unique venue spaces located in and around Dana Point. The historic landmark and museum known as Mission San Juan Capistrano welcomes visitors to embrace the state's multi-cultural history and explore its 10 acres of gardens and preserved adobe architecture. The mission welcomes private events in indoor and outdoor spaces, most notably the Central Courtyard, a grassy quadrangle surrounded by 64 adobe arches and dotted with a water garden, koi-filled fountain and more. The nearby Laguna Art Museum displays a varied collection of California art of all styles dating back to the early 19th century, as well as welcomes private events in its gallery space, conference room and gazebo.
Groups who wish to gather along the Pacific have a number of special event venues from which to choose. Dana Point's 62-acre Doheny State Beach features one mile of sandy beach, tide pools and some of the best swimming and surfing in California, not to mention a visitor center with five aquariums and a 500-gallon simulated tide pool, as well as private picnic facilities. A unique venue that not only brings guests to the water, the Ocean Institute offers a variety of cruises, sails and hands-on activities for groups. The nonprofit Institute focuses on marine science, ocean education, maritime history and environmental issues, as well as offers facility rentals in such spaces as its indoor and outdoor Samueli Lecture Hall & Conference Center. For an event on the water, groups can charter Dana Watch Sportfishing & Whale Watching's 14 vessels, ranging from a 63-foot catamaran to fishing yachts, as well as join whale watching cruises and fishing trips.
